The Trombonist - Winter 2019

WINTER 2019

The Trombonist

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President’s Welcome Editor’s Welcome MATTHEW GEE

JANE SALMON

After being involved with the BTS for a number of years, I somehow find myself with the onerous task of writing my first welcome as President. Sitting on the shoulders of such great predecessors is daunting to say the least, but the hardworking team around me and the willingness with which they devote their time to this society fills me with excitement for the future.

The modernising of the BTS – in particular The Trombonist – has been crucial and enabled us to give more back to our members, including the introduction of our Bursary and Instrument Loan schemes, both of which will invite applications in the new year. In the spirit of looking after our members, I’ve planned a series of articles on health and wellbeing; the good old/bad old days are well and truly behind us, and we now live in a world where pre-concert pints are being exchanged for skinny, decaf, oat milk lattes! (I even have it on good authority that the entire trombone section of a West End show were recently out running between performances.)

So we will be offering all sorts of advice from managing those daily aches and pains, to coping with nerves and the importance of looking after your hearing.

I’m hugely excited about the next two years at the helm of the BTS. There are just two things I would ask of you – perhaps add them to your New Year resolutions? It would be great if every one of our 750 members would come to one of next year’s BTS events.

I’m planning to be at as many of them as possible and I would love to meet you. Also, do not forget how much enjoyment can be found in getting together for a blow with some other local players. You would be amazed at how many professionals get together and do this. It is the most fun practise you can do. For now, I wish you a very merry, trombone-filled Christmas.

It is my pleasure to introduce the final issue of The Trombonist for 2019.

Our cover feature is the outstanding debut release from Michael Buchanan – The Many Faces of God. The arrival of Tom Winthorpe’s musings on Beethoven’s Three Eguales was a pleasant surprise and though not its original intent, works perfectly as an insight into the magnificent work that also opens Michael’s album.

We are so confident that you will want to hear this release, that we have arranged for five copies to be up for grabs as prizes for surviving our fiendish Winter Crossword Competition … even your best attempts are welcome!

Society activity runs through the heart of this edition as we celebrate a successful year. Peter Chester catches up with Aeris Brass, the winners of our BTS Quartet Competition, 2019; Matthew Gee shares his first content in his new role as BTS President and we hear from one of our newest committee members, Jon Stokes, who offers us all an easy step into the world of playing by ear.

There is plenty more to enjoy, both from our regulars, and some new faces too. Keep reading to find out more.

I would like to extend a big thank you to our growing list of contributors. Like always, a huge amount of work has gone in to making this edition so special – it wouldn’t happen without them. Enjoy.

Jane Salmon editor@britishtrombonesociety.org

Matthew Gee president@britishtrombonesociety.org GET IN TOUC H:

British Trombone Society, Registered Charity No: 1158011, Main Telephone: +44 (0)1924 437359 1 Ullswater Road, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, WF12 7PH, UNITED KINGDOM T WITTER FACEBOOK WEBSITE

THE TROMBONIST MAGAZINE TEAM EDITOR

Jane Salmon editor@britishtrombonesociety.org SUB-EDITORS

Peter Chester Alison Keep NEWS EDITOR

Barney Medland news@britishtrombonesociety.org EVENTS EDITOR

Ross Anderson events@britishtrombonesociety.org REVIEWS EDITOR

Jane Salmon reviews@britishtrombonesociety.org ADVERTISING MANAGER

Chris Valentine advertising@britishtrombonesociety.org MAGAZINE DESIGN

Sára Mikkelsen sra.mikkelsen@gmail.com saramikkelsen.com

CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE

Alison Keep Barney Medland Becky Smith Christopher Barrett Duncan Wilson Felicity Mansergh Finola Ryan Jeremy Price Johanna Bartley Jon Stokes Josh Cirtina Katy Jones Marshall Gilkes Matthew Gee Michael Buchanan Peter Chester Rob Egerton Dr Sarah Crick Sheila Tracy Tom Winthorpe

BRITISH TROMBONE SOCIET Y :

CONTENTS 03

WELCOME

06 10 12 13 16 20 21 22 25 28 30 32 34 37 38 40

NEWS

BILL GELDARD

PRESIDENT’S TOOLKIT: THE ARTICUL ATION SYSTEM

INTERVIEW: AERIS BRASS

MIC HAEL BUC HANAN'S THE MANY FACES OF GOD

BEETHOVEN’S THREE EGUALES

WINTER CROSSWORD COMPETITION

PERFORMING FROM MEMORY

PL AYING BY EAR: AS THE EARS GO BY

MUSICIANS’ HEALTH: HEALTHY HEARING

Q&A: MARSHALL GILKES

JAZZ BY JEREMY: MOON ALLEY

NATIONAL YOUTH CONCERT BAND

REVIEW: DAN JENKINS’ ELEMENTS

FROM STAGE TO PIT

WHAT’S ON

Officers & Staff // Honorary Patrons // Committee // Officers

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News

BY BARNEY MEDL AND

pBone innovator appointed to board of MIA Steven Greenhall, the chief executive of Warwick Music Group, has been appointed to the board of the Music Industry Association.

Warwick Music Group is the world’s leading manufacturer of plastic trombones and trumpets. Earlier this year, the company’s innovations in the production of affordable, durable musical instruments saw it awarded a Queen’s Award for Enterprise. Following this success, Greenhall will join the board of the trade association that represents the musical instrument industry in the UK – an industry worth £4.5 billion. Paul MacManus, chief executive of the MIA, said he was ‘delighted that Steven had been elected to the Board. Steven brings game-changing thinking to the MIA. His strategic planning and passion for music education will be a tremendous asset for our industry trade body.’

individual trombone lessons, the BYMT is keen to get more trombonists into their ensembles. A series of events and initiatives this year aims to do that. Previous years dedicated to the horn and the tuba were successful in increasing the number of students starting those instruments.

All new trombone students will receive a free term of instrument hire, and there are several trombone choir events planned in the Year. One this month and another in the BYMT Summer Festival in July. BYMT hopes to hold a trombone masterclass later in the Year too. Year 2 children across Bromley started pBuzz lessons last year.

Many of these children moved on to pBones this year and are progressing fast.

The trombone choir playing later this month is now nearly 40 strong; BYMT are still aiming for that magic number, 76.

Prize for Isobel Daws Congratulations to Isobel Daws, who has won the Don Lusher Trombone Award at the 43rd Brass in Concert Championship. Judges at the competition voted her sublime playing as part of the Friary Band the best trombone playing of the Championship. In 2017 Daws won the BBC Young Brass Player of the Year, and last year she won the brass section of BBC Young Musician of the Year. She is now in her first year studying at the Royal Academy of Music.

Marshall Gilkes appointed visiting tutor at RNCM Marshall Gilkes, the leading American jazz trombonist, has been appointed a visiting tutor at the Royal Northern College of Music.

Marshall studied at Juilliard on the jazz programme whist also studying classical trombone with Joe Alessi.

Since settling in New York in 1998, he has played with a huge number of top artists and ensembles. He also spent four years in Germany as a member of the WDR Big Band. His latest album releases, Köln and Always Forward, were recorded with this band and saw him nominated for Grammys for both Best Instrumental Composition and Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.

Gilkes’s first public masterclass at the RNCM will be at 7.30pm, Tuesday 4 February.

Year of the trombone declared at BYMT This academic year is the Year of the Trombone at Bromley Youth Music Trust.

The BYMT delivers music tuition to most of the schools in Bromley, though a team of 220 licenced teachers and 130 other members of staff. Although there is currently a healthy number of students receiving 6

This masterclass will be sponsored

by Edwards Instrument Co.

s

NEWS

Trombone Days in Bridgend and Oundle November saw two BTS trombone days take place, one at Oundle School and the other in Bridgend.

The annual BTS awards were presented in Oundle.

Award winners included Bill Geldard, the legendary big band trombonist whose profile we have reprinted on page 10; Josh Cirtina, this year appointed bass trombone in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; and Isobel Daws who has won several prestigious awards over the last few years. Congratulations to all the award winners!

Outstanding Contribution: Bill Geldard Player of the Year: Josh Cirtina Sheila Tracy Award: Ruth Molins Student of the Year: Isobel Daws Teacher of the Year: Amos Miller Felicity Mansergh reports below from Oundle, and Johanna Bartley gives us her account of a great day in Bridgend.

Trombone Day at Oundle School On Sunday, 17 November over 30 trombonists of all ages came together at Oundle School’s Great Hall for a day packed full of playing, listening and learning. It was an impressive line-up of guest trombonists, who despite their super charged diaries, had accepted the school’s invitation to perform, teach and impart some nuggets of advice from their personal experience. The day’s programme started with a massed blow when we played some upbeat pieces including the Muppets theme tune.

They were all extremely fun to play with such a large group.

The second event of the day was an ensemble workshop where we were led in an exercise of playing scales and arpeggios by Becky Smith, principal trombone of the English National Opera, who somehow managed to make them a lot less boring than usual when practicing at home! Once we had eaten our delicious lunch, prepared kindly by our teacher Mr Bouzan, we all sat down in the main hall for a recital from the extremely talented Matt Gee and Simon Minshall.

Sophie Pickering, who was the youngest musician attending the Trombone Day said, ‘for me, the recital was inspiring, as they were very good and I could see the standard that I could get to.’ One of the mature students, Richard Woollard who has recently joined the British Trombone Society summed up his experience saying, ‘I was simply astounded by the skill of the professional trombonists who gave us an incredible recital and this gave me masses of enthusiasm to practise more to improve my skills’.

Once we had listened to the outstanding recital many of us took part in a lesson in tenor clef from Sarah Minchin, teacher at St John’s College School Cambridge. This was extremely helpful especially for playing in groups which was then put to good use in the next activity of section playing when the Oundle School trombone group, along with a few others, played an arrangement of the Lion King to demonstrate section playing and style. Following this activity we moved on to a Q&A with some of the professionals, which was an eye opener about how professionals are able to get to such a high standard. The final event of the day was another massed blow including Raider’s March, which was a great way to end an inspiring day.

– Felicity Mansergh, Oundle 7

BTS Youth Trombone Day Bridgend

BY JOHANNA BARTLEY

On the morning of Sunday, 24 November, twenty young trombone players, eight students from around the country and two trombone players from the Welsh National Opera came together to be part of an extraordinary event where they enjoyed a whole fun-packed day of everything trombone! The young trombone players came from all around South Wales, some travelled from as far as Pembrokeshire to be with us. What is even more incredible is that, of the eight students who joined us, four are students at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and had travelled down to be with us over the weekend.

The day began with a warm up and opera workshop, led by Roger Cutts, principal trombone WNO, assisted by co-principal Chris Augustine. The main elements of this workshop focused on sound and our breathing.

As part of this workshop the young players had the opportunity of a lifetime to sit in amongst the WNO trombone section and play famous operatic excerpts, including Nabucco and Tosca.

They were then joined by Roger Argente, Head of Brass at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, who lead a fantastic improvised workshop on a jazzy theme, focusing on rhythm. This workshop provided something which every ability of trombone player could join in with, from grade 1 to grade 8. With this, young players were given the opportunity to concentrate on elements of playing the trombone without the need for music such as the skill of listening, which is so often overlooked.

After a short break, the young trombonists were treated to two fabulous recitals, the first one by the trombone quartet of the RNCM, the second by the trombone quartet from the RWCMD. Everybody had the pleasure of listening to pieces by Jan Koetsier, Gershwin and Debussy.

After lunch, everybody had the chance to join together and put everything they had learned in the morning into practise. Roger Cutts and Chris Augustine put everyone through their paces in an inspiring rehearsal, and what a sound the newly formed trombone choir made! With guidance from the college students, 8

they played Raiders March, Jurassic Park, Harry Potter and the Welsh National Anthem.

Matthew Hussey, aged 10, from Pontyclun said ‘It was really fun being taught by the college students and they gave us good tips to improve our trombone skills.

It was also nice to get the opportunity to learn new pieces of music with the guidance from the students and teachers. I enjoyed seeing so many different ages all playing the trombone together.’

Whilst the trombone players were working hard in the main hall, another exciting event was taking place next door. They had the privilege of working with Blast Off Brass, led by Richard Harvey from the University of Salford, taking our beginners event. Richard was ably joined by a quartet students from the University of Salford, who coached twenty children, completely from scratch, on the pBuzz.

After a short break, the whole day culminated in a concert for parents and carers to watch, consisting of the RNCM and RWCMD quartets, the main trombone choir and the newly-formed Blast Off Brass workshop pBuzz choir! The pBuzz Choir performed I Feel Good after just two hours of rehearsal!

The young trombonists were very lucky to be joined by such amazing ensembles and we couldn’t have done it without the help of Roger Cutts and Chris Augustine of the Welsh National Opera trombone section, Roger Argente and the RWCMD trombones, the quartet from the RNCM, Richard Harvey and Blast Off Brass, students from the University of Salford, Simon Gray (Head of Bridgend Music Service) and Coleg Cymunedol Y Dderwen. With thanks also to Pencerdd Music Shop in Penarth who joined in the day too.

Harri Blakemore, aged 12, from Risca summed up the day ‘It was a great opportunity to be able to play alongside fantastic trombone players such as Roger Cutts and Chris Augustine. Also I enjoyed hearing a variety of performances from the RWCMD and RNCM trombone quartets, which gave us younger players something to aspire to. Overall the day was challenging but very rewarding and enjoyable. It was really fun and I learnt a lot.’

Bill Geldard REPRINTED FROM THE SUMMER 2008 EDITION OF THE TROMBONIST

On the eve of the Don Lusher Solo Competition final, Sheila Tracy finds out about life as a trombonist in the big band golden era and passes on some tips for the competitors.

After 63 years as a professional musician, there can be few trombonists more qualified to act as one of the judges for the Don Lusher competition than Bill Geldard. Not for him the advantages that many of today’s young players enjoy with the numerous music colleges available to them. For Bill it was a case of being offered a job in the pit orchestra at the Eden Theatre, Bishop Auckland at the age of 15, for which of course he had to get permission from his parents, With the prospect of a weekly wage of £5, a fortune in those days, no objections were raised and in January 1945 Bill set out on a career that was destined to take him into the upper echelons of the music profession.

For two years, he had been playing first trombone in the local brass band, the only minor in a band of miners, and had been co-opted into the band of the Home Guard where they found a cadet’s uniform to fit him. On leaving school at 14, he got a job as an office boy in a munitions factory while playing local gigs in the evening, starting with the Fishburn Miner’s Welfare Dance where he was paid £1 which seemed an unbelievable amount of money for one night, seeing that he was only earning 15 shillings a week in the factory.

Late shows As well as playing in the pit at the Eden Theatre, after the curtain came down Bill would go down to the Town Hall to play for the dances that would sometimes start at midnight, finishing at 4am! But it was all good experience and after 18 months he was given the chance to join Charles Amer’s Band at Butlins, Filey where he remained until he was called up for his National Service, most of which was spent with the RAF Central Band at 10

Uxbridge. Coming to the end of his two year stint, in the summer of 1949, he was invited to join the newly formed George Evans Orchestra, and when trumpeter Gracie Cole joined the band, romance blossomed and they were married in 1951, a marriage that was to last for 55 years, ending in Gracie’s death in 2006.

The future must have looked bright for Bill when not long after getting together in the George Evans Band, both he and Gracie were invited to join the Squadronaires, Bill taking the place of Don Lusher.

With just two trombones in the line-up, he was soon yearning to be back in a full section and when he got an offer to join Ted Heath he jumped at it but because of the popularity of Dickie Valentine, Lite Roza and Denis Lotis, vocal backings in cup mutes with the corks shaved and packed with cotton wool, were the order of the night and for Bill it was a frustrating period. After six months he left and then came the offer to go with Oscar Rabin at the Lyceum, which meant he was in town and off the road, but not for long.

In 1953 Johnny Dankworth formed his big band and the following year Bill managed to get out of his contract with Oscar Rabin and joined Maurice Pratt, Keith Christie and Eddie Harvey in the Dankworth trombone section. While in the Dankworth orchestra Bill started to get work in the studios and when Jack Parnell took his band to ATV it seemed an ideal time to give up life on the road once again and join what was fast becoming a line-up of the elite, with a guaranteed couple of television shows a week.

In 1961 he rejoined the Ted Heath band, but life on the road plus work in the studios began to take its toll and, diagnosed with TB, he spent the next six months

BILL GELDARD

Not just hitting the low notes Bill played bass trombone in the Ted Heath Band fronted by Don Lusher and also in the Don Lusher Big Band and most of us tend to think if him as a bass trombonist but he is equally happy playing tenor on the lead chair. The switch to bass trombone came about because there was an obvious lack of good bass trombone players, as he discovered when he was offered a tour and television series with Mantovani and was asked if he played a Bb/F. He said no, but he would get one and by about 1967 found he was doing half and half.

The following year it had started to tip the other way and by ’69 he was playing a lot more bass than tenor and sometimes he would be asked to bring both, proving how essential it is for young musicians today to become proficient in as many different ways as possible.

With studio work more or less non existent, today Bill plays with the John Dankworth Big Band, more than half a century after his first spell, and occasionally in what are basically semi-pro line-ups to which he brings a tremendous amount of class and knowledge of how things should be played. He sees his involvement as giving something back to a profession that has been good to him. It can also spring a few surprises and involve him in playing music from the 1920s, the like of which, he has never before encountered in his professional career. I remember taking Stan Kenton trombonist Milt Bernhart to the Lord Napier in Thornton Heath where Bill has been joining us recently, and his comment was ‘I haven’t heard music of that vintage in over 60 years!’

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PHOTOGRAPHY: ISTOC K

in hospital and found it a struggle to get back to playing but a lucky break was just around the corner. Former Stan Kenton trombonist and arranger Bill Russo was in London running a rehearsal band which he joined.

Bill had been arranging and composing for some time but he will tell you that everything he learned about training a band came from that time and what’s more he also studied arranging with Bill Russo, an acknowledged master of the art.

Today Bill writes for big band, strings and brass band and has had great success in what is termed as library music. Music played everywhere from lifts to supermarkets and if you’re lucky, on the big and small screen and Bill got lucky with his Laudin’ the Duke which turned up on the sound track of a Hollywood movie.

It was in the 1970s that Don Lusher asked him to do an arrangement of Stardust, chosen as the test piece for the Don Lusher Trombone Prize as it epitomises the melodic and instantly recognisable Lusher sound, which according to Bill, some of the contestants, although good players, had difficulty in reproducing, being accustomed to playing ‘straight’. There is a big difference in the styles and anyone who caught Gordon Campbell’s class on vibrato at the BTS day at the RAM in February will have been persuaded it’s an art well worth mastering, whichever musical genre you choose as a career.

The other test piece, Harlem Nocturne, is a swing era classic with a very recognisable feel which, Bill felt, some of the contestants failed to capture by playing it too fast. The golden rule has to be to listen to recordings of the swing classics, which is what generations of famous trombone players have done over the years before developing their own particular style.

PRESIDENT’S TOOLKIT:

The Articulation System

BY MATTHEW GEE

I like to think about articulation as a system: in its simplest form it is the precise timing of air, tongue and slide which produces that ‘pop’, that perfect moment where clarity is effortlessly present, you’ve played right down the centre of the note, and the sound blossoms.

Each of the three elements has a very specific role – air attacks shape the note; the tongue cleans the front of the note; the slide must be static in the correct position at the exact time the tongue and air engage. It is like a well-tuned internal combustion engine. Over the next three issues I will explain how articulations works for me, the role of the air, the tongue and the slide within the system and suggest some exercises to try and help your own articulation improve.

Slide technique More often than not slide technique is the culprit of many articulation problems. If the slide moves sluggishly and comes to rest even marginally out of position, you are never going to hit the centre of notes.

It does not matter how committed your air is, or how perfectly your tongue strikes through the air column, 1/8 inch south of any position is going to sound dull and unfocused, hardly adjectives we use to describe the playing of the real masters!

There are two areas that usually require attention: dedicated slide practise and legato practise. Take the trombone off your face (whist still committing the air) and practise the phrase or exercise without any sound, just focus on your slide. Move the slide positively and quickly between positions, allowing a little bit of ’give’ in your wrist to act as a shock absorber – quickly jerking to a stop will often transfer to your sound. The further the distance between positions, the more quickly and cleanly you need to move the slide.

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The other area requiring attention concerns legato playing. Try to match your legato slide technique with your staccato slide technique. I see a lot of players using two different slide techniques for both types of playing, and although you can make both sound very good, I would prefer to have to practise only one. Simply play a legato phrase, it could be a hymn or a Bordogni exercise, then repeat the phrase playing all the notes staccato instead of full length. You should be aiming to play the note at the exact point that you move into position, so the timing of your slide is crucial.

I am a firm believer that we can only focus on one thing at a time and this should lay the groundwork for all our practise: strip it back, practise all the individual skills and then piece it back together. Great playing is built on solid fundamentals and slide technique is often unjustly neglected. Grease up that slide and get it moving.

▶

Interview:

Aeris Brass SEPTEMBER 2019

BY PETER C HESTER

In March 2019, AERIS BRASS won the BTS Quartet competition and as part of their prize they had the opportunity to play at the BTS day during the Durham Brass Festival. The other part of their prize was a concert with the Grimethorpe Colliery Band and their excellent performance on competition day was mentioned in the last magazine. The unusual use of two bass trombones in the quartet certainly gives them an impressive musical flexibility, as does the presence of alto trombones and jazz styles in their resources.

Aeris Brass has Ian Sankey and Martin Lee Thomson on tenor trombones, with Ali Goodwin and Adam Crighton on bass trombone. After the Durham event I was able to chat with Ian to find out a little more about the group.

PC: How did Aeris Brass emerge?

IS: We started because of a desire between four friends to make music and take that music to parts of the country that doesn’t have easy access to live performances. From there we’ve developed further aims and approaches, with a real hunger for new music and the desire to use musical voices to their full potential.

But we also enjoy performing in our own unique way.

PC: What have been the major influences on the group?

IS: One large musical influence for us is the Danish String Quartet. As well as being an accomplished mainstream classical quartet, they take traditional Scandinavian folk melodies and arrange them for their quartet, something we’ve done a lot of in our group.

Our main teacher influences on the group have been Carol Jarvis and John Kenny, but we’ve each had a different set of teachers as well, including Oren Marshall, Ilona Korhonen, Laura Jurd, Emily White and Abbie Conant. We are fortunate that each of us has had quite different musical upbringings and backgrounds, meaning we can all add different approaches to the group.

PC: How do you organise your work and prepare yourselves, musically?

IS: Generally we have a project lined up for a few concerts or recordings and so on, so we plan a rehearsal period before it. This could be fairly regular rehearsals for around a month, or 3–5 days of intensive rehearsal, depending on everyone’s availability. We try out new arrangements or compositions a few months before the planned project, to give us plenty of time to tweak and change them, before starting most of the rehearsing.

Musically we often all have very different ideas and approaches, which we bring together to create to our own Aeris Brass sound.

PC: Do individuals have specific roles?

IS: Not particularly! Depending on the project, we normally have one person acting as a ‘manager’, although this changes for each project. Within the group we generally have shifting roles to share out what needs to be done. We all regularly bring new arrangements or pieces to the table as well as putting forward new plans for the future.

Continues on next page …

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PC: What do individual members particularly enjoy about it?

IS: Playing new music and arranging music for the group is a great joy. Just as Ellington did, we know how every individual plays, what are their strengths and weaknesses and we can draw on this when arranging or writing for the group. This has come from the time spent 14

playing together but also from how well we know each other personally. Above all, however, we love playing music to a high level with friends and taking that music to new places!

PC: Would Aeris Brass have any Desert Island Discs?

IS: Of course we have, but I’ll let you guess whose is whose: (i) Mozart Requiem, with John Eliot Gardiner and the Monteverdi Choir, or Madama Butterfly with Kaufmann, Gheorghiu, and Pappano, (ii) Kurzsam and Fulger by Christian Wallumrød Ensemble. (iii) Pärt: Creator Spiritus from Paul Hillier, Ars Nova Copenhagen and Theatre of Voices (iv) Joseph Alessi: the lesser-known Jazz album PC: What do you think your audiences get out of your performances?

IS: We try to show people the huge variety of tone, colour, and timbre possible on the trombone; we aim for feedback to be ‘I didn’t realize the trombone could sound like that!’ That’s great praise but also sad that people don’t know the trombone’s true potential.

We usually present a varied programme with something for everyone and we always try to put at least two new works in. It is important for us to have something people haven’t heard before and our folk arrangements

PHOTOGRAPHY: DOMINIC OWEN

PC: Are there what might be called particular challenges in playing in a quartet?

IS: Absolutely. There are challenges both on-stage and off-stage, as there are in all styles and settings, so none of these challenges are unique to a trombone quartet.

Playing isn’t easy!

The main on-stage challenge is to make the performance enjoyable and interesting for the audience, especially when we are offering a varied musical experience. Off-stage, there are times when members of the group strongly disagree on artistic matters.

This forces us to compromise and find what works for us as a collective. We aim to always maintain the music as the highest priority. Ego doesn’t work, so whatever idea the collective chooses, we all get behind it 100%.

With a lot of our arrangements coming from outside the brass world we often find ourselves working through the challenges of making the music we want to play convincing in our format. So arrangements are always being tweaked, but we also all end up adjusting things for ourselves, without it being too formal. If something doesn’t work, try something else!

INTERVIEW: AERIS BRASS

for trombone quartet certainly fit this. We do also work with theatrics sometimes and with using performance spaces as a whole definitely helps to engage an audience.

PC: How did you prepare for the BTS competition and have there been specific consequences of winning it?

IS: As with other projects, we had a few days of intensive rehearsal, but prior to that we worked extensively on programming, especially what we thought would show off the group: a new piece, some folk music and a classical piece. That’s what we wanted to share but it was a long process! Since winning the competition, we have been sent new pieces from composers in France and Scotland, asking us if we could try out the music, give them feedback and even record them, which is very exciting!

PC: Your work with contemporary composers seems to be a very prominent feature of your activities. How did you get into it?

IS: We all love contemporary music and find exciting and new music the most fun to create. We spent a week last summer in San Marino, working with John Kenny on Globokar’s Discours 2 and John’s own Trombone Quartet. This was our first foray into contemporary music as a group, although a few of us have done quite a lot of contemporary music as individuals, and we hope to continue to develop that area. As I said, we’ve received some pieces that are very modern, requiring such things as prepared piano, or theatrics. We also hope to continue to build our library of commissions over the next few years. Our most recent commission, Laura Jurd’s Home is where you left your socks is a prime example of this!

We played it in Durham. It’s a new piece by an amazing young composer, one that explores exactly what we are about: four different creatives. But in the past we have also commissioned music from Peter Longworth and David Swan.

PC: Have there been any particularly memorable concerts recently?

IS: One of the most memorable concerts was playing in one of the great Rick Taylor’s house concerts on the Isle of Skye. Rick has sadly since passed away. This concert was only given to about seven people but the energy was so special and it was the most beautiful concert we have done. Another highlight would perhaps be performing in Glasgow’s Merchant City Festival with the Surge Theatre Company, a performance which saw us dressed up and face painted taking over the streets with an army of trombones and John Kenny’s group, Pandoras Box, riding around on chariots!

PC: What are your current plans or projects?

IS: We have a performance project up in Scotland in

November, which we are following with a few days in Edinburgh doing some small recordings to go online.

Next year we have some concerts in the North of England as part of various music festivals. We plan now to record a CD of new works written for us. We’d like to take part in more competitions as well as to do more touring to remote places across Scotland!

PC: How do you see the group in 10 years time?

IS: We hope the group will go from strength to strength, learning more about our trade, our performing and music making. We dream of hopefully being up with the likes of the Danish String Quartet making it a strong part of our careers! Winning the BTS competition was obviously a great honour and we hope it will prove a major turning point – onwards and upwards!

PC: Let’s hope so – I’m sure it will. Thanks again for talking to me about Aeris Brass and thanks again for coming to Durham – you made quite an impact.

Postscript: Since talking to Ian, the details of the concert with Grimethorpe Colliery Band have been settled. The Band has a concert at The Grand Theatre in Blackpool at 7.30. pm, Sunday 26 January. Aeris Brass will join the Band as the featured guests and will have a couple of slots in the programme to show off their talent.

Needless to say they are very excited at the prospect of the concert, and they intend to play music that they have arranged for themselves or has been written for them. Adam Crighton’s brilliant arrangement of Breezin Down Broadway is on the list, with other likely contenders being David Swan’s Quartet on American Camp Songs or Laura Jurd’s Home is where you left your socks.

To add to the fun, a grand finale is planned featuring the four trombones of Aeris and the three trombones of Grimethorpe, and it promises to be something of a memorable evening.

Details of the concert can be found at www.grimethorpeband.co.uk and www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk Aeris Brass have their own Facebook page, which is up to date with their latest activities in Scotland in November, so is very likely to have a full report of their trip to Blackpool in January.

They are also to be found on YouTube with several clips. For starters, check out their performance of Saskia Apon’s First Quartet and a beautiful rendition, with Carol Jarvis, of Pete Smith’s Lush Life.

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Michael Buchanan's

The Many Faces of God

BY C HRISTOPHER BARRETT WWW.BARRETTC HRISTOPHER.COM

‘In all faces is shown the Face of faces, veiled and in a riddle … it is for me to enter into the darkness and to admit the coincidence of opposites, beyond all grasp of reason, and there to seek the truth, where impossibility meeteth us.’

– Nicholas of Cusa It’s one of those November days in London where the rain is falling slightly sideways, the camera equipment is beginning to get wet, and the smell of fried chicken mingles with the scent of coffee (single-origin of course) in the autumnal air. I’m on my way to meet Michael Buchanan to discuss his debut album ‘The Many Faces of God’, which has just been nominated for an International Classical Music Award (ICMA), in the very heart of the Big Smoke. Fresh off the plane from a week away playing Mahler’s Fifth Symphony with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Michael greets me at his flat in Waterloo, overnight bag still packed, with the kettle bubbling away; he wasn’t kidding when he said he had just landed.

Any fears I have about asking him to sit down for a two-hour interview on the formidable subject of his album are quickly allayed when I realise that, despite what sounds like a knackering week, he is brimming with energy. ‘I know it sounds cheesy, but the joy of this music gives me strength … music holds incredible power’. This is no overstatement from Michael, and his enthusiasm for the instrument, which he views as being inherently sacred, is that of a true seeker.

Michael, born in 1993, has a uniquely varied biography and it’s worth quoting his official one here:

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‘At the age of 22 he was awarded the first prize and audience prize at the 2015 Munich ARD International Music Competition, only the second trombone player in the history of the competition to do so and to date the only British musician.

‘As a concerto soloist, Michael has performed with orchestras such as the Symphonie-orchester des Bayerisches Rundfunk, the Munich Chamber Orchestra, the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Bern Symphony Orchestra, and the Deutsches Symphonie Orchesterm, Berlin.

‘As a recitalist, he has performed at the BeethovenFest Bonn, the Festspiele Mecklenburg Vorpommerln, The Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Frauenkirche in Dresden, the Berlin Konzerthaus, Schloss Elmau, and the Lucerne Festival …

‘Equally active as an orchestral musician, in 2016 he joined the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera Orchestras in a contract position for the 16–17 season, undergoing multiple tours as Principal (Solo) Trombone. He is also a handselected principal player of Seiji Osawa’s Saito Kinen Orchestra in Japan.’

MICHEAL BUCHANAN

And to which we can now add his first solo album ‘The Many Faces of God’. Other players have tended to release debut albums full of showy studies and pedagogical pyrotechnics intended to demonstrate their technical prowess, but Michael has taken a completely different tack and instead set out to discover the unifying force behind the world’s myriad shamanic and religious traditions through the medium of music.

And what better tool for exploring these traditions than the instrument most associated with the sacred: the trombone, which Michael calls a ‘light switch to the higher realms’.

He is keen to highlight this connection in his album notes and in our interview: ‘In the Martin Luther German version of the bible the word for the name of the instrument that the Archangel Gabriel plays is trombone, rather than trumpet … And that’s a really fascinating bit of history: the thread of German art music goes in one direction, and the thread of British goes in the other with the trumpet; both have very specific symbolism …

‘Somewhere back in the history they are roughly the same, but because German art music became the dominant force in classical music the trombone became the instrument most readily associated with ‘the other world’: the overworld, the underworld.

Strauss introduces these bizarre new concepts of other worlds that were neither Christian nor of any other religion, and uses the trombone to represent all of them.’

‘It’s interesting because I wonder whether one of the reasons the trombone has such little repertoire is because in the 19th century it may have been sacrilegious for instance for Beethoven to have done a trombone concerto while he was using it in such a rarefied manner in the Missa Solemnis; or Schubert in his masses, or Mozart in the Requiem. How can you take something which is so symbolically loaded and use it in secular music? This has coloured the entirety of the instrument’s history, because it really was on such a pedestal. When you think of the chorale in the first symphony of Brahms, or Bruckner’s Te Deum; right up to Mahler’s Second Symphony where the transition from darkness to light in the final movement starts with a trombone chorale: it’s all there.’

This sacred history is part of the reason that Michael feels the trombone is the perfect vehicle to explore pieces from the world’s different religious traditions, and even before we’ve sat down for the recorded section of the interview it’s clear to me that he’s put some very serious thought into the great philosophical questions that have faced humanity throughout the ages.

Continues on next page …

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MICHEAL BUCHANAN

Anyone listening to the album is suddenly faced by the idea that all religions contain their own eschatological tradition: in other words they are concerned with the end of the world. I asked Michael about this: ‘You chose to start your album with Three Equali for Four Trombones by Beethoven, which was performed at his funeral. It immediately highlights the fact that we all face our own eschatological eventuality in death; Terence McKenna referred to it as the “transcendental object at the end of time”. This is an extraordinary way to start your first album and sets it out as something unusual in classical music: not a compilation album, but a concept album. Could you tell me a little about why you chose this particular avenue?’

Michael: ‘I started with the Beethoven on the one hand for almost practical reasons in that I wanted to take the album on a process, on a journey through territory that the trombone doesn’t normally tread: so I thought the most logical place to start was with the trombone in its home genre as it were. The trombone is clearly an orchestral instrument and our bread and butter is the trombone chorale; to start with a trombone chorale seemed logical to me because that’s ‘Point A’, and from there you can take it wherever you want to. I also think that the Three Equali are the most fabulous snippets of music and the piece forms a prestigious part of the trombone’s history: to be leading Beethoven’s funeral cortege is quite an amazing honour for the instrument to have had.’

And there it is at the beginning of the album, the central question facing humanity: what is the nature of death? Michael takes some inspiration from an

idea termed ‘Omnism’, or what Aldous Huxley called ‘The Perennial Philosophy’. Michael explains it thus: ‘Omnism is a particular philosophical and religious belief system. I don’t necessarily subscribe to one system so I wouldn’t categorise myself as an Omnist. I believe, like many people, either tacitly or subconsciously, that religion almost acts like a filter: so Christianity may be blue, Buddhism might be red, Judaism Green; but behind that is the light. Light has to pass through in order for those colours to come and the thing that fascinates me is the light behind the filters. Every filter has its place, has to be respected, and brings something different to the world; they are all phenomenally valuable culturally and for people’s own sense of survival, but what really fascinates me is what connects them all behind the filter. And that was really the starting place for the album: I wanted to find a way that music could represent that white light behind …’

This answer elucidates Michael’s thinking not only in terms of the album, but in his approach to his playing and to life generally. It’s clear to any listener that his technique is flawless, truly stunning, and yet this extraordinary capacity is absolutely at the service of the story he is trying to tell. The ego in his view, is pure hubris, and in the context of performance quickly turns to nemesis.

‘I have very particular beliefs about ego and music: I believe that ego is absolutely inappropriate in any musicianship and any interference of the ego leads to a lesser musician; I really believe that strongly. Like any of us I have to constantly bat away the occasional egotistical moment, but I do constantly try to do that because I believe that music is so much bigger and so

Michael Buchanan Interview – THE MANY FACES OF GOD

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MICHEAL BUCHANAN

much better than any of us. I could have done an album of the top hits, I can play them, but I didn’t see what purpose that served. There are already fabulous albums out there by others who have quite rightly recorded them and I wasn’t going to play them better than that.

This had never interested me or influenced the way I play and as it was such a massive project I wanted to go for something that would fascinate and challenge myself.’

The most challenging piece on the album in Michael’s view is the Prélude from J. S. Bach’s Second Cello Suite.

‘If your technique is in order and everything is good then you can learn The Blue Bells of Scotland in ten days. It took me two weeks of huge amounts of work to even figure out how on earth I was going to deal with the first two phrases [of the Prélude]; technically it’s not that difficult but musically you are coming up against one of the greatest minds that’s ever invented. It’s not for our instrument, which is another really big thing, because if you’re going to play it you have to find a way in that doesn’t belittle the composition, doesn’t belittle the instrument, and isn’t just the shadow of a cello; that’s very complicated to find a way to do. I’ve never done anything like it before.’

‘The album is hard to play, but hard by the back door … The technique is never forefront and it’s not a technical album, but my goodness I was pushed beyond my limits just to get it where I wanted it to be.’

Michael’s playing on the album is a testament to his artistic and technical capacities, and I’ve found myself going back to tracks like the Xenakis a number of times to marvel at the sheer virtuosity on display there.

The interview, which can be heard in full through the BTS YouTube channel, drills home the point that every second of music on this album has been painstakingly crafted by Michael to bring the listener to something approaching a mystical experience.

And that is what’s so interesting about it compared to what most of us would expect from an album of trombone solos, and the reason that it’s worth several listens. Michael has somehow managed to make himself equally at home with the groove-based Qawalli Folk Song as he has in the seriously challenging Keren by Xenakis; it’s easy to follow the thread of the seeker’s quest from Bach, to Beethoven, and right into the present day.

To take on such an expansive topic in the cynical environment of the 21st century is contumacious and courageous in equal measure, and the resulting work of art is an instant classic in my view. In setting out not only to push the boundaries of the instrument, but the boundaries of the classical solo album in general, Michael has created something truly unique. Give it a listen.

The Many Faces of God is available on the Hamburg Label, ES-DUR: ES2077.

There are five copies of The Many Faces of God up for grabs as prizes for our Winter Crossword Competition. Read on to find out more.

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Musings on the Three Eguales of Beethoven

BY TOM WINTHORPE, BBCSO 1979–1985

I’m sure most trombone players are already familiar with these three stunningly beautiful short pieces that Beethoven wrote for All Souls Day 1812 whilst visiting his brother in Linz. Later they were performed at his own funeral in 1827.

Over the last 40 years, I know that they have been performed at the funerals of legendary trombone players Sid Langston, Frank Stead, Alf Flaszynski, Harry Spain, Harold Nash, and Gerry McElhone. I was privileged to be a participant on three of those occasions and I’ve no doubt that they have been performed at the funerals of many other trombonists since 1827 and will continue to be so.

The request for their performance at a funeral is not restricted just to trombonists. When the former Chairman of the BBC (Lord) George Howard of Castle Howard in Yorkshire died in 1983, he left a request that, after his funeral service (in the family chapel), he wished for them to be played as the final act before his body was interred in the family mausoleum (also part of the Castle Howard Estate). I understand that this is one of three still functioning mausoleums in the country.

George Howard had been a great advocate for the BBC Symphony Orchestra during his time as Chairman, frequently attending our concerts, and mixing easily with all of us. Naturally, when we received this request, we were pleased to oblige his family.

So, very early one cold Saturday morning, ‘Foxy’ Parsons, myself, Geoff Nash, and Dick Tyack were to be found boarding the East Coast train to Edinburgh – first stop York. We arrived there at 9am with instructions to get ourselves to ‘The Mausoleum at Castle Howard’. Even Foxy Parsons’ legendary communication skills were tested to the full trying to convince a mono-syllabic cab driver that we really did want to go there and that we were not some joke TV team from the south trying to 20

wind him up! Eventually we succeeded. We were met at the mausoleum (which had been heated overnight with industrial heaters) by Lord Howard’s son who explained that the congregation would come from the chapel after the service for this final act. When they had all assembled he would give us a signal and we would play the Eguales. We had time for a brief ‘rehearsal’ and then had to stand ready for the arrival of the coffin and the guests. I have never forgotten the eerie sound of a convoy of Land Rover diesel engines (on tickover in first gear) coming across the grass and getting nearer and nearer. Then silence. The coffin was carried in followed by what can only be described as the ‘Great and Good’ of the country – Royalty, members of the House of Lords, MP’s. Actors, TV personalities – all facing four lonely trombone players. We were given the signal – ‘doctor stage’ kicked in and all too soon we’d finished.

By this time the cab driver was our ‘best friend’ and we were taken back to York for a memorable lunch followed by the train journey back to London during which, not at all out of character, Dick Tyack led the somewhat euphoric ‘party’ atmosphere.

As far as I am aware, The Eguales have traditionally been performed using an alto, two tenors, and a bass trombone (or pre the revived use of the alto trombone, with three tenors and a bass). At risk of offending my bass trombone playing colleagues (sorry in anticipation of that!) looking at the writing it occurs to me that it may well be that Beethoven actually wrote them for two altos and two tenors. The second part lies comfortably and naturally for the alto trombone. Likewise, the fourth part lies similarly for a tenor trombone. With this combination the antiphonal phrases, particularly in the second Eguale, could achieve an even better balance.

It would be fascinating to hear them played in this format.

Winter Crossword Competition CLUES DOWN

We have hidden the titles of three Christmas songs in the answers to this crossword. Can you find them?

2. LEADER IS A NUT! (4) 3. LEGIONARIES BLOWING HOT OR COLD (6)

Email your answers to: editor@britishtrombonesociety.org

by Monday, 13 January for a chance to win one of FIVE copies of Michael Buchanan’s The Many Faces of God.

4. A GAME OF SUSPENSE? (7) 5. DEPARTED, NOT ON TIME (4) 6. MIX WITH CRIMINAL CL ASS (7) 7. DIRE TEMPO APPLIED TO END OF MCEWAN'S ATONEMENT (10) 8. SCRAP? I'D GET INTO A FIGHT ON THIS DAY IN SADDLEWORTH (4,6) 12. SHY INFIDEL RUNNING LIKE THE DEVIL (10)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD YOUR PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS CROSSWORD

13. POLICE HIDE CRIMINAL'S INSTRUMENT (10) 14. CAMP KETTLE FROM THE L AND OF JAZZ (5)

Set by Anklepoise 1

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15. ITS PL AYERS MAY HAVE DRIVE (5) 19. RUGBY PL AYER'S SNEAKY LITTLE DRINK (3-4) 20. EAT NUTS, UNFORTUNATELY GETTING LOC KJAW (7)

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23. GOLD ISN'T CORRUPTED IN US STATE CAPITAL (6)

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25. ABCDEFGHIJKMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ (4) 11

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26. DON'T WALK IN THE HEBRIDES (4)

ACROSS

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1. ONE HOOKED ON BARS? (10) 16

9. HEMS ROUND NET (4)

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10. WAS NOTHING ORDERED FOR PRESIDENT? (10)

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11. MUM TEARS TINSEL (6)

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12. SOLE PROTECTOR FOR THE OLD THIEF? (7) 21

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15. HEARD MUSICIAN PRODUCING COVER (7) 16. THING GOT BROKEN IN THE DARK (5)

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17. SOUND REFLECTED FROM THE C HOIR (4) 18. TURN ORC HESTRA SECTION (4)

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19. ORIGINAL TREE ON THE WAY (5) 21. IDLE CUT-OUT, IT'S NOT BRITTLE (7)

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22. TEMPORARY OCCUPATION OF THE EVACUATED FRENC H CIT Y (7) 24. SLEDGE BREAKING HIS LEG (6) 27. A CIRCUMNAVIGATION , SAY? (1,5,4) 28. LEFT DUO PL AYING A BOARD GAME (4) 29. ENTERTAINER HAS REL ATIONS IN GERMANY (10)

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‘I Don’t Do Memorising’ A few thoughts and ideas on performing from memory…

BY JOSH CIRTINA

Playing from memory is quite a personal choice to make when performing as a soloist or as part of an ensemble.

I must make it clear to begin with that this article is absolutely not making a case that one MUST or MUST NOT play from memory, but rather a guide to thinking about it in more depth in regards to what may be gained from it and a few different approaches. As with most aspects of trombone playing, it is not a divine gift bestowed upon a few selected players but something that you have to practise and hone like any other facet of your technique.

So before we get into the various methods, why should one perform from memory?!

As a soloist it is often expected to perform without music, however expectation isn’t really a great reason.

So, more substantiated reasons could be:

• No ‘head in stand’ syndrome.

• Better connection between the soloist and the accompaniment.

• Better connection between the soloist and the

audience.

• Better understanding of the music as you have to ensure thorough preparation.

As an ensemble it is somewhat more rare, although it is relatively common in chamber music and even now moving into the orchestral world thanks to ensembles like the Aurora Orchestra. So, why do it in ensembles (obviously only when the ensemble is collectively performing without sheet music)?

• Better connection between players as listening to one another could be considered even more important.

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• Having no music ensures thorough preparation and thus a deeper understanding of the importance (or lack of it) of their part.

Now, most of the aforementioned points could be countered with the argument that there is ‘no reason why a performer couldn’t be as prepared for a performance with music as without’, which is completely true. However, I would argue that without the ‘comfort blanket’ and safety of having the sheet music in front of you, your sense of listening is heightened to an extreme degree, causing a reduced focus on your own part and a greater focus on how it is fitting with the musicians around you. You can also make 100% full use of your eyes and ensure you are with your colleagues and/or the conductor at all times to eliminate the occasional ‘head in the stand’ synchronicity issues.

What about the cons, though?! Well of course, with memorisation there is a heightening of risk: • What if my mind goes blank mid-performance?

• What if I play the wrong part at the wrong time?

• What if I don’t have the time to memorise something?

These are all perfectly valid arguments. However, they don’t have to be …

In regards to the potential to forget/get confused; this is just further reason to ensure thorough preparation.

Unless you have an unfortunate diagnosis of a poor/problematic memory, there is no reason why memorisation can’t be practised to the point where it doesn’t go wrong. Like with any part of our trombone technique, you can practise it to the point of it becoming second nature. If practise isn’t your thing, then it’s probably time to seek out another hobby.

I DON'T DO MEMORISING

Don’t have the time? Then don’t memorise it.

Always be realistic – unless you’ve agreed to something that means you MUST perform from memory, don’t do it unless you are genuinely comfortable with it. Only you know yourself how long you realistically need for committing something to memory. However, try not confuse nerves with lack of preparation. Of course nerves will always be a factor, as you likely care deeply about your performance and playing in general, so this is natural.

How?!

Having now thought about why we could perform from memory, the next question to ask is ‘How do I memorise the music?’ Especially when it’s something you haven’t had experience of before …

You’re almost guaranteed varyingly different answers to this question whomever you ask. Learning on the whole is a very individual process and you need to be quite self-aware to work out how best you may go about the process of memorisation. People usually find themselves fitting into one or more (if not all) of these categories:

– Utilising the score can be incredibly helpful as it (along with the recording), can help to identify where you perform with other parts whether it be in unison, harmony, counterpoint, syncopation etc.

STEP 2A: WRITE (optional, depending on your preference) – Get a pencil and some manuscript and write out the music by hand from your part/score.

– This step is particularly relevant to Reading/Writing & Kinaesthetic learners, as it helps to lock in the information from the sheet music.

STEP 3: PRACTICE – Start practicing the piece, initially with the music to ensure all the technical aspects are covered and you are comfortable performing the part.

– Slowly take the music away, attempting short passages at a time without looking at the music. Try to remember exactly what you played, so you can look back at the music and confirm if you got it right.

– As you perfect short passages, start adding them together to form more and more of the piece.

• Visual Learner – prefer to see info and to visualise the

STEP 4: REPEAT – Repeat steps 2 & 3 until you are feeling confident with your understanding and memory of the part.

– Unfortunately, there is no quick method of repetition, other than repetition itself! However, always be careful that you are practicing efficiently and never doing yourself any harm.

I have personally found that utilising parts of all these different types of learning allow me to prepare for memorised performances the most efficiently and reliably, so here is my step-by-step process, developed through my own experiences, and speaking to other musicians:

STEP 5: PERFORM

ideas.

• Auditory Learner – prefer to hear info rather than seeing it visually.

• Reading/Writing Learner – interacting with text is more powerful than images/sounds.

• Kinaesthetic Learner – Hands-on/experimental learners, learning by doing.

STEP 1: LISTEN – In the age of the internet there is absolutely no excuse not to listen to the music in advance of the concert as part of your preparation (unless of course it is a piece with no recording available, which is unlikely unless it is fairly newly composed).

– Listening allows us to get used to various audible cues, hear the overarching structure of the music, and develop our own musical opinion as to how the music should go.

STEP 2: LOOK & LISTEN – Now get your part, examine in detail what you have to play and the structural information around it such as rests and repeats.

TIPS: – Play-along to a recording to double check your memorisation, but don’t overdo it as you want to maintain your own interpretation of the music (and conductors WILL vary!).

– Memorise in short practise chunks of around 20 minutes at a time, it’s quite tiring and can get frustrating if done for long periods of time.

Initially, this is a process that could take a number of days/weeks depending on the piece, but following practise and regular attempts the time taken can drastically reduce.

If you don’t believe me that any of this is possible, watch the following. First, the Aurora Orchestra playing Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique in its entirety from memory with staging from the 2019 BBC Proms.

The second, is the Slide Action Trombone Quartet performing the last movement of Simon Wills’ Sonata for Trombones, also from memory.

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JOIN Termly Taster Days available

THE

ACADEMY SATURDAYS AT MORPETH SCHOOL (BETHNAL GREEN)

The NYJO Academy host a variety of ensembles for different ability levels, training the jazz musicians of the future

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Contact nicole@nyjo.org.uk for more information

As The Ears Go By PLAYING BY EAR

BY JON STOKES

I imagine that for many of us, our first experience of playing the trombone was not marred by worrying about right notes, articulation, intonation or even sound quality. Over the years however, these, as well as many more issues, can start to weigh us down until we forget those initial, precious moments we had as beginners, when all we wanted to do was play. I certainly remember when I opened up the case of my first trombone. I wasn’t really sure how to put it together but I didn’t care. All I wanted to do was play. I was blowing away, just making noises and trying to see if I could play little tunes.

I wasn’t concerned with whether it was any good or not.

I was also fortunate to have an inspirational teacher who continued to encourage me to play by ear whilst also emphasising the importance of being a good reader and improving my technique. Now that I am a teacher myself, I also try to promote the importance of playing by ear. In this article I hope to present a simple guide to getting started whilst also trying to encourage everyone to have a go.

What is playing by ear? I think of this in two parts.

Playing what you hear in your head and listening to what we actually play. ‘Playing what you hear in your head’ means we need to have a sound (or sounds) in our head that we want to try and reproduce out of the trombone. ‘Listening to what you play’ is fairly obvious.

Try to become aware of the sound you’re making.

Is it the sound you want to make? Is it the right note?

Did you play it at the desired dynamic with a good production? All of this is your choice. You are free to play the way you want to play. So, on a very basic level, try thinking of one note, any note, in your head.

Try singing that note out loud. Can you play that note

on the trombone? If you don’t hit it first time, play around until you find the same note. Once you have it, listen to it. Think about how you could change the way you play it. You have just used your ears to play.

PL AYING BY EAR – INTRODUCTION

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PLAYING BY EAR

For some the phrase ‘play by ear’ conjures up feelings of fear and trepidation. This is often due to that fact that many think of this as playing without a safety net.

The big difference being that if we make a mistake playing by ear we don’t fall to our deaths! In fact a big part of playing what we hear in our head is trial and error. Who cares if it doesn’t sound right first time?

The only person who is going to give you a hard time is yourself. Ignore them, what do they know?

PL AYING BY EAR – FINDING THE MELODY

So far we have established a couple of key points: 1. We (hopefully) all enjoyed playing by ear when we were beginners 2. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes The next key points I’d like to emphasise are …

• Playing by ear is musically liberating • Playing by ear is hugely beneficial to one's overall performance Let me elaborate on these two points slightly. ‘Playing by ear is musically liberating’. By this I mean that we are free from the constraints of the notated music and we are able to truly listen to what we are doing and play with freedom and hopefully enjoy a feeling of satisfaction and pride. ‘Playing by ear is hugely beneficial to ones overall performance’. If we practise playing by ear (and it will take practise) we will be better trombone players and therefore, better musicians.

Now we have all the boring bits out of the way, let’s get to it.

As already mentioned, we first need to have a sound in our head. Let’s pick a simple melody. I am going to choose This Old Man. But you could use any tune you like. It needs to be a melody that you are very familiar with though. Once you have your melody, sing it through in your head. Got it. Now sing it out loud as best as you can. Finally, using a process of trial and error, see if you can play the tune on the trombone.

Don’t worry about keys or scales at this point, just use your ears. If it goes too high, play it lower and visa versa.

If you can’t get it straight away, don’t panic, it will come, just keep trying. Maybe pick a different tune, something easier perhaps? Thinking of each note in your head before you play it on the trombone will also help.

All the time make sure you are relaxed, taking good breaths and filling the trombone with air. Listen to the sound you’re making. If it starts to sound thin and weedy, you may well be trying to play the right note in the wrong position. Once you have the melody, listen to the way you are playing it and make sure you are phrasing it appropriately (ie. not breathing in the middle of a phrase) and articulating well (eg. smooth legato or clean staccato). I like to think of the words to a song to help me with this. Lastly (but most importantly), you should always be aiming to make the best sound you can.

26

▶

PLAYING BY EAR

Once this exercise starts to become relatively easily and you’re picking out simple melodies fairly quickly, you can start to apply a little theory. Only a little, mind.

Can you figure out the key centre of the melody? ie. what is the ‘root’ or ‘home’ note (the final note of the piece is often a big help here)? If this is a step too far, maybe have someone else have a listen and see if they can help.

Now you have the root note, can you tell if the tune is major or minor? Put the two answers together and see if you can play the scale. So, if your root note is Bb and the piece is major, play a Bb major scale. The next step is to try and relate your melody to your scale. Number all the notes of the scale (1–8) and think about how the notes in the melody relate to these numbered notes (ie. which number from the scale do you start your melody on?).

You can now transpose this tune into another key!

Pick another scale that you know, find your starting note and off you go. This is where scales start to become truly important and worth practising.

However, always aim to learn a new melody without a scale first. Use your ears. This will help you get quicker at picking melodies and phrases out.

Some will find this all very easy. Some might find it more difficult. If you are struggling to pick out an entire melody, go back to just one or two notes and build up slowly. This is also just the beginning of learning to play by ear and not with our eyes. Please feel free to send me any questions or find someone you know that can help.

It doesn’t even need to be a trombone player necessarily.

The main thing is to keep practising and enjoy the sounds you make.

Tools that will help improve your ears: LISTEN TO LOTS OF MUSIC LEARN YOUR INTERVALS – (DJANGO BATES’ INTERVAL SONG IS FANTASTIC AND AL ARMINGLY CATC HY) LISTEN TO LOTS OF MUSIC LEARN SCALES (AND ARPEGGIOS) BY EAR. EAR TRAINING APPS LISTEN TO LOTS OF MUSIC.

PL AYING BY EAR – TRANSPOSING

▶ 27

Healthy Hearing MUSICIANS’ HEALTH

BY FINOL A RYAN

BY DR SARAH CRIC K

To kick off our series on musicians' health, Dr Sarah Crick – GP and amateur violinist with an interest in women’s health and performing arts medicine – explains the importance of protecting your hearing.

She interviews Finola Ryan, an Occupational Medicine Registrar with a specialism in musicians' hearing. But first, Dr Crick will help us understand exactly what goes on in the ear when we hear a sound.

Hi Finola, thanks so much for chatting to the BTS. Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Hi Sarah. I’m a medical doctor specialising in occupational health, which is all about keeping people well at work, and that, of course, includes musicians.

My particular research interest is musicians’ hearing.

Before I did medicine, I did a degree in music, and I’m an Irish fiddle player.

How exactly does sound damage your hearing?

Sound contains lots of energy, and this energy is powerful enough to injure delicate structures in your inner-ear known as hair cells. Loud sound makes these hair cells bend until they are destroyed. When this happens, it causes problems like ringing in the ears, sensitivity to sound, issues with pitch and eventually hearing loss, which of course we want to prevent.

28

LINK TO THE ARTICLE 'TURN THE VOLUME DOWN'.

MUSICIANS’ HEALTH

Covent Garden Opera has been in the news recently, can you outline the problems which musicians face?

Music is sound, so musicians will inevitably be exposed to sound for prolonged periods. Many musicians rehearse and perform in a variety of acoustical settings.

The two key issues are the duration of time exposed to sound, and the intensity, or volume, of that sound. In the right measures, sound including music is safe, but this does take some planning and awareness.

Are there any other day-to-day situations musicians should take into account?

We live in a noisy world: transport, personal music players or ‘background’ music and even kitchen equipment is noisy and prolonged or frequent exposure, has the potential to damage those tiny hair cells.

Any situation where you need to raise your voice to be heard is probably an area that you need to minimise your time in to allow your ears to rest and recover.

We see a lot of screens being used in the profession.

Can you tell us about the risks/benefits associated with these?

Screen placement is a method of controlling noise to reduce exposure, but they are unpopular because they can also reflect sound. The need to be positioned with extreme precision, otherwise they can increase noise levels for that player or those around them. They also take up space and are a trip hazard. They seem to work best in amplified music environments where the positioning is precise, and the musicians are using monitors.

It is common practice for musicians to use earplugs.

What should people look for when purchasing an earplug?

Yes, earplugs are a type of personal hearing protection that many musicians use. Others prefer over-ear ‘ear muff ’ type protection, depending on their instrument. Musicians’ earplugs need to be custom moulded to achieve a comfortable fit that prevents leaks of sound through to the ear. This requires a lot of skill, so it’s essential to have an experienced audiologist who will verify the fit is providing an adequate level of protection. Verification avoids the risk of thinking you’re being protected when you’re not. The design of earplugs is improving all the time, and there are products on the market and more in development, that mimic the response of the ear to music and provide an even reduction in sound that’s not muffled.

Are there particular challenges for the trombone player who needs to wear Earplugs?

Trombone players experience sound both through their

ears and through their skull bones, which transmit vibrations from the instrument to their ears while playing. Earplugs only block the sound entering through the ears. Trombone players might notice they hear a more bass sound when wearing earplugs. This is known as the ‘occlusion effect’. An experienced audiologist would be able to offer some solutions for this, including fit and vents.

What symptoms should you look out for if you feel that you have been exposed to high levels of noise?

Common concerns include ringing in the ears, sensitivity to sound, problems with pitch perception and difficulty hearing a conversation with background noise. If you have any of these concerns, you should have a hearing test with an experienced audiologist and look into taking steps to decrease your noise exposure.

Thanks Finola, to finish, could you offer us your top 5 tips for maintaining healthy hearing?

1. Start protecting your hearing today – use earplugs on the tube or aeroplane, don’t stand beside the blender when you’re making a smoothie and chose restaurants and bars with the least reflective surfaces to socialise in.

2. Plan your rehearsal time carefully and include breaks in a quiet area to allow your ears to recover.

Think about the size and design of the space you’re playing in, any equipment you might be using and the other musicians around you.

3. Choose your repertoire to include pieces of music with quiet passages alternating with louder ones – relative quiet will allow the ear to recover a little also.

4. Get a hearing test at least every two years.

There are different types of hearing tests and musicians are excellent at the most common one, called an audiogram – I think this is because it ascends in octaves and fifths, so they can somewhat predict what the next pitch may be. If you have a normal audiogram and you still have concerns, your audiologist can test ‘otoacoustic emissions’ to check for hair cell damage that isn’t detected on an audiogram.

5. Try out some personal hearing protection. There are different options out there and new options coming on the market all the time. Just make sure that whatever form you use is verified by your audiologist, so you know it is providing the level of protection that’s written on the box.

29

Q&A with Marshall Gilkes

BY KAT Y JONES

30

KJ: Which groups/artists have inspired you over the years?

MG: I was first inspired by the groups that my dad led.

He was the commander of the Air Force Academy Band, which included a concert band, brass quintet, and a Big Band called the Falconaires. My first trombone and jazz teachers were members of this band. I found my way into jazz and small group playing via big band music.

My teachers would recommend music and players for me to check out. Everything from Carl Fontana, Slide Hampton, and JJ Johnson to Michael Brecker, Freddie Hubbard, and Woody Shaw. At Interlochen Summer Music Camp I had a great Jazz History class that introduced me to a lot of music I wasn’t familiar with.

Also we would have listening parties in the dorms and all the students would share what they were listening to. My first year of college someone recommended that I check out Maria Schneider’s music. I bought her first album Evanescence and listened to it all the time. That album really gave me the feeling that it is ok to write and play what I like rather than feel pressured to convey a certain complexity, harmonic concept, or composition technique. Her music is incredibly honest. I’ve been a member of her group for 11 years now. When I first moved to New York I would go hear Kurt Rosenwinkel’s band every Tuesday night at Smalls Jazz Club in New York. I loved that group and still love his playing. I also got involved playing a lot of Latin music and that had a big impact on my playing and development.

PHOTOGRAPHY: LINK

RNCM are thrilled that Marshall Gilkes will be joining the team as International Visting Tutor. This involves twice yearly visits with performances, lessons for the students and public masterclasses. Marshall is an internationally respected musician as composer, arranger and trombonist. With five albums to his name, alongside his diverse playing career based in New York, it becomes clear how a versatile trombonist can integrate a myriad of voices into one distinct voice.

Marshall has received two Grammy Nominations for his album Köln – Best Instrumental Composition and Best Jazz Large Ensemble Album. He has also taught at Berklee College of Music for 5 years, and has given masterclasses and performances around the world.

Katy Jones: Marshall, we are so excited to have you coming to join us in Manchester in February. And thank you for allowing us to feature you in our British Trombone Society magazine! How was it you came to play the trombone?

Marshall Gilkes: It’s a pleasure – I’m looking forward to my first trip in February, and learning a little more about Manchester than the football teams! My dad studied trombone with Emory Remington at Eastman, and later became a conductor in the Air Force Band System. I used to play around on his old Conn 88h in the closet, and then I was assigned the trombone in fifth grade at school.

Q&A WITH MARSHALL GILKES

KJ: How do you personally compose – at the piano? with a group? in your head?

MG: I mostly write at the piano. There are a few trombone-istic pieces that I came up with on my horn but I mostly write at the piano. Often times it starts with an idea I’m hearing in my head. Then I sit down at the piano and try to see where I can take it.

KJ: When travelling, do you have any particular routines, playing or otherwise, that you try to stick to?

MG: I try to do some version of my daily routine as soon as I get to a venue. I try to run or go to the hotel gym if there is one. These days I prefer to hang out with locals rather than going out and sight-seeing. If I’m somewhere that I haven’t been to before I’ll occasionally do a little sight-seeing but usually don’t have any free time until after the gig. It’s important for me to experience the local food. I love trying new dishes and cuisine.

KJ: What is it about live performance that makes it still relevant in today’s society?

MG: As our attention spans get shorter and shorter and we become more and more of a digitized society I think live performance is more important than ever.

The natural acoustics and energy floating through the air at a live concert are simply something that one can’t experience at a computer screen or through a recording.

Live performances can help remind us of our humanity in this digital age.

KJ: What are your touring essential items?

MG: Neck pillow, headphones, corkscrew (just in case I need a wine cork to fix a mute), running shoes. I usually keep a small collection of cold medicine in my bag just in case. Sometimes I’m a foreign country it’s hard to find what you need. I’ve been carrying around some cold medicine that someone bought for me in Japan for a couple years and have no idea what the box says. If I

PHOTOGRAPHY: LINK

KJ: For those of us less able in improvising, knowing how to start can be difficult. Do you have any suggestions for beginner improvisers?

MG: I think the first step is to listen! Many people want to improvise but don’t listen to jazz or improvised music.

I started improvising in school with the blues. I think that is a great place to start. Practise playing the bass notes with a metronome so that you can internalize the 12-bar form. Then start trying to improvise with the blues scale. Transcription is also really important and helpful. I’m addition, practise taking melodies through all 12 keys. It can be Happy Birthday, Bordogni #3, or Donna Lee. Something to help bridge the gap between your slide and your ear. I make my students learn basic piano II-V-I hand patterns. Most of my colleagues and favourite players can play some degree of piano.

have a writing deadline and I have some time to write, I will also bring a small midi controller and a few pieces of staff paper.

KJ: What is currently on your playlist?

MG: Isaac Delgado, The Total JJ Johnson, Bartók’s Bluebeards Castle. (I recently had to play the off stage part at the NY Phil so I was checking out the piece).

Godwin Louis-Global, Vince Mendoza-Homecoming, Antonio Loureiro-Livre, Music Together-Family Favourites. This is from my 3 year old son’s music class.

I probably listen to that more than anything else these days.

KJ: Puddlejumping seems to be a firm favourite track amongst many people I’ve asked – but do you have a favourite track of your own to play?

MG: I probably enjoy playing my ballads the most.

Lately, I think Morning Smiles is the most fun for me to perform.

KJ: What other interests do you have?

A: I really love skiing, working on my house, cooking, and spending time with my family.

– Thank you so much for taking the time to share all of this with us – we can’t wait to see you in February and hopefully you’ll meet some of our readers in the public masterclass on Tuesday, 4 February at RNCM. 31

JAZZ BY JEREMY

John Fedchock's solo on Moon Alley

BY JEREMY PRICE

The transcription for this edition is a solo by the master craftsman and superb improvisor, John Fedchock.

The extract is from Fedchock’s sextet album entitled ‘Hit the Bricks’ and is his first chorus on the second track Moon Alley by Tom Harrell. Thanks as ever to Rob Egerton for adding this transcription to his fantastic online collection and offering it to us here in the BTS magazine.

I’ve chosen John Fedchock for this issue’s feature not least because he is about to be our next visiting artist in residence at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Jazz Department but also because he is a great role model for us all as a busy freelance trombonist, packing his diary out with recording sessions, jazz dates, big band directing and writing and a hefty masterclass schedule.

Another reason to choose this is that the composition Moon Alley by Tom Harrell is a favourite at jazz summer schools and workshops so novice improvisers could give themselves a head start by checking it out. It’s bound to come up at some point.

To give you an idea of the significance of John Fedchock as a jazz musician, his website tells you that his name appeared in Downbeat’s Readers’ Poll under the categories of Trombone, Arranger and Big Band simultaneously for several consecutive years.

A quick search under his name will reveal the heavy weight company he keeps. On our example album alone, recorded in 2000 for Reservoir Records, you have personnel such as tenor sax colossus Chris Potter, 32

trumpet virtuoso Scott Wendholt and bass legend Rufus Reid. When putting together a Big Band he can hand pick the team from the likes of Walt Weiskopf, Bobby Sanabria, John Riley and Rich Perry. He’s obviously much revered by his peers.

Born in Cleveland Ohio, (land of the King Trombone factory!) in 1957, Fedchock cites his early influences as Urbie Green and Bill Watrous. Interestingly in an interview, he notes that he came across these two before having heard of Carl Fontana, and underlines the importance of researching the lineage of trombone jazz development as Carl Fontana was clearly an influence on Urbie Green and Watrous. For readers who are on their journey of learning to improvise, take note that all the best players advocate a good deal of time listening to earlier players. I will take the liberty of suggesting that John Fedchock would probably prefer you to study Teagarden, Knepper, JJ and Lawrence Brown before you look at his solo here.

In the same interview, he recalls fondly how as a young man, after writing fan mail to Bill Watrous, Bill called him up out of the blue to give him encouragement and a few tips. They later worked extensively together.

Such stories of mentorship and the trombone fraternity in action are always very inspiring.

By the time Fedchock was 23 he was working for Woody Herman in the dual role of trombonist and arranger. He did this until Woody Herman’s death in 1987. He later co-led Maria Schneider’s early

JAZZ BY JEREMY

PHOTOGRAPHY: ISTOC K

incarnations of her orchestra. His own Big Band compositions are published by Jazzlines Publications, Kendor Music Inc and Walrus Music Publishing.

Moon Alley is an essentially modal type composition with some simple F major to F minor movements to negotiate in each A section and a movement to IV minor. The bridge modulates to Db major via a II V I. In terms of chord-scale relationships, the Bb minor in bar 5 could be aeolian mode, keeping a common scale resource with Eb minor dorian, and note that the Gb major sharp 11 in bar 8 of the bridge is chord IV of Db major, so the whole form can be dealt with by ear and musical intuition quite easily.

The tempo is slow and the groove is ‘straight 8ths’ meaning the quavers are not in swing time but still have a lilt for the latin type feel that it is. This low tempo is ideal for forays into double time playing as semi quavers are quite accessible on trombone at this speed.

In fact as you can hear from John Fedchock’s solo there are various subdivisions of the pulse that you can use as springboards into ideas such as the triplet quavers grouped in 4s in a bar. The linear pattern used here is a common device of descending arpeggiations and is used in repetition for the next phrase but in a different metric subdivision. A good aspect to glean from transcriptions are shapes and patterns that the artist may have practised in all keys as preparation for improvising.

These descending diatonic arpeggios are one such example. You could use them as ‘key dexterity’ exercises and if you do, will soon find they have a multitude of applications.

There’s just one overt V7-I in this progression at bar 21/22, which is in the bridge. It’s written as a slash chord of Eb7 over Ab which is actually a sus4 dominant, but as you can hear from Fedchock’s example, even though there are no extensions written in the chord symbol, the improviser is still at liberty to add tension with various alterations. This bar 22 in the bridge from Fedchock hands a lovely V7-1 lick to you on a plate and would be a great one to learn in all keys. It involves a D major triad shape on Ab7 which accesses b9, 7, sharp 11 and also is a shape a semitone above the resolution to Db in the next bar.

John Fedchock arrives with us at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire on Wednesday, 15 January 2020. He is coaching two student sextet ensembles and giving a masterclass on Thursday, 16. He will also be directing our Jazz Orchestra in rehearsal on the Friday morning before he departs. If you want to hear him play and hear the student sextets, the gig is at our very own Eastside Jazz Club 7.45pm on the Thursday evening. I look forward to taking John for a Birmingham Balti with the other trombones!

33

LINK: ROB EGERTON JAZZ TRANSCRIPTIONS

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John Fedchock's Solo On...

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Copyright © Rob Egerton Jazz Transcriptions MEMBERS MAY ACCESS TREBLE CLEF VERSIONS VIA OUR WEBSITE HERE

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LINK: ROB EGERTON JAZZ TRANSCRIPTIONS

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MEMBERS MAY ACCESS TREBLE CLEF VERSIONS VIA OUR WEBSITE HERE

35

NATIONAL YOUTH CONCERT BAND

36

NATIONAL YOUTH CONCERT BAND

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or a genre that is so well represented at school and county level the wind band has stalled on the national stage, even being described by one leading band director as ‘a genre for losers – unfashionable and not trendy’. This has been highlighted by the decline and closures of several large national wind ensembles in the last two years, a sad state for an ensemble that both Stravinsky and Berlioz saw fit to write for. The National Youth Concert Band was founded in November 2018 with the aim of filling the gap left by those organisations and promoting the wind band and the vast repertoire at its disposal.

On Saturday, 14 April 2019, 44 young musicians from around the country arrived at Old Swinford Hospital School for the NYCB’s first residential course.

Conducted by fellow trombonist Jonathan Parkes, the group threw themselves into sight-reading music ranging from Edward Gregson to Percy Grainger’s classic folk song arrangements and from Morton Lauridsen’s stunning O Magnum Mysterium to Bill Connor’s Mahler-influenced contemporary work Tails aus dem Vood Viennoise before splitting up for two days of intensive rehearsals with the team of sectional tutors.

For the brass section the team consisted of Angela Whelan (trumpets), Chris Parkes (horns), Graham Sibley (tubas) and Jonny Watkins (trombones).

The week passed in a flash and ended on a high with

around 200 people crammed into the school’s Foleyan Centre concert hall to witness an emotional first performance by the NYCB. Alongside the main band work, there were opportunities for all the members to play chamber music and solo repertoire with in-house pianist, Hannah Mitchell-Harrison, as well as take part in jazz workshops and performance classes. The look of delight on some faces after a first experience of playing in a brass quintet was topped only by Bohemian Rhapsody coming on during karaoke night!

Exciting plans are already in place for the 2020 NYCB course – the band will be performing a world première

by French TV and film composer, Anne Chmelewsky (TV’s Derek, Where Hands Touch movie), and KirkFeld, a trombone concerto by video game composer, Grant Kirkhope (Donkey Kong, Banjo-Kazooie and Goldeneye 64), played by guest soloist, Helen Vollam. The final concert will take place in the Elgar Hall at Birmingham University.

Applications are open for the 2020 National Youth Concert Band at www.nycb.co.uk/join-us. All applications and auditions are online.

The performance of KirkFeld is being kindly supported by the British Trombone Society Bursary scheme.

WATC H CONCERT HIGHLIGHTS HERE:

▶ 37

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Review:

ELEMEN TS BY DA N J E NK INS

BY DUNCAN WILSON

In the past four days I have played the tenor trombone, bass trumpet and euphonium, all for various professional orchestras. Next week I shall be playing the alto trombone, so if anyone is qualified to write about Dan’s exciting new piece, I suppose it’s me! Elements is written not as a piece for the trombone, but as a piece for a trombonist. Each of the four movements, Earth, Air, Water and Fire, are written to be played on different instruments; Tenor trombone, Euphonium, Bass Trumpet and Alto trombone respectively. In his insightful preface, Dan explains that the music industry nowadays expects players to be proficient on all these instruments as a matter of course.

Earth is our starting point and is portrayed by the tenor trombone. The composer explains this is Earth in her primordial form, an imposing mixture of magma and antediluvian creatures. The piano sets the scene with quiet low note clusters, from which the trombone emerges with a simple four-note rising theme, which evolves as early man finds confidence in the world he inhabits. This gives way to a ‘tribal march’ passage where the performer is required to show their agility with semi-quaver passages and subito dynamic changes. A nod towards the opening music gives a brief respite before the final flourish. In this movement, the trombonist sets out their stall. Most aspects of trombone technique are covered. There’s loud and quiet playing, fast and slow, high and low.

The euphonium is up next, representing Air. In his notes, the composer suggests that this is mostly ‘clear summer air’, although there is a hint of a raincloud in the darker middle section. The movement starts with a quasi-cadenza section followed by a simple 16-bar tune, hymn-like in its simplicity. The euphonium writing throughout this movement is thoughtful and insightful.

The performer is not pushed into feats of technical brilliance but a clear understanding of phrasing and line are important.

The bass trumpet represents Water. I wonder if this is a clever in-joke, as I often spend a lot of time emptying

the water out of the numerous nooks and crannies of my instrument. Of all the movements this is the most easylistening in style and the performer and pianist present a flowing 12/8 theme which gently weaves its way between the two players. After much interplay, the melodic line is finally presented by both players in parallel, with the bass trumpet on a pedal C to finish, a feat in itself on most instruments.

The last contribution is Fire and is by far the most technically challenging of the suite. After a declamatory downward glissando from the performer, the piano starts with a driving, malevolent theme. The trombone takes up the reigns with a march-like figure reminiscent of Shostakovich. After some more dramatic glissandos, the trombone is required to play fast arpeggio figures over the theme. This is where those less-experienced on the alto will find the most challenges, as the music is relentless, with triplet figures taking the player right up to the top register. Eventually, as if enough was enough, everything comes to an abrupt halt and we are given a series of seeming static chords in the piano. Dan has deliberately led us astray here and there is a feeling of unease and ambiguity until the trombone enters again, with a lighter version of the initial theme, this time with a simple new theme. We envisage falling embers as the music is described as ‘ethereal and disembodied’. Within a short time, however, the flames reignite towards an angry and powerful conclusion.

I have been privileged to conduct two new pieces by Dan Jenkins this year alone. I feel that his compositional voice is one of the most interesting and creative in brass writing today and that Elements is a great addition to the trombone repertoire. The piece is set at a standard we would expect most music college students to have attained and is well presented. The piano part, although not easy, is well within the reach of most experienced accompanists.

For more information about Elements, please contact Dan Jenkins: danjenkins66@hotmail.co.uk

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From the Stage to the Pit …

After a number of years of diligent BTS service, the G&T orchestral scene section of the magazine has been retired due to both Matt and Mark’s increasing commitments, however we would like to pay our thanks to them for their fantastic and informative articles throughout the editions of The Trombonist.

Taking over the reigns of this section will be myself, Josh Cirtina, and the wonderful Becky Smith.

We’ve decided to take a little different approach to this orchestral section, with a focus on the symphonic concerts around the country from me and the upcoming highlights in the operatic and ballet world from Becky!

•

BY JOSH CIRTINA

SYMPHONIC HIGHLIGHTS LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA – BERG & BEETHOVEN

The music is truly beguiling with moments of pure calm right up to huge power!

7.30PM, THURSDAY 16 JANUARY, BARBICAN, LONDON

An eclectic programme mix of some of Berg’s orchestral works contrasted with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7.

Berg’s Three Pieces for Orchestra is a 20th century work that displays a huge amount of colours for the orchestra, including the fiendishly difficult first trombone part.

HALLÉ ORCHESTRA – STRAVINSKY’S SHROVETIDE STORY

BBC SCOTTISH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA – BRUCKNER SYMPHONY NO. 8 7.30PM, THURSDAY 27 FEBRUARY, GLASGOW CITY HALLS

Most trombonists will know this one for the famed excerpt that begins the fourth movement, but this symphony is really worth listening to in its entirety, some incredible moments of musical poetry and excitement.

WEDNESDAY 22 JANUARY (2.15PM), THURSDAY 23 JANUARY (7.30PM) & SUNDAY 26 JANUARY (4.00PM)

PHILHARMONIA ORCHESTRA – MAHLER AND

THE BRIDGEWATER HALL, MANCHESTER

SCHUMANN

Programme concludes with Stravinsky’s Pétrouchka, a ballet about the love and jealousies of three puppets.

The ballet is ripe with character, colour and curiosities – a real thrill for the audience.

7.30PM, THURSDAY 19 MARC H

BBC SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA – SHOSTAKOVICH’S EIGHTH SYMPHONY 7.30PM, FRIDAY 24 JANUARY, BARBICAN, LONDON

The Eighth is a monumental symphony. It combines the darkness of Stalin’s regime with the comedy of a circus march. Some truly fantastic writing for the brass.

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL, LONDON

Another notable excerpt – Schumann’s Symphony No. 3 is somewhat revered by trombonists for its sombre chorale in the fourth movement. However it is a symphony that covers a whole spectrum of moods, and is one of the last remaining chances to see the fantastic Esa–Pekka Salonen – the orchestra’s outgoing Principal Conductor before he leaves in the near future.

ROYAL LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA – PETRENKO’S MAHLER III

CITY OF BIRMINGHAM SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA –

7.30PM, SATURDAY 21 MARC H,

RESPIGHI’S ROMAN TRILOGY

LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC HALL

7.30PM, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY & 2.15PM THURSDAY

Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 is written on a grand scale even by his standard. Colossal forces of a large orchestra, and two choirs of women and children respectively come together for this truly magical work. Oh, and I’ve heard there’s a trombone solo in it somewhere …?

20 FEBRUARY, SYMPHONY HALL, BIRMINGHAM

A rare chance to hear all three parts to Respighi’s ‘Roman Trilogy’ – Pines of Rome, Fountains of Rome and the quite rarely performed Roman Festivals.

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FROM THE STAGE TO THE PIT …

ROYAL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA – VASILY

OPERA PIC KS:

PETRENKO CONDUCTS PROKOFIEV

SCOTTISH OPERA – NIXON IN CHINA

7.30PM, FRIDAY 3 APRIL, ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL, LONDON

TUESDAY 18 – SATURDAY 22 FEBRUARY

See the RPO’s new chief conductor designate conduct the orchestra for the first time in 2020. Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5 is full of depth and rage having been written during the full might of the Soviet Union.

There are some great parts for the brass and worth a watch!

THEATRE ROYAL, GLASGOW

LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA – JUROWSKI CONDUCTS MAHLER 7.30PM, FRIDAY 17 APRIL, ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL, LONDON

Do make the effort to see Vladimir Jurowski at the helm of the LPO as he enters his last couple of seasons as their Principal Conductor. Mahler’s Symphony No. 9 was written as he knew he was close to the end of his life and involves a huge outpouring of emotion in the music. There is true heartbreak in this symphony and is a must-see!

THURSDAY 27 – SATURDAY 29 FEBRUARY FESTIVAL THEATRE, EDINBURGH

Scottish Opera are putting on a production of the iconic work, Nixon in China by John Adams. Based on Nixon’s visit to China in 1972, the piece incorporates all sorts of styles; minimalist sounds alongside pre–recorded electronics, sections echoing Wagner and Johann Strauss and jazz references alongside big band sounds. If you can’t see this in Scotland, I have it on good authority ENO will be performing this next season …

OPERA NORTH – STREET SCENE 18 JANUARY – 20 MARC H, VARIOUS LOCATIONS

BY BEC KY SMITH

Opera North are putting on the Kurt Weill opera Street Scene. I have been assured there is plenty for the trombones to be kept busy in this piece! Weill’s music is always a joy to listen to and this score is no exception, having been awarded Best Original Score at the very first Tony Awards in 1947.

BALLET & OPERA PIC KS

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE – ALICE’S ADVENTURES UNDER

SCOTTISH BALLET – THE SNOW QUEEN

GROUND

7 DECEMBER 2019 – 15 FEBRUARY 2020

MONDAY 3 – SUNDAY 9 FEBRUARY

TOURING SCOTLAND & NORTH OF ENGLAND

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE, COVENT GARDEN

A Christmas highlight looks to be the world premiere of The Snow Queen, inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen much-loved tale (also the basis for the film, Frozen), performed by Scottish Ballet. The ballet will be set to the music of Rimsky Korsakov so is sure to have some fun brassy moments in it and at only 1 hour and 45 minutes will be perfect for the whole family.

Royal Opera House have a new production of Alice’s Adventures Under Ground by Gerald Barry, which looks to be lots of fun for the whole family. It has been described as fun, furious, frantic and utterly fantastic!

•

WELSH NATIONAL OPERA – CARMEN THURSDAY 27 FEBRUARY – THURSDAY 7 MAY CARDIFF, PLYMOUTH, LLANDUDNO, BIRMINGHAM,

BIRMINGHAM ROYAL BALLET – THE NUTCRACKER

SOUTHAMPTON, BRISTOL, LIVERPOOL, MILTON KEYNES

SATURDAY 28 DECEMBER – TUESDAY 31 DECEMBER

WNO have a new production of Carmen by Bizet, set in 1970’s Central America. Just so many good tunes in this opera, its always worth a visit!

ROYAL ALBERT HALL, LONDON

Of course, it’s the time of year when Tchaikovsky ballets are everywhere, and this year is no exception!

You can catch an epic production of The Nutcracker by Birmingham Royal Ballet at the Royal Albert Hall, only on for a few days so be sure to get your tickets early.

The orchestra are not in a pit for this production, but in the choir stalls, so you will hear them loud and clear.

ROYAL BALLET – SWAN LAKE 5 MARC H – 16 MAY 2020

ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA – MADAM BUTTERFLY WEDNESDAY 26 FEBRUARY – FRIDAY 17 APRIL LONDON COLISEUM

ENO are reviving their production of Madam Butterfly

by Puccini, and I am mentioning this not because it is a lovely production (it is), but Natalya Romaniw is singing the title role of Cio-Cio San, and it is worth going to watch just to hear her stunning voice.

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE, COVENT GARDEN

Another Tchaikovsky favourite is Swan Lake, being performed by the Royal Ballet. This production runs from 5 March to 16 May, and will also screen at cinemas.

This is a real workout for the brass, around 3 hours long, certainly thirsty work.

If you manage to get to one of these shows I hope you have a fabulous time, enjoy!

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What’s BTS DATES

on

BTS/RAF DAY 8am, Sunday 8 March RAF Northolt, London Pre-register here

BTS DAY: HUDDERSFIELD UNIVERSITY Sunday, 15 March Hosts of our Trombone Choir Competition 2020 Huddersfield, Yorkshire BTS ANNUAL BURSARY Applications open 1 June and close 1 August BTS INSTRUMENT LOAN SCHEME Applications open 1 July and close 31 July

FESTIVE DATES LATE NIGHT JAZZ – SHIRT TAIL STOMPERS: VINTAGE CHRISTMAS SHOW 9pm, Wednesday 18 December Royal Albert Hall, London GUY BARKER’S BIG BAND CHRISTMAS 7.30pm, Thursday 19 December Royal Albert Hall, London

OLD DIRTY BRASSTARDS OASIS DEFINITELY MAYBE 10.30pm, Friday 27 & 1am Saturday 28 December Shoreditch Blues Kitchen, London PIZZAEXPRESS LIVE (HOLBORN) 8pm, Sunday 12 January Holborn, London

42

s

BONES APART BONES APART MASTERCLASS & CONCERT Friday, 31 January Conservatoire de Musique, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg BONES APART RECITAL Monday, 3 February Royal Birmingham Conservatoire BONES APART LUNCHTIME RECITAL Friday, 7 February Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow BONES APART LUNCHTIME RECITAL Tuesday, 19 May Bury Festival, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

RNCM BRASS BAND FESTIVAL: WOMEN IN BRASS BANDS 5pm, Sunday 26 January Carole Nash Recital Room, Manchester BILLY MAY’S BIG FAT BRASS Guildhall Wind, Brass & Percussion Big Band 7pm, Friday 24 January, Milton Court Concert Hall, London IVOR HODGSON TROMBONE CONCERTO Robert Holliday (trombone) & Scarborough Orchestra 7.15pm, Saturday 8 February Methodist Central Hall, Scarborough, Yorkshire

BONES APART EVENING CONCERT Friday, 3 July Bradfield Festival of Music, South Yorkshire

SCOTTISH NATIONAL JAZZ ORCHESTRA (SNJO) Friday 24 – Saturday 25 January Ronnie Scott’s, London

JOHN FEDCHOCK – BIRMINGHAM 6.30pm, Thursday 16 January Eastside Jazz Club, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire

AUBREY LOGAN Friday 31 January – Saturday 1 February Ronnie Scott’s, London

MARSHALL GILKES: TROMBONE MASTERCLASS 7.30pm, Tuesday 4 February RNCM, Manchester

BRASSED OFF, LIVE 7pm, Wednesday 15 April Royal Albert Hall, London

ONYX BRASS

INTERNATIONAL TROMBONE WEEK Sunday 19 – Sunday 26 April 2020 Worldwide

ETON COLLEGE BRASS EXTRAVAGANZA 1pm, 17 January Eton College, Windsor GREAT BIRMINGHAM BRASS FEST 12pm, 20 January Royal Birmingham Conservatoire RNCM BRASS BAND FESTIVAL: BLACK DYKE BAND 7.30pm, Saturday 25 January RNCM Concert Hall, Manchester

INTERNATIONAL TROMBONE FESTIVAL July 2–5 2020 Osaka, Japan To feature Michael Buchanan, Ian Bousfield, Carol Jarvis and many more. Applications will be open early in the new year.

For more dates and information, please check our website

Do you know of an event that should feature in our next publication?

LET US KNOW.

43

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TO APPLY PLEASE EMAIL adagg@cym.org.uk