Keith Brion / Royal Artillery Ba
Music For Wind Band Vol.2

Although containing quite a few marches including three of his strongest marches whereby you can actually visualise what the music is conveying there is also a balance with his other works. One of these is an eight minute "Songs of Grace and Glory" woven of several hymns for his numerous Sunday concerts. Also featured is the slow ragtime piece that allows one to sit down and relax, one of his serious suites "At the Movies comprising three movements with the finale taking on the form of an old-fashioned hoedown. There is also the well-known march "King Cotton and an untitled march that had previously not been known too exist and was written in 1930. It was unearthed in 1990 and it was Sousa's usual practice to leave them untitled until they were performed in public. I don't often select a march as my number one pick on a disc but here it is 1. march "Wisconsin Forever Forward" a war time inspired march and his strongest represented here; 2. the lilting "Willow Blossoms"; 3. "Songs of Grace and Glory"; 4. march "Bullets and Bayonets" [another strong war time march where you can actually visualise envisage the scene; 5. the third strong war time march featured here "Solid Men to the Front". John McMullen