SKU: P2.W0007

In the spring of 2010, University of Arizona Associate Professor of Music Kelly Thomas invited me to join him in designing a project that would result in a new and challenging large-scale work for the euphonium repertoire. I eagerly accepted; and after tossing around a number of ideas, we decided that a double concerto for euphonium and tuba with wind ensemble accompaniment would not only be great fun to put together, but also would contribute significantly to the growing repertoire of new music designed specifically to show off the virtuoso capabilities of these two low brass instruments. Movement I, Playground, needs little description beyond its title. Together, the two solo instruments make their way through a relentless maze of technical challenges (imagine seesaws, sliding boards, swing sets, obstacle courses, and trampolines) accompanied by the wind ensemble, which is faced with its own insistent array of fun and games. Movement II, Passage, is best described as the recollection of a journey -- as though the two soloists have returned from a noble quest and are recounting their adventures. Unique to this movement is the challenging role played by the ensemble's two euphoniumists and two tubists -- the instrumentation commonly referred to as a tuba quartet. One might easily imagine that this tuba quartet has accompanied the soloists on their journey, as they are featured prominently in the movement supporting the soloists' unfolding narrative; and twice, all six instruments briefly join forces to present unaccompanied triple two-voice canons -- just think Frere Jacques on steroids, played by three euphoniums and three tubas. Like the title to the first movement, the title to movement III, Sprint, speaks for itself. The music is based on materials from a previous work originally scored for tuba quartet, called Etude/Attitude, and is a breathless, high-energy romp from beginning to end.

SKU: HL.235

ISBN 9781574240566. UPC: 073999567786. 9x12 inches.

This comprehensive collection of fabulous fiddle tunes includes reels, hornpipes, strathspeys, jigs, waltzes and slow airs.

SKU: HH.HH531-SOL

ISBN 9781914137280.

Mozartâ??s final three symphonies were composed, according to Mozartâ??s autograph VerzeichnüÃ?, in the space of a few weeks, from late June to early August 1788. During that year the 11-year-old Hummel was a resident pupil of Mozart and would have been a daily witness to the creation of these foundational works of the Western musical canon. There is an almost total lack of documentary evidence concerning the circumstances of these works, however, which has led to considerable speculation as to their origins, early performances and reception. There are three plausible scenarios for the genesis of these symphonies: that they were written for a series of subscription concerts scheduled for autumn 1788; that Mozart wrote them with the (unfulfilled) intention of publication as an opus; that they may have been prepared in advance of Mozartâ??s projected visit to London with his British friends the Storace family, Thomas Attwood and Michael Kelly (again unfulfilled). A contemporaray review in The Harmonicum (1823) of Hummelâ??s piano arrangements of these works notes, approvingly, that they show his perfect knowledge of the instrument and his nice [= fastidious] discrimination in selecting the most effective parts from the score in those places where the whole could not be taken.