Noteworthy Takeaways from “Bayou Home”
Rather than give a formal review, here are some noteworthy thoughts that I took away from listening to Hana Beloglavec’s Bayou Home.
- Servant of Peace – With a big open full sound in the first and second movements, Beloglavec displays various sonorities throughout the registers when the melodic changes occur with and without the mutes.
- Servant of Peace – Throughout the third movement, Beloglavec’s use of vibrato vs non-vibrato allows for a variety of colors to be heard and a pure, unhindered sound.
- The four movements of Pergolesi’s Sinfonia add the right balance of stylistic examples of the trombone’s capabilities, specifically with the fourth movement’s significant trombone excerpt later included in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite.
- Hearing Arthur Pryor’s Fantastic Polka without the acrobatic flairs of high notes and lightning speeds of the slide is refreshing, allowing the focus to come back to that pure sound of Belaglavec.
- The purity of sound has clearly been mentioned throughout these takeaways, and for good reason. The three melodies from William Grant Still, arranged by Alexa Still, highlight the beauty of the trombone’s colorful palette with Beloglavec adding just the right amount of difference in timbre while maintaining purity of tone.
- It is a delight to hear Still’s Romance, arranged by Douglas Yeo for what could be the first commercial release of this standard arrangement on trombone. (Please correct me if I am wrong on this).
- As a commissioned work for this project, Marc Mellits’ Chemical Reaction combines raw, natural sound with the effects of electronic capabilities. The loops of melodies still encapsulate the technical abilities of layer after layer with that trombone choir-like sound.
- Hana Beloglavec demonstrates the consistency of purity in sound through a variety of technical solos, historical standards, melodic songs, and electronic layers.
Click here to learn more about Hana Beloglavec.
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