Updated every Monday @<a href="spotify:user:composerweekly">Composer Weekly</a>. A 30-track introduction to the music of English composer <a href="http://www.johnrutter.com/">John Rutter</a> (b. 1945).

John Rutter - Composer Weekly #007

The Organ Symphony,composed in 1886,was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society in the UK, and Saint- Saëns travelled across the Channel to conduct its premiere at the old St. James’s Hall, now the site of Le Meridien Hotel in Picadilly.‘I gave everything to it I was able to give,’ said the composer of the work.‘What I have accomplished here,I will never achieve again.’ It has been one of the most popular symphonies in the repertoire, and is one of those rare works that instantly entered the canon of masterpieces and has remained there ever since.Its most famous melody, the radiant theme of the finale, has even entered into popular culture: it has been featured in the 1995 movie Babe and at DisneyWorld’s Epcot Center, and has even been adapted as the anthem of the would-be micronation of Atlantium. Some years ago Paul Noble, the arranger, had the privilege of conducting an orchestral performance of this work. In listening to the recording of that performance, he felt that it would make a magnificent work for the Concert/Wind Band. So he has now produced the arrangement and offered it in several formats: the complete symphony in two movements; the first movement alone; the second movement alone; and the finale alone, beginning with what may be called one of the great C Major chords in music. Organ parts are cued when necessary.

Symphony No 3 (Organ) Finale

The Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op.18, is a concerto for piano and orchestra composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff between the autumn of 1900 and April 1901. The second and third movements were first performed with the composer as soloist on 2 December 1900. The complete work was premiered, again with the composer as soloist, on 9 November 1901, with his cousin Alexander Siloti conducting. The piece established Rachmaninoff's fame as a concerto composer and is one of his most enduringly popular pieces.
Some years ago Paul Noble, the arranger, had the privilege of conducting an orchestral performance of this work. In listening to the recording of that performance, he felt that it would make a magnificent work for a piano soloist with Concert/Wind Band accompaniment. "My thought has been that there must be many college level piano majors who would like to perform one movement of this work, which has seemingly become acceptable, since it is so complete by itself.  And now, with a band arrangement, the opportunities should expand for greater accessibility. While I have been immersed in arranging this magnificent music, the television is showing the horrors of the invasion of Ukraine, birthplace of Rachmaninoff, which is heartbreaking in today's world."

Piano Concerto No. 2 - Rachmaninoff (Concert Band arrangement

The Organ Symphony, composed in 1886, was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society in the UK, and Saint- Saëns travelled across the Channel to conduct its premiere at the old St. James’s Hall, now the site of Le Meridien Hotel in Picadilly. ‘I gave everything to it I was able to give,’ said the composer of the work. ‘What I have accomplished here, I will never achieve again.’   It has been one of the most popular symphonies in the repertoire, and is one of those rare works that instantly entered the canon of masterpieces and has remained there ever since. Its most famous melody, the radiant theme of the finale, has even entered into popular culture: it has been featured in the 1995 movie Babe and at Disney World’s Epcot Center, and has even been adapted as the anthem of the would-be micronation of Atlantium.
Some years ago Paul Noble, the arranger, had the privilege of conducting an orchestral performance of this work.  In listening to the recording of that performance, he felt that it would make a magnificent work for the Concert/Wind Band.   So he has now produced the arrangement and offered it in several formats: the complete symphony in two movements; the first movement alone; the second movement alone;  and the finale alone, beginning with what may be called one of the great C Major chords in music.  Organ parts are cued when necessary.

Symphony No. 3 (Organ) Complete

Finale, Symphony No. 3 (Organ). Performed by the Wheaton Municipal Band, Dr. Bruce Moss, Conductor

In 1846, Hector Berlioz conducted two concerts in Budapest to popularize his compositions. For this occasion, as it was usual in his era, he composed a few pieces for Hungarian melodies to win the favor of the audience. One of these pieces was an adaptation of the Rákóczi March that immediately became the favorite one of the audience as he noted in his memoirs: "...the hall was shaken by unprecedented shouting and stamping of feet. (…) We had to start again but on the second occasion, too, the audience could hardly or not at all control themselves, just like on the first occasion." With some modifications, he included this composition later in La damnation de Faust.
The Berlioz version has become a popular folk-music selection in Hungary, especially for weddings. The March is played at state and military celebrations and is the official inspection march of the Hungarian Defence Forces. The tune was used for decades as the morning signal of Kossuth Rádió at the beginning of the daily broadcast.

Marche Hongroise (Hungarian March; Hector Berlioz; arr. by Paul Noble

Solemn Prelude requires a more special description than space will allow. It has been my privilege to receive from the Three Choirs Festival in the U.K. the opportunity to produce this arrangement for Concert/Wind Band from a long-lost piece of music. Samuel Coleridge-Taylor was commissioned in 1899 by the Three Choirs Festival, with its history spanning over 300 years and having commissioned over 550 works, to create this beautifully romantic and highly chromatic work. The exploration of ten tonal centers contributes to a depth of feeling and emotion that brought added prestige to the young composer. This arrangement has been produced from a copy of the original, handwritten, autographed score. There is a most interesting story about how the music was found, which should produce relevant and interesting program notes. PN
https://cso.org/experience/article/10876/how-a-british-sleuth-uncovered-a-long-lost-wo

Solemn Prelude - Samuel Coleridge-Taylor; arr. by Paul Noble

Three Countryside Sketches was an adaptation of an earlier suite and included in a CD released in 2014.  The three movements are titled: 1. Market Day; 2. Pastorale; and 3. Point to Point.  The title names are descriptive of the music.  In Market Day, one can imagine strolling through an open-air village market where people walk, shop, stop, look, and continue on their way.  Pastorale is meant to evoke a peaceful rural scene;  Point to Point Point refers to an amateur, cross-country steeplechase with horses involved in hunting - a common leisure pursuit very popular in British rural communities. The technical demands have been segmented by the arranger to make the piece  more accessible without losing its intensity.

Three Countryside Sketches (Complete) - David Lyon; arr. by Paul Noble

Composer Roy Moore's Santa's Sleigh Ride brings to the Christmas collection a remarkable piece that at once is a happy, delightful, compelling, cute and a uniquely crafted rendition of Santa's Christmas Eve journey around the world. This represents a new setting of his orchestra work, now arranged for the Concert/Wind Band by a most grateful arranger, to have made acquaintance with such a noted composer. Enjoy!

Santa's Sleigh Ride - Roy Moore; arr. by Paul Noble

Marche Hongroise

Program notes provided by the composer: 
Overture to a Comic Opera was written in 1968, at a time when I was composing other similar 'light music' pieces in the hope of a BBC broadcast (happily realised!). It is in straightforward Sonata Form, featuring a short introduction followed by the two main themes.There is much use of imitative counterpoint, with the second theme played against itself at half speed, and a central 'development' section comprising a short, if rather elaborate, fugal treatment of the initial intro. Lasting only a few minutes, its brisk, compact structure, with a single tempo throughout, makes it unique among my compositions, and one with which I am particularly pleased - especially as I have found, in the intervening years, no reason to make any alterations!

Overture To A Comic Opera - David Lyon; arr. by Paul Noble

Kyrie from Mass Of The Children by John Rutter

The Ultimate Collection

Rutter: For The Beauty Of The Earth

Partita is a three movement work by John Rutter, arranged for Concert Band by Paul Noble.  The piece is a showcase for band, with all the excitement, drive, energy and depth of feeling that permeates John Rutter's compositions.

Partita I. Vivace - John Rutter, arr. by Paul Noble

John Rutter - The Choral Collection

Rutter: Be thou my vision

Rutter: Requiem

Rutter: What Sweeter Music (feat. Robert Quinney)

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Partita I. Vivace - John Rutter, arr. by Paul Noble

Paul Noble

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