Elegy for Bass Trombone & String Quartet

Elegy for Bass Trombone & String Quartet elicits the multifaceted feelings of grief beginning with the trombone playing a solemn lyrical line in A minor against a quiet backdrop of ascending sixteenths of intervals of sixths and fifths in the string quartet.

Program Notes

Elegy was commissioned by bass trombonist Jonathan Warburton in honor of his father who had recently passed away. The piece was completed in 2016 and a transcription with string quartet accompaniment was commissioned in 2018 by the Arctic Trombone Festival in Norway.

The piece elicits the multifaceted feelings of grief beginning with the trombone playing a solemn lyrical line in A-minor against a quiet backdrop of ascending sixteenths of intervals of sixths and fifths in the string quartet. This segues into a short interlude in G-major with a chorale-like accompaniment against the trombone with a sixteenth note pattern. An extensive development follows using both the melodic and accompaniment material. A secondary melody in A Mixolydian ensues and progresses to a short cadenza by the trombone. The original melody then returns in the strings with the trombone playing a variation in sixteenths. A rather sober coda follows fluctuating between G-major, E-minor, and C-minor before closing in G-major.

Grade Level: Medium Advanced
Copyright: 2023
Number of Players: 5
Duration: 5:25
Publisher: C. Alan Publications
Type: Quintet
Category: Brass; String

Sample PDFs

• Elegy_Bass_Tbn_String_4.pdf

Instrumentation

Bass Trombone
Violin I
Violin II
Viola
Cello