BRASS MUSIC TO OUR EARS
IT IS difficult to think of anything more enjoyable than to sit back on a Sunday afternoon and enjoy some good live music, and this was certainly true of this performance.
Not only did Townsville Brass defy all preconceptions about brass band performance, but the band also presented a diverse range of repertoire which certainly could not be described as a staid performance of the tried and true.
Displaying a remarkably diverse range from the Moody Blues and Chris de Burgh to Puccini and Khachaturian, this was the latest in the monthly concerts staged by the Townsville Music Centre. It continues the centre’s mission to present the diverse range of music and musical talent that exists in our community – and this 24-piece band was put through its paces in a demanding range of work under the deft and demanding baton of Dr Mark Smith.
From classics to pop songs and film themes, there was something to strike familiar chords for every member of the audiences.
There were arrangements for pop songs such as Oasis’ Don’t Look Back in Anger, the Moody Blues classic Nights in White Satin, and the anthem by Journey Don’t Stop Believin’.
Film themes such as Gabriel’s Oboe from The Mission (a moving solo by Jason Curtis on euphonium); Cavatina from The Deer Hunter and even the evergreen Singin’ in the Rain also featured.
However, central to the performance was the revival of 1912 arrangement entitled Grand Selection from Madame Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini. Arranged specifically for brass bands, it is not known when this piece was last performed as Dr Smith found the only copy available worldwide at the National Library of Australia.
The orchestra pulled out all the stops in performing this challenging 15-minute piece which had clear overtones of Les Miserables and Miss Saigon in several familiar musical passages.