Tomkins Tunes

tomkins tunes

a post-Elizabethan extravaganza for brass quintet after Thomas Tomkins

Thomas Tomkins, a pupil of William Byrd, took charge of music at Worcester Cathedral in 1596 when he was only 24. He remained in the post for more than fifty years producing a steady stream of vocal and instrumental music characterised by strong melodic lines and original harmony.

Derek Smith, better known as a composer and arranger for woodwind and strings, was many years ago a brass player in the National Youth Orchestra. As chairman of the Worcester Concert Club, in 2003 he launched a competition for young composers based on a madrigal tune by Tomkins and felt that he should put a toe in the water by completing a specimen competition piece just to see what an entry involved. Writing it was fun and so three other movements followed quickly based on tunes for virginals and viols. Tomkins Tunes is dedicated to Fine Arts Brass Ensemble which gave the first performance in Worcester on 3rd October 2004

DS