Lebedev Concerto

[Art Hovey]

The Lebedev Concerto for Tuba has me wondering. I think the original version is the one published in 1954 by Hofmeister in Leipzig. There is a C-flat in bar 19 that seems correct to my ear:

LebedevBar19.jpg

But in the Allan Ostrander version that note has been changed to an A-flat. At first I thought it was just another misprint in the tuba part, but it was changed in the piano part as well. Does anyone know why? Some of Ostrander's other changes were clearly made with bass trombone in mind, but this one does not make sense to me. I was surprised to find that Dave Zerkel used the Ostrander version in his Tuba Helper CD.

I also wonder if Lebedev had been watching Looney Tunes when he composed the piece, because one of the main themes is right out of "The Merry Go-Round Broke Down", composed in 1937 by Cliff Friend and Dave Franklin.

[PMeuph]

The Ostrander edition is from 1960. The best guest as to why the Ab has replaced the Cb I can think of is the fact that many Bass trombones at the time still had only the 1 trigger in F. While some preferred to tune it to E, F seems to have been the standard in most cases. The Cb would have been impossible to play on a trombone with one F attachment.

FWIW, I know that Ostrander was among the first who advocated for the dual-trigger. But he was surely well aware that his edition would never sell if it featured passages unplayable by most of the players at the time.

[bud]

So is the original version, the one with the Cb and triplet 16ths, more appropriate for tuba?

All changes in the Ab version are to help bass boners?

[bud]

I just found an answer in an old post by musicfind1. He cites Doug Yeo. Anyone disagree?



, Alexej (Alexey) Konstantinovich (b Dankov Russia, 9 Jan 1924; d Moscow, 1993)
Konzert Nr. 1 für Tuba / Baßposaune und Orchester (composed 1947, pub. 1950, rev.1980)
Solo Tuba or Bass Trombone — 2 2[1.2/Eh] 2 2 — 4 2 0 0 — tmp — hp — str
Dur: 9'
FH 2317 Tuba or Bass Trombone and Piano €11.50 $19.35
Pub: Full score and orchestra parts on rental: Friedrich Hofmeister Musikverlag, Leipzig ©1995
ABRSM Tuba examination piece grade 8
“Romantic. Revised 1980 edition. Same source work as Concerto in One Movement, but in a new Urtext edition with Mr. Ostrander's edits removed and some original material restored. In the piano part, the most obvious difference is the inclusion of a 4 bar introduction not present in the Ostrander edition.” per Hickey's

AKA

LEBEDEV, A. [Alexi] (b Dankov Russia, 9 Jan 1924; d Moscow, 1993)
Concerto in One Movement for Bass Trombone
Rearranged and edited by Allen Ostrander. (1960)
Dur: 7'30''
Bass Trombone and Piano $15.00
NO orchestra parts published
Pub: Edition Musicus Inc
“Ostrander's edition was not authorized by Lebedev and simplified the original solo part.” Douglas Yeo.
“Romantic. Same work as the Concerto No 1. Edited by Allen Ostrander from an old original copy he found in the US Library of Congress. Published by Edition Musicus in 1960 as a single edition for either tuba or bass trombone. Both instruments use the same solo part. There are some minor differences between this edition and the later 1980 revision as published by Friederich Hofmeister. Differences include: (1) m.23 low Ab instead of low Cb; (2) m.54-56 16th note duples instead of triplets; (3) m.110 16th note duples instead of 16th note triplet; (4) m.119 has a septuplet on beat four instead of a 32nd run. The most obvious difference in the piano part is the omission of a 4 bar introduction present in the Hofmeister edition. Other differences include various articulations, slurs, etc. There is no orchestral material available for this edition, however, there is an orchestral set available as a rental for the Hofmeister edition mentioned above.” per Hickey's

“The Lebedev Concerto was originally written for tuba, Lebedev having been a tubist himself. It became popularized among bass trombonists in an edition by Allen Ostrander, former bass trombonist of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Ostrander's edition is published by Edition Musicus and it has become one of the most "standard" works for bass trombone. In one movement, and in a neo-romantic style, the Concerto is an attractive work which suffers, unfortunately, from a dreadful, heavy handed, "Soviet" style coda. Ostrander's arrangement, however, simplifies a number of passages (in particular to eliminate double valve notes and some fast triple tonguing) and omits the original introduction to the piece. The edition by Hofmeister represents the original version of the piece and is recommended.” Douglas Yeo