Thierry Deleruyelle’s Majesty condenses a full coronation ceremony into barely six minutes of brass fire, velvet hymns, and drum-line pomp—perfect for Kelvin Grove Wind Orchestra’s taste for spectacle. Commissioned in 2017 for the 230-year-old Bourbourg Wind Orchestra and premiered on 19 November 2022, barely ten weeks after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, it feels both like a French toast to Britain’s late monarch and a sonic heir to Elgar’s noblest pages. Deleruyelle—twice named “Composer of the Year” by his peers and a Bastille-Day parade staple—writes band music that thinks it’s CinemaScope. Majesty opens with a blazing B-flat-major fanfare that would not be out of place in Pomp and Circumstance, yet its cadence side-slips to G-flat, where woodwinds unfurl a hushed hymn as plush as velvet drapes. Stylistically, Deleruyelle spices his British-leaning dignities with French harmonic “winks”: unexpected B-flats and mode-mixture turns keep ears pricked, much as a trumpeter might snap to attention for the arrival of a dignitary. That blend of Gallic colour and Anglo-Saxon pageantry makes Majesty a perfect gateway piece for audiences who love royal ceremony but crave a dash of Debussy’s glamour. When the orchestra releases that final chord, the hall will vibrate as if Westminster’s Great Bell itself had rung in Brisbane. Come witness the pageantry—no royal invitation required, just your enthusiasm for music that wears its crown with pride. Join our royal family of musicians on Sunday August 31st at 2pm. Tickets available now via the yellow button below. | 
