The International Trombone Association reviewed our Christmas music book. Please read it below. You can purchase the books by clicking here.
ITA Journal: This collection of traditional and commercial Christmas music consists of 14 carols, 13 songs, and a fanfare. Selections are both sacred and secular, including Mele Kalikimaka from Hawaii, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from the Nutcracker, and Oh Chanukah for the Jewish faith. There are several different arrangers including originals by Sammy Nestico and Frank Loesser, providing a variety of settings including chorale, commercial and style changes, with no chart lasting longer that approximately 3 minutes. Orchestrated in six parts and recommended for more than one player per part, primarily four are for tenor and 2 are for bass trombones. All parts are printed in bass clef. The first trombone part goes up to C2 while the second bass trombone goes down to FF; he remaining parts fit within comfortable ranges. Rhythms are accessible and because the arrangers are trombone-familiar, key centers and technical issues lay well for individual parts and collective performance. There are creative uses of polyphony, counterpoint, dynamics, and style markings, and at some point each part is scored with the melody. There are no page numbers which makes navigating the score problematic, however since each part book has at most two pages per part, selections can be quickly found. The cover artwork is colorful and engaging, and the spiral binding makes page turns easy. According to the trombonechristmas.com website, this collection is designed to be used in conjunction with a trombone ensemble Christmas concert, and the fanfare should make a good opener. If you are looking for a foundational collection of Christmas trombone ensemble music, this is an excellent first step.
- David Stern
Houston, TX
