Review

Corrado Maria Saglietti
Suite per Trombone Contralto e Piano:

Vuarmarens, , Switzerland
Publisher: Editions Bim
Date of Publication: 1993
URL: http://www.editions-bim.com

Piano score and solo part

Primary Genre: Solo Alto Trombone - with piano

Suite is cast in three movements: Tango, Canzone, and Suite. Each movement is set in a loosely based tonality and each successfully occupies a distinctive groove. In fact, Saglietti puts the musical emphasis in the way the music moves and not on building towards climaxes; this process is emphasized over the final product.

Tango’s two parts opens with a serious, ruminative melody set over a skeletal rhythmic accompaniment. After one of the many short cadenzas found throughout the work, cadenzas that give a sort of tongue-in-cheek approach to the entirety, a sweeter, more languidly paced tango ensues. Canzone moves hesitantly and the accompanying piano (or string quartet in that version of the piece) is more at odds with the solo. A muted passage and changes in tempo enhance the nostalgic proceedings. Suite is replete with meter changes, well-conceived glissandi, wa-wa mute, and lots of energy. The multiple moods and attitudes of the piece are cleverly dispatched and invite repeated listening.

Suite was commissioned by and dedicated to Joseph Burnam, principal trombone of the Turin Radio Symphony. He has recorded the work on the compact disc, Burnam and Strings. The piece ranges up to f2 and calls for an accomplished player. This is a charming work, engaging and virtuosic.

-Joel Elias
California State University, Fresno; CSU Sacramento