Philip Sparke's third symphony, A Colour Symphony, was commissioned by "sinfonischen blasorchester wehdel" conducted by Thomas Ratzek. In the four movements (white, yellow, blue and red) the composer creates links between the instrumentation and harmonic elements and the actual colour of the spectrum the movement stands for. In order to create the greatest richness possible, Philip Sparke used a very large instrumentation including low woodwinds, harp, piano and celli. A Colour Symphony is an impressive and iconic addition to the standard repertoire for large symphonic bands.