Challenging bass trombone parts in Brass Band test pieces
- swissbasstrombone
- Posts: 1
- Joined: May 25, 2025
As a Brass Band bass trombone player in 1st/championship section I often wonder on the gradient in difficulty depending on the instument. While cornets, euphs, tenor troms etc. hardly even get to play all notes of their parts, I often practice the music once/twice at home and the rest is mostly the effort to bring it into the context with the other players at the band rehearsals. There is so much said on the unique status of the bass trombone in the Brass Band, but where is it shown in the music?
Where is the challenging bass trombone music in 1st/championship grade bb test pieces that is not just 3rd of the trombones or bass doubling? Yes, there is Old Licks Bluesed Up by Aagaard-Nilsen and the beautiful cadenza in Moren’s Blue Horizon, but after that?
Chris
Where is the challenging bass trombone music in 1st/championship grade bb test pieces that is not just 3rd of the trombones or bass doubling? Yes, there is Old Licks Bluesed Up by Aagaard-Nilsen and the beautiful cadenza in Moren’s Blue Horizon, but after that?
Chris
- MrHCinDE
- Posts: 1039
- Joined: Jul 01, 2018
Hardest I’ve heard alongside or behind me in bands I’ve played in are probably Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, Variations on an Enigma, Blitz and Year of the Dragon.
If you can play these more or less on sight, all credit to you!
If you can play these more or less on sight, all credit to you!
- SwissTbone
- Posts: 1138
- Joined: Mar 23, 2018
Swiss colors by Moren also has some challenging licks if I recall right. But nothing soloistic I think.
- MStarke
- Posts: 1031
- Joined: Jan 01, 2019
I have extremely little experience in British style brass band playing. However the one time that I subbed with a relatively good band last year, I was very glad I had my basics together. Really taxing playing in my view. Not due to specific technical passages, but due to producing a large amount of well-centered sound in the mid to low range for quite some time. Much more demanding from that perspective than almost any symphony and wind orchestra stuff. Big band can be kind of comparable depending on the repertoire.
- Wilco
- Posts: 211
- Joined: Mar 24, 2019
The lost circle - Jan van der Roost was really hard to get right
Sands and Stars - Theiry Duruelle.
Sands and Stars - Theiry Duruelle.
- jpwell
- Posts: 154
- Joined: May 11, 2018
Isn’t bass trombone the solo voice that needs to carry the whole band ?!?!?
- SwissTbone
- Posts: 1138
- Joined: Mar 23, 2018
[quote="MStarke"]I have extremely little experience in British style brass band playing. However the one time that I subbed with a relatively good band last year, I was very glad I had my basics together. Really taxing playing in my view. Not due to specific technical passages, but due to producing a large amount of well-centered sound in the mid to low range for quite some time. Much more demanding from that perspective than almost any symphony and wind orchestra stuff. Big band can be kind of comparable depending on the repertoire.[/quote]
You are right. Getting the style right and the necessary volume can be really hard. Bass trombone is a very important color in brass band. Sometimes simply getting heard is a challenge.
You are right. Getting the style right and the necessary volume can be really hard. Bass trombone is a very important color in brass band. Sometimes simply getting heard is a challenge.