Review

Curtis Olson
Intersession Metre:

,
Publisher:
Date of Publication: 1998

Manuscript

Primary Genre: Solo Tenor Trombone - with piano

Dedicated to Donald Knaub, the composer’s graduate trombone instructor and mentor at the Eastman School of Music, this well-crafted and solidly structured work is a welcomed addition to the solo repertoire. It was composed as an educational piece to help fill the void of quality trombone literature appropriate for the younger trombonist who has limited upper range but needs a technical challenge in most other areas of general musicianship. This is not a work for the typical middle school student. The serious high school junior or senior that needs focus on shifting meters and exposure to contemporary harmonies will find Intermission Metre an excellent choice. It is also an appropriate and highly recommended jury piece for the first or second year college music major. 

The 239 measures employ a host of time signatures, including many varieties of standard duple and compound meters. Meter changes are frequent, every two or three measures, but the eighth note, and the tempo (quarter note=132) stays constant throughout. There are no requirements for multiple tonguing or consecutive 16th note passages but challenges do exist for the young player in the area of multiple styles of articulation. Opportunities for lengthy passages of legato and lyrical playing are minimal. Although this work is loosely tonal, it is unquestionably written in a 20th century harmonic style including elements of bitonality, pandiatonicism, Impressionism, and rock. There is no intention to lead one in believing this is simply a mixed meter etude with piano accompaniment. Quite the contrary, this is a fun, exciting, and stimulating composition for both the trombonist and the accompanist. The melodic ideas are energetic, engaging and keen. The formal structure is well designed for a work of this length and there are occasions when melodic fragments are later repeated in a different meter. The piano accompaniment is challenging, yet playable by a fair to slightly advanced pianist who has solid rhythmic skills.  The piano is an integral part of the solo, sharing equal responsibility in a successful performance. Curtis Olson, professor of trombone and associate director of undergraduate studies at Michigan State University, and the 2002 recipient of the ITA Neill Humfeld Award for Excellence in Trombone Teaching has offered an exciting and pedagogically sound solo to meet a need in an area where a dearth of quality literature exists.

-Jim Hansford
Oklahoma Baptist University