Review

Robert Marsteller
Six Etudes for Bass Trombone:

Arranged by Gordon Cherry

Bass trombone

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

Etude book.

Primary Genre: Study Material - etude

Something a majority of trombonists would likely agree upon is that there is no shortage of available etudes. Whether you prefer the classics or newer collections, it is not difficult to find high quality materials that address issues of technique, phrasing, and musicality for any skill level. With an abundance of study materials available, it can be difficult to determine which collections should earn a place in your practice routine or teaching repertoire. What separates Robert Marsteller’s Six Etudes for Bass Trombone from the others is that they are both musically challenging and historically interesting.

Robert Marsteller wrote the original Six Etudes for tenor trombone and dedicated the collection to his teacher, Emory Remington. Well before the days of music notation software, Mr. Marsteller hand copied his etudes for his former professor, and it was his only copy that Prof. Remington loaned to Gordon Cherry during his time at Eastman. According to Mr. Cherry’s introductory notes, “I brought them to my lessons each week until we were finished. They were very valuable towards my development on the instrument.” Sometime the next year, after moving on to a different collection of studies, Prof. Remington asked Mr. Cherry to return the Marsteller etudes. Thinking he had already done so, it dawned on Mr. Cherry that he was now responsible for losing his professor’s only copy. As luck would have it, a few decades later Robert Marsteller’s son, Loren, contacted Mr. Cherry to see if he had an interest in publishing his father’s etudes. Fortunately, his son had the original copy.

These six etudes cover a wide variety of styles and tempos. Many modulate through difficult keys, and each covers a range of nearly three octaves. They are challenging, on a similar level of many other collections of advanced etudes, as well as musically satisfying. The original version for tenor trombone, previously reviewed for the ITA Journal by Dr. Bradley Edwards, is equally as valuable. The bottom line: the Six Etudes of Robert Marsteller are worth considering, even with so many other alternatives available.