Review


Giovanni Gabrieli
Canzon in Echo Duodecimi toni á 10 Ch.180: from Sacrae Symphoniae

Arranged by Fabrizio Bugani

Brass choir: 4 B-flat trumpets (C parts available), 2 F horns, 4 trombones

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2021
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Score and parts.

Primary Genre: Brass Ensemble - 6+ brass (choir)

Fabrizio Bugani’s arrangement of Giovani Gabrieli’s Canzon in Echo Duodecimi Toni á 10 Ch.180, from Sacrae Symphoniae, for 10-part antiphonal brass ensemble (double brass quintet) is an excellent edition, with a variety of alternate parts to increase access for brass studios and ensembles spanning diverse instrumentation. Donated for review by Cherry Classics, their website includes both sample score and embedded Soundcloud audio. The page layout is excellent, spanning two pages for each part. Originally cast for two choirs of 4 cornetti and trombones, Bugani’s arrangement is orchestrated for double quintets of 2 trumpets, horn, and 2 trombones, with alternate parts to support other instrumental combinations. I appreciate the inclusion of both C and B-flat trumpet parts, the alternate alto trombone for F horn, and similar horn substitute for trombone. As the lowest trombone part can be easily covered by euphonium and tuba, with judicious octave adjustments, this wealth of alternate voices will readily accommodate small and larger brass studios alike.

As per other informed editions, Bugani’s editorial notes identifying the specific adjustments made for this edition are greatly appreciated. For those wanting to learn more about this work and the era, I recommend David Uber’s Columbia University dissertation The Brass Choir in Antiphonal Music and Donna Kay Van Riper’s University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Masters thesis Giovanni Gabrieli’s Canzon in Echo Duodecimi for information about the original performance venue and the work's organ counterpart. While of 1960’s-vintage, these materials will aid your understanding of the work, the original performing venue, and your crafting of program notes. For those desiring more alto trombone alternate parts, see Gervais Frykman’s 2018 IMSLP edition that includes a 4th voice alto clef cornetto part in each choir, with accessible Sibelius files (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0) to aid those needing to transpose/adapt for other instrumentation. Bugani’s arrangement of Giovanni Gabrieli’s Canzon in Echo Duodecimi Toni á 10 is a welcome addition, increasing access of this iconic repertoire to a broader range of contemporary brass musicians.

Reviewer: Peter Fielding
Review Published June 24, 2023