Helvetia
I first went to Switzerland in the early 1970s and regularly played at the Lucerne Festival with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. It is a beautiful city, one of my favourite European cities.
In writing Helvetia (the Roman name for Switzerland), I wanted to encapsulate the moods that remind me of this wonderful place. The work is in four distinct sections and is overall, self-explanatory.
It opens with An Alpine Dawn and sunrise, the tubas and euphoniums substituting for the Swiss Alphorns. Next, The Clock Shop at Mid-day: a loud ticking and chiming, and the sad sound of a cuckoo build into the cacophony of the midday chimes. The third section is A Walk to Wagner’s House. Just along the lake from the centre of town is Tribschen. I have walked this path many times, and it is here that Wagner wrote Tristan. I have quoted the Dresden Amen (written by J.G. Naumann), which is much used in Parsifal. The final section is The Cresta Run, the most famous bob-sleigh run in the world. As we take each corner, the feeling of speed is demonstrated as only a brass band can do!
The work is dedicated to the Cory Band, and to the memory of James Watson, a great cornet player, trumpeter and conductor. It was he who got me into writing for brass band, and I hope this piece is worthy.
Gareth Wood, February 2011