Orb and Sceptre by Sir William Walton 

Lucky Queen Elizabeth II to have a piece of music like this written for her!

William Walton's music is so good, it almost makes me want to be British :-D

I love heart on sleeve music like this with a stirring bass line and phenomenal major sixth chords. In 1953 my father was in the Far East on National Service and my mother a sixth former at Grammar School. Both would have remembered the occasion.

For my money Walton and Arnold were two of the best engines in English musical culture in the middle of the twentieth century - vim, verve, range, and endless invention both.

Walton is such an immensely great composer

There is a wind transcription of ORB & SCEPTRE done by N. Richardson for "military band" published in 1953 by Boosey & Hawkes. The piece opens in B-flat concert, goes to D-flat a the first appearance of the processional theme; then back to B-flat for the duration. It is a chop-buster for the brass and a technical workout for the woodwinds. To my knowledge, the Orb refers to the earth and Sceptre refers to British royal sovereignty over it during the height of it's empire.

Well Done! Thank You!

Excellent!

awesome bassoonpart!!!

Excellent

Love the french horn's sound in this piece :)

I gotta admit, you guys make some darn good music...AND you've got cool accents.

i wish i got classical pieces written for me too

OMG those French horns. Wow!

"There is a wind transcription of ORB & SCEPTRE done by N. Richardson for "military band" published in 1953 by Boosey & Hawkes. The piece opens in F, the dm, goes to D-flat at the first appearance of the processional theme; then back to F/dm for the duration. It is a chop-buster for the brass and a technical workout for the woodwinds. To my knowledge, the Orb refers to the earth and Sceptre refers to British royal sovereignty over it during the height of it's empire."

unfortunately it was on a classical compilation cd i had about 10 years ago...I believe it was played by Southampton's Philharmonic but it was ages ago...it was the best version i have heard so far of orb and sceptre so I wish i still had the cd!

Has anyone heard the version where the organ plays the main part here instead of trumpets?...i used to have it on CD

…..and was performed on the grounds of the former home of QEII's first cousin twice removed.....I think : )

This is quite a brilliant piece though almost pop in its tonal language. I much prefer Crown Imperial, which is truly inspired music; whereas this piece, though extremely well crafted, it doesn't quite hit the glorious heights which Walton's earlier piece does. On the other hand, it does seem to let the air of the 50's in. One can hear the sound of so many subsequent filmscores. Agreed, the horns are a bit ragged; the whole piece would benefit from some tightening up. More rehearsal!

No, but I've heard a recording that has an organ playing the main line of "Crown Imperial". Is there a series of Walton arrangement that use organ and winds? If so, where might I find a recording of it?

Is it okay if I want to walk down the aisle to this at my wedding? I really love this song, but I don't see how you could cut it off?

this is a sloppy performance....but I like it...it lopes along like a clumsy golden retriever puppy, all happy and goofy. Horns are all over the place...still it makes me smile.

In my view, Walton should have at least have been given an hereditary Viscountcy!, if only posthumously!

This is nearly as good as the Royal Marines.

I love Walton but that performance is more than a bit rough around the edges. Had the brass been in the pub all afternoon?