This is a very good and well played programme of music from the Corps, in
this their 50th anniversary year, and is a great credit to not only the
conductors and musicians but also to their founder Dick Bouchard MBE.
Starting with Blaze Away the band play the march with much enthusiasm and
are obviously enjoying themselves before going into three very contrasting
pieces.
Th Adagio from Concerto de Aranthuez provides a very well played showcase
for the bands Principal Cornet Kirsty Evans before a rendition of that old
brass band favourite Slaidburn.
The Corps of Drums are featured in their own contribution to the bands 50th
year with Bulleye (buy the record to solve the puzzle of the title) The band
then plays a favourite of mine "Billboard March" by John Klohr. My one
criticism or this item is that the tempo should be a little quicker as per
US Bands. Latin Quarter, an excellent arrangement incidentally, features not
only the assured alto saxophone playing of Lydia Stringer but also a mass of
Latin American percussion instruments to great advantage.
Green & Gold, especially written for the band and now adopted as their
official march and a bonus number with a difference complete this programme
by an excellent youth band.
A colourful and informative inlay booklet, packed with with information,
comes with the disc complete with a photograph of a very smartly turned out
band and drums on the back cover.
Major (Retired) Ron Berry
Former Director of Music of the Royal Signals
Band.
The CD is brilliant, any parent that doesn't buy this is missing out on
something very special.
Geraldine Harvey- Band Parent
The overall package is very well laid out, containing history, founder of
the band and a full music description of the pieces played.
On to the music. It start off with the well know march Blaze Away, this is
then followed by a spiritual piece called Jericho.
There is a wide range of music from film to big band style, plus marches.
There is even vocals in an African dialect in a piece called Ejala.
There are two pieces that show the high standard of the soloists, Kirsty
Evans playing flugelhorn in the Adagio from Concierto de Aranjuez and Lydia
Stringer on Sax playing a Latin Quarter. My favourite piece from the CD is
the Pirates of the Caribbean.
The corps of drums is featured on one track and the disc ends with the bands
own march Green & Gold. As a bonus track the band plays the backing to a
piece called Highbury Highs which is sung by Roger Daltery, lead singer of
The Who.
Martin Hissey
Harrow
CL&CGB
