Bass trombone and violin? The concept of these two instruments performing as a duo intrigued this composer! Edwin Miller and Todd Park commissioned this composition and wanted it to be an audience-friendly performance piece. The result is a three movement work based on the acoustic combinations of the two sounds.

The first movement opens with a bold statement of “We’re here! Listen!” – dramatic, playful, playable. The second movement begins with the Korean folk song “Arirang” contrasted with “Simple Gifts” and portions of “All The Pretty Little Horses,” and shows off the musicality and sensitivity of the musicians. The third movement’s plaintive introduction leads to a boisterous display of “I can do this, can you?” that features glissandos, triple tonguing, pizzicato vs. staccato, etc., and concludes with the violin playing “Arirang” in 3/4 and the bass trombone playing “Simple Gifts” in 4/4, a loud and triumphant finale.

Thank-you, Edwin and Todd, for wanting a piece you can play together for charity events, recitals and just for fun.

The mp3 excerpt (used with permission) features Michael Eversden and is from his CD, Out of Bounds.

The “Add to cart” button shows Score & Parts; however, Soundscapes is in duet format only, as per the sample first page. Separate parts are not available.

Composer: Anne McGinty
Instrumentation: Violin & Bass Trombone
Duration/# of Pages: ca. 9:15 / 13 pages, 8.5″ x 11″
Key: N/A