Richard Harvey : L'Homme Arme Study ScoreFor three brass choirs and percussionDuration: c. 9 minutesFormat: 48 page scoreThis was written in 1983 for a follow-up tour...

Richard Harvey : L'Homme Arme Study ScoreFor three brass choirs and percussionDuration: c. 9 minutesFormat: 48 page scoreThis was written in 1983 for a follow-up tour of The Brass of Aquitaine and London. We decided to stick with the style of La Citadelle and I chose to write a set of variations on the theme of L’Homme armé, a popular cantus firmus of the early 15th century. This song formed the basis of several settings of the Mass, including a famous version by Guillaume Dufay. Its origins are unclear, but one theory claims it started life as a battle hymn for the crusaders. So it seemed appropriate that one of the great churches we performed in on that tour was the magnificent Abbaye Royale de Fontevraud, near Anjou, where King Richard the Lionheart is buried. The tour was a great success and we decided to record the whole repertoire in the church of La Sauve-Majeure in Entre-Deux-Mers. The album was released later that year, met with considerable critical success and is still available today.