Hunt the Hare
Hunt the Hare was written for and dedicated to the Cory Band from Wales and was first performed in New York as part of America's bi-centennial celebrations in 1976. Grimethorpe Colliery Band, from England, accompanied Cory on the tour, they both had mining connections and the tour was sponsored by the American Mining Unions.
Elgar Howarth has cleverly combined the Welsh jig Hunting the Hare with a quintessentially English tune, A Hunting We Will Go. The work is in the style of a patrol with both bands sounding in the distance, gradually getting nearer and nearer until they pass and gradually disappear into the distance. However, the difference with this patrol is that it combines two tunes in two different keys. Elgar Howarth punctuates the English and Welsh flavour with patriotic tunes from both countries and also utilises bi-tonality to celebrate bi-centennial celebrations.