Holst: Military Suite No. 1, Vaughan Williams: English Folk Song Suite, Ireland: Downland Suite, Holst: Military Suite No. 2, Yiu: Ink Garden.

Holst’s experience as a professional trombonist inspired his innovative writing for wind and brass, whether for ensembles or full orchestra.

Military Suite No.1 (1910) is ‘one of the cornerstone masterworks of the concert band repertoire’.

Suite No. 2 is ‘a jewel of band repertoire’. Both draw extensively on folk music which members of amateur bands would have known.

Vaughan Williams, a great collector of folk songs (in Essex and elsewhere), used a similar approach for his English Folk Song Suite. Ireland’s gorgeous Downland Suite (1932) fully matches their quality.

Raymond Yiu is a jazz pianist, conductor and composer. Ink Garden (2013) was inspired by the collection of Chinese calligraphy of that name, which was first published in 1606. It is dedicated to Richard Rodney Bennett.

Redbridge Brass enjoyed a year of firsts in 2015. An unexpected call from indie rock band British Sea Power created the opportunity to share the stage (and an enthusiastic sell-out audience) for the Sea of Brass project at the Barbican.

Another first for Redbridge Brass was recently winning both the Wychaven and Milton Keynes Entertainments contests. At the London & Southern Counties Area contests they have been in the top three 20 times in the last 25 years!