Christmas With The Grenadier Guards - Grenadier Guards

Advantages: Full of majestic English themes. A tragi-comedy that was nearly Grand Opera
Disadvantages: None

...The operetta “Yeomen of the Guard” turned out to be the penultimate major popular collaboration between WS Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan. It came at a time of increasing difficulties in communications between the two musical protagonists and in its way is a departure from what had become their trademark Opera Comique”. The story is a tragic one – a simple jester losing the love of his life to a condemned and then reprieved hero – interspersed by moments of comedy. Although it is not made clear from the initial libretto, it is the only work where one of the cast probably dies at the end (unless you count the hellish departure of John Wellington Wells from “The Sorcerer”). From the musical point of view it was the nearest that Sullivan came to writing “a Grand Opera” (indeed they dropped the term “comic” from their descriptions... Read review

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Advantages: One of the superlative "five". Quintessentially English. Gilbert and Sullivan at their literary and musical best - and still topical today
Disadvantages: None

...the Queens Court robe maker. The fairy costumes were woven with tiny lights powered by batteries held on belts around their waist. The chorus of peers made their entrance headed by the band of the Grenadier Guards. On opening night, Sullivan learned that his stockbroker had gone bankrupt taking almost all of his life savings with him. Although at a very low ebb, the audience reaction to “Iolanthe” cheered him up, and the receipts soon restored his bank balance! THE BACKGROUND Gilbert always had a target in mind for his wit and satire. In “Iolanthe” it is the Legislative system of the United Kingdom. There were controversies surrounding the House of Lords even then and the Lord Chancellor was ever a target of satire and lampoon. Here he is portrayed as having a weakness (susceptibility) to young women – sitting at the Court of Chancery... Read review

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Advantages: None
Disadvantages: None

...This CD is the newest and longest CD released by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, and personnally, in my opinion this CD is the best of the lot. The song Amazing Grace, played by the band on this disc, was a No. 1 hit for five weeks in the UK and Australia, quite a few years ago, but this shows the quality of the playing/arranging done of the music played by the band and recorded on CD. This CD has lots of great music by the pipe band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, accompanied by the military bands - which makes it even better. I really enjoyed this CD and found myself humming along to almost every song as they were playing. There are many well known songs on this CD, the good old traditional ones, such as Scotland the Brave and Amazing Grace, as well as more popular newer ones like the love theme from Titanic and the theme from... Read review

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