A4 Brass Quartet comprises principal players from some of the UK’s top brass bands, including Jonny Bates of Foden’s Band! Since 2013 they have combined creativity and virtuosity, entertaining audiences worldwide.
Programme
6:30pm Doors open
7:00: Spotlight Concert
Music performed by talented young people from Sandbach
7:30 Intermission
Art Exhibition by Jinty Pyke & Lesley Farrar from Sandbach Art Club , Refreshments
8:00 Main Concert
A4 BRASS QUARTET
Jamie Smith cornet / flugelhorn
Jonathan Bates tenor horn
Mike Cavanagh baritone horn
Chris Robertson euphonium
Richard Strauss Festmusik der Stadt Wien
Gioachino Rossini Barber of Seville Overture
John Rutter A Gaelic Blessing
Baritone Horn Soloist: Mike Cavanagh
Doreen Carwithen Suffolk Morris from ‘Suffolk Suite’
Evelyn Glennie A Little Prayer
Ralph Vaughan-Williams English Folk Song Suite
J.S. Bach Inventions 1-4
J.B. Arban Carnival of Venice
Euphonium Soloist: Chris Robertson
Jonathan Bates Mists of the Mountains
iv. A Tale of Two Peaks
A4 Brass Quartet comprises of principal players from some of the UK’s top brass bands, including
Black Dyke, Grimethorpe, Brighouse & Rastrick and Foden’s. With “technical virtuosity in
abundance” (Brass Band World), these four astonishing musicians come together to perform
both lyrical and high-octane works, forming a distinctive and new take on chamber music.
The Quartet has a unique blend of instruments, with a cornet, tenor horn, baritone and
euphonium creating an exclusive sound that stands out from the standard brass quartet. With
this unusual instrumentation, A4 Brass has actively developed their repertoire, commissioning
new music, composing and arranging music themselves.
Formed in 2013 at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), A4 Brass Quartet has gone on to
become a multi-award-winning chamber ensemble and establish itself at the forefront of British
brass chamber music. Prizes include the Royal Over-Seas League Chamber Music Competition
(2018); a Tunnell Trust Award (2018); the Musicians’ Company Maisie Lewis Prize (2018) and the
Tillett Trust Young Artists’ Platform (2017). In September 2018 they were selected to become City
Music Foundation Artists and the following month were the first brass ensemble to ever win the
Royal Philharmonic Society Henderson Chamber Ensemble Award. They also regularly work with
Live Music Now and Music in Hospitals & Care and are committed to expanding and diversifying
their work.
The Quartet has performed widely throughout the UK appearing at major venues and festivals
including Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Bridgewater Hall, Cadogan Hall, St. John’s Smith
Square, Purcell Room, St. Margaret’s Church Westminster Abbey (for Park Lane Group), Battersea
Arts Centre (RPS Awards 2019), St. Martin-in-the-Fields & St. James’ Piccadilly (for ROSL), Lake
District Summer Music, Northern Aldborough, Wimbledon International and King’s Lynn Festivals.
Overseas engagements include Japan (2023), residencies at the Lieksa Brass Week (Finland, 2023
& 2018), Ceresio Estate Festival (Switzerland, 2018), Sibelius Academy (Finland, 2019), and two
appearances at the Trakai Fanfare Week (Lithuania, 2018 & 2015).
In June 2018 the Quartet completed the prestigious International Artist Diploma (IAD) in
Chamber Music at the RNCM as John Fewkes scholars and upon graduating they accepted the
invitation from Principal Linda Merrick to become Honorary Associate Artists of the RNCM.
Furthermore, in December 2020 A4 Brass Quartet became the first ever ensemble to be awarded
Associate Members of the RNCM (ARNCM) in recognition of the Quartet’s success in the music
profession.
The Quartet has featured on national television and radio, appearing multiple times on both ITV’s
Christmas Carol Concerts and BBC Radio 3’s ‘In-Tune’ with Sean Rafferty and Katie Derham. In
2016 they released their debut CD, Mists of the Mountains, at the RNCM Brass Band Festival
featuring new, original music composed for them, including works by Martin Ellerby, Edward
Gregson, Oliver Waespi and Nigel Clarke. In 2021 they released their second studio album,
Mosaic, on the SOMM Recordings label to critical acclaim and has since been featured on Classic
FM, BBC Radio 3 and Scala Radio.