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All sounds used in this recording were generated from Virtual Drumline software also by Tapspace.
It's hard to imagine that Ludwig van Beethoven's delicate and good-natured Pastoral Symphony (No. 6) was composed at the same time (1807-08) as his rambunctious blockbuster Fifth Symphony ... not to mention they were both premiered at the same concert! Opening with the most recognizable four-note riff in the history of music, Beethoven's Fifth steamrolls its way through a tumultuous path of fate, fire, and fury while his Pastoral Symphony gently communicates his fondness for walks through the countryside and his love of nature.
The final movement, Shepherd's Song: Happy and Grateful Feelings after the Storm, is a remarkably joyful work, and through a large orchestration of mallet instruments, Brian Slawson creates a unique and crowd-pleasing way for percussion ensembles to communicate with sensitivity and richness.
This piece comes as a professionally printed and bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or for tablet viewing.
Sometimes a quality transcription of excellent music doesn't quite work. Brian Slawson has created some excellent arrangements for percussion ensemble, and the "Shepherd's Song" from Beethoven's "Sixth Symphony" is unquestionably a historic and beautiful work. Unfortunately, in this case, the beauty and richness of Beethoven's music seems to be lost in translation despite Slawson's well thought-out orchestration for 14 percussionists.
The vibraphone part and four of the marimba parts require four mallets at some point in the piece, but each is predominantly playable with two mallets. The individual keyboard parts are very technically accessible, featuring passages extensively based on scales and arpeggios with few rhythmic challenges. Each part functions independently, for the most part, with the arrangement providing very few instances of doubling simply due to the numerous individual lines within Beethoven's original orchestra score. Slawson mimics Beethoven's textural contrasts, alternating regularly between full ensemble passages and sections featuring only two or three players at a time.
Perhaps in the perfect hall, with a great degree of attention to mallet choice, stroke types, and balance, some of the richness of the original score could be achieved in this piece. Unfortunately, on the surface, the limits of the instrumentation cause this arrangement to fall short of the lyrical lines and fluid texture that Beethoven so skillfully achieved with his orchestra work.
–Josh Gottry
Percussive Notes
Vol. 50, No. 4, July 2012
It's hard to imagine that Ludwig van Beethoven's delicate and good-natured Pastoral Symphony (No. 6) was composed at the same time (1807-08) as his rambunctious blockbuster Fifth Symphony ... not to mention they were both premiered at the same concert! Opening with the most recognizable four-note riff in the history of music, Beethoven's Fifth steamrolls its way through a tumultuous path of fate, fire, and fury while his Pastoral Symphony gently communicates his fondness for walks through the countryside and his love of nature.
The final movement, Shepherd's Song: Happy and Grateful Feelings after the Storm, is a remarkably joyful work, and through a large orchestration of mallet instruments, Brian Slawson creates a unique and crowd-pleasing way for percussion ensembles to communicate with sensitivity and richness.
This piece comes as a professionally printed and bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or for tablet viewing.
Sometimes a quality transcription of excellent music doesn't quite work. Brian Slawson has created some excellent arrangements for percussion ensemble, and the "Shepherd's Song" from Beethoven's "Sixth Symphony" is unquestionably a historic and beautiful work. Unfortunately, in this case, the beauty and richness of Beethoven's music seems to be lost in translation despite Slawson's well thought-out orchestration for 14 percussionists.
The vibraphone part and four of the marimba parts require four mallets at some point in the piece, but each is predominantly playable with two mallets. The individual keyboard parts are very technically accessible, featuring passages extensively based on scales and arpeggios with few rhythmic challenges. Each part functions independently, for the most part, with the arrangement providing very few instances of doubling simply due to the numerous individual lines within Beethoven's original orchestra score. Slawson mimics Beethoven's textural contrasts, alternating regularly between full ensemble passages and sections featuring only two or three players at a time.
Perhaps in the perfect hall, with a great degree of attention to mallet choice, stroke types, and balance, some of the richness of the original score could be achieved in this piece. Unfortunately, on the surface, the limits of the instrumentation cause this arrangement to fall short of the lyrical lines and fluid texture that Beethoven so skillfully achieved with his orchestra work.
–Josh Gottry
Percussive Notes
Vol. 50, No. 4, July 2012
