Philip Sparke was born in London and studied composition, trumpet and piano at the Royal College of Music, where he gained an ARCM. He has written for brass band championships in New Zealand, Switzerland, Holland, Australia and the UK, including three times for the National Finals at the Royal Albert Hall, and his test pieces are constantly in use wherever brass bands can be found. In 1996 the US Air Force Band commissioned and recorded Dance Movements, which won the prestigious Sudler Prize in 1997. In September 2000 he was awarded the Iles Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians for his services to brass bands. In 2005 Music of the Spheres won the National Band Association/William D. Revelli Memorial Band Composition Contest. His conducting and adjudicating activities have taken him to most European countries, Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Canada and the USA. In May 2000, he took the major step of becoming a full-time composer by founding his own publishing company, Anglo Music Press. The company is devoted to publishing his brass band, concert band, fanfare band and instrumental publications as well as recordings dedicated to his latest works.
The long history of Jewish folk song has resulted in a rich and varied repertoire of songs, which deal with religion, history, festival and celebration. The melodies featured in Shalom! reflect this panoply of subjects and range widely in mood, from lament to rejoicing.I. V’ha’ir Shushan & Havdala - V’ha’ir Shushan describes the victory celebration of the citizens of the walled city of Shushan, based on a story in the Book of Esther, while Havdala is sung at a ceremony in Jewish homes and synagogues which concludes the Sabbath and other religious festivals.
II. Hanerot Halalu & Ba’olam Haba - Hanerot Halalu is sung to accompany the lighting of candles at Hanukkah and Ba’olam Haba is set to words which speak of the world to come, which can mean either the world after death or the world that is to follow the messianic millennium.
III. Mishenichnas Adar, Ani Purim & Yom Tov Lanu - The three songs used in this movement celebrate the festival of Purim, which commemorates a major victory over oppression and is recounted in the Megillah, the scroll of the story of Esther. Purim takes place on the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar, the twelfth month of the Jewish calendar.