Let’s start with
the positive things about this recording.
The Grimethorpe Colliery Band, for
any who don’t know, is one of the
finest brass bands in the world.
Their sound is glorious, and their
technique is astonishing. This disc
takes as its starting point an appealing
idea – professional-level performances
of arrangements of old hymns, many
deriving from the Salvation Army
tradition. Many of these melodies
are among the most enduring of the
entire Western musical repertoire,
familiar to and loved by many millions
around the world. What’s the problem
with hearing them performed this
way?
As it turns out,
there are several. The form of a
hymn is based on repetition of the
same music with different lyrics
on each repetition. Without anyone
singing the words, the musical interest
has to be maintained through other
means. The melody needs to remain
primarily intact, which limits the
chords the arranger can use. The
homogenous sound of a brass band,
usually one of the strengths of
the ensemble, is a bit of a limitation
here, as the program gathers a feeling
of monotony as it goes on. The limited
percussion is either completely
absent or very sparing on about
half of the tracks – which is wise,
as they wouldn’t work in the more
gentle arrangements – but it’s a
color that we therefore miss. All
of the tracks are between two and
five minutes duration, adding to
the feeling of sameness that sets
in.
All of which is
not to say that there aren’t pleasures
to be had here. The Vaughan Williams
which starts the disc is among the
better arrangements, and has the
most flashy technique of the lot.
Downie’s arrangement of "Lord
of All Hopefulness" (also known
as "Slane" or "Be
Thou My Vision") is probably
the most musical arrangement on
the disc, balancing full melodic
statements with original passages
which fragment the melody in intriguing
and fresh ways; I repeated this
track immediately. And there is
consistent pleasure in simply hearing
the band play, and in hearing these
wonderful melodies. Two tracks,
however, need to be singled out
for standing well below the rest
of the pack: "As The Deer"
and "Shine Jesus Shine"
are both pop music fodder that go
nowhere. A non-musical note: the
booklet notes are very good, and
include text excerpts which will
prove valuable to those familiar
with the melodies.
Listened to in
small doses, or even as part of
a program of worship, this could
be quite effective, but as a whole,
it doesn’t seem to be the best place
for the brass band neophyte to start.
Again, this is an excellently performed
disc, and there are certainly those
who will love it, but others should
proceed with caution.
Benn Martin
Grimethorpe Colliery Band/Phillip McCann
