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alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2017 9:37 pm
by ken k
just bought a new toy, an alphorn, does anyone know of any music for small german/swiss band (5 or 6 pieces) and alphorn? Klaus? or any other Europeans out there in tubenetland?
kk
Re: alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2017 10:55 pm
by Dan Schultz
email me at danschultz at wowway dot com
Re: alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 4:52 pm
by Alex C
My old quintet used the Alphorn in performances of Elgar Howarth's "Four Swiss Tunes," part of the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble Series. The third movement "The Old Castle," worked well, I got to do my cuckoo impersonation in the first movement, the hornist got to play her alphorn. Audiences loved it.
I think our alphorn was in E-flat, not all of them are in the same key.
Re: alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2017 8:49 am
by imperialbari
The standard pitch for Swiss alphorns is Gb. Aside from playing in all-Alphorn ensembles, the Alphorn mostly is heard with groups consisting of accordion, guitar, bass, and drums.
The hottest traditional player a few years ago was a quite young girl. A young lady, not much older, played the Alphorn in more modern popular genres.
If you cannot find material for your pitch of Alphorn and the remaining 4 members of your quintet, the easiest road would be to find the Alphorn melodies you like best and write settings fitting around the solo part.
I am no Alphorn expert, but my ears caught some of the clichés used in the traditional genre, and I played them, transposed to Bb, on my bass trombones, especially the common end turn of 9-10-8, here outlined by the # of the partials used.
Klaus
Re: alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2017 9:19 am
by imperialbari
https://youtu.be/ZIbATZHZE44
The young girl is Lisa Stolt, here in a likely new tune that works with traditional tonality. As I hear her, she goes up to the 12th partial, also using the funny 11th partial.
Klaus
Re: alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2017 9:37 am
by Three Valves
imperialbari wrote:
The hottest traditional player a few years ago was a quite young girl. A young lady, not much older, played the Alphorn in more modern popular genres.
A Swiss Miss??
Re: alporn music with quintet or small german/swiss band?
Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2017 11:55 am
by Dan Schultz
imperialbari wrote:The standard pitch for Swiss alphorns is Gb. ....
Our Alpen horns are pitched in either F or F# (Gb as Europeans call it)... depending on which upper section we use. We normally use the F pitch but it doesn't matter much as long as all members of the ensemble are the same.
My Alphorn is chromatic... using a valve section from a retired F horn as the upper 8" section.