Soliloquy II (in the Cross...) Howard J Evans. Performed by Steven Mead (euphonium) and the composer

Описание: Here is the first performance and recording of a new work for euphonium and piano by Howard J Evans. This was recorded in Boscombe Salvation Army Hall on January 19, 2021.
This work was commissioned by the euphonium soloist Micah Dominic Parsons.
The soloist is Steven Mead.

The composer writes:
"A few years ago I wrote a Soliloquy based on an SA song by George Marshall called:
Soliloquy (In the Stillness). This solo follows up the form of that solo, though it is quite different, and was a commission from Micah Dominic Parsons. I am very grateful for the impetus of that commission.
The main inspiration is the tune 'Cross of Jesus' by John Stainer as well as a motif from some older
Euphonium Studies from the Military School of Music, Kneller Hall.
The tune is used in a chorale form, and after an introduction the first section is a reversal of the
chorale that appears in the second half of the work. The euphonium exclamations are all
derived from the main tune and the study motif. There is one new element in the coda, where
the triplet motif is a direct quotation from 'Romans 8 - A Brass Celebration'' by Ray Steadman-Allen,
who uses the same tune in this major brass band work.
The work begins in quite a dark reflective manner and represents those aspects of the song, without
being too specific. The second half obviously reflects the more positive characteristics and finds quite a triumphal nature in the end. The soloist lines throughout have a very declamatory style and can have a freedom in performance."