Fand IncWessex Press

The Batuque is an African dance that was brought to Brazil by black slaves during the seventeenth century. It consists of a circle of people clapping their hands, with two solo dancers in the centre, improvising their steps. One characteristic is the Umbigada or Semba, a gesture in which the dancers touch their bellies together regularly, at the end of the downbeat. This is probably the origin of the Samba, the most popular Brazilian dance.

I premiered Murillo Santos’ Batuque for piano solo in Europe, and had the privilege of enjoying the composer’s friendship from the 2000s. In 2016 he generously arranged his Batuque (written in 1987) for four-hands piano duet and dedicated it to the Bretas–Kevorkian Duo, and we premiered it in the same year. In early 2019, the composer gave permission for the two versions of Batuque to be published, and was most enthusiastic about the prospect. Sadly, though, he died before the project’s completion. The present edition is thus commemorative, and brings together both piano solo and four-hands piano duet versions of the piece.

—Patrícia Bretas, pianist

Composed in December 2018, the title is borrowed from a Jocelyn Brooke poem, which reflects on our darkest month, and how some will see it as a negative time of year whilst others are already focused on a brighter Spring ahead. Accordingly, the piece veers towards a mood that is hauntingly sombre, but one that also has several moments of quiet optimism and serenity.

Peter Thompson’s String Quartet no 7 is in three movements. Like the other quartets in the cycle it is unconventional in form and contains unexpected allusions to previous works – which adds a personal tone to its expression. The three movements, though tending to brevity, are nonetheless each romantic in tone and related intrinsically.

Carey Blyton wrote a series of ten stories about a little dog called Arnold, who had a very large bark—and after a number of abortive starts (including having one story narrated on film by Willie Rushton), two of the stories were eventually published in a single volume by Austin Macauley Publishers in 2018.

A brief but entertaining history of The Doggy Tales of Arnold can be found on the official Carey Blyton website.

In 2024, Austin Macauley reassigned the rights of The Doggy Tales of Arnold back to the Carey Blyton estate, and Fand Music Press is delighted to be able to offer copies of both the paperback and hardback versions of the two published stories. The longer term project is to publish all the stories in one new volume.

The HARDBACK, PAPERBACK and EBOOK editions may be purchased from this site.

Please note that after purchasing the EBOOK edition, you will be supplied with the book in PDF format by email.

Carey Blyton wrote a series of ten stories about a little dog called Arnold, who had a very large bark—and after a number of abortive starts (including having one story narrated on film by Willie Rushton), two of the stories were eventually published in a single volume by Austin Macauley Publishers in 2018.

A brief but entertaining history of The Doggy Tales of Arnold can be found on the official Carey Blyton website.

In 2024, Austin Macauley reassigned the rights of The Doggy Tales of Arnold back to the Carey Blyton estate, and Fand Music Press is delighted to be able to offer copies of both the paperback and hardback versions of the two published stories. The longer term project is to publish all the stories in one new volume.

The HARDBACK, PAPERBACK and EBOOK editions may be purchased from this site.

Carey Blyton wrote a series of ten stories about a little dog called Arnold, who had a very large bark—and after a number of abortive starts (including having one story narrated on film by Willie Rushton), two of the stories were eventually published in a single volume by Austin Macauley Publishers in 2018.

A brief but entertaining history of The Doggy Tales of Arnold can be found on the official Carey Blyton website.

In 2024, Austin Macauley reassigned the rights of The Doggy Tales of Arnold back to the Carey Blyton estate, and Fand Music Press is delighted to be able to offer copies of both the paperback and hardback versions of the two published stories. The longer term project is to publish all the stories in one new volume.

The HARDBACK, PAPERBACK and EBOOK editions may be purchased from this site.