Thursday 3 May 2012

Brass at St James the Less


Nativity at St James the Less, New Mills www.stjamesarts.org.uk

In the first of a series of interviews exclusive to the Fringe Blog we hear from Jager Brass who are playing at St James the Less, New Mills on Monday 12 July (7.30-9.30pm) and who include a world premiere in the programme. Jager Brass also play at the Fringe Party in the Park on Sunday, July 11th - Pavilion Gardens, 2.00-4.30pm.
Brass quintet – an ignorant question but what five brass instruments will we be hearing?

We consist of 2 trumpets, a horn, trombone and tuba, but don't be fooled into thinking that's all there will be. We aim to make the concerts as entertaining as possible whilst still being serious musicians, so expect many nice surprises!

St James the Less – have you played there before? Either way what is it about the venue that you like?


We haven't played at St James the Less before but we have watched another group here. It is a stunning church with a lively acoustic, with enough seats for many people. We also like to help out the community and the church commitee are undergoing renovation plans for the church. So the more people that attend, the better it is for the church.

Your advertising says "From Bach to the Beatles" – should lovers of either be afraid of what you’ll do to the music?
We hope the audience will love what we do, as we don't try to mix the pieces into each other, but merge from one to the other through the concert, which is in two halves. All the reviews we have recieved so far, have loved what we do, and we hope many people come to enjoy the show!

Do you want to tell us a bit more about the programme you’ll be playing – any less familiar composers, perhaps?
Our programmes try to give the audience a blend of all styles of music. We tend to have the first half of a concert focus primarily on classical music which will contain a major work, that shows off many different styles of music.
Our second half is where the entertainment really starts with the styles focusing on jazz and blues pieces. We have a world premiere of a new work written especially for us, and many other pieces that everyone in the audience should be able to reognise. 

The RNCM has a reputation for being open-minded and crossing boundaries quite readily – is that what it feels like? How is that reflected in what Jager Brass does, for example?
The Royal Northern College of Music where we study is the forefront for new and exciting music, to the likes and dislikes of people. We try to stay within comfortable boundaries, with the odd few pieces that are brand new compositions that will excite any audience!
You’re playing in the Fringe Sunday Party in the Park – any chance of a Fanfare?There will be a fanfare and a taste of some of the pieces we will perform! Beatlestastic!



Footnote: St James the Less recently secured funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to develop the church into an arts centre. The full story was reported in theBuxton Advertiser.


by Keith Savage - Published 29/05/2010

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