Curiouser and Curiouser…
Curiouser and Curiouser… was written for the Flowers Band’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’-themed programme for the 46th Brass in Concert Championships, held at the Sage Gateshead on 18th November 2023.
Opening – Alice’s first glimpse into Wonderland.
“Doors” – Alice finds herself in a corridor full of different doors…with a tiny door at the end. There is a key on a glass table that fits the door, but she is too big to fit through.
“Drink Me” – Alice finds a bottle labelled “Drink Me”; it makes her shrink. Here, the solo is in the upper register, with most of the band lower to highlight the size difference. Everything seems huge and overbearing to her.
“The Key on the Table…” – Alice realises that, although she can now fit through the tiny door, she has left the key up on the table, with no way to reach it.
“Eat Me” – a small cake with “Eat Me” written on it appears in front of Alice, which makes her grow in gigantic proportions. The solo part is mainly in the low register, with slow pedal notes and fast, high, muted accompaniment from the band – again, to show the difference in size.
“Goodbye, Feet!” – everything now looks tiny, disappearing miles away beneath her…
“Pool of Tears” – Alice begins to cry, and her giant tears soon turn the room into a pool. She finds the bottle and is able to drink more potion, making her small again. She swirls around in the water and swims through the keyhole in the door, out of sight.