Voice of the Guns, The
General Info
Year: 1917 / 1945
Duration: 2:40
Difficulty: IV (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Boosey and Hawkes
Cost: Score and Parts - Out of print.
For availability information, see Discussion tab, above.
Instrumentation
Conductor
C Flute
D-flat Piccolo
Oboe
Bassoon
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Bass Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II-III-IV
Flugelhorn
Horn in E-flat I-II-III-IV
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
Timpani
Percussion, including:
- Bass Drum
- Snare Drum
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
In 1917, when this march was published, Great Britain and her allies were engaged in a fierce struggle for survival with the Axis powers. In addition to land battles in Europe, Turkey, Palestine and Iraq, Britain was fighting to maintain its supremacy on the seas. Before the tide of battle began to change, later in the year, the transport Ibernia, the hospital ship Donegal and Lanfranc, and the destroyers Mary Rose and Strongbow were among the British ships sunk by German submarines.
In this march the transition from minor to major seems to reflect Alford's confidence in his nation's ultimate victory.
- Program Note from March Music Notes
Media
- Audio CD: The Music of Kenneth Alford. The Band of Her Majesty's Royal Marines (Captain JR Mason, conductor)
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- Southeast Texas Winds (Beaumont) (Scott Deppe, conductor) - 12 March 2023
- University of Connecticut (Storrs) Wind Ensemble (Janet Song Kim, conductor) - 17 November 2022
- Texas A&M University (College Station) Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor) - 2 March 2019
- Allegheny College (Meadville, Penn.) Band Camp for Adult Musicians (Timothy W. Foley, conductor) - 15 June 2018
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Army of the Nile (1941)
- By Land and Sea (1941)
- Cavalry of the Clouds (1923)
- Colonel Bogey (1914)
- Colonel Bogey (ed. Fennell) (1914/1982)
- Colonel Bogey (arr. Glover) (1914/2000)
- Colonel Bogey (arr. Williams) (1914/2001)
- Colonel Bogey on Parade (1934)
- Dunedin (1928)
- Eagle Squadron (1942)
- Eagle Squadron (arr. Rogers) (1942/2016)
- The Great Little Army (arr. Winter) (1916)
- HM Jollies (1929)
- Holyrood (1912)
- The Lightning Switch Fantasia (1924)
- The Mad Major (ed. Fennell) (1921/1983)
- Middy, The (arr. Gore) (1917)
- A Musical Switch (1921)
- Old Panama (1929)
- On the Quarter Deck (1917)
- Standard of St George, The (1930)
- The Thin Red Line (1908/1925)
- The Vanished Army (1918)
- The Vanished Army (ed. Fennell) (1919/1986)
- The Vedette (1913)
- The Voice of the Guns (1917)
Resources
- Alford, Kenneth J. (1917/1945) The Voice of the Guns [score]. Boosey & Hawkes: New York.
- Smith, Norman E. (1986) March Music Notes. Lake Charles, Louisiana: Program Notes Press, p. 8.