Brass

with Piano

…and sundry movements of the heart… for Tuba and Piano. The four movements of this work explore very diverse (“sundry”) musical territories: abstract and serious, songlike, humorous, pensive and transcendent. Many of the musical ideas were generated in spontaneous improvising sessions or by singing–hence, “movements of the heart.”

“Prelude” is anchored in its structure by a bold, serious gesture that is heard at the beginning, middle, and end of the movement, developed differently each time. The two intervening episodes are contrasting in tempo, and materials: the first is more abstract, the second a strong, focused melody.

“Song,” the second movement, is a warmly lyrical tune in a straightforward setting.

The third movement, “Vaudeville,” is light-hearted and witty.

“Standing Stones” is titled after numerous sites in the British Isles where ancient people erected huge stones in circles, singly, or even lining broad avenues. The incredible effort required to do so is mind-boggling, given the tools available to the people. And that they were able to make near-perfect circles, with stones aligned by the positions of sun and moon and seasons is further evidence of their intelligence and dedication to ideas and deep feelings far beyond the daily tasks of survival. The music begins very quietly, in deep tones, enigmatic harmonies, and introspective melodies. The music gradually takes on a brighter sound until it reaches an ecstatic climax.

 

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EETT

This collection of quartets is designed for players who may have had limited experience with small ensemble performance. The ranges are moderate and the rhythms are not complex. Each of the selections offer ensemble and solo or featured passages for all players. Styles, tempos and meters vary from one piece to another. Of course, more advanced players can certainly play and enjoy this set, but the less experienced can have some success with pieces that allow them to concentrate on the musical and ensemble aspects, rather than being slowed by technical elements. These are also designed for the listener’s enjoyment. Enjoy the quartets! Learn More

with Piano

Bel Canto is an elusive term to define. While it literally translates to beautiful voice, it was a style of singing that emphasized beauty of tone, flexibility, and ease of execution. The music written in this style was characterized by florid lines and an emphasis of musical line over text. The term bel canto was, interestingly enough, not used until the style had faded somewhat. Rossini, at a dinner party in 1858 said, “Alas for us, we have lost our bel canto.”

The 12 Vocalizzi in this volume have depth and stand on their own merit amongst the more serious works of Rossini. I recommend these as recital pieces without reservation. They are the equal to- albeit in a different style than- Rachmaninov’s famous Vocalise Op. 34 No. 14 and are ideal for either unaccompanied or accompanied performance, with the included piano accompaniment making them especially suitable for lessons, juries, and solo recitals. I hope you will enjoy working on these pieces as much as I have. They breathe fresh life into the somewhat stale world of bel-canto-for-brass repertoire.

- Dr. Robert Benton

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From the editor:

Bel Canto is an elusive term to define. While it literally translates to beautiful voice, it was a style of singing that emphasized beauty of tone, flexibility, and ease of execution. The music written in this style was characterized by florid lines and an emphasis of musical line over text. The term bel canto was, interestingly enough, not used until the style had faded somewhat. Rossini, at a dinner party in 1858 said, “Alas for us, we have lost our bel canto.”

The 12 Vocalizzi in this volume have depth and stand on their own merit amongst the more serious works of Rossini. I recommend these as recital pieces without reservation. They are the equal to-albeit in a different style than-Rachmaninov’s famous Vocalise Op. 34 No. 14 and are ideal for either unaccompanied or accompanied performance, with the included piano accompaniment making them especially suitable for lessons, juries, and solo recitals. I hope you will enjoy working on these pieces as much as I have. They breathe fresh life into the somewhat stale world of bel-canto-for-brass repertoire.

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2 tubas (or 2 bass trombones)

or tuba/bass trombone with downloadable backing tracks (downloads included for both parts 1 and 2) – recorded by Zach Collins

Concert Duets is a collection of 14 arrangements of works by prominent 18^th-century composers, mostly taken from Trio Sonatas. Duet 11 is a Jim Self original work in the Rococo style; and Duets 12, 13 and 14 are arrangements of the three-movements of the Bach Concerto for Two Violins. Included with this edition are play-along recorded tracks by tubist Zach Collins, who also served as editor of the current edition.

I created these duets as Christmas gifts for my tuba playing friends, with the first duet being arranged in 1976.  All 14 of the duets are challenging and fun to play and are especially effective as concert pieces.

As a young musician I had the privilege of playing duets with many of the world’s finest tubists including Harvey Phillips, John Fletcher, Bob Pallansch, Chester, Schmitz, Dan Perantoni, Toby Hanks, Ron Bishop, Winston Morris and Tommy Johnson. I learned more about playing music in these duo sessions than from any other musical activity I have ever experienced. Duets are powerful teaching tools for learning and mastering rhythm, phrasing and intonation and for developing overall musicianship.

Jim Self:

Self (b. 1943) is a Los Angeles free-lance musician, a veteran of thousands of Hollywood motion pictures, television shows and records, and tuba soloist on many prominent movies. His tuba was the “Voice of the Mothership” in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He is Principal Tuba/Cimbasso with the Pacific and Pasadena Symphonies and the Los Angeles Opera and Hollywood Bowl Orchestras. Formerly he was in The U.S. Army Band and tuba / euphonium professor at the University of Tennessee. He holds a DMA from the USC Thornton School of Music where he is Adjunct Professor of Tuba and Chamber Music. His compositions and arrangements include works for solo tuba, brass quintet, other brass, string and woodwind chamber music, wind band and orchestra. Jim has produced many solo jazz and classical recordings. His music and recordings are available from Potenza Music and www.jimself.com. Jim Self is a Yamaha Performing Artist.

Zach Collins, editor:

Zach Collins is professor of Tuba and Euphonium at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. In 2019, he released his first solo album, Chronicle. It was recognized with the 2021 ITEA Roger Bobo Award for Excellence in Recording for the best Solo Tuba Album.

His interpretation of William Kraft’s Encounters II for Solo Tuba was released on Cambria Master Recordings. Zach performs with Eastern Standard, a horn, tuba, piano trio he formed with Heidi Lucas and Jacob Ertl. The ensemble has released two commercial albums, Eastern Standard and Wanderlust.

Zach regularly performs with the Keystone Chamber Winds, Altoona Symphony Orchestra, and West Virginia Symphony Orchestras. His compositions and arrangements for brass and for tuba and euphonium can be purchased from Cimarron Music and Eighth Note Publications. Zach earned degrees from Texas Christian University and the University of Southern California. His primary teachers have been Richard Murrow, Jim Self, Tommy Johnson, and Norm Pearson. Zach Collins is a Miraphone artist.

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with Piano or downloadable backing tracks

Giulio Marco Bordogni (1789-1856), usually called Marco Bordogni, was an Italian operatic tenor and singing teacher of great popularity and success, whose mature career was based in Paris. Bordogni was born in Gazzaniga, near Bergamo, Italy. He was a product of the exceptional Bergamo tenor school which originated with Giacomo David and Gaetano Crivelli, and in which can also be counted, in addition to David’s two best pupils, his son Giovanni and Andrea Nozzari, the excellent Domenico Donzelli and Giovanni Battista Rubini. Bordogni made his operatic debut at La Scala, Milan in 1813 in Rossini’s Tancredi, and became very active in promoting that composer’s music. He appeared in many of Rossini’s operas in their premieres in various towns and theaters. In 1825 he created the role of Conte di Libenskof in Rossini’s Il viaggio a Reims. He sang for many years at the Theatrea des Italiens in Paris. He became a teacher at the Paris Conservatoire in 2810 and continued to teach there until shortly before his death in Paris. He was the author of a published singing method, and composed many sets of vocalizes which remained in use by singers for a century afterwards. They remain popular as transcriptions for many instrumentalists today. He was probably the single most influential teacher of the English tenor Sims Reeves, who came to study with him in 1843, Bordogni was awarded the Legion d’Honneur on May 10, 1839 by M. de Gasparin, at the same time that it was awarded to Director of the Opera Duponchel, and to composer Hector Berlioz, who wrote that Bordogni was the best singing-master of the time.

- Alessandro Fossi

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with Percussion

James Grant writes:

When I received the message from the Moreau VanTuinen Duo (Danielle Moreau, percussion; Danielle VanTuinen, euphonium) and Deanna Swoboda, tuba, that they wanted to collaborate with me on creating a trio for their instruments, I immediately thought, “Well now, here comes some fun…!” In our initial skype meeting we decided that the new piece would be through-composed, ca. 10 minutes in duration, and would feature a blend of serious, crazy, and lyrical music; that I would fashion a separate version of the new piece to feature French horn in the same role as euphonium; and that we would invite a small group of adventurous colleagues to become co-commissioners of this new composition (see List of Commissioners page).

The result is 3D, music that touches on three distinct “mood dimensions.” A somber, evocative introduction leads to an explosive, rhythmically-charged, comically crazy joy ride, which yields to a rhapsodic duet between the two horns supported by any undulating moto perpetuo accompaniment in the marimba. That’s the piece, in a nutshell.

The three Lead Commissioners, Deanna, Danny (VanTuinen), and D (Moreau) could not have been more gracious and helpful during the composing of 3D, answering questions and offering feedback on sketches and ideas. Indeed, their fingerprints are all over this music.

The title, 3D, takes its name not only from the three distinct musical dimensions this music explores. It also represents a nod of respect to the three Lead Commissioners, whose excitement and support for this project captured my imagination from the very start. To Deanna, Danny and D, and to each of the stalwart participating co-commissioners, I offer my deepest gratitude.

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with Piano

From the editor:

The pieces in this volume came from a collection of 18 Gorgheggi, 4 Solfeggi and 12 Nuovi Vocalizzi by Gioachino Rossini (1702-1868). The Gorgheggi are scale patterns and exercises for learning, turns, ornaments and other embellishments. The 4 Solfeggi are training pieces that are much more musical than the Gorgheggi. They are melodic, have accompaniments, and are functionally wordless songs. I would put these in a similar category to several of the Kopprasch horn etudes; quite musical, but still primarily pedagogical in nature. While an effective performer can bring enough musicianship to these to make them viable exam jury or recital repertoire, they still have the feel of training pieces due to the limited ranges, simpler harmonic designs, repeated melodic figures, etc. The Vocalizzi (published separately by Potenza in versions for both euphonium and tuba) have much more depth than the Solfeggi, and stand on their own merit amongst the more serious works of Rossini. They are the equal to-albeit in a different style than- Rachmaninov’s famous Vocalise Op. 34 No. 14.

These Rossini etudes are another entry into the realm of performative-yet-pedagogical material. They are truly in the bel canto style, yet to my ear, have more depth than your average Bordogni etude. Each of these etudes requires-or develops-flexibility, beauty of sound, and the utmost lyricism possible for brass musicians.

These etudes are ideal for either unaccompanied or accompanied performance, with the included piano accompaniment making them especially suitable for lesson, juries, and solo recitals.

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The title of the work prompts the listener to embark on a journey through imagination. After the introduction, the soaring melody played by horn seems to take the listener to a wonderland. The mood of the music then suddenly changes to fast tempo when the first trumpet announces the unabashed theme to set off a journey. The rest of the work is developed by the use of fragments and imitations of the theme.

- Balee Pongklad

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with Drums

From the composer:

This piece was commissioned by Portugal Tubist, Sergio Carolino and inspired by taking 4 bar solos in a jazz framework, except that both do it simultaneously in this work, a kind of dueling tubas. So, there are times when the pair play the same rhythm in 3rd’s no less and others when they are completely opposed and “disagree”. It sometimes explores free tonality and at times is very tonal. A minor 3rd provides some of the building blocks for the jazz influenced work using jazz lines and phrasing jazz infused high energy piece, sometimes a wild fight and sometimes harmonious cooperation. It is recorded on Sergio’s CD, Agreements & Disagreements.

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Known throughout the world as a founding member, music programmer and arranger for the Boston Brass, JD Shaw has also performed in the Rochester Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Missouri Symphony, Vienna Philharmonic and the Boston Pops. He has also been a featured performer on NPR’s “Performance Today” and the CBS Morning Show.

Prof. Shaw received a Bachelor of Music from Wichita State University, where he studied with Dr. Nicholas E. Smith, and a Master of Music from the Eastman School of Music, where he was awarded the Performer’s Certificate under the tutelage of horn pedagogue Verne Reynolds. As an active performer and prolific arranger, Shaw has recorded over fifteen albums encompassing diverse musical styles from the classical, jazz and Latin genres. His record labels include Loft Recordings, Mark Records and Summit Records. A notable recent project featured the Boston Brass recording the “Stan Kenton Christmas Carols” with many well-known brass players, such as Scott Hartman, Jens Lindemann, Scott Thornburg, Jeff Nelsen and Sam Pilafian.

Prof. Shaw has presented numerous clinics and workshops for music educators, as well as masterclasses for students of all ages and levels. In addition to his credentials as a horn performer and teacher, he is the Brass Program Director and Music Arranger for the Phantom Regiment, the reigning Drum Corps International World Champion.

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Ivanov was a Russian composer, teacher and conductor, taking a majority of his tutelage from Russian great Rimsky-Korsakov, eventually using his talents to direct the academy of music and the local branch of the Russian Music Society in Tbilisi, Georgia. Moscow Conservatory appointed him professor in 1893 where he remained until his death, teaching harmony, orchestration and composition, and directing the institution between 1905 and 1922.

This Alleluia harkens his experience as a student performer in the boy's choir of St. Issac with warm resonant harmonies and very choral style of writing, making this arrangement suitable for church performances or rehearsal warm-ups.

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with Piano

Richard Strauss was a German-born composer and conductor. He emerged shortly after the death of Wagner and Brahms as one of the most important Germanic composers. His career spanned almost eight decades. He composed in all genres, but is most famous for his tone poems. His vocal lied, Allerseelen, which means “All Soul’s Day”, was composed in 1940. This new setting by Patrick Stuckemeyer bring the soaring melodic lines to the euphonium with an updated piano score by Ellen Bottorff.

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Written for Stefan Sanders, then bass trombonist with the Buffalo Philharmonic, and the 30th Anniversary of the International Trombone Association. In 3 movements, this colorful work was composed immediately following the important world events of September 11, 2001. It was premiered by Mr. Sanders and members of the University of North Texas Percussion Ensemble at the 2002 International Trombone Festival in Denton, Texas. It is in 3 movements: In Remembrance 9/11/01, Repercussions, and Renewal. Percussion Distribution - Percussion 1: Xylophone, tubular bells (chimes), suspended cymbal, snare drum, police whistle, and Chinese bell tree; Percussion 2: Vibraphone, 2 suspended cymbals, 4 tom toms, bongos, and wood block; Percussion 3: Marimba, tam-tam, lion roar, ratchet, slapstick, wind chimes, and suspended cymbal; Percussion 4: Marimba (to low A), timpani (4), tambourine, 2 cowbells, and suspended cymbal. "Buss’ melodies vary. They are mystic, poignant, heroic, often modal, and at times reminiscent of folk songs. He writes for the percussion ensemble with mastery and features a wide range of instruments. The sound landscape is rich with many moods and timbres. American Phoenix is an attractive addition to a solo program or as a feature piece for a percussion recital. It is rewarding for both performer and audience.” - The ITA Journal, January 2005 Learn More

The Antepenultimate Tango was composed for the 2013 Southeast Regional Tuba/Euphonium Conference quartet competition. It is the third of five tangos by Wilson: Fermat’s Last Tango, Penultimate Tango, Antepenultimate Tango, Preantepenultimate Tango and Propreantepenultimate Tango. It has been recorded by the Eufonix Quartet. Learn More

with Piano

The “Anvil Chorus” is the English name for the Coro di Aingari, a chorus from act 2, scene 1 of Giuseppe Verdi’s 1853 opera Il trovatore. It depicts Spanish Gypsies striking their anvils at dawn – hence its English name – and singing the praises of hard work, good wine, and Gypsy women.

This version has been arranged for tuba and piano by Fabrizio Fontanot

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James Meador composed Apocalyptic Voices as an original work for tuba and piano. James Meador has enjoyed continued success as a composer of low brass music in recent years. Always drawing inspiration from events in the world and his life, Apocalyptic Voices is a reflection of turbulent times in both. A combination of predictions of the end of the world seemingly coinciding with the end of the Mayan Calendar in 2012, massive destruction from earthquakes and tsunamis, worldwide economic crisis and an extremely bitter divorce influenced the thematic material and musical ideas in this piece. Written in one movement, the piece is broken into four distinct sections.

Opening with a relentless march of destruction, which increasingly grows more sinister and violent as the piece trudges forward, the momentum suddenly halts to ponder the devastation in a slow and mournful lyrical section. As the sadness takes hold and darkness overwhelms, destruction resumes in a sort of aural collage before evil dominates and celebrates its victories to close out the piece.

Apocalyptic Voices was commissioned by the Facebook Tuba Commission Consortium 2009, which was a group of people that came together to help sponsor the writing of the piece for Tim Buzbee, Principal Tuba of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Each person contributed to the commission in exchange for a copy of the piece and credit in the published version. Thank you to all the members who participated and made this piece possible. The work was recorded by Tim Buzbee on his solo CD, Angels and Demons.

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A challenging new brass quintet that can be played by a very good high ensemble as well as a top professional group.

1. Hum of the Body

2. Cry of the Heart

3. Rondo of the Mind

4. Hymn to the Spirit

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