Review

Jean Baptiste Arban
Method for Alto Trombone Part 1:

Arranged by edited by Wayne Groves

Alto trombone

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

Method book. 98 pages.

Primary Genre: Study Material - method
Secondary Genre: Study Material - etude

Jean Baptiste Arban, “The Paganini of the Cornet,” was born in Lyon in 1825 and died in Paris in 1889. These studies were first published in 1860 and have become a cornerstone of the pedagogical literature for many brass instruments. The Alto Trombone Method is currently comprised of three volumes, total 345 pages, and is designed for students starting out on alto trombone. It is transposed down a major sixth from treble clef editions, or a fourth higher than tenor trombone versions, and is given exclusively in alto clef. A photograph of M. Arban appears on the cover of each volume. Each includes a foreword by Per Brevig and an extensive introduction by Wayne Groves. A fourth volume is in preparation.

Part 1, comprising 98 pages, begins with a slide position chart from A up to eighth partial, f², and includes 147 studies, from basic to advanced, in ten sections - First Studies (50) Rhythmic Studies (12) Dotted Eighth - Sixteenth Notes (6) Eighth Notes and Sixteenth Notes (9) Six Eight Time (11) Studies on the Slur (69) Major Scales (84) Minor Scales (12) Chromatic Scales (9) and Chromatic Studies (32).

All major keys are covered individually, and First Studies No.9 ascends chromatically through all 12 major keys from A-flat. Sharp or flat keys that have an enharmonically equivalent natural key are not included. There are only two studies in a minor key, both in C minor - No.18 (dotted eighth) and No.31 (6/8 time). 24 keys, major and minor, are represented in the Scale Studies. The first 16 studies are in E-flat, they then move up through the flat keys to G-flat, and down the sharp keys from F-sharp to C, F and B-flat. Minor scale studies cover all keys, beginning with C minor. Chromatic Scales are presented in nine different patterns; all have a key signature of three flats, as do Studies on the Slur, which are almost completely chromatic. Slide positions are indicated for many of the studies in this group. Overall range is A-sharp-e-flat².

The more advanced studies and scales are quite demanding technically. These include an E-flat major scale study, which has two groups of 14-tuplet, 64th notes under a single slur. A variety of articulations are used, including slurs and accents. And in the Rhythmic Studies there is much use of alternating staccato and marcato. There are relatively few large intervals, the largest is a tenth. For the majority of the studies no tempo is indicated. And obviously, they are to be played as fluently as possible at the maximum capable speed of the player. Specific slide positions are indicated in only a few studies, these include first and fourth positions for g¹ in First Studies No.47.

The overall range of these studies does not cover the highest notes in the repertoire, such as Bach Cantatas 68 and 121 (e²), Britten ‘Burning Fiery Furnace’ (f-flat²), and Beethoven Symphony No.5 (e²/f²). There is, however, much attention given to the low register, which is seldom required in works of the baroque or classical period. They are not written for a B-flat extension or whole-step trill valve.

I estimate there are more than 50,000 notes in each of these volumes, a majority of them 16ths or triplet 16ths, and the amount of work involved in their preparation is impressive. Mr Groves has rendered a great service in providing a quantity of study material that I think will be of great value to students and professionals alike. Wayne Groves is a graduate of the Juilliard School and is currently Principal Trombone of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Aguascalientes.