Our Music

Brilliant original scores by Philip Sparke, Adam Gorb and Clark McAlister show us the nuance that can be achieved by a woodwind orchestra. Because of the limitations of the repertoire, the Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble has commissioned no less than three original works and over sixty arrangements. The arrangements in our catalogue are diverse, ranging from miniatures to full opera scores.

When BWE set up in 1993, the mainstay of the repertoire was made up of flexible five-part arrangements. Whilst these seemed to 'do the job', they were limited and left some players feeling dissatisfied. So the group decided to invite living composers and arrangers to make bespoke transcriptions and arrangements. Over six years we have become more ambitious giving both a challenge to the ensemble and interest for our audiences. Our bespoke arrangements mean that we can programme a concert with a theme, rather than a collection of unrelated scores.

The distinct advantage of choosing to arrange almost all the pieces we perform is the wide range of musical styles that is available to us. We can dip into worlds that woodwind players might otherwise miss: the excitement of Oliver Messiaen's colourful kaleidoscopic harmony, Stravinsky's shattering rhythm or the crystal clear orchestrations of Ravel.

Original works

The Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble has commissioned three original works:
Ruth Young, The Zookeeper (2006)
Christopher Hussey, Twisted Skyscape (2008)
Alan Bullard Journey Through Time (2010)

Arrangers

The Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble has commissioned over sixty arrangements from these arrangers:
Roger Cawkwell
Richard Hatton
John Holland
Christopher Hussey
Phil Lawrence
Shea Lolin
Graham Lyons
Martin Seymour
Melanie Thorne (Sempre Music)
Guy Woolfenden OBE