Advanced contrabass tuba solos

[one.kidney]

What are some of the hardest technical contrabass tuba pieces any of you all can think of? I'm thinking about in the future doing a recital for just obscure, or just flat out hard contrabass tuba solos. Anyone got any that they think would fit in there quite nicely? In my rep currently I have the Stevens-Journey for contrabass tuba, Donovan sonata for tuba, Visions by Szentpali, Denham Kraken's one day is as another, but is there anything else up there with those pieces, or even harder?

[winston]

John Stevens: Journey, Concerto for Contrabass Tuba

[fenne1ca]

Triumph of the Demon Gods plays well on a contrabass, in my experience.

[Steginkt]

Could you attempt the TR George Concerto for Bass Trombone? Lots of lows, and the highs are meant te be a bit strident

[Rivercity Tuba]

Kraft Encounters as originally done by Roger Bobo.

[MusikFind]

Could you attempt the TR George Concerto for Bass Trombone? Lots of lows, and the highs are meant te be a bit strident

GEORGE, Thom Ritter (b. Detroit, MI, 23 June 1942)
Concerto for Bass Trombone and Orchestra <1964-Rev. 2001> [composer catalog CN176]
Instrumentation: Solo Bass Trombone — 3[1.2.pic] 2 2 2 — 4 3 3 1 — tmp + 3perc (xyl, sd, bd, tam-tam) — str
Dur: 8'15''
Movements: Adagio-Allegro-Adagio come prima-Cadenza-Fugue (Allegro) (played without pause)
Composition started: 18 December 1963, Composition finished: 12 February 1964
Composition place: Rochester, NY
Dedicated to “Emory Remington and Robert S. Braun [sic]: the Master and his pupil. [title page incorrect]
Robert S. Braun should read Brawn! - per Mr. George
Premiere: 18 March 1964; Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY; Eastman-Rochester Symphony Orchestra; Dr. Paul White, Conductor; Robert S. Brawn, Bass Trombone
Range of solo part: F1 to F#4 per Kagarice
Grade Level: 6/Advanced
Program notes: http://www2.isu.edu/~georthom/cn176.html" target="_blank
Composer contact: georthom@isu.edu" target="_blank | 1423 North Union Street, Appleton, WI 54911-3749
Tel: (920) 257-4311 | http://www.isu.edu/~georthom" target="_blank
Composer bio: http://www.isu.edu/~georthom/comp-bio.html" target="_blank
Solo scan: http://www.hickeys.com/samples/001/sku01246.pdf" target="_blank
Full score and Orchestra parts 103/R on rental $250.00 as of 2017
Pub: Rochester Music Publications ©1972; now Accura Music ©1978

“Cast in one long movement that is divided into six contrasting sections. The work is most well-known for its liberal use of descending octave leaps in the first fast section, and for the powerful fugue occurring towards the end.” — Douglas Yeo, Boston Symphony, 1985-2012

“George's piece Concerto for Bass Trombone is written in one movement comprised of four major sections and is a great chance for a Bass Trombonist to really shine. Beginning with a pensive, wistful melody, this piece is deceiving in its beauty. Before it gets a chance to settle, the Bass Trombone rips into a quick-paced “Allegro”. The primary compositional technique used here by George is octave displacement, harrowing in its frequency, which makes the piece all the more exciting as well as technically demanding. After the cadenza, the soloist leads the piano into a fugal section, which continues through the end of the piece.” — Matthew Hoormann program note, 4 May 2004

“In writing this Concerto, I worked closely with the original soloist, Robert S. Brawn. During the composition, I often had him test the passages I had written and in some cases adjusted the music in ways he suggested to make the piece idiomatic for Bass Trombone. These were small changes rather than major compositional alterations. The premiere by the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra, led by my conducting teacher Paul White, was excellent. My parents came from Detroit to Rochester, New York for this important performance. I noticed that my father laughed at the conclusion. His laugh was always a good sign since I knew this meant he was highly satisfied.

“In 2001, I revised the Concerto for Bass Trombone. The revisions were in many ways minor, yet the changes put to rest a few unsettled matters. The solo Bass Trombone part was unchanged, but the orchestra score and parts were changed. The instrumentation of the orchestra is the same in both the original version and the 2001 revision. In the 2001 revision: 1. Wrong notes were corrected; 2. Some articulations were clarified; 3. Harmony, especially near the end, was revised; 4. Score and parts were prepared in Finale notation.

“Although I have not done it yet, perhaps I should make a reduction of the piano accompaniment for three reasons. First, the music would benefit from making the harmonic adjustments included in the 2001 revision. Second, the piano score could be set in the Finale notation system. Third, some pianists have said the 1968 reduction is technically too hard to play. Some simplification may be possible.” — the composer, emails to Mr. Nieweg, 23 May 2012 and 21 March 2017
Composer interview: http://www2.isu.edu/~georthom/bass_trbn_conc_moore.html" target="_blank

See listing above under FINN, Neal. Thom Ritter George: Concerto for Bass Trombone: an analysis

See: Moore, Donald Scott. The Concerto for Bass Trombone by Thom Ritter George and the Beginning of Modern Bass Trombone Performance. (D.M.A. thesis, The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory, 2010) 95 pp. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses
http://uw-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.co ... t305189488" target="_blank

See: Anderson, Timothy. The Concerto for Bass Trombone by Thom Ritter George and the Beginning of Modern Bass Trombone Solo Performance
https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio ... erformance" target="_blank

See: Rose, Keith Robert. A performance preparation guide for Concerto for Bass Trombone and Orchestra (1964, revised 2001) composed by Thom Ritter George (born 1942) (M.M. diss. The University of Texas at El Paso, 2010) 26 pp. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses;
http://uw-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.co ... t749774267" target="_blank
“This thesis provides background information, interview with the composer, and steps for preparing the work for performance. This thesis also explores the major significance of this work in the bass trombone solo repertoire.” — dissertation abstract

See: Everett, Annotated Guide to Bass Trombone Literature, 1985 (p. 22, p. 33, p. 34)
See: Kagarice, Annotated Guide to Trombone Solos with Band & Orchestra, 1974 (p. 33)

Recordings:
Bryan English, Bass Trombone. GEORGE, Thom Ritter. Concerto for Bass Trombone, Collage; Shawnee/OBU Community Orchestra; Harbor House Records. http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bryanenglish" target="_blank
Matthew Guilford, Bass Trombone; with pianist. Online recording: Excerpt of Concerto for Bass Trombone (1964). Sound sample: http://www.matthewguilford.com/?page_id=125" target="_blank

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKY14EYDuKI" target="_blank
Matyas Veer, Bass Trombone and Orchestra, 25 May 2011; Doha, Qatar

Additional Editions:
Concert Band. Unpublished. See: Nieweg, Music for Solo Bass Trombone with Band, 2017, Unpublished MS. Created exclusive for the use of the U.S. military bands. Not available to the public.
“There is NO authorized band arrangement of the orchestral accompaniment. For musical reasons, I have always felt that this piece is best served by the original orchestra accompaniment. None the less, unauthorized band arrangements have been made twice. Neither is available from Accura Music or myself.” — the composer, email 21 March 2017

Pub: Accura Music ©1978. Bass Trombone part (5 pp.) with Piano score (15 pp.) Revised reduction by the composer ©2001. Solo bass trombone part is the same in the 1964 and 2001 versions. No.103. $14.00

[THE TUBA]

Dave Zerkel wrote an article a few years back about solos for contrabass tuba. Here's a direct download link of the .PDF from the UGA tuba studio website.

[Travis99079]

I prepared the Broughton Sonata on a CC tuba for my senior recital. It probably would have been easier on a bass tuba, but it was a lot of fun to put together.