May Hill Edition
SEXTETS
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A Celtic Cluster (DTrTrTTB) MHE 10905 £8.00
The Road To Lisdoonvarna
The Harvest Home
The Star Of The County Down
Old John's Jig
Many recorder players will be familiar with Paul Clark's excellent 'Irish Suite', but given the vast array of traditional Irish tunes I thought there was room for at least another set of arrangements from the Emerald Isle! Two of these pieces need a certain dexterity, especially in the upper parts, and especially at the marked speeds, but there's nothing too virtuosic. Great fun to play, and listen to. Also available for recorder orchestra (MHE 10905a £12.00).

Four Pieces From The 13th Century (DTrTrTTB) MHE 20905 £6.50
Ballade: Dieus Soit En Cheste Meson
Motetus: Alle Psallite Cum Luya
Motetus: Pucelete
Motetus: In Seculum Viellatoris
These are arrangements of some examples of very early French polyphony. The tunes are bare and beautiful.. The original manuscripts were in three parts, but they have been expanded into six parts by means of doubling, which gives them a colour and variety which sounds good, but which may well not be authentic.

Anthem: Praise The Lord (SnoDTrTTB) MHE 10204a £3.00  
This reflective piece is based on a tiny A-C-G motif which sets the words “Praise The Lord”. The anthem is only short, but the motif is heard over 20 times in various parts. Easy, although the sopranino will have to work a little to phrase smoothly a melody which includes some wide leaps. Also available for DTrTBGtB(orB)CtB (MHE 10204 £3.00)

Four Seasonal Sketches (DTrTTBB) MHE 20504 £8.00
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter
These little pieces are sketches of typical scenes throughout the year. The notes are not difficult (except for a few bars in 'Autumn'), but some work will be needed to find the right mood in each piece. The tenor 2 and bass 2 parts may be played an octave lower, on great bass and contrabass respectively. 'Winter' is the same as the low setting of Anthem: Praise The Lord.

Thule, The Period Of Cosmography (Thomas Weelkes) (DDTrTTB) MHE 40703 £4.50   
Possibly the first time this strangely-titled, but beautiful madrigal has been transcribed for recorders. Quite easy. Also available a 5th lower for TrTrTBBGtB (MHE 40703a £4.50).

Chaconne for Recorder Sextet (DTrTTBB) MHE 30903 £3.00   
A chaconne with a wistful feel. Not a difficult piece. Also works well if one tenor part and one bass part are played an octave lower on great bass and contrabass.

Euphonic Sounds (Scott Joplin) (SnoDTrTBGtB) MHE 40303 £5.00   
One of Joplin’s ‘late period’ rags. Harmonically adventurous, but not hard to play.

Four Pieces For Recorder Sextet (DTrTTBB) MHE 41203 £7.00
Exhilaration is the Breeze
Patience - has a quiet Outer -
This slow Day moved along -
Time does go on -
Two new pieces, as well as ‘Happy Peliquins’, and a sextet arrangement of ‘Funk’ from ‘Five Shades Of Blue’. Moderately difficult. The second bass part works very well on a contrabass, if available.

Christmas Twofers (DTrTTBB) MHE 20503 £6.50
Away the Angels
O little Town in Midwinter
Hark to the World
Three fun pieces for Christmas. Each twofer (twofer the price of one - sorry!) merges two Christmas songs in sometimes surprising ways. The first twofer is swung quavers throughout, but otherwise they are not too difficult, and very useful pieces to have around December time!

Summer Sextet (T/Sno T/D T/Tr BGtBCtB) MHE 10704 £7.50
Saturday Afternoon
Saturday Evening
Sunday Morning
The three movements paint varied pictures, from a lazy summer afternoon to a frightening night in the woods, and the changes of mood, tempo and instruments will pose something of a challenge for six good players. The great bass and contrabass are nearly essential, although they could be read onto tenor and bass to get a rough idea of the music.

Totally Tropical (TBGtBtBCtBCtB) MHE 10706 £7.50
1
2
3
Totally Tropical is a suite of three pieces written for the Plymouth-based group Incerti. This group makes much use of bigger recorders, hence the unusual instrumentation. Why 'tropical'? While writing it I had pictures in my mind of desert islands, jungles, beach parties and the like. There are some mellow passages, but also passages with sprightly syncopated rhythms which will need good big bass players to pull off. Totally Tropical is also available an octave higher (DTrTTBB MHE 10706a £7.50), which works well also.

The Leaves Be Blue (DTrTTBB) MHE 20706 £6.00
Most recorder players will have played one of the many pieces based on the tune 'The Leaves Be Green' (or 'Browning' as it's often called). The Leaves Be Blue is my take on the famous melody, and sees it surrounded by bluesy chords and rhythms. The notes are not particularly difficult, but as always with this style, articulations and rhythms need close attention.

A Christmas Carol (DTrTTBB) MHE 10904 £7.50
This score, parts and accompanying script is a 'kit' for a 25 minute performance of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, complete with twelve pieces of easy incidental music for recorder sextet. The music is sometimes sad, sometimes sinister and sometimes jolly, according to the needs of the story. The text used is an abridged version in play form, involving 14 characters. This could easily be covered by six readers, or even less. Playing tenor 2 and bass 2 on great bass and contrabass respectively would be advantageous.

Winter Bike Rides On The Wirral (DTrTrTTB) MHE 10206 £9.00
Icy Lanes Around Eastham
Dawn Near Thurstaston Hill
New Brighton Just Before Christmas
This suite was written after I was asked to write something about bike riding along wintry lanes, including feelings of cold, speed and danger. I thought back to specific places on the Wirral where I cycled as a child in the wintertime, and tried to reflect some of that in music. This is all a pretty specific programme for six recorders, but nothing ventured, nothing gained! Moderately tricky in places.

Ein Kleines Geburtstagsphantasiestück (D(or Sno)TrTTBB) MHE 10804 £4.50
Written as a birthday present, this 'little birthday fantasy' goes through various contrasting moods before a famous birthday tune is played at the end, to the accompaniment of many of the melodies which were featured before. Fun, but quite tricky.