Review

Ludwig van Beethoven
Trio Op.87:

Arranged by Ralph Sauer


Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2008
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Score and parts

Primary Genre: Trombone Ensembles - 3 trombones

Ralph Sauer’s transcription, donated for review by Cherry Classics, is a welcome addition of Classical-era chamber music. Originally written for two oboes and English horn in 1794, it was subsequently transcribed for strings in 1795. Although Robert King published an arrangement that has been recorded by the Tokyo Metropolitan Brass Trio (Meister Music, MM1226), Sauer’s transcription is more faithful to the original score. The trio works well as a chamber ensemble piece.

Sauer transposes the individual movements into keys that lie well on tenor and bass trombone. The first and second trombone parts are written in tenor clef and ascend to c2. While the third part is scored for bass trombone, it could be played on a tenor trombone with an F-attachment as it only descends to D. Although the studious conductor comparing this transcription alongside a score may take notice of a missing repeat sign at the end of the first movement’s exposition (in measure 102), I am glad to forgo it as the composition has so much music to traverse. Although there is some adventuresome bass trombone passagework in the second movement, Adagio cantabile, the second and third movement, Allegro molto, scherzo, have only modest range requirements for the second trombone, E-flat-f. The fourth movement, Presto, is a rondo that has a recurring, rapid and wide leap in the second trombone part (descending a perfect eleventh, b-flat1-f).

-Peter Fielding
36 Canadian Brigade Group (Nova Scotia) Band, Canada