TromboneChat

Just wondering if anyone has a quick list of good pieces for larger bone groups. I've got a choir that runs 12-16 fairly solid players. Ewazen's Posaunenstadt has been fun.

Edit: what are the 3 or 4 most-enjoyable pieces you've ever played in a larger trombone ensemble?
Bonus points for pieces with at least 8 independent parts.

Cherry Classics publishes music for large groups of trombones. Contact Gordon Cherry.

I swear, anything and everything by Jeff Reynolds. Really good stuff, every bit of it. You can find a bunch of his stuff at Cherry Classics, too.

https://cherryclassics.com/collections/ ... q=Reynolds

Iagree, Cherry Classics is a great place to start. Also probably some good pieces at Warwick music. Also Ensemble Publications, and of course the old Robert King editions. All of these will have dozens of pieces.

A few more specific suggestions:

The earliest existing piece specifically for such an ensemble is Tiburtio Massaino's Canzon trigesimaterza a 8 in 1608. It's available on IMSLP. Any vocal music of that time period written for 8 parts "a voce pari" should in principle work very well. I would to a "multi-category search" on CPDL specifying baroque and Renaissance, and with various 8-voice voicings that sont involve any sopranos.

There's a really good arrangement of the ending of Wagner's Walküre (Wotan's Farewell and Magic Fire Music) for solo bass trombone and 10-part trombone choir (so, 11 trombones altogether) that is really fun to play. Can eventually involve a tuba and bass trumpet for different sound colours that evoke the original. Particularly great if there's a very good bass singer you want to play with (in that case, singer singing the original vocal part, plus 10 trombones).

Years ago I made an arrangement of Elgar's Nimrod for 10-part trombone choir for my university's trombone studio, that from what I can remember was pretty decent: https://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/ni ... 41380.html

LeTromboniste wrote: Mon Feb 24, 2025 12:34 pm Years ago I made an arrangement of Elgar's Nimrod for 10-part trombone choir for my university's trombone studio, that from what I can remember was pretty decent: https://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/ni ... 41380.html

And if 10 parts is not what you're looking for, Jeff Reynolds has Nimrod for 8 and 12 trombones.

Thanks for the responses so far, I appreciate the historic reference, and the Wagner sounds like a good fit.

TomInME wrote: Mon Feb 24, 2025 7:17 pm Thanks for the responses so far, I appreciate the historic reference, and the Wagner sounds like a good fit.

The arrangement is by Devon Hope Sweedy

Check out Hickey's website - the multiple trombone arrangements are grouped by the number of players.

Jim Scott

I noticed this post and remembered I'd put a link in the Compositions section.
You should find something in here


https://mikebaronemusic.com/mike-barone

Have fun......

Al

I've done a few of Randy Malmstrom's arrangements of orchestral music for trombone ensemble, usually 8 parts. They're now available on Cherry Classics. Fun stuff!

Enrico Crespo Etude Im Stil Bruckners für das tiefe Blech
4 trombones, 2 bass trombones, lowest part nice on contrabass.

One of my favorites. ...

Does your group have someone who can cover an alto trombone part and a couple of bass trombones?

I wrote this piece a while back for a friend's school trombone choir, but I don't think they every performed it. There was a pretty good trombone choir here in this area that I used to play with that was going to take a look at this, but we never got around to it before the group stopped getting together.

Audio Demo

PDF of score and parts

Do you have a couple of players who can improvise? I wrote this for the area trombone choir and we did perform it a few times and did a recording of it that I don't think I ever heard.

Audio Demo

PDF of score and parts

Please forgive the demos a touch. I don't own a bass trombone or alto trombone and so I played all the parts on tenor. Cheap mic, too.

I'll leave those up for a bit to give folks a chance to grab them.

Dave

Wilktone wrote: Thu Aug 21, 2025 10:45 am Does your group have someone who can cover an alto trombone part and a couple of bass trombones?

I wrote this piece a while back for a friend's school trombone choir, but I don't think they every performed it. There was a pretty good trombone choir here in this area that I used to play with that was going to take a look at this, but we never got around to it before the group stopped getting together.

Audio Demo

PDF of score and parts

Do you have a couple of players who can improvise? I wrote this for the area trombone choir and we did perform it a few times and did a recording of it that I don't think I ever heard.

Audio Demo

PDF of score and parts

Please forgive the demos a touch. I don't own a bass trombone or alto trombone and so I played all the parts on tenor. Cheap mic, too.

I'll leave those up for a bit to give folks a chance to grab them.

Dave

Thanks! We have 1-2 improvisers, and 4 bass bones and a couple alto-capable tenor players, so we'll give these a go in the near future.

GabrielRice wrote: Tue Aug 19, 2025 2:41 pm I've done a few of Randy Malmstrom's arrangements of orchestral music for trombone ensemble, usually 8 parts. They're now available on Cherry Classics. Fun stuff!

Thanks! We have a couple other Cherry Classics but a little more Bruckner wouldn't hurt.

marccromme wrote: Thu Aug 21, 2025 10:26 am Enrico Crespo Etude Im Stil Bruckners für das tiefe Blech
4 trombones, 2 bass trombones, lowest part nice on contrabass.

One of my favorites. ...

That's pretty juicy.

Just to clarify - the Bruckner Etude is actually a piece by Enrico Crespo written in the style of Bruckner. It's a beautiful piece, and he captures Bruckner's style and harmonic sense perfectly.

Jim Scott

Some pieces I’ve really enjoyed in trombone choir!

Octet:
The Hex Files - James Kazik
La Reconquista - Andrew Markel
Pearl of the Orient - Steven Verhelst

Actually read through Passacaglia by Allen Chase for the first time yesterday and this one was pretty interesting even though it is a little older now! This piece has ten parts.

TomInME wrote: Fri Aug 22, 2025 9:06 pm Thanks! We have 1-2 improvisers, and 4 bass bones and a couple alto-capable tenor players, so we'll give these a go in the near future.

You're welcome. I've pulled those PDF files off my server now, so those links will be broken. If anyone has a group that might be interested in performing it feel free to send me a DM or email.

Dave

GabrielRice wrote: Tue Aug 19, 2025 2:41 pm I've done a few of Randy Malmstrom's arrangements of orchestral music for trombone ensemble, usually 8 parts. They're now available on Cherry Classics. Fun stuff!

Rest in Trombone Peace Randy!!!!

Jon Bohls, an incredible teacher here in the north D/FW area has some FANTASTIC arrangements for large ensembles!!!

There's a really good arrangement out there of the first movement of Dvorak Six for 12 part trombone choir.

tmarco97 wrote: Mon Aug 25, 2025 5:23 am Some pieces I’ve really enjoyed in trombone choir!

Octet:
The Hex Files - James Kazik
La Reconquista - Andrew Markel
Pearl of the Orient - Steven Verhelst

Actually read through Passacaglia by Allen Chase for the first time yesterday and this one was pretty interesting even though it is a little older now! This piece has ten parts.

Thanks! I'll definitely check those out - Verhelst's stuff has been a reasonably good blend of accessible and challenging, and listenable.