Review

Various
Repertoire Classics for Trombone:

Arranged by Alan Raph


New York, NY, United States
Publisher: Carl Fischer
Date of Publication: 2011
URL: http://www.carlfischer.com

Primary Genre: Solo Tenor Trombone - with piano

This collection primarily contains a variety of Baroque, Classical, and Romantic period solos arranged for trombone by Alan Raph. These solos consist of songs, short dances, and movements of works by well-known composers. Some of the pieces are no more than a single strophe of a song, akin to the Characteristic Melodies section of the Arban Method. Most of the solo parts are a page in length, with none longer than two pages. The print is clean and easy to read.  The measures are numbered, and the arranger provides extensive guidance through phrase and articulation markings. He also provides options for octave adjustment on some of the pieces to fit the ability level of the performer. The volume just contains the solo parts, but an accompanying compact disc contains both PDF files and MP3 recordings of the accompaniments, so students can practice with the recording.
 
Unfortunately, there are numerous mistakes in the printing of the collection. Besides a misspelled word at the bottom of page 45, many of the pieces contain letters and note heads that are filled in where they should be open, which results in many measures having insufficient rhythmic values for the meter signature. This makes performance difficult until they are manually corrected.
 
The variety and length of the solos make this a useful collection for practice, melodic performance development, and general recital use. The pieces are arranged alphabetically by composer last name. While a progressive arrangement may have been more logical, the extra table of contents lists the works by difficulty, ranging from Grade 2 up to Grade 5, making it simple enough to select appropriate pieces. The majority are Grade 3 and lower, which, along with the brief nature of the solos, makes the collection more appropriate for younger or developing players. While the printing mistakes are distracting, a corrected edition could prove a useful tool in a player’s study.

-James Adams
Valley City State University