Gustav Holst's first excursion into music for band (known as "military band" at the time) was composed in 1909. Despite there being very little standardization of the instruments and number of players used in such ensembles, Holst managed to score his three-movement work in a very flexible way so that the work could be played by an ensemble with as few as 19 wind and brass players, plus percussion. Although the occasion and ensemble which motivated the work's creation remain obscure, the 'First Suite' became tremendously popular in the years after its first publication in 1921. With the...