Boys of the Old Brigade

The American band master and composer William Paris Chambers (1854-1913) was born in Newport, Pennsylvania, and grew up in nearby town of Newville. He began to learn the cornet around age thirteen, and by age eighteen was conductor of the Keystone Cornet Band. In 1879 he became Conductor of the Capital City Band in Harrisburg, and from 1887 to 1893 directed the Great Southern Band of Baltimore, Maryland. During the late 1890's and early 1900's Chambers managed the C.G. Conn band instrument store in New York City and became widely recognized as a virtuoso cornet player, as well as a respected bandmaster and composer. He was regularly featured in cornet solos with Francesco Fanciulli's Seventy-First Regiment Band on the mall at Central Park where he dazzled audiences with his phenomenal high register, playing effortlessly up to the third high C. He also toured Europe and Africa in 1905-1906, performing cornet solos accompanied by his own band. In 1912 he formed the municipal band in Atlantic City, New Jersey, returning to Newville, shortly before his death. Chambers wrote and published nearly ninety marches as well as several brilliant cornet solos. His band compositions have been called some of the finest and most difficult works in the American march repertoire. Today, he is mainly known for two of his marches, Chicago Tribune March and the present work. Boys of the Old Brigade was written in 1901 but is not related to the Irish Republican song of the same name. At just over 2 minutes long, the piece is a short and spirited quick march, and in this edition Richard Sargeant pays tribute to Chambers' original instrumentation, with extended woodwinds (including 3 clarinets, E-flat and B-flat bass clarinet and bassoon), SATB saxophones, and full brass section with 4 cornets, plus basses, snare drum, cymbals and bass drum.