Review

Johannes Brahms
Thirteen Canons Op.113:

Arranged by Ralph Sauer

6 tenor trombones

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

Score and parts

Primary Genre: Trombone Ensembles - 6 trombones

These were written for women’s voices between 1859 and 1891 and published five years before Brahms’ death. They are settings of traditional texts and poetry by Goethe, von Fallersleben, Eichendorff and Rückert. They are complex pieces said to contain ‘inscrutable secrets.’ The theme of the final canon is taken from Der Leiermann, the final despairing song of Schubert’s Winterreise, with its original accompaniment of bare fifths sounding in much of the two lower parts. This canon has a playing time of about two minutes and is the most substantial of the set; the others are characterised by extreme brevity, with playing times of less than one minute.

All parts are given in bass clef and cover similar ranges: first A-g¹, third G-a¹, sixth E-g¹. There are no significant technical difficulties, but these are challenging pieces to interpret and play. They are set in their original keys, eight major and five minor. Four are in three parts and the others in six parts. All have movement in eighths or sixteenths, including No.9, in which the predominant movement is in triplet quarters. The arranger suggests that ‘when the work is performed by a large choir, the 3-part pieces may be played with one player per part.’ In some of the other pieces also, clarity of texture will be enhanced by a smaller group. Parts are clear, and there are no page-turning issues. This is a significant contribution to trombone literature.