First Suite in E-flat

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Gustav Holst

Gustav Holst (ed. Colin Matthews)


General Info

Year: 1909 / 1922 / 1984
Duration: c. 10:45
Difficulty: IV (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes, Inc.
Cost: Score and Parts - $115.00   |   Score Only - $15.50

For further availability information, see Discussion tab, above.


Movements (played without pause)

1. Chaconne - 4:45
2. Intermezzo - 2:55
3. March - 3:00


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo
C Flute
Oboe I-II (II optional)
Bassoon I-II (second part optional)
E-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II (II optional)
B-flat Soprano Clarinet Solo-I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet (optional)
E-flat Alto Saxophone
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone (optional)
B-flat Bass Saxophone (optional)
B-flat Cornet Solo-I-II
B-flat Trumpet I-II (both parts optional)
Horn in F I-II-III-IV (III-IV optional)
Trombone I-II-III (II optional)
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass (optional)
Timpani (optional)
Percussion (2-3 players), including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Snare Drum
  • Suspended Cymbal
  • Tambourine
  • Triangle


Convenience parts in set but not in score:

  • E-flat Alto Clarinet (optional)
  • B-flat Contrabass Clarinet (optional)
  • B-flat Flugelhorn I-II (optional)


Errata

N.B. Many of these errors have been corrected in later printings.

Movement I

  • Flute/Piccolo, m.41 (Letter B): last 16th note of beat two should be an F, not a G (score is correct)
  • Bass Clarinet, m.111 (3 bars before Letter F): 4th note should be an F, not an E (score is correct)
  • Bass Saxophone, m.55 (2 bars before Letter C): last 8th note is a G, not an E (both score and part are incorrect)
  • Horn in F I, m.57: Rehearsal Letter C should be here (NOT 14 measures later, score is correct)
  • Horn in F I, m.97: Rehearsal Letter E should be here (NOT 1 measure later, score is correct)
  • Trombone I, m.26 (2 bars after Letter A): add "solo" to part.
  • Trombone I, m.31 (7 bars after Letter A): add "tutti" to part.
  • Percussion, m.114: Rehearsal Letter F and "Maestoso" should be here (NOT 1 measure later, score is correct)
  • Percussion, m.131 (last measure): Cymbal dynamic should be fff, not ff (score is correct)


Movement II

  • Oboe I-II, m.103 (6 bars before Letter E): add slur from from half note to beat one in upper part (both score and part are incorrect)
  • E-flat Soprano Clarinet, m.92 (10 bars after Letter D): in upper part, last 2 8th notes are G-F, not F-E
  • B-flat Clarinet II, m.129 (7 bars after Letter F): add "tutti" on beat 4
  • B-flat Clarinet II, m.141 (second to last bar): first note of beat 3 is a D, not an E
  • Bass Clarinet, m.109 (Letter E): 16th flag missing on 2nd note.
  • Bassoon I-II, m.1: Time signature should be 2/4, not 3/4 (score is correct)
  • Bassoon I-II, m.67 (Letter C): part only has 2 beats, there should be 4 (score is correct)
  • Horn in F III, m.27 (2 bars after Letter A): dynamic is missing - should be piano
  • Euphonium, m.103 (6 bars before Letter E): last 8th note is F, not G (note - same error exists in treble clef part) (Note, there is some dispute about this. The source of this passage in the 1921 British edition Baritone (treble clef), a separate part, has an A (concert G)
  • String Bass, m.142 (last measure): add "pizz."
  • Percussion, m.105 and 108: add half note triangle part in each measure


Movement III

  • Trumpet I, m.1: second note is E, not C
  • Baritone Saxophone & Euphonium, m.51: second half note is concert F, not concert A-flat
  • Basses, m.72 (Letter B): Letter B should be one measure earlier at m. 71
  • Horn III, m.105-106 (9/10 bars after Letter C): A-naturals, not A-flats
  • Euphonium, m.118 (5 bars before Letter D): last note is G, first line, not D (note - same error exists in treble clef part)
  • Basses, m.154: second note is B-natural, not B-flat (both octaves)

Program Notes

2009 marks the 100th anniversary of the First Suite in E-flat by Gustav Holst, now considered one of the masterworks and cornerstones of the band literature. Although completed in 1909, the suite didn't receive its official premiere until 11 years later on June 23rd, 1920, by an ensemble of 165 musicians at the Royal Military School of Music at Kneller Hall. However, the work was originally conceived to be performed by ensembles significantly smaller than the one at Kneller Hall. During this time period there was no standardized instrumentation among the hundreds of British military bands of the day, and as a result no significant literature had been previously written for the band medium; most British bands up to then performed arrangements of popular orchestral pieces. In order to ensure the suite would be accessible to as many bands as possible, Holst ingeniously scored the work so that it could be played by a minimum of 19 musicians, with 16 additional parts that could be added or removed without compromising the integrity of the work.

There are three movements in the suite: Chaconne, Intermezzo, and March. Holst writes, “As each movement is founded on the same phrase, it is requested that the suite be played right through without a break.” Indeed, the first three notes of the Chaconne are Eb, F and C, and the first three notes of the melody when it first appears in the Intermezzo are Eb, F, and C. In the third movement, March, Holst inverts the motive: The first note heard in the brilliant opening brass medley is an Eb, but instead of rising, it descends to a D, and then a G; the exact opposite of the first two movements.

The Chaconne begins with a ground bass reminiscent of those written by Henry Purcell or William Byrd. It is performed by tuba, euphonium and string bass and is repeated throughout the ensemble sixteen full times as varying instrumental textures and variations of the theme are layered within it. Following a delicately scored chamber setting of the theme, the music steadily builds to a brilliant Eb Major chord that concludes the movement.

The Intermezzo is light and brisk and features soloistic passages for the cornet, oboe and clarinet. Holst prominently displays the agility and sensitivity of the wind band through transparent textures and passages where the melody and accompaniment are woven into a variety of instrumental settings.

The March begins suddenly. It consists of two themes, the first of which, performed by brass choir and percussion, is a march light in character. The second theme is dominated by the woodwinds and is composed of a long, lyrical line reminiscent of the original Chaconne melody. The movement concludes with both themes intertwining as the band crescendos to a climax.

- Program Note by Esmail Khalili


Gustav Holst’s First Suite in E-flat for Military Band occupies a legendary position in the wind band repertory and can be seen, in retrospect, as one of the earliest examples of the modern wind band instrumentation still frequently performed today. Its influence is so significant that several composers have made quotation or allusion to it as a source of inspiration to their own works.

Holst began his work with Chaconne, a traditional Baroque form that sets a series of variations over a ground bass theme. That eight-measure theme is stated at the outset in tubas and euphoniums and, in all, fifteen variations are presented in quick succession. The three pitches that begin the work -- E-flat, F, and B-flat, ascending -- serve as the generating cell for the entire work, as the primary theme of each movement begins in exactly the same manner. Holst also duplicated the intervallic content of these three pitches, but descended, for several melodic statements (a compositional trick not dissimilar to the inversion process employed by the later serialist movement, which included such composers as Schoenberg and Webern). These inverted melodies contrast the optimism and bright energy of the rest of the work, typically introducing a sense of melancholy or shocking surprise. The second half of the Chaconne, for instance, presents a somber inversion of the ground bass that eventually emerges from its gloom into the exuberant final variations.

The Intermezzo, which follows is a quirky rhythmic frenzy that contrasts everything that has preceded it. This movement opens in C minor, and starts and stops with abrupt transitions throughout its primary theme group. The contrasting midsection is introduced with a mournful melody, stated in F Dorian by the clarinet before being taken up by much of the ensemble. At the movement’s conclusion, the two sections are woven together, the motives laid together in complementary fashion in an optimistic C major.

The March that follows immediately begins shockingly, with a furious trill in the woodwinds articulated by aggressive statements by brass and percussion. This sets up the lighthearted and humorous mood for the final movement, which eventually does take up the more reserved and traditional regal mood of a British march and is simply interrupted from time to time by an uncouth accent or thunderous bass drum note. The coda of the work makes brief mention of elements from both the Chaconne and Intermezzo before closing joyfully.

- Program Note by Jacob Wallace for the Baylor Wind Ensemble concert program, 19 December 2014


Media


State Ratings

  • Florida: V --- (The Florida Bandmasters Association denotes this as "significant literature.")
  • Georgia:
    • Grade V: Complete Suite
    • Middle School Masterwork: Complete Suite
  • Iowa: IV
  • Louisiana:
    • Grade III: Movement 1 only
    • Grade IV: Two movements
    • Grade V: Complete Suite
  • Maryland: V
  • Minnesota - Category I
  • New York:
    • Grade V: Two movements
    • Grade VI: Complete Suite
  • North Carolina: VI
  • Oklahoma: V
  • South Carolina: VI
  • Texas:
    • Grade III: Movement 1 only
    • Grade IV: Two movements
    • Grade V: Complete Suite
  • Virginia:
    • Grade V: Two movements
    • Grade VI: Complete Suite


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • University of Arkansas (Fayetteville) Wind Ensemble (Brandon Hults, conductor) - 5 October 2023
  • Kennesaw (Ga.) State University Wind Ensemble (David Kehler, conductor) - 25 September 2023
  • Cornell College (Mt. Vernon, Iowa) Wind Ensemble (Joshua W. Neuenschwander, conductor) - 29 April 2023
  • Central Michigan University (Mount Pleasant) Symphony Band (Robert Lindahl, conductor) - 23 February 2023
  • United States Navy Band (Washington, D.C.) I (Rodney Dorsey, conductor) - 19 December 2022 (2022 Midwest Clinic)
  • Clarke University (Dubuque, Iowa) Wind Ensemble/Julien Winds (Rob Stull, conductor) - 13 November 2023<
  • California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Wind Orchestra (Nicholas P. Waldron, conductor) – 4 November 2022
  • South Sound Symphonic Band (South Puget Sound, Wash.) (John M. Wetherington, conductor) – 30 October 2022
  • Bishop Carroll High School (Calgary, Alb., Can. ) Symphonic Band (Chris Herard, conductor) - 16 May 2022
  • University of Illinois (Champaign/Urbana) Wind Symphony (Stephen Peterson, conductor) -1 May 2022
  • United States Marine Band (Washington, D.C.) (Darren Y. Lin, conductor) - 20 February 2022
  • University of Louisville (Ky.) Symphonic Band (Amy Acklin, conductor) - 20 February 2022
  • Middle Tennessee State University (Murfreesboro) Wind Ensemble (Denny Hawkins, conductor) - 10 February 2022
  • Wooster (Ohio) High School Symphonic Band (Craig French, conductor) - 30 January 2022 (Severance Music Center, Cleveland)
  • Bemidji (Minn.) State University Symphonic Band (Ryan Webber, conductor) - 16 November 2021
  • California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Wind Ensemble (Christopher J. Wodruff, conductor) – 30 October 2021
  • University of Minnesota (Minneapolis) Wind Ensemble (Emily Threinen, conductor) – 1 October 2021
  • Luther College (Decorah, Iowa) Concert Band (Cory Near, conductor) - 15 May 2021
  • Strasbourg Conservatory of Music (Strasbourg, France) (Miguel Etchegoncelay, conductor) - May 2007
  • Dallas (Tex.) Wind Symphony (Howard Dunn, conductor) - 18 August 1985 *Inaugural Concert*
  • Eastman Symphonic Wind Ensemble (Frederick Fennell, conductor) – 17 December 1954


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