At University I was originally a bass trombonist and obtaining suitable music for assessment was always a challenge. I started composing unaccompanied solo pieces for myself to play as it was cheaper than buying the expensive French music recommended by my teacher. It turned out that he was quite the composer and since he retired from the CBSO he is busy scoring and arranging music (see here). His encouragement kept me going and I started writing solos for other instruments and arranging for ensembles. By the time I entered instrumental teaching, I had been working as a freelance player and knew the value of sightreading so I developed more music for my pupils.
This has left me with a body of work which I started to collate and try to monetise. First of all I tried to self-publish which in the days of early internet and with no car or money I couldn’t possibly hope to market effectively. I then approached an established company Warwick Music to see if they were interested in publishing a suite of bass trombone studies. Thankfully they agreed and a proof and contract arrived soon after. They have since published other works detailed below.
The most exciting part of this tale for me, however is what the publisher did next. A publisher aims to make music available to music users, traditionally instrumentalists. Warwick has a history of publishing music that is appropriate for developing musicians and is included in syllabuses for grade exams with both the ABRSM and Trinity Guildhall. When the new brass syllabus was being prepared for the ABRSM they submitted several works for consideration including my Bass Bone Bonanza. The good news for me is that movements from this were selected for the Grade 6 and 7 ABRSM Bass Trombone syllabus.
I can only hope that the good teachers of this world will take a chance and encourage their students to purchase my music and I hope they enjoy the pieces.
Below are links to my compositions currently published by Warwick Music:
Supplemental:
Here is a video of Xavier Gonzalez performing the first 2 movements of Cathedral Suite, at Stetson University, Florida