Trombone Mutiny - J.S. Bach's Fugue from Toccata in D Minor BWV 913

No, the quintet is not breaking up, but since the trombones are clearly the wisest of the group, we needed a break from the higher brass. So, in all of our nerdy and awkward trombone-glory, we took on an arrangement, made trombone-famous by Four Of A Kind, Fugue in D minor by Johann Sebastian Bach (arr. Richard Myer).

Four Of A Kind is a trombone quartet comprised of some of the greatest trombone players ever to play the instrument. The members of Four Of A Kind are Joseph Alessi, principal trombone of the New York Philharmonic, Mark Lawrence, former principal trombone of the San Francisco Symphony, Scott Hartman, formerly of the Empire Brass and Blair Bollinger, bass trombonist with the the Philadelphia Orchestra.

There are many arrangements of Bach’s music for brass quintet and trombone quartet. Bach, was a timeless genius (as most have come to acknowledge!). He was a master of composing highly complex music, with grace and simplicity. In Bach’s fugues, the melody and the accompaniment are constantly shifting and changing roles. To perform this music well, each player must know when to lead with the melody and when to accompany in a supporting role. These sudden changes, create a lot of fun opportunities for interaction as a chamber ensemble.

Besides trying to not make Bach roll over in his grave, our goal when recording this piece was to be as musical as possible while recording along with a click track. Please enjoy Johann Sebastian Bach’s Fugue in D Minor from Toccata in D minor BWV 913.