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25 April 2008 - Whaplode
Drove
Programme Notes
Aces High
March by Ron Goodwin from the 1969 film The Battle of Britain.
Original title from the film "The Luftwaffe March", but already
a march of that name so re-titled it "Aces High".
Originally Sir William Walton wrote the music for this film. The producers
were not really satisfied with the music and they gave the assignment
to Goodwin. Sir William Walton is a kind of an institution and there was
a lot of commotion about it. Goodwin's score was accepted by the producers.
But they liked Walton's "Battle in the Air" sequence more than
Goodwin's and this is used in the film.
Smaoinich
The title of this piece means Think of me when I look for you on the tide
and is in Scottish Gaelic. The music depicts a 14th century man of Celtic
or Norse origin; he is by himself on a wind swept cliff top and is dressed
in the leathers of a warrior. He is alone, though by choice not loneliness.
He looks out towards the sea. He is thinking, though we do not know what,
or who, is on his mind.
Young Amadeus
Young Amadeus is based on the Adagio movement of the Clarinet Concerto.
This music is often used in movies, notably Out of Africa.
Mack the Knife
"Mack the Knife", is from The Threepenny Opera. It premiered
in Berlin in 1928.
The opera opens with the singer comparing Macheath (unfavorably) with
a shark, and then telling tales of his robberies, murders, rapes, and
arson:
Literal translation:
And the shark, he has teeth
And he wears them in his face
And MacHeath, he has a knife
But the knife you don't see
In the best known English translation,
Oh the shark has pretty teeth dear,
And he shows them pearly white
Just a jack-knife has Macheath dear
And he keeps it out of sight.
Recorded by .. Louis Armstrong, Bobby Darin, Bill Haley and the Comets,
Ella Fitzgerald, frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Robbie Williams,
Gareth Gates, Michael Bublé, Westlife
Salamanca
A modern bolero (another form of Spanish dance!) from the old team of
Dave Baker and Pol Stone who wrote for dance bands.
Salamanca is a city in western Spain, the capital of the province of
Salamanca. It is probably best known for having the oldest university
in Spain and one of the oldest in Europe.
Nessun Dorma
Nessun Dorma (None Shall Sleep) is an aria from the final act of Giacomo
Puccini's opera Turandot, and is one of the best known tenor arias in
all opera. It is sung by Calaf, (The unknown prince), who falls in love
at first sight with the beautiful but cold Princess Turandot. However,
any man who wishes to wed Turandot must first answer her three riddles.
If he fails, he will be beheaded.
Backdraft
A backdraft is a situation which can occur when a fire is starved of oxygen;
consequently combustion ceases but the fuel gases and smoke remain at
high temperature. If oxygen is re-introduced to the fire, eg. by opening
a door to a closed room, combustion can restart often resulting in an
explosive effect as the gases heat and expand.
Backdraft is an American movie released in 1991, Kurt Russell, William
Baldwin, Robert De Niro and Scott Glenn star. The story is about firefighters
in Chicago on the trail of a serial arsonist.
The Japanese cooking TV show, Iron Chef, used Backdraft's music (composed
by Hans Zimmer).
Marching Through Georgia
Marching Through Georgia is a marching song written by Henry Clay Work
in 1865, refers to Gen. Sherman's March to the Sea during the previous
year. Sherman succeeded General Ulysses S. Grant as the Union commander.
He lead his troops to the capture of the city of Atlanta. Sherman's subsequent
march through Georgia and the Carolinas undermined the Confederacy's ability
to continue fighting. He accepted the surrender of all the Confederate
armies in the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida in April 1865.
Featured in the film Gone with the Wind
It was widely popular with Union Army veterans after the war. However,
General Sherman himself despised the song, in part because it was played
at almost every public appearance that he attended. Outside of the Southern
United States, it had a universal appeal: Japanese troops sang it as they
entered Port Arthur during the Russian-Japanese war of 1904-5, the British
sang it in India, and it was popular with the Allies in World War II.
Great Gate of Kiev, The
Mussorgsky Arr. Nigel Horne
The Great Gate at Kiev is probably the best known movement from the Pictures
At an Exhibition Suite, which in turn is probably the best known work
by Modest Mussorgsky.
Unlike other transcriptions of this work that have been written for brass
band, this version remains faithful to the piano original (not Ravel's
orchestral arrangement).
Mussorgsky composed the work in commemoration of his friend, the artist
and architect Viktor Hartmann, who died in 1873. In 1874 an exhibition
of over 400 of the artist's works was mounted in the Academy of Fine Arts
in St Petersburg,. Pictures at an Exhibition takes the form of an imaginary
musical tour around such a collection.
Theme from Shrek
Shrek is a very funny animated flm made in 2001 and won the first Oscar
for animated film. Shrek is an ogre who lives in a swamp in the kingdom
of Duloc. The King of Duloc Shrek ia accompanied by an annoying donkey
and together they rescues Princess Fiona from a fiery dragon.
Schreck is a German word meaning terror.
Film series: Shrek - 2001, Shrek 2 - 2004, Shrek the Third - 2007, Shrek
the Halls (TV Christmas special) - 2007,
To come: Shrek Goes Fourth - 2010, Shrek 5 - 2013. Also spinoff Puss in
Boots: The Story of an Ogre Killer - 2011
Glasnost
n. 'openness'; policy of openness followed by the Soviet government under
Mikhail Gorbachev
glasnost
Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev's policy of liberalizing various aspects
of Soviet life, such as introducing greater freedom of expression and
information and opening up relations with Western countries. Glasnost
was introduced and adopted by the Soviet government in 1986.
Shalom Alechem
Shalom Alechem is a greeting in Hebrew, meaning "Peace be upon you".
The appropriate response is "Aleichem shalom".
This form of greeting is common in the Middle East. The Arabic version
is assalamu alaikum. The greeting is used in plural - so as to greet multiple
people - even when greeting a lone individual. One religious explanation
for this is that one greets both a body and a soul.
Amparito Roca
This fast Spanish march is a popular paso doble (A paso doble is a Spanish
two step). Paso doble is based on music played at bullfights during the
bullfighters' entrance.
The composer had this piece published in Madrid, then in London in 1935.
Amparito Roca, which means "The Sheltered Cliff", was dedicated
to a little girl named Amparito Roca who lived in the Baracaldo region
of Spain.
It is possible that the music was actually composed by a British Army
musician based in Gibraltar and the Sheltered Cliff is Gibraltar.
Funiculi Funicula
"Funiculì, Funiculà" is a famous song written
by Italian journalist Peppino Turco and set to music by Italian composer
Luigi Denza in 1880. It was composed to commemorate the opening of the
first funicular on Mount Vesuvius
Six years after Funiculì, Funiculà was composed, German
composer Richard Strauss heard the song while on a tour of Italy. Thinking
that it was a traditional Italian folk song, he later incorporated it
into his Aus Italien symphony. To his great embarrassment, Strauss realised
his mistake when an angry Denza filed a lawsuit against him. Denza won
the lawsuit, and Strauss was forced to pay him a royalty fee every time
the Aus Italien was performed in public.
The word is from the Latin funiculus, a diminutive of funis, "rope
Les Champs Elysees
The 1969 French pop hit song "Aux Champs Elysees" was a reworking
of a British song. Its name was Waterloo Road written by Mike Deighan,
who was in a group called Jugular Vein. Used to be sung by Dave Benton
Original:
Down Waterloo Road, Down Waterloo Road,
Friday night, Saturday, any night and any day
You'll find what you're looking for down Waterloo Road,
French version
On the Champs-Élysées, on the Champs-Élysées
In the sun or the rain, at midday or midnight
There is everything that you want on the Champs-Élysées
Is this the way to Amarillo
Directions:
" Start from home
" Drive to London Heathrow Airport.
" Catch flight from London Heathrow to Dallas Fort Worth Airport.
" Hire car at Dallas Fort Worth Airport.
" Take the "Highway 114 west" exit toward "Fort Worth"
- follow for 29.2 miles
" Then continue on "US 287 north" - follow for 330 miles
" Take left ramp onto "Interstate 40 west" toward "Dumas"
- follow for 7.8 miles
" Take "Exit 70" onto "US 60 east" toward "Dumas"
- follow for 0.5 miles
" Take the "Buchanan Street" exit toward "Dumas/Pampa"
- follow for 1.7 miles
" Turn right onto "Old Route 66 (Interstate 40)" - follow
for 0.1miles
" Arrive at the centre of "Amarillo, Texas"
That's the way to Amarillo!
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