This is the Place

'This is the Place...' was composed for Rosamund Brass - a brass ensemble based at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester - in 2022 and acts as a chronological map of several key components in developing Manchester into the diverse cultural hub which exists today.

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The work is in 4 movements, the first - Sisterhood Pride - is a tribute to Emmeline Pankurst, one of the most influential figures in the Suffragette movement of the early 20th century, born and raised in Moss Side.

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On the high street in Hulme, a large colourful mural paints the pcture of the windrush movement in 1948, which saw huge numbers of people emigrate from the Carribbean to these shores with many making their home in Manchester. To this day, there remains a strong and vibrant Carribbean community around the city. The words "from the sea, a rush wind blowing..." are in pride of place on this mural which is the inspiration for the 2nd movement of this work.

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In the 1980's and early 90's, Manchester gave birth to one of the biggest music genres of it's time - Acid House. One club in particular - the Thunderdome in Miles Platting - was seen as the nationwide home of Acid House and the 3rd movement combines the sound of the acoustic brass quartet with an audio track imitating the beats and soundworlds of many of the classic Acid tracks from that time.

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'This is the Place...' is the title of a poem by Manchester-based Tony Walsh, and this is the main inspiration for this whole work. The day after the horrific terror attack on Manchester Arena in 2017, Tony read this poem toi thousands of mourners gathered in Albert Square. This final 4th movement interspeses audio samples from that very speech with the hymn tune 'Manchester' as a tribute to those that lost their lives on that fateful day in May.