Melodious Counterpoints

A Duet Companion to Joannes Rochut's Melodious Etudes for Trombone, Book 1

Joannes Rochut’s Melodious Etudes for Trombone has been a staple in the repertoire of low brass players, and a significant pedagogical resource for low brass teachers for almost a century. Originally published in 1928, these etudes are proven exercises in both masterful technique and musical expression for a variety of instruments such as trombone, euphonium and tuba.

Program Notes

Joannes Rochut’s Melodious Etudes for Trombone has been a staple in the repertoire of low brass players, and a significant pedagogical resource for low brass teachers for almost a century. Originally published in 1928, these etudes are proven exercises in both masterful technique and musical expression for a variety of instruments such as trombone, euphonium and tuba.

Yet despite their inherit strength and beauty, certain aspects of musical expression can only be developed through ensemble experience and performance. Accordingly, this volume of Melodious Counterpoints is offered as a companion volume to the original Melodious Etudes for Trombone by providing a complete set of duet parts for Book 1, Numbers 1-60.

The duet parts contained in this volume of Melodious Counterpoints have several benefits. They:
1. Provide greater harmonic & melodic interest to the original volume in an academic studio setting.
2. Provide interest to the original volume for low brass players in a chamber setting.
3. Provide opportunities for sight-reading.
4. Transform the original etudes into concert pieces.

This volume of Melodious Counterpoints contains only the duet parts against the original volume of Melodious Etudes for Trombone, (Book 1). The original volume of Melodious Etudes for Trombone, (Book 1) is published and available from Carl Fischer, Inc. To facilitate use and performance, the measures of this volume of Melodious Counterpoints are numbered with the original edition of Melodious Etudes for Trombone (CF.01594).

Carl Fisher, Inc. has also published an edition of Melodious Etudes for Trombone with a piano accompaniment (CF.01594X). The measure numbers of the piano accompaniment edition may vary slightly from the original edition with infrequent insertion of measure rests to accommodate the piano part. This volume of Melodious Counterpoints, however, is also useful against the piano accompaniment edition when these extra measures of rest are located and deleted. See page 104 for the location of these measures.

I was first introduced to Joannes Rochut’s Melodious Etudes for Trombone as a young music student over 40 years ago. Even today I attribute some of my greatest lessons in musicality and expression to Rochut’s monumental work. It is my sincere hope that this volume of Melodious Counterpoints would enhance and augment Rochut’s original work by contributing to the development of both young low brass players as well as seasoned professionals.

Ran Whitley, PhD
Professor of Music
Campbell University

Grade Level: 4
Copyright: 2014
Number of Players: 1-2
Type: Duet

Instrumentation

Trombone (or Euphonium or Tuba)