Review: Foden’s Band at the 2025 RNCM International Brass Band Festival

Foden's Band at the RNCM: Gods, Fireworks and a Homage to Childhood

It’s that time of year again. The RNCM International Brass Band Festival hosts some of the world’s most successful brass bands. The event aims to showcase the best repertoire our community has to offer, shining the spotlight on new, innovative works, nurturing the next generation of brass band talent and showcasing some of the best brass soloists.

Foden's Band were the first to take to the stage in the RNCM concert hall to perform their programme on Friday night. The event was recorded for BBC Radio 3 to feature in their 'In Concert' series, hosted by presenter, Tom Redmond. Foden’s Band’s performance featured one world premiere, a UK premiere, a forgotten classic and a legendary masterpiece. Here’s a glimpse into the first concert of the festival.

Fantasia on a Theme of Purcell by Paul Mealor

The band opened their concert with the grandiose ‘Fantasia on a Theme og Purcell  by Paul Mealor. The piece was commissioned by the National Youth Brass Band of Wales and first performed by the band during their summer course in 2016. It’s a dramatic work that starts with a rousing opening section - all pomp and circumstance with fanfare-style cornets and an upright, decisive lower band that marches the short, tight, attacked melody line through. 

A brief, flowing dance-like section handed us over into an exposed, melancholic trombone solo (performed by the band’s solo trombone, John Barber) with an ominous timpani accompaniment. The melody introduced by solo trombone is then passed over to the solo horn, Jonathan Bates with Principal cornet, Mark Wilkinson joining to form a beautiful musical dialogue. The slow, chorale-like theme is developed further and further as the band builds into a full, intense dynamic - the band produced a huge sound, that never felt forced or had a trace of harshness, just a broad, balanced waft of sound that flooded around the hall. 

It was an unconventional use of a household item within the percussion section that caught my eye (and ears!) in this work. After the last threads of the intense chorale section died away, the percussion section accompanied a stunning solo moment Gary Curtin on solo euphonium with an ethereal effect made by creating that theremin-esque sound when you fill a wine glass and run a finger around the edge of it. It was incredibly effective and a very inventive move from the composer. They didn’t quite steal the show from Gary, who soared up into the upper echelons of the instrument’s register with impressive ease.

A rhythmic technical section brought us back to earth with a thump with many melodies and countermelodies forming a complex texture of dance-like layers, before we moved into a glorious maestoso where you can really hear the influence of Purcell and music of the Baroque era, before a final beat of the timp concludes the piece.

This work offered a colourful, engaging start to the festival. The composer was in attendance and enjoyed Foden’s performance of his piece as much as the audience, writing on X:

“Their performance of my ‘Fantasia on a Theme of Purcell’ was amazing. Epic!”

‘Three Gods’ Horn Concerto by Edward Gregson - Tenor Horn Soloist, Tim de Maeseneer

Belgian tenor horn soloist, Tim de Maeseneer was the evening’s featured soloist with the band, who presented the world premiere of Edward Gregson’s new concerto for tenor horn, entitled ‘Three Gods’. In his introduction to the work, Gregson told the audience that the idea behind the piece came from a viola concerto he had previously written for Rachel Roberts in 2023 that was entitled, ‘Three Godesses’, but this time focussing on three male gods. The aim was to explore the full range and capabilities of what the tenor horn can do with each movement embodying one of the three eponymous gods: Zeus, Hermes and Apollo.

This was my first time hearing Tim perform and my goodness, what a talent! The piece features this strident, ‘hunting horn’ motif at the start that is repeated throughout, with this first introduction of the motif being played offstage moving into a playful cadenza as Tim entered the stage. He could not have made a more memorable first impression - the sound, the control, the characterisation was absolutely outstanding. 

The first movement represents the big man himself, Zeus with all the menacing power, intimidating strength and authoritarian stance personified in the big, bold sounds of the accompaniment and the technical prowess displayed in the solo line. There are some gorgeous little duet interludes within this movement with the soloist the Principal cornet and the band’s sop player, Richard Poole. The hunting horn motif can be heard again, interwoven between the ensemble underpinning the concerto with a final blast bringing the first movement to a close. 

The second movement starts with a sparkle of triangle, vibraphone and glockenspiel. You may be forgiven for thinking that Tinkerbell (or should that be TIMkerbell? Sorry, moving on) has entered the building, but it is actually the second god, Hermes who has made an appearance in the form of a fast-paced scherzo. The soloist flits and floats, weaving in and out in a stunning demonstration of technical dexterity. The illustrative power of Gregson’s writing brought the fleeting, busy-body character of Hermes to life. 

The cadenza in this second movement was something to behold. In my opinion, it was something one would expect from a work for euphonium rather than tenor horn with acrobatic musical elements.

Tubular bells heralded in the final, slower movement, written to portray the god of music, Apollo, which was an emotive, but still incredibly virtuosic. The control in the interval jumps to seemingly impossible high notes seemed utterly effortless. After all the pyrotechnics of the previous movements, this movement allowed Tim to showcase the more expressive side to his playing and it’s safe to say he can do it all. 

Speaking to It's Not a Trumpet about his performance at the RNCM International Brass Band Festival, Tim said:

Performing this world premiere with the Foden's Band, currently ranked No. 1 in the world, under the direction of their brilliant conductor Michael Fowles, was truly a dream come true. 

It was an unforgettable experience to play alongside musicians I’ve long admired and to finally meet faces I’ve only seen in video recordings over the years. The entire experience left a lasting impression on me.

What really stood out was how welcoming and supportive every member of the band was. They are the most normal people offstage—but when the music begins, they transform into something very special.

This performance was unlike anything I have ever previously seen from a horn solo  - the synergy of Gregson’s writing and Tim’s outstanding musical skill was incredibly powerful - so much so, I went out and bought his CD from the trade stand as soon as I could, so I could hear it again!

Fireworks by Elgar Howarth

By complete coincidence, the programmes for this festival were finalised before the unfortunate passing of Elgar Howarth earlier in the month and featured quite a few titles from his expansive repertoire. So, the band’s next piece in their programme became an accidental tribute to Howarth and what piece could be more fitting than his epic ‘Fireworks’. 

For those of us who have not yet been acquainted with the work, ‘Fireworks’ is kind of like the brass band version of Britten’s ‘Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra’ with each section having their chance to introduce themselves to the audience with the help of a narrator. Obviously, when it is being used as a test piece, the work is played straight through without a narrator, and this was the way in which it was performed at the festival. 

It was a piece that divided opinion when it was used for the 1975 British Open and Belle Vue, where Wingates Band under the baton of Richard Evans took the trophy. It’s playful character and technical and harmonic challenges that may seem deceptively easy by today’s standards caused significant controversy amongst bands. 

Needless to say, Foden’s performance of this classic work paid respectful homage to the late, great Elgar Howarth with technical precision to the point where their final breath before the last chord was in perfect, audible unison! A glowing tribute to one of banding’s greats. 

A Leadsman, a Lady and a Lord by David Stanhope

This fun-filled and engaging work is one that seems to have been left in the back cupboard of brass band repertoire to gather dust, with its last outing as a set work in the UK being the year of its publication in 1987 for the second section of the National Finals and its last feature in a UK own choice competition being in 1993. I’m glad that the festival offered the piece a chance to shine in the spotlight as it’s a characterful, engaging piece that perfectly personifies each of the titular characters. 

The piece is split into three movements: The Jolly Sailor, Lovely Joan and Lord Bateman and are settings of three British folksongs that Stanhope dedicated to the memory of Percy Grainger, who set himself the mission of recording many folksongs over the course of his life in the hope of preserving them from the hands of time. 

The first movement is a boisterous, jaunty portrait of the jovial leadsman (a sailor who was responsible for using a lead line to measure the depth of water). From the beat of his boots (the gentle footsteps provided by the basses) to the upbeat maritime lilt of him humming to himself offered by the mid and upper band and his potential to become a little rowdy with a cheeky glint of trombone - a clear picture of the leadsman comes into view. 

In stark contrast, the second movement is a dignified, demure setting with stately, gently flowing chord progressions. The main melodic theme from unison cornets is not an easy feat from a tuning and intonation perspective, but was executed with poise and melodic precision. Delicately phrased solo moments from the band’s flugelhorn, Melanie Whyle, added a touch of sparkle to this delightful movement. 

Finally, a crash of cymbals and rolling snare and timpani announce the arrival of the lord - and he likes a big entrance. The hornpipe-style melody line that begins in an exposed solo for Principal cornet and is passed around the horn and cornet section I think represents a little humour from the character. 

All-in-all it's a fun, illustrative work that I think should make a comeback on the UK contest circuit.

Electrodesign by Elisabeth Vannebo

The band’s penultimate piece in their programme was the UK premiere of Elisabeth Vannebo’s, Electrodesign. The piece was written in memory of Elisabeth’s father, who tragically died suddenly from unexpected circumstances. In life, her father was a very talented inventor in Norway and this piece is a musical depiction of the innocence of childhood growing up in a small town, the warmth of familial love, the pain of sudden loss and the complex emotional whirlpool that is grief. 

I absolutely adored this work. It opens with a radio static sound effect before a warm, chord seeps into the concert hall from the lower brass and tubular bells that is comforting and evokes a feeling of nostalgia. The first movement had elements that reminded me of the music from Studio Ghibli films - adventurous, jaunty melodies sprinkled with an excitement of tuned percussion - it really is an imaginative scoring of a glitter-filled memory of childhood. It’s playful, but make no mistake, this is not simple writing - this work has layers. 

The dance-like section that follows, painted the picture of a couple falling in love (the composer’s parents in my imagination), in a similar montage to the ‘Married Life’ sequence at the beginning of Up. And similar to my reaction to that particular montage, the depiction of the sudden loss of her father was a real gut punch. Vannebo’s emotive writing illustrates the feeling of grief and loss, so viscerally it literally pulled tears out of me and the ending of the piece arrives so suddenly that the piece almost sounds unfinished. My assumption is this is a representation of the sudden passing of her father, which made it all the more harder to hold back your emotions as a listener. Intelligently crafted and emotionally complex - this piece is a work of art.

Cloudcatcher Fells by John McCabe

This classic work needs little in the way of introduction for most brass banders. Originally written for brass band in 1985 for the Championship Section National Finals, the title comes from a poem by David Wright and the work is associated with various locations in the Lake District and is formed of four movements made up of a series of sections titled as follows:

1. Great Gable

   1. Grasmoor

   2. Grisedale Tarn

2. Haystacks

   1. Catchedicam

3. Angle Tarn

4. Grisedale Brow

   1. Striding Edge

   2. Helvellyn

      
      

I have loved this work for many, many years, but had never had the pleasure of hearing it live until Friday’s performance from Foden’s and it was worth the wait. McCabe’s glorious writing can only be done justice in a live performance, in my opinion. As a listener you are transported to the imposing mountains, rolling hills and scenic landscapes of the Lake District. It’s traditional writing, that may be viewed as a bit simplistic compared to modern works of today, but to me it is timeless and Foden’s delivered a performance that was simply stunning. So, much so I allowed myself the indulgence to rest my pen, close my eyes and finally enjoy a live performance of one of my favourite brass band works. 

It was a sterling opener to what was to be an incredible weekend of brass band music with a programme that effectively combined the music of our heritage with incredible new works.