''A Downland Suite'' is a 1932

composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography *Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include v ...

for brass band in four

movements Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...

John Ireland John Benjamin Ireland (January 30, 1914 – March 21, 1992) was a Canadian actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in ''All the King's Men'' (1949), making him the first Vancouver-born actor to receive an Oscar nomin ...

. It has also been arranged for

string orchestra A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first ...

and various other instruments. The

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

composer

wrote the work in 1932 for the National Brass Band Championship of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

at a time when original pieces were regularly commissioned for major contests. It has the dedication "to my friend Kenneth Wright." The winning band on this occasion was the Fodens Motor Works Band, under the baton of Fred Mortimer. The suite is a pictorial depiction enshrining the composer's love for the

Sussex downs The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. ...

and has been described by Donald McLeod as "sunnily bucolic". In keeping with its intention as a contest piece, the suite is both technical and expressive, and is complicated and difficult to read. This leads to the bandmaster having great control over the arrangement. The first movement, the Prelude, contains contrasting solo and tutti passages. The rhythms of the Prelude also contrast the following more tender, harmonious second movement, the Elegy. The Elegy and Minuet are among Ireland’s most popular compositions, the Elegy has an Elgarian flavour from its melodic structure whereas the Minuet is charming, having something of a bucolic feel. Its Minuet is flowing and elegant. The Rondo is attractive and bright. A performance of the suite usually lasts about eighteen minutes. The first three movements were arranged for string orchestra a number of years later by one of Ireland's students,

Geoffrey Bush Geoffrey Bush (23 March 1920 – 24 February 1998) was a British composer, teacher and music scholar. Largely without formal training in composition, he produced a wide range of compositions across different genres, including many songs and wor ...

, who also transcribed Ireland's '' Elegiac Meditation''. The suite was also transcribed for

wind band A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass, and percussion famil ...

in 1997 by

Ray Steadman-Allen Lieutenant Colonel (Dr) Ray Steadman-Allen (18 September 1922 – 15 December 2014) was a British composer of choral and brass band music for the Salvation Army and for band competition. He was born in the Salvation Army 'Mother's Hospital', ...

. Today the suite is still widely performed and recorded its original brass-band form, and in its arranged form by ensembles such as the

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is one of five permanent symphony orchestras based in London. It was founded by the conductors Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a rival to the existing London Symphony and BBC Symphony ...

and the

City of London Sinfonia City of London Sinfonia (CLS) is an English chamber orchestra based in London. CLS performs regularly across the city of London in venues from East London clubs to traditional Central London concert halls. CLS is orchestra-in-residence at Opera ...

Movements

*I. Prelude: Allegro energico *II.

Elegy An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lament for the dead. However, according to ''The Oxford Handbook of the Elegy'', "for all of its pervasiveness ... the 'elegy' remains remarkably ill defined: sometime ...

: Lento espressivo *III.

Minuet A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accompa ...

: Allegretto grazioso *IV.

Rondo The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period. Etymology The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round". Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...

: Poco allegro

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Downland Suite 1932 compositions Compositions by John Ireland Orchestral suites Compositions for brass band