Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

Work Overview

Combining brass with singers is an old tradition, dating back at least to Renaissance Venice, and is continued to this day in the Salvation Army. In particular, the joyful Latin Gloria has inspired several composers to set it with brass. This Gloria for mixed choir and British-style brass band, unites two great traditions of community music making. The work is symphonic in structure, with each of the four movements corresponding to movements of a traditional but short classical symphony. Extolling divine majesty, the opening Gloria in Excelsis parallels the quite serious "first movement" form; the Laudamus Te is a joyful dance and represents the scherzo; Domine Fili is a plea for forgiveness and mercy, and is set as an expressive slow movement; and Quoniam tu solus Sanctus parallels the often march-like symphonic finale, and near the end the original Gloria in Excelsis is recalled followed by a majestic "Amen".

Work Details

Year: 2019

Instrumentation: SATB Choir with standard British-style brass band.

Duration: 22 min.

Difficulty: Medium — suitable for advanced community groups or similar

Contents note: I. Gloria in Excelsis Deo -- II. -- Laudamus Te -- III. Domine Fili Unigenite -- IV. Quoniam tu solus Sanctus.

Dedication note: For Oakleigh Brass and Monash Chorale.

First performance: by Monash Chorale, Oakleigh Brass, Robert Dora, David Keeffe at Advent Gloria (Holy Saviour Catholic Church) on 1 Dec 2019