Brass choirs seem to love arranging and transcribing music of full symphony orchestra scores. This makes sense when one considers that a brass choir covers the ranges of all of the instruments of the orchestra, and can still use the original percussion instruments. Like any transcription that alters the instruments used, the level of success of these transcriptions varies between composers and time periods. Music that already uses brass instruments can transfer rather seamlessly, while music that does not can be more "hit or miss." However, some of my absolute favorite orchestra transcriptions for brass ensembles originally contain no brass instruments. Below are a few transcriptions or arrangements of familiar orchestral repertoire.
Gustav Holst: "Jupiter" from The Planets. Performed by the Chicago Brass Choir
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 5, Mvt. I - Arranged by Brad Howland. Performed by Panamá Oeste Brass Ensemble.
Richard Wagner: Introduction to Act III, from Lohengrin. Performed by the Georg Solti Brass Ensemble.
One of the most often "stolen" pieces in the trombone quartet repertoire is "Achieved if the Glorious Work" from the famed Haydn oratorio The Creation. The arrangement was first made famous on the album Four of a Kind (1995), which featured Joseph Alessi, Mark Lawrence, Scott Hartman, and Blair Bollinger. Since then, it has become a staple of the trombone quartet repertoire and an excellent first piece for young quartets.
Below is the recording from the Four of a Kind album, and a live performance by the Coppenhagan Trombone Quartet.
My second presentation of the semester occurred last week on Wednesday. The following is some more information on the pieces chosen for this presentation.
Flight- David Glänneskog, performed by the North Carolina Brass band, from the 2014 album of the same title. Music for Brass Instruments: Mvts. II and III - Ingolf Dahl. Performed by the Center City Brass Quintet on their 2002 album "Works for Brass Ensemble" New Trombone Collective - “21 trombones in the 21st Century” Project. A Tribute to Urbie Green. Recorded live in 2010.
New Trombone Collective - Astor Piazzolla: Maria de Buenos Aires. Recorded on 28 Dec. 2013 in the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, Amsterdam.
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Brass - “Don’t doubt him now” - Leonard Ballantine (arr Verhelst). Live in 2012.
The most active and significant trombone ensemble in the world today has to be the New Trombone Collective. The Dutch based trombone ensemble began as a collection of students and teachers at the Rotterdam Conservatory in 2001, and his since grown into a world renowned group. They have released numerous CD's and have pushed the boundaries of the capabilities of the large trombone ensemble. Although their CD's have proven very successful, perhaps more significant is their appearances on DVD's and in live performances. Even in the past 2-4 years, they have exponentially expanded their presence on youtube and through DVD releases, giving visual access to their audiences.
In addition to their incredible abilities musically, I admire their ability to push into the 21st century of classical music in terms of their style of live performance. The days of a simple walk on to the stage and take a bow at the end are nowhere to be found with this group. They possess a very refreshing balance of musical satisfaction and audience engagement through visual and/or dramatic means.
Below are a few recent videos that I have just discovered recently. Because the group is so active, it's tough to keep up with the material they put out!
This first video is an incredible mixture of pieces and styles that ends in an incredible jazz finale with legendary trombonist Jiggs Whigham as the soloist. This was part of a historic concert in 2010 that featured over 20 trombonists. The quality of this live performance is extremely impressive.
This second piece, Alice in Trombone Wonderland, written by Evert Josemanders, is an excellent example of the boundaries the New Trombone Collective pushes and breaks through.
And finally, an Astor Piazolla piece,Maria de Buenos Aires, performed here live in 2013 in Amsterdam. Again, a complete different genre of music, that is performed to an incredibly high standard.
One of the composers we admire the most as brass players is Gustav Mahler. While his symphonic music is most popular and significant to the brass repertoire, players and arrangers have found great value in much of his other compositions, particularly his vocal music. One of the most commonly arranged vocal songs is the "Urlicht"(Primordial Light) from collection of songs, Des Knaben Wunderhon. Mahler also used this piece as part of his Symphony No. 2, sung by the alto with full orchestra accompaniment. Below our two examples of arrangements of this piece, one by the Concentus Brass Ensemble, and the other by the Vienna Philharmonic Horns.
Trumpets - Jason Lewis and Shane Brennan Horn - Mark Bennett Trombone - Rupert Whitehead Tuba - Ray Hearne
A few weeks ago, we discussed in class the importance of homogeneous ensembles (i.e. trombone choir, horn choir, etc.). I've been thinking recently about the importance of these ensembles in the the academic world vs. the "real-world" of the music business. While there is an incredibly rich repertoire for homogeneous brass ensembles and no doubt will be a satisfying performance experience for the musicians, I believe the benefit of such ensembles lies in their ability to isolate the aspects of playing unique to that particular instrument.
Having played in trombone ensembles of all kinds for many years and taught/conducted trombone ensembles as well, I prefer to think of such ensembles as extensions of the lessons and seminars that are taught weekly in the studio. These ensembles present a unique opportunity to discuss and implement concepts that might not be addressed in other ensembles, but may (or may not) be vital to a well rounded musician. These issues may be discussed individually in lessons or lectured through seminars and studio classes, but an ensemble of just one instrument allows students a sort of "lab" experience, where concepts on the instrument are discussed and immediately applied. I think that this is a critical step in the process for most student musicians.
All of this of course fails to mention the other benefits of a homogeneous ensemble, such as attention to intonation, uniformity in articulation, extremes in range, chamber music skills, etc. Although the repertoire is likely not as musically satisfying or significant, by continued isolation of these skills and application to just that particular instrument, students retain much more information than in any larger ensemble.
A couple of weeks ago, I gave my listening presentation in our ABEL class. The following is a more detailed list of the pieces I selected for my presentation
1) Carolina Brass - Brass Quintet No. 2, Mvt. 1; by Arthur Frackenpohl. From their 2004 album Art Collection.
