Review

Charles Gounod
Three Romances Without Words: arranged for tuba or bass trombone

Arranged by Ralph Sauer


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

Piano score and solo part

Primary Genre: Solo Bass/Contrabass Trombone - with piano

This song set was originally written for solo piano in 1861. Each song is relatively short in length, under three minutes, and they were written in a beautifully simple style, with a clear lyrical melody in the right hand and rich accompaniment in the left hand. Their titles are programmatic: La Pervenche (The Periwinkle), Le Ruisseau (The Stream), and Le Soir (The Evening). Each song reflects its title elegantly in both the melody and accompaniment. Ralph Sauer’s arrangement maintains the character of these beautifully light and lyrical pieces.
 
While Sauer’s arrangement is for tuba or bass trombone these songs are also quite playable on tenor trombone. The range lies between B-flat and f1, with the exception of the final note of the piece, low C. Sauer changed the key of each of the songs to “brass-friendly” keys, setting the first two songs in E-flat major and the third in C major.  In the original solo piano version, the melody is always the highest voice in the right hand of the piano. By lowering the key and voicing the melody in the middle-upper register of the bass trombone, Sauer does a nice job of maintaining the melodic character of the solo part.
 
The arrangement is not “over-edited.” Many dynamic changes present in the original solo piano version are left out here. This allows the performer to come up with their own musical ideas, making this arrangement a great tool for teaching younger players the finer aspects of musicality, as well as making it a nice recital piece for collegiate or professional players. It provides a great opportunity to perform music by a notable 19th century composer.

-J.J. Cooper
New York, NY