• Sixteen star brass players and four percussionists – members of the Berlin Philharmonic and Vienna Philharmonic, plus a few others – have collaborated to form a new ensemble, called the Philharmonic Brass. After their debut concert at Vienna’s Musikverein earlier this year, they have released a debut album. Overture! (Decca), reflecting its title, presents six contrasting overtures by Beethoven (Egmont), Verdi (La forza del destino), Borodin (Prince Igor), Dvořák (Carnival), Shostakovich (Festive) and Gershwin (Cuban). The arrangements by Peter J Lawrence and principal trumpet Matthias Höfs remain faithful to the originals but relish the virtuosity of each section – trumpets, French horns, Vienna horns, trombones, tubas, all have their moment. The whole sequence awakens the senses, reaching a breathtaking – but never breathless, in the case of these star players – finale with Dvořák’s exuberant Carnival. Irresistible for anyone susceptible to the sound of brass.
