Date: 1995
Duration: 21 minutes
The Concerto for trombone and orchestra was commissioned by Simone de Haan and premiered with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Hobart, in 1995. The work is in two movements entitled: 1) ‘Elegy’; and 2) ‘If a trombone has wings’. ‘Elegy’ is a study in simultaneity in which the trombone melody floats freely above the string orchestra which is in a quasi-passacaglia form: with each repetition of the cycle a new layer is added in the string section. The second movement incorporates two cadenza sections in which the soloist is free to improvise. However, if the soloist does not wish to improvise, a written cadenza is provided in both instances.
A flexible solo instrumental part is also available in which the solo part can be played by a number of other instruments that suit the range of the trombone: cello, French horn, guitar, bass clarinet, bassoon, etc.