Summon the Heroes John Williams Arr: D.Glänneskog

Strong cornets to start, but we don’t escape blemish free. Some intonation issues when trombones join, but the sounds are mostly well balanced. This isn’t easy to pull off here in such a dry acoustic, and I question whether this repertoire is really ‘at home‘ in this venue; I do hear some flaws in intonation, ensemble and balance throughout, but there’s also moments of solid band playing too.

Jag vet en dejlig rosa Trad. Arr: David Glänneskog

Opening isn’t entirely together. Some nice horn section playing follows - well done horns. Cornet harmon mutes work well, but balance is an issue as we don’t quite hear trombones. Again, the trombone melody is a little lost as the accompaniment overpowers - a pity, as there’s some controlled quiet playing here that could be very effective. Everything works well through to the end, but there’s a little intonation issue between tuba and cornet octaves to close. Some nice playing but i’m not sure this was the most engaging selection.

Hymn for Diana. Joseph Turrin

Again, challenging to pull this off in this venue - last night’s acoustic would have helped you much more. There’s just far too many moments when we hear problems with intonation (particularly in upper cornets) and the sound becomes a little harsh at times. This piece needs more warmth the sound throughout, and much more expression within the phrasing, which i’m afraid we don’t get today (Or at least this doesn’t carry to the audience). There’s a few very uncomfortable moments in upper cornets towards the close. A brave choice in this acoustic, but this didn’t work for me, and I feel you’ve lost the audience here.

Scherzo for X-wings John Williams Arr: Lavender/Sparke

Razor sharp articularion to begin - this is a bit more gripping. But too many splits follow (especially in the main theme). There is clarity and a lot of detail though - the dry acoustic works in your favour now! There is some detailed and exciting playing here, and this is all working more successfully. Still a few moments of intonation and ensemble, but this is a pretty engaging short burst to finish.

This is clearly a capable band, but I feel you missed the brief a bit today. The programme felt a bit safe, or maybe traditional, for this venue and as a result I didn’t feel you engaged the audience today, and the music didn’t feel at home in this space. The inclusion of two relatively slow pieces (however good the music may be) didn’t help this. Your best playing came at the end. Thanks for the effort you have put in to both programmes.