Review

Kenneth Knowles
Seventeen Foolish Studies for Trombone:

Vancouver, BC, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2013
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Primary Genre: Study Material - etude

Canadian trombonist and composer, Ken Knowles, has given us a clever set of pieces that gleefully quote many standards of the trombone repertoire. Playing them is like going on a musical Easter egg hunt. Looking for Emory Remington’s famous lip slurs? You’ll find them embedded in #2, “Chiefly Warmups.” Was someone asking for a fusion of Happy Birthday and the solo from Rimsky Korsakov’s Russian Easter Overture? That would be #8, “H. B. Rimsky.” You get the idea. With titles like “Requiem for Sussmayer” and “A Pryor Appointment,” part of the enjoyable challenge of this book is figuring out all of the inside jokes.
 
As with other publications from Cherry Classics, these are available in digital format.  Most are one page in length. These pieces are quite challenging at times. They generally range between F and c2 with a few brief forays even higher. Given that they quote some well-known and often-practiced passages, they might be seen as practice material for those quoted pieces but the intent here is more for enjoyment. In his preface, Knowles states, “They are intended as an antidote to the drudgery of many Etude books.” In this respect, they are successful. If you are looking for some variety and humor in your practice diet, these pieces are worth checking out.

-Brad Edwards
Arizona State University