Derek Bourgeois

Lac Leman

Imagine you are on a boat which is gradually building up speed pulling gently out of Geneva. You get your first view of the beautiful Lac Leman which provokes a melody in your head first heard played by a trombone against the chugging of the boats engines. The tune builds up with full harmonies as the wonderful scenery unfolds. Then you pass all the lakeside towns that cluster along the northern border, with their vineyards, which produce the excellent Swiss wine from the Chasselas grape. They are a patchwork of dazzling colours. You glance up and see the imposing snow-clad mountains with their wooded hillsides and valleys. Finally you reach Montreux where the excited atmosphere of the Brass Band Championships is building up to fever pitch. These were the ideas I had in my head when I set out to write the piece. There is no precise programme, but the listener should have little difficulty in following the above scenario as the piece unfolds. ?« Derek Bourgeois