GABE IN SURROUND SOUND

The Graham Ashton Brass Ensemble has recently completed their fourth album entitled "Music for Organ, Brass and Timpani". Members of GABE: Graham Ashton, Mark Gould, Carl Albach (trumpets); William De Vos (horn); Jim Pugh, Dick Clark, Jeff Nelson (trombones) and Marcus Rojas (tuba) are joined by virtuoso organist, Anthony Newman, and renowned timpanist from the Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera, Duncan Patton. This recording, in 'surround-sound', features all new arrangements by Graham Ashton and includes: Toccata from 'Orfeo' by Claudio Monteverdi; Canzoni XV and XVI (1615) and Canzon Noni Toni a 12 (1597) by Giovanni Gabrieli; Kantate am Michealisfeste BWV 19 (Nr.1 Coro) "Es erhub sich ein Streit", Kantate BWV 29 (Nr.1 Sinfonia) "Wir danken dir Gott, wir danken dir", Kantate BWV 214 (Nr.1 Coro) "Tönet, ihr Pauken! Erschallet, Trompeten!" by J.S.Bach; Overture from 'Music for the Royal Fireworks' by G.F.Handel; 'The Theotokos, Ever-Vigilant in Prayer' by Sergei Rachmaninov; 'Feierlicher Einzug der Ritter des Johanniterordens' by Richard Strauss; and 'The Great Gate of Kiev' by Modeste Mussorgsky. The album will be released in January 2005, on the new SONY Sonoma label.

NOTES ON THE ARRANGEMENTS
by Graham Ashton

'Music for the Royal Fireworks': G.F.Handel
Upon the death of Charles VI of Austria in 1740, the powers of Europe - Charles VI's daughter Maria-Theresa, Charles of Bavaria, Charles Emmanual III of Savoy and Augustus III of Saxony (and others who wished to annex Habsburg territories), squabbled over who should succeed to the Austrian throne. Squabbling led to conflicts - conflicts to wars, and Europe was thrown into turmoil. Austria fought Prussia in two separate wars between 1740-45 whilst defending territories against Bavaria and Saxony, and preventing the plunder of Habsburg possessions in Italy by the Spanish. They also entered a war with France in 1744, for which they called upon the help of England and the Netherlands through previously agreed alliances. The French retaliated by indirectly attacking Austria's allies, firstly, by placing diplomatic pressure on Sweden to attack Russia, thus stymieing any attempts by Russia to enter this theatre of war, and secondly, by supporting the Jacobite Rebellion happening in England at the time. These skirmishes, conflicts and wars, became collectively known as The War of the Austrian Succession. In 1748, after eight years of chaotic and confused fighting, all countries realized no one was going to win and reluctantly signed a peace treaty known as The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. When the dust had settled, Maria-Theresa managed to retain most of the Habsburg territories, but the costs of the eight years of war meant Austria emerged less than triumphant.

Relieved not to be ruling a country plagued by the financial constraints of a European war (and, by this time, more interested in North America than Europe), King George II of England decreed there should be a fireworks display to celebrate the The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. He declared the celebration to be for the people of England and commissioned George Frederick Handel to write festive music to mark the occasion. Handel produced a suite which he called [His Majesty's] Music for the Royal Fireworks, which was premiered in London's Green Park in 1749. Observers at the time noted there were over 10,000 people in the audience, and that traffic across London Bridge was brought to a standstill with carriages unable to pass either way. We also understand that a large, complicated structure was built to house the fireworks which, unfortunately, caught fire during the fireworks display after the performance!

Handel originally scored Music for the Royal Fireworks for a 'band' of wind players comprising 9 trumpets, 9 horns, 24 oboes, 12 bassoons and serpents, and 3 timpanists. Some said the ensemble was augmented by a number of string players for the concert, bringing the total musicians on stage to close on 100. In this arrangement of the Overture from Music for the Royal Fireworks for organ, brass and timpani, I have endeavored to maintain the energy and virtuosity that Handel would have heard on the day. The Allegro tempo is therefore fast, and in 1. Dynamics are frequently exaggerated and even meant to surprise as sudden fortes from the horn and unexpected crescendos from trios of trombones contest soaring D-majory trumpets.

Whilst adhering to authentic baroque performance practices as closely as one can with modern instruments, I have avoided the popular-at-the-time, 'Scottish snap' in the opening, and also the double-dotting before the slow middle section and the end, as both are less effective on brass. The ensemble is treated as three sections: i) organ; ii) an ensemble of 3 trumpets (1st and 2nd Piccolo A, 3rd doubling C and Piccolo A) and timpani; and iii) an ensemble of 3 trombones (alto, tenor and bass) and tuba. The horn is the single voice connecting the three sections. The 3rd trumpet has a concertante part, covering both Handel's original 3rd D trumpet line, and the tutti running eighth-note sections originally given to the oboes. The organ is treated more as a basso continuo for the tutti sections, and rarely doubles the brass lines however, for the solo sections, single brass, or a small ensemble, occasionally join the organ to add new color to the registration.


Canzoni XV & XVI and Canzon Noni Toni a 12: Giovanni Gabrieli
Giovanni Gabrieli was one of the most innovative musicians and composers of the renaissance period. A pupil of his uncle, Andrea Gabrieli (to whom the development of the renaissance Ricercare is attributed), Giovanni had been a court musician in Munich from 1575-79 before being appointed as organist to St. Mark's in Venice in 1584. Such was the importance of this appointment that Gabrieli often had as many as 25 musicians in his employ - half of whom were cornetto and sackbut players.

It wasn't until 1586 that Gabrieli's duties at St. Mark's are recorded to have included composition. However, over the following 26 years until his death in 1612, he produced some of the most significant instrumental ensemble music of the period. Gabrieli's contemporaries revered his innovation: he was the first to contrast polyphony and homophony in the same piece, the first to use both double and triple time and, the first to formalize dynamics in his Sonata Pian e Forte. In addition, his exploration into the world of antiphony was as imaginative as was his treatment of the occasional canzona as a 'concerto' with a solo line interspersed with tutti passages - not dissimilar to the Italian concerto of the later baroque period.

Gabrieli's music is mostly contained in two collections from which, the three canzoni on this recording are taken. The first collection Symphoniae Sacrae of 1597, includes 16 instrumental compositions (14 Canzoni and 2 Sonati) for varying sized ensembles. Taken from this 1597 collection, Canzon Noni Toni a 12 is one of the first instrumental works where Gabrieli wrote for more than 8 players. Unlike the aforementioned Sonata Pian e Forte (also from the 1597 collection), Canzon Noni Toni a 12 does not contain dynamic markings, and so the interpretation is left to the performer. In this recording, the dynamics for Choirs I and II were edited to match the full-sounding registration of the organ/Choir III. I re-wrote the Choir III parts to be more organ-friendly so there are slight differences from the original notation.

Canzoni XV and XVI are from the later of the two collections called simply Canzoni e Sonati (1615). The collection contains music for up to 22 players - one of the largest instrumental ensembles known from the period. Published after his death, Gabrieli's Canzoni e Sonati (1615), is a remarkable record of late 16th century polyphony. For this reason, and the fact that by 1615, polyphonic music was less fashionable than the 'new genre' of chamber music, the collection stands alone - caught between the Renaissance and the Baroque. In addition, as Venice went into deep economical decline in the 17th century, it is unlikely any of Gabrieli's large-scale canzoni would have been performed, as employing large numbers of musicians would have been too costly.

I have arranged Canzoni XV and XVI in different ways. Canzon XVI was treated similarly to Canzon Noni Toni in that there are three distinct ensembles: Choirs I and II each with two C trumpets, a tenor and bass trombone, whilst Choir III is for organ alone which again, I have re-written to be more organ-friendly. For Canzon XV, the organ simply plays parts v and vi normally played by trumpet and trombone. As with Canzon Noni Toni, dynamics and phrasing for these two canzoni are edited to suit a grander interpretation.


'Feierlicher Einzug der Ritter des Johanniter-Ordens': Richard Strauss
Premiered in Vienna on December 12, 1909, Feierlicher Einzug der Ritter des Johanniter-Ordens (Solemn Entry of the Knights of the Order of St.John), was originally scored for 15 trumpets (3 in Eb and 12 in C), 4 horns, 4 trombones, 2 tubas and timpani. It is one of a number of exceptional pieces Strauss wrote for large symphonic brass which (for reasons unknown to this author) are seldom heard, or performed, outside the confines of our brass world.

Born on June 11th, 1864 in Munich, Bavaria, Richard Strauss was exposed to outstanding brass playing from an early age. His father, Franz Strauss, was the well-respected principal horn in the Munich Court Orchestra and frequently took his son to rehearsals and concerts. Having developed an empathy with the horn from such an early age, it is of no surprise that the young Strauss produced a virtuosic 1st Horn Concerto in 1886 - when he was just 22 years old.

Composed in the same year as the premier of Elektra in Dresden, Feierlicher Einzug, whilst not universally known, is a significant work in the symphonic brass repertoire. Even in such a relatively straightforward piece, the composer typically stretches tonality to dissonance, often using chromaticism to produce 'scrunchy', almost confronting chord progressions, which resolve only just before becoming questionable.

In arranging this work for organ, brass and timpani, I significantly reduced the size of Strauss' ensemble from 25 to 8 to suit the GABE octet. However, by enveloping forte brass with grand organ registrations, and paying careful attention to chord spacing and texture, I have endeavored to maintain the large ensemble sound Strauss intended, whilst introducing some of the 'orchestral' colors evident in his tone poems.


Tocatta from 'Orfeo': Claudio Monteverdi
There are two styles we tend to use when performing renaissance music on modern brass instruments. One is to adopt a more symphonic style with full sounds and warm sonorities, the other is to follow authentic performance practices by seeking transparency and simplicity through softer dynamics and a more even shape to the notes - with little or no vibrato. It is my impression that performers, audiences and fans of brass music appreciate both interpretations for different reasons. As the Gabrieli canzoni on this recording have been recorded in the more symphonic style, I wanted to offer a taste of how renaissance music can be performed on modern brass instruments in a more authentic style by imitating the lighter sound of cornetti and sackbuts. Tocatta from 'Orfeo' is arranged and recorded with this in mind. Full, rich, symphonic sounds give way to clear, pure, almost celestial transparency as two solo trumpets lightly engage in a dialogue of feathery exchanges over a chattering ensemble of trumpet, alto, tenor and bass trombones. The charming ritornellos I gave to the trio of trombones with organ basso continuo.


'The Theotokos - Ever Vigilant in Prayer': Sergei Rachmaninov
Sergei Rachmaninov studied at the St. Petersburg and Moscow Conservatories and began his career in Russia as a pianist, composer and conductor. Forced into exile after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, he moved initially to Scandinavia and thereafter to New York in 1918. To support his family during their first years in the United States, Rachmaninov performed as a pianist and soon became one of the most popular soloists of 1920s, giving concerts on both sides of the Atlantic - although never again in his native Russia.

The Russian Orthodox Church was a powerful influence in Sergei Rachmaninov's life and is evident in much of his work, especially his sacred choral music. The Concerto for Chorus: The Theotokos - Ever Vigilant in Prayer, is a tribute to the doctrinal significance of the Holy Virgin Mary as the Mother of God in the Russian Orthodox Church:

The Theotokos - Ever Vigilant in Prayer, and unceasing in her intercessions [for the world], neither the tomb, nor death, could hold captive; for, as the Mother of life, she was translated to life by the One who dwelt in her ever-virginal womb.

Choral music transcribes well for brass - similarities in the sonorities of a cappella and pianissimo brass playing perhaps help. Indeed, these similarities, together with the ecclesiastical connotation of the organ significantly influenced my arrangement of this divine choral work. To add density and depth of sound, I stretched the harmonic spacing to the limit and mostly doubled, and/or lowered by an octave or two, the bass lines of the organ, bass trombone and tuba.

My thanks to Mark Gould for bringing this work to my attention - such extraordinary music deserves to be heard more often.


'The Great Gate of Kiev' from Pictures at an Exhibition: Modeste Mussorgsky
On April 4, 1866 an anarchist attempted to assassinate Tsar Alexander II by throwing a bomb at him in the city of Kiev. Fortunately, the Tsar escaped with his life which, the town of Kiev honored by announcing a competition for the design of a new town gate to commemorate the event. An architect, and close friend of Modeste Mussorgsky, Victor Hartmann, submitted designs for a 'Great Gate' which caused a sensation - even Hartmann himself believed it was his finest work. Unfortunately, the excitement faded when the Kiev town council announced there were insufficient funds for such a gate and the project was abandoned - a source of great disappointment to Victor Hartmann.

When Hartmann died in 1874, Modeste Mussorgsky visited an exhibition of the architect's work. Among the exhibits were ten drawings and paintings of which, one was Hartmann's watercolor of his 'Great Gate'. Inspired by these images, and in memory of his friend, Mussorgsky composed his suite Pictures at an Exhibition. Originally written for piano, it became one of Mussorgsky's most treasured works - becoming even more popular after Maurice Ravel's skillful orchestration of the suite in 1922.

Although working from the original piano score, the sound of Ravel's orchestration was clear when arranging The Great Gate of Kiev for organ, brass and timpani. I favored the 'brassy' sound of trumpets and trombones for solo brass passages, using the horn, tuba and timpani more for depth of color and texture in the tutti sections. The solemn 'church-like' choral sections I gave to solo organ.


Graham Ashton
New York, August 21st, 2004