Composer of Land's End's Magic in the Skies

"This extraordinary young man, from whom music pours with delightful generosity, achieves magical results. I would love to work with him again, he knows how to get it right."

Miriam Margolyes joined Christopher Bond to record the spoken element of his work, Magic in the Skies. For the project, Christopher worked with the tourist attraction Land’s End in Cornwall, writing a twenty-minute orchestral soundtrack to accompany their summer firework displays.

Christopher explains: “Rather than create twenty minutes of random music, I’m creating something unique and special to Land’s End. By taking the old legend of the Lost Land of Lyonesse – a lost land supposedly near Land’s End under the ocean – and presenting it as a grandmother (Miriam Margolyes) telling it to her two grandchildren, the story will weave in and out of the music to create not only a musical journey, but one which will be cohesive, educational and memorable, as well as complementing the fireworks at this truly magnificent location. Working with Miriam in the recording studio here at the college was such a terrific experience, and her wealth of experience shone through in her work as she carefully recorded the text."

Born in Oxford, England in 1941 & educated at Newnham College, Cambridge, Miriam Margolyes  is a veteran of stage and screen, an award-winning actress who achieved success on both sides of the Atlantic. Winner of the BAFTA Best Supporting Actress award in 1993 for The Age of Innocence, she also received Best Supporting Actress at the 1989 LA Critics Circle Awards for her role in Little Dorrit and a Sony Radio Award for Best Actress in 1993 for her unabridged recording of ‘Oliver Twist’. She was the voice of the Matchmaker in Mulan & Fly, the mother dog, in Babe.

About The Cory Band

The Cory Band made history in 2016 by winning an elusive Grand Slam and becoming the first band in history to be Quadruple Champions - simultaneously holding the National, Open, European and Brass in Concert titles. This cemented a remarkable ten consecutive years at the top of the World Rankings. However, the band has a long and illustrious history. Formed in 1884, it originally bore the name 'Ton Temperance'. In 1895 Sir Clifford Cory, the local colliery owner, heard the band and offered to provide financial assistance, resulting in the band's change of name to Cory.

In 1980, the band became European Champion and in 1984, its centenary year, it won the third in a hat-trick of National titles at the Royal Albert Hall, London, conducted by the charismatic Major Arthur Kenney. In 2000 the band achieved a historic double by winning both the Nationals and, for the first time in its history, the British Open, conducted by Dr. Robert Childs. In 2008-10 the band achieved a hat-trick of European titles.

Since 2012, the band has been conducted by Philip Harper, winning another three European titles (2013, 2016, 2019), four Nationals (2013, 2015, 2016 & 2019), five Brass in Concert titles (2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019) and three British Open (2016, 2018, 2019). In 2014, it became the inaugural winner of TV Channel S4C's Band Cymru programme and repeated this achievement in 2018. It toured Australia in 2013, and the USA in 2016; 40 years after its last visit.

The Cory Band has also developed musically outside of the contest field. In 2001, together with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, it was appointed as resident ensemble to the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, and in the same year appointed Dr. John Pickard as its Composer in Residence. John Pickard's tenure with the band ended in 2005 when the band made history giving the premiere performance of his Gaia Symphony at the prestigious Cheltenham International Festival. The Symphony was broadcast live on BBC Radio 3, and lasting over an hour in duration, is currently the largest scale original work in the repertory.

The Cory Band is recognised as one of the Principality's finest and most innovative music ensembles. Its numerous CD recordings and live concert performances have received worldwide acclaim.

The Cory Band In Concert

Aristotle's Air, Christopher Bond (2015)

Hallelujah, Leonard Cohen arr. Christopher Bond (2019)

The Lost Village of Imber, Christopher Bond (2020)