TromboneChat

Every year in the summer my family goes to a very nice "music vacation", with chamber and orchestral music. The level is extremely diverse, from beginners to professionals, orchestra and choir are medium/small-sized and in average on a good amateur level.

This year's program will be Dvorak mass in D major and Mendelssohn 5th (plus diverse chamber music stuff).
I am not too fond of playing alto, among others as I am playing lots of small tenor and bass at the moment and don't want to add too much additional practice time.
I will likely bring large tenor and bass anyway to that vacation, as this will probably be needed in chamber music.

What would be the optimal choice of instruments for these pieces in a professional setting?
Would alto be preferred for a smaller size orchestra?
Would large (or small) tenor be an acceptable choice as well?

Thanks everyone in advance!

Ken Schifrin wrote a pretty good ITA article and built a pretty good case saying that Dvorak basically was writing for valve trombone, and there not a slide trombone instructor at the Prague Conservatory until 1900.

There is a good case to be made for Mendelssohn (similarly to Schumann) actually writing for Alto / Tenor / Bass, and not just using that clef convention out of tradition.

These can both be played on tenor.

Both of these pieces would be played on alto trombone in the places I work.

I think you would find large tenor to be overbearing, particularly for the Mendelssohn (many important high Ds), but small tenor could work.

Thanks both for the quick responses!

Yes, large tenor being overbearing and a bit exhausting is my main concern...

It sounds like a relaxed, low pressure situation in which to play these pieces. Do you feel comfortable playing alto? Would you feel comfortable playing alto on those pieces in that situation? Do you think you would feel more comfortable playing small tenor?

It’s important to do the research and reason out (to the best of our ability) what was most likely intended and what was in practice when a piece was written. But I also believe it’s important to factor in our abilities, especially when playing our secondary instruments.

Kbiggs, good question. I CAN play alto on a fairly good level, but I don't always enjoy it. I do need to practice it a while to feel comfortable and that isn't really something I like doing Tenor and bass are my really daily drivers. But if the musical situation demands for it - which could be the case here - I am okay with doing it on alto.