by Steve
Hungarian Peasant Songs (Set 1) (DTrTrTTB)
MHE 10122 £12.00
No 7 
No 8
Nos 9 and 10
Bartok arranged fifteen traditional folk melodies for the piano. This is big, dramatic music, and so Bartok may have been surprised to know that – nearly a century later – an ambitious arranger set some of them for a recorder ensemble! These brief pieces are not at all difficult and actually work very well on recorders. Parts are provided for optional big basses.
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by Ann
Taynton Suite (TrTB)
MHE 10222 £8.00
Allegretto
Andante
Blues
Andantino
Allegretto
This suite is about seven minutes of moderately difficult music for a recorder trio. The five pieces are varied and, I hope, interesting. Although I wrote the Taynton Suite for three players, it also works well for an ensemble. Perhaps a little surprisingly, three of us also enjoyed playing it on bass, great bass and contrabass.
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by Steve
Llyn Dulyn (SnoDTrTTBGtBCtBCtB, theramin)
MHE 10422 £16.00
Llyn Dulyn (Black Lake in English) is a deep lake in Snowdonia. It is a remote place – it cannot be reached by road, and the only access is by a long walk. The lake is deep and mountains surround it, meaning that the lake is very dark,
hence its name. There are no buildings, roads or tracks in the vicinity, and the night-time darkness is complete. Add to that the many legends about the lake, and those of nervous disposition may find Llyn Dulyn a rather spooky place! My ten-minute tone poem follows a walker's imaginary day at the lake, beginning at dawn, through a storm and finishing as night descends. To further enhance the atmosphere of the place, the score includes a part for a theramin. If no player is available (a pity!) the conductor can reorganise things reasonably easily.
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ROSEMARY ROBINSON Revelry (SnoDDTrTrTTBBGtBCtB)
MHE 10522 £24.00
Fanfare
Rain Song
Scherzo
Nocturne
Jig
‘Revelry' was written early in 2022 at the request of Shirley Brown, who celebrated a special birthday by inviting a group of friends to join her for four days of recorder playing. This rather challenging suite was given its first performance in May 2022. Total playing time is about fourteen minutes.
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by Ann
Water in Motion (TTBGtBGtBCtB)
MHE 10622 £12.50
Water in Motion is a single-movement piece for an ensemble of bigger recorders. It is tricky stuff, but without requiring virtuosity. The piece suggests water changing quickly and unpredictably, which is achieved by varying speeds and (especially) time signatures. The latter may cause the most difficulty, with constantly shifting bars of 5 and 3. A clear and precise conductor is a real asset!
Water in Motion is not, however, a soulless technical exercise. Once the players are on top of things, it is six minutes of music containing both lyricism and excitement.
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by Steve
Sinfonietta No 3 (DTrTB)
MHE 20122 £11.00
1
2
3
4
Nowadays there are many substantial pieces for large groups of recorders - for example there is no shortage of recorder orchestra symphonies. What many substantial pieces have in common is that they are difficult to play and that they are written in many parts. I wanted to break this particular mould and write a symphonic piece that could be tackled by players of modest ability. My third sinfonietta is the result. It has found favour by the players I was aiming it at, and it seems to me that the four movements work together somewhat like an early symphony. Well, at any rate its eight-minute duration is similar to some early Haydn symphonies! The piece is also available with the addition of big basses, as
MHE 20122a.
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by Steve
Sinfonietta No 3 (DTrTBGtBCtB)
MHE 20122a £13.50
1
2
3
4
Nowadays there are many substantial pieces for large groups of recorders - for example there is no shortage of recorder orchestra symphonies. What many substantial pieces have in common is that they are difficult to play and that they are written in many parts. I wanted to break this particular mould and write a symphonic piece that could be tackled by players of modest ability. My third sinfonietta is the result. It has found favour by the players I was aiming it at, and it seems to me that the four movements work together somewhat like an early symphony. Well, at any rate its eight-minute duration is similar to some early Haydn symphonies! The piece is also available for a DTrTB quartet, as MHE 20122.
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by Steve
Tota Pulchra Es (Bruckner) (TBGtBCtB)
MHE 20522 £6.00
Bruckner composed this sacred motet in 1878, and it is a beautiful piece with stirring chords and dramatic dynamics. Steve's arrangement of ‘Tota Pulchra Es’ is for an eight-foot group, and an additional contrabass in C, while not essential, would also be beneficial in providing some nice low E’s. Especially at the slow speed, the piece is not easy to play, but with careful attention to tongueing and breathing it is marvellous stuff!
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by Ann
The Highnam Suite (DTrTBGtBCtB)
MHE 30222 £11.00
Intrada
Lullaby
Blues
Finale
I wrote this suite for the Orchestra on the Hill. The six minutes of music, none of which is difficult, is a pleasing mixture of cheerful, bluesy and languid.
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by Ann
Ann's Choice: Volume 15 (Trios) (TrTB)
MHE 30522 £8.50
Of All the Birds that I have Heard
Whither Away So Fast?
Nous Voyons que les Hommes
Fly, Love, Aloft
There is not much music for adults that is both interesting and easy. All too often music that is easy is also a bit childish. I hope that the series 'Ann's Choice' will help to fill the gap. This set comprises arrangements of TrTB trios, composed by Arcadelt, Mundy, Morley and Wilbye – giants of their time. Total playing time is about seven minutes.
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by Ann
Five Ayres from the Baroque (TrTB)
MHE 31120 £8.00
Ayre No 1 (Almaine)
Ayre No 2 (Almaine)
Ayre No 3
Ayre No 4
Ayre No 5 (Echo)
These ayres were all written in the first half of the seventeenth century by English composers. With the notable exception of William Lawes, the composers are little-known today except, perhaps, to specialists in the area. A pity, because all of the music here is interesting to both players and listeners. Total playing time is about twelve minutes.
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by Ann
Three Tunes by O'Carolan (DTrTB)
MHE 40222 £9.50
Carolan's Draught
Planxty Irwin
Maggie in the Woods
Turlough O'Carolan (1670–1738) was a blind Celtic musician who was famous in his lifetime as a singer, harp player and composer. His compositions are still popular to this day, and we have chosen three of our favourites to arrange. We have given metronome marks, but these are purely suggestions. The two outer movements are probably fastish and the inner movement probably slowish, but they can work really well at any speed you like (or are capable of).
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by Steve
Two Motets by Juan Gutiérrez de Padilla (TBGtBCtB)
MHE 40522 £8.00
Stabat Mater Dolorosa
Velum Templi Scissum Est
Juan Gutiérrez de Padilla (1590 – 1664) was Spanish, but moved permanently to Pueblo in Mexico in 1620. At that time Pueblo was a large religious centre and Padilla was a major figure there. Little of Padilla’s music is now available, but these two motets are lovely, especially so on the bigger instruments. An (optional) part is provided for contrabass in C.
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by Ann
Four Madrigals by Giovanni Artusi (TrTrTB)
MHE 41120 £7.00
Donna da tuoi
Clori Gentil Dicea
Tu Pensi Col
Vaghe Ninfe
Artusi (1540-1613) was an interesting, if minor character in the history of music. He took a very dim (and brave) view of the move towards baroque style, and in particular the work of Monteverdi. His work used considerable dissonance, even in relatively simple music such as the madrigals in this set. Total playing time is about six minutes.
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by Steve
Brook Green Suite (DTrTTBGtBCtB)
MHE 50522 £17.50
Prelude
Air
Dance
Holst wrote Brook Green Suite in 1933 for the junior string orchestra of St Paul's Girls' School in Hammersmith. That junior orchestra must have been remarkably good, because the piece is not easy. And inevitably any recorder arrangement will not be easy either. But I have tried to arrange it so that it is faithful to the original, but as playable as possible for modestly-sized recorder ensembles.
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by Steve
Jazz Fugue and Postlude (TBGtBCtB)
MHE 60522 £11.00
Fugue
Postlude
I wrote this pair of pieces, not at the request of anyone, but simply to enjoy myself. I thought that I would write a fugue in a jazz style, using the bigger recorders. When that was nearly finished I decided to add a short and fast second piece, which had a similar theme to that of the first - a sort of reversed Prelude and Fugue. The piece requires good command of swung quavers, and is sometimes quite fast. Although it's not easy, it provides a good work-out for good players of the bigger instruments.
Playing time is about six minutes.
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by Ann
November Suite (TrT)
MHE 70522 £10.00
Intrada
Andante
Allegretto
Jig
Lullaby
Allegro
I wrote this suite at the request of Jo Greer and Teresa Savage, who wanted some agreeable music for their favoured instruments. The result is a set of six pieces, in friendly keys and in various moods. Total playing time is about seven minutes.
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by Ann
Recorder Septet No 4 (DTrTrTBGtBCtB)
MHE 80522 £15.50
Allegro
Larghetto
Andante
Air
Allegro
My fourth septet has a slightly mellower instrumentation than the first three, using a second treble instead of a sopranino. It is again equally suited to one-to-a-part playing or several-to-a-part orchestral playing. The piece is in five varied movements and has a total playing time of about ten minutes.
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by Ann
Spring Sinfonietta (DTrTrTTBB)
MHE 90522 £14.00
Allegretto
Andante
Waltz
Finale
My Spring Sinfonietta found much favour pre-publication. It’s often difficult to know why some pieces are popular, and others are not. Maybe this piece has a feeling of the world leaving winter behind. Or perhaps its allegretto-andante-waltz-finale structure is familiar and comforting. Whatever the reason, I was very pleased!
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