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THE BASS TROMBONIST'S ORCHESTRAL HANDBOOK

Richard Strauss: Ein Heldenleben - Excerpt 4




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Two important passages make up this final excerpt.

The first is the conclusion of the battle scene, which finally is over at rehearsal number 77 (repeated eighth notes for all of the trombones). The opening low D must be full and round, notice there is accent printed. Taking the two breaths where indicated (two and three measures before 76) and observing the dimuendo the one before 76 will help you get ready for the big descending scale.

Note the slide positions I recommend which are printed above the scale. There is method to my madness: By treating each beat of the bar as its own figure, and by changing the slide direction to get into each beat, you are able to avoid a false accent (which invariably occurs at the change of slide direction, especially at high volume) on a sixteenth note within a figure. Try it slowly at first at a moderate dynamic, then louder and up to tempo. You will find that there is no danger of the "alternate position" notes not coming out well - the dynamic is so loud that your feeling playing the passage will be quite secure. You will gain much in terms of rhythmic stability when you try this passage with the marked positions.

The final passage, marked "Massig langsam" ("moderately slowly") occurs in the section of the piece titled "The Hero's Works of Peace." Strauss, never one to be too modest, includes quotations from many of his own works in this passage. The bass trombone has an important, lyrical solo which comes from Strauss' opera, Guntram. Strauss doesn't give a starting dynamic for the solo (after rehearsal number 89) although it is a solo and should be heard above the texture of the rest of the orchestra which is marked "piano." Do it on one breath, and use a small bit of vibrato, shaping the line nicely from the beginning to the end. Strauss' marking, "espressivo, (sehr getragen)" (expressively, very solemn) tells the story.


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