Sousa

The exhilarating conductor Kristjan Järvi exploits the style and panache of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in a festive programme of works by the American John Philip Sousa, ‘The March King’. This follows the spectacular recording of works by Julius Fučík, made by Neeme Järvi, Kristjan’s father.

No one embodied the qualities of the American band master more supremely than John Philip Sousa. In this penultimate volume of an internationally admired series, a wide variety of his compositions can be heard, a number in world première recordings. The music ranges from the early Across the Danube March to music from his operettas, taking in a Chopin arrangement and the stirring Yorktown Centennial March. Also included are those inventive works, such as Pet of the Petticoats March, in which Sousa experimented with the march form itself. This recording coincides with the 70th anniversary of the Marine Band of the Royal Netherlands Navy in 2015.

One of the most popular military brass bands in Britain, the orchestra of the Royal Marines gave a very successful American tour in 1986, leading to the recording of three volumes of marches by master of military music John Philip Sousa. This collection includes lots of sparkling circumstance pieces, rarely recorded, each one having an amusing story or dedicatee, such as the 50th anniversary of the baseball league or the opening of the Ibero-American exhibition in Sousa’s hometown, Seville.

Spanning over 50 years of composition, Volume 18 reveals Sousa to be a master of operetta and the humoresque just as much as the marches for which he is still referred the world over. Stag Party depicts a students night out via a string of imperishable popular melodies, while Among My Souvenirs sees the song lengthened into a vivid narrative sketch. There is also the Incidental Suite from The Charlatan, one of his best-known operettas, and March of the Pan-Americans, Part 2, the national anthem spectacular. Trinity Laban Conservatoire is the UK s only conservatoire of music and contemporary dance. As a leader in music and contemporary dance education, the conservatoire also provides exciting opportunities for the public to encounter dance and music and access arts health programmes. The staff of the conservatoire deliver unequalled expertise and experience, and their world-class facilities are housed in landmark buildings.