Gustav Holst’s first excursion into music for band (known as military band at the time) was composed in 1909. Despite there being very little standardization of the instruments and number of players used in such ensembles, Holst managed to score his three-movement work in a very flexible way so that the work could be played by an ensemble with as few as 19 wind and brass players, plus percussion. Although the occasion and ensemble which motivated the work’s creation remain obscure, the First Suite became tremendously popular in the years after its first publication in 1921. With the advent of public school bands in the USA, the original publisher added numerous parts for instruments not found in the original manuscript and provided substitutes for some originally designated instruments which had become obsolete over the years, producing a bloated full score in 1948. Richard W. Sargeant Jr’s newly engraved edition goes back to Holst’s small band concept, with substitutions made to match the parts disposition and timbre of original score. Now available at an affordable price in a convenient format, this score will be welcomed by bands, wind ensembles and devoted fans of a work which is now part of the core repertoire worldwide.

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