Set test pieces announced for European Championships

The European Brass Band Association (EBBA) has announced the set test pieces for the 45th European Brass Band Championships which will take place in Palanga, Lithuania, from 27 April to 5 May.

The pieces had been commissioned by the host organiser, Palangos Orkestras, with the support of the Lithuanian Council for Culture for the 2020 EBBC, which is now at last able to proceed this year.

The Championship set test is by Philip Sparke, a three-movement work entitled A Road Less Travelled By. The three movements are 1. Moto Perpetuo, 2. Nocturne, in which the soloists are featured in elaborate solos and ensembles, and 3. Scherzo Finale, which is an example of the composer’s characteristic playful compound time dances, lightly textured to begin with, tuneful and full of energy and drive.

About the work, Philip says: “I’ve tried to keep the emphasis on ‘traditional’ brass band values, both in the writing and scoring.”

The Challenge Section set work is Baltic Legends by Lithuanian composer Vaida Beinariene. It takes its inspiration from two well-known Lithuanian folk legends, Witches Hill which evokes the mysterious nocturnal atmosphere of the Hill of Witches near the village of Juodkrante, and Amber Castle which is based on the legend of Jurate, goddess of the sea, and the source of the amber that still keeps arriving to the shores of the Baltic Sea.

The Youth Premier Section set test is The Baltic Way by Jan de Haan. The Baltic Chain as it is also remembered, was a demonstration staged in the Baltic states as a call for independence from the Soviet Union. The first movement, Struggle for Independence, opens with a reference to a nocturne for piano by the renowned Lithuanian composer and painter Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis and the second movement, Decades of Suffering, echoes life under the Soviet Union.

The Youth Development Section set work is Lithuanian Dances arranged by Kazys Daugėla. In ancient times, many of Lithuania’s national celebrations and rituals involved dances which were given names according to their function. The music is a sequence of seven popular folk dances from various regions of the country.