Review

Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Autumn Song, Op.37, No.10: from The Seasons

Arranged by Ralph Sauer

Trombone and piano

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2020
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Score and solo part

Primary Genre: Solo Tenor Trombone - with piano

Pyotr Tchaikovsky.
Autumn Song (from The Seasons) Op.37 No.10 arranged for trombone and piano by Ralph Sauer. N.p.: Cherry Classics Music, 2020. Playing time 3:50.  Score and solo part. www.cherryclassics.com

‘The Seasons’ entered the musical canon as a set of concerti written by Vivaldi in the 18th century. An oratorio by Haydn and a ballet by Glazunov followed in the first years of the 19th and 20th centuries respectively. Autumn Song is one of 12 character pieces for piano that Tchaikovsky composed in 1875/6 while he was writing Swan Lake. They appeared monthly in a magazine and were obviously intended for amateurs. Each one was accompanied by a poem written by Leo Tolstoy; Autumn Song was their contribution for October – ‘Our poor garden is all falling down, the yellowed leaves are flying in the wind’ (Tolstoy).

Tchaikovsky didn’t waste too many of his best ideas on these pieces, they all went into Swan Lake, and this is not one of his most inspired creations, relying rather heavily on sequence; however, in mm 22-27 there is a clear premonition of the horn solo in the 5th Symphony that he would write 12 years later. The marking for this piece is Andante doloroso e molto cantabile, and its lyrical style is well-suited to the trombone. It is presented in its  original key of D minor, in tenor clef, range c-sharp-b-flat¹. This piece helps to fill a niche in the repertoire that is not over-occupied at the present time.