Ropartz, Guy - Piece in eb minor - for Trombone & Piano

A custom streaming practice/rehearsal piano track for Piece in eb minor for Trombone & Piano,
by Guy Ropartz.

Ropartz composed this in 1908 specifically for the Paris Conservatory Concours des Prix (or "morceau de concours" as you've probably seen at the top of a number of Alfonse Leduc published scores for french pieces from around this time period). The Conservatory was a great engine for new work in the 20th century brass and woodwind repertoire - I could spend a year just recording all the Bozza/Ibert/Messager/Desenclos/etc pieces from around this time.

This staple of the brass repertoire balances a lyrical, chorale style opening with a rhythmic and more technically demanding Allegro section for both the trombone and the piano. I'm a big fan of these single-movement pieces that feel like a very complete story, Sulek and Lebedev and all them.

🎹 Thoughts From the Piano Bench: This score features incredibly lush chords that I'm glad to perform with trombone, means I can really let it rip and play true fortes and fortissimos. The middle section introduces some syncopations and rubato passages where the piano and trombone absolutely must breathe together. I've always thought there's a couple awkward-ish transitions in this piece, like those sudden fortes at key changes that die away to piano in just a measure or two, so be careful to keep your dynamics at the forefront of your consideration and not go on auto pilot!