University of York Music Press

The 35-minute work sets three comical but poignant stories by the former Python, Terry Jones, for narrator (actor) and orchestra. The work - one of the few pieces in the orchestral repertoire that successfully marries musical integrity and a very broad appeal to both children and adults - enjoyed a sell-out run of 10 performances in Lisbon. The three stories (The Fast Road, Three Raindrops and Tom and the Dinosaur) came alive with powerful music, glittering orchestration, a perfect sense of timing and stunning performances by Joäo Reis, the speaker, and Cesário Costa, the conductor. There will be further performances of Fantastic Tales in February 2007 at the Coliseum, Porto, Portugal. The Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra are hoping to tour this work in the UK. Festivals and Promoters in the UK are strongly encouraged to take a further look at this work - it is marvellously successful at broadening orchestral audiences and it will undoubtedly receive much press attention due to the involvement of Terry Jones and its accessibility to school audiences.