A Solid Brass Christmas
A Suite of English Carols: 1. The First Nowell: Coventry Carol: Deck the Halls (Arr. DiSavino)
2. Wassail Song (Vaughan Williams, Arr. Haislip)
3. Three French Carols: Ding Dong Merrily on High; 0 Come, 0 Come Emmanuel; Angels We Have Heard on High (Arr. Di Savino)
4. Three German Carols: In dulci jublio; Silent Night; Hark the Herald Angels Sing (Arr. Della Peruti)
5. Suite of Medieval Carols (Arr. DiSavino)
6. Wach et auf, ruft uns die Stimme (J.S. Bach, Arr. Haislip)
The Nutcracker Suite:
7. Marche
8. Danse arabe
9. Danse russe trepak (Tchaikovsky, Arr. Sampson)'
10. Christmas Day (Holst, Arr. Haislip)
11. Song of the Birds (Catalan Christmas Folksong) (Arr. DiSavino)
12. Judas Maccabaeus Suite (Handel, Arr. Haislip)
13. Greensleeves/What Child Is This? (Arr. Haislip)
Solid Brass
Barry Browner, Steven Falker, Douglas Haislip, David Sampson, Trumpets; Elizabeth DiSavino, French horn; Carl Della Peruti, Gary Grimaldi, Hans Muhler, Trombones; Jeffrey Caswell, Bass trombone; Kyle Turner, Tuba; Adrienne Wilcox, Percussion
The booming brasses have come up in the musical world since the days when their function was almost purely ceremonial and military, and their increasing technical sophistication over the centuries has led them to become capable of holding their own as interpretive instruments. If you like traditional Christmas carols (the very word carol suggests Christmas even though the form dates back to prehistoric pagan celebrations of the winter solstice) there is a 20-minute international tour of them in store for you here. The instruments take up unique arrangements of carols familiar and unfamiliar from France, Germany, and England, as well as a colorful suite of carols dating from medieval times. During the course of this musical tour you can hear the brasses resounding to "Silent Night," "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," "In dulci jubilo," "The First Nowell," and "Deck the Halls," along with such selections as "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," "Ding Dong Merrily on High," and the Coventry Carol. And from Spain comes the Catalan Christmas folksong "Song of the Birds."
Carols and folktunes, however, make up only some of the delights in this Christmas surprise package. From England hail Gustav Holst's charming "Christmas Day" and Ralph Vaughan Williams' Wassail Song. There is also an unusual treatment for brass of "Greensleeves."
The brasses pay homage as well to another work associated with the Christmas season: Tchaikovsky's hardy perennial ballet score for The Nutcracker. The selections chosen from it for this release are the lively March, the sinuous Arabian Dance, and the dazzling Russian Trepak. Bach, too, is heard from, in an arrangement for brass of his "Wachet auf."
. In addition, since the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah occurs around the same time as Christmas, there is a suite of music drawn from Handel's Judas Maccabaeus, the oratorio which tells the story of how the hero of ancient Judea, along with his brothers, drove out the invading forces of Antiochus Epiphanes and restored the Temple in Jerusalem after its profanation by the intruders.
Linking all these diverse selections, in addition to the shining sound of the brasses which brilliantly perform them, is the spirit of celebration that started in 15th-century England with the development of the carol as a Christmas song. This is music that through the ages has sought to express the joy that the shepherds in the field might have felt that first Christmas when they heard the angels singing the praises of the newborn child said to be the Son of God. What started with the human voice was later set for all sorts of instruments-handbells, barrel organs, music boxes, church bells, and, as represented here in this latest addition to the Musical Heritage Society's substantial repertoire of recorded Christmas music, the brass band.
Paul Kresh
Founded in 1982 by Cart Della Peruti and Douglas Haislip, Solid Brass is already recognized by audiences and critics alike as one of the premier brass ensembles in the country, and its reputation for virtuoso performances continues to grow. Solid Brass is a group of ten highly regarded professional musicians with vast combined experience. Members have worked with, and currently perform with, organizations such as the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, City Ballet, American Symphony, and Colonial Symphony. All of the music on this recording was arranged specifically for Solid Brass by members of the ensemble. These selections are frequently heard on Solid Brass tours in the finest concert halls in the country.
