I am really happy to announce that at the start of 2012 Kapitol commissioned a new work for the first section national finals, in celebration of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
The score for VIVAT! will be available from Studio Music from June 1st, with the contest taking place in Cheltenham at 'Centaur' on 22nd & 23rd September.
There is more information, including a programme note online at 4barsrest or tomdavoren.co.uk
It's been straight into things since I landed back in the UK. It's been nice to do some conducting again with visits to Tredegar and planning a visit Desford band, and a CD recording with the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.
I was privileged to be able to conduct a rehearsal with the Central Band during the run up to the recording, a real honour that civilians are not usually afforded. The band performed superbly during the recording session, so I can't wait to hear the result!
I'll leave for now with a few recent photos. Some from Rotterdam, featuring the city, our home for the week (a converted cargo barge), the amazing venue (de doelen) and two of the rehearsal with the RAF, many thanks to principal pipe smoker Jonti Hill.
The nicest part of the past couple of weeks however has been taking Saturday and Sunday off for walking with Kim and some family time.
It's been a fun week so far.
Things kicked off last Saturday with a day adjudicating the lower and youth sections at the Welsh League contest in Ebbw Vale. There were some really encouraging performances and with some familiar faces like Austin Davies, Phillip Morris and Melvin White organising, presenting and adjudicating it proved a really enjoyable day.
It's been a busy composing week too, with three new pieces being prepared for performances.
My tuba dectet 'pads & riffs' had it's first rehearsal on Tuesday at the RWCMD (ready for a performance at the RWCMD for the BTS national festival on 26th May). The latest version of my String Quartet was also workshopped by the superb Brodowski Quartet at Bristol University and today Paul McGhee and I will see pieces performed at the final of the composers competition at the European Brass Band Championships.
A big thanks to Paul and Lucy for putting me up before our flight, and for a weekend of lovely company :)
Life gets back to normal next week, and I will be back in front of a band conducting! I'll be rehearsing the Central Band of the Royal Air Force on a new piece of mine for a forthcoming CD recording. It's a massive privilege that civilians are not usually afforded, so I'm enormously grateful and look forward to the experience!
The piece is on page ten and has a new photo by media Wales, who have been good enough to gift me four additional photos for my website.
I have uploaded two of the photos to the main banner of www.tomdavoren.co.uk , and have attached a photo the article itself to this post.
Thanks to Media Wales and Jess at Cardiff University School of Music.
It's a massive pleasure to be writing for the Central Band of the RAF, they really are a world class ensemble.
The piece I have written is called 'Return to the White City', which takes it's name from the Stadium and area of London which hosted long distance running during the last British Olympics in 1908.
The piece itself is influenced by long distance running, specifically the critical moment when a pack starts to form and separate, and the gradual revealing of the leaders through the differing tactics and fitness levels.
The first rehearsal was really enjoyable and a CD recording and premiere are scheduled for 11th May and 23rd June respectively. The premiere will be given at at concert called, The Royal Air Force Musical Salute to the Queen's Jubilee, where it will be accompanied by a cinema screen display and pyrotechnics.
There is a bit more info available on the piece and the first performance through the links below:
I was thrilled to find out yesterday that euphonium soloist Glenn Van Looy will be performing my concertino Proverbially on his visit to Japan.
Glenn is in Japan as I type and will be performing Proverbially with Saitama Premier Brass.
I'm pretty excited as it is the first time any of my music will be performed in Asia, I have no doubt that Glenn will keep us all up to date with his trip via his facebook page and twitter account.
Have a great time mate, and glad you are enjoying the piece!
March 2012, so far, has been a pretty cool month. Not only have I had some composition stuff going down (posts to follow), but I also had the pleasure of taking the Filton band to the West of England first section area. The band were new to the first section and only meet as a contesting band once a year for this event. They worked really hard and achieved their highest ever 7th place, a massive well done!
Anyway, lets get back to the title of this post! March is also the month that my new role within the British Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles (BASBWE) has been realised, with the publishing of Winds, the associations quarterly journal.
As production manager my role has been to design the journal and map it's content, working closely with a guest editor and and board to form that content. Each editionwoll have a new guest editor, the first being Martin Ellerby,so a unique feel will be brought to each quarterly edition.
Regular features include news, reviews a a feature band. Special articles this edition include:
Winds should now have arrived on doorsteps all over the world, so to find out more about the journal and BASBWE simply visit www.basbwe.net
I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into this project. With some fantastic guest editors lined up Winds will hopefully get better and better throughout 2012!
I'm waiting for the exact news but I believe they played my version of Heat is On and Visions of Gunnedah (Kolkhis) as part of their programme at this contest. A massive thanks for making my music a part of it again guys :)
Oh, and a huge congrats to one of the finest guys and players I know, John Lewis, for winning the Ern Kelker International Solo Championship! I can't think of anyone more deserving.
Having taken January off conducting it was also nice to step back in front of a band this February, returning to BTM for Yeovil & The Welsh Open entertainment contests.
It was a little strange working with the band over such a short period of time, putting things together in a handful of rehearsals, but the band did well and brushed off a disappointing 8th at Yeovil with a deserving 3rd place at the Welsh Open. A special thanks must go to the bands cornet player Kirsty Davies who put together a great media display for the Welsh open.
It pretty cool to think that Visions of Kolkhis was being played in contests by two bands, at different ends of the world, by two of BTM's former conductors during the same day! Though I will have been in the pub having a birthday meal while Gunny where just getting going :)
It's been a couple of weeks since my last post as I have been having a bit of a social media semi-blackout this week, for work reasons.
Following an epic bout of over tweeting on Sunday (I was on the train to Manchester for a meeting) it has been all quiet on the Western front, ironically due to being sat in front of a computer for most of the week!
I had a pleasure of taking on a last minute editing project, working scores and creating parts for composer Jeremy Holland-Smith's new ballet work. Having not encountered Jeremy's work before it was a real treat, full of energy and vitality, and I'm certainly looking forward to the premiere on the 16th March with Spencer Down & his Docklands Sinfonia
http://www.docklandssinfonia.co.uk/concerts
Away from the desk I had the great pleasure of attending a rehearsal by the euphonium quartet 'Euphony' from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
They will be giving the premiere of my View from the Russian Cottage on Friday 27th January during the 'Festival Prelude' section of the Royal Northern College of Music Festival of Brass.
The piece itself is about Chatsworth House in Derbyshire and it's beautiful grounds. The Russian Cottage itself was a gift to the Duke of Devonshire by Tsar Nicholas I in the mid 1800's. The piece is atmospheric and takes in the the magnificent view down onto the estate from the cottage itself, situated on the top of the valley. Dominating features are the imposing Hunting Tower which protrudes from the surrounding forestry, Chatsworth House itself which is rich in ornate and detailed architectural features, and the river Derwent which laces itself through the rolling, verdant peaceful land.
It really is not your 'normal' style of euphonium quartet, with each of the parts individual, complex and interwoven. I must say though that I am really happy, and 'Euphony' are more than doing it justice. I can't wait for the performance come Friday. It is a free concert that would be well worth any ones time to attend
So, save a bit of unreliable behaviour from my usually trusty car, it has been a pretty good week!
2011 was a smashing year for me with the start of PhD, some great composition performances, lots of band conducting, a brass festival, cd recordings, an award nomination, some experience as a copyist & editor and some lovely traveling.
Well 2012 is going to be a little different. I am really slimming down on the conducting and festival organising, so there will be much less BTM an Cardiff New Brass Festival in my life.
2012 is the year of 'music on the page' for me. I'm looking forward to devoting some real time to composing & my PhD, and having some exciting copyist & wind band activity too, all to be revealed soon!
In the mean time I have just delivered my first two commissions of the year! (rolling over from 2011).They are big works for wind band with two great premiere performances planned, so I will post more soon!
So, for now I head back to my newly organised desk, constructed for ease of watching the BBC series 'Sherlock', to get going on my next project, finishing a Baritone Horn Concerto for Kristy Rowe :)
Incidentally, I only watched the first episode of 'Sherlock' series two yesterday ..... how bloody brilliant was that !!!!
