First time playing alto

[Bach5G]

Last night we rehearsed Magic Flute overture for the first time for our final concert of the season. With some trepidation I took my alto with me. This was the first time I played it out of the house. I’ve been practicing but, of course, you never practice as much as you think you should.

I was quite pleased. I thought it sounded quite nice. A JP Rath 236 that I bought on Trombone Chat a few years ago with a Bach 11C.

We just got the rep for next season. The Rhenish. Mmm.

[BGuttman]

Magic Flute overture sits very nicely on an Eb alto. Also not a bad piece to start on. No fast runs and plenty of time to prepare for the non-tenor positions of some of the notes.

[MStarke]

Alto is really fun in the orchestra!

I got my first alto almost 8 years ago, at that point hadn't played much for a few years and if anything mainly a bass player. Took me quite a while to get somehow comfortable. First time in an orchestra was Haydn's Creation. I don't play it often in public, but have reached a point where I feel quite comfortable with it even if I have not intensely practiced it for a while.

Looking forward to some alto playing in the summer!

BTW I feel it sometimes also helps my tenor and bass playing

[torobone]

I also recently was asked to play alto for the Mozart Requiem. As an amateur, I never expected to be offered this opportunity. I had about 2 weeks notice before the first rehearsal, so I got to work. It's one thing to dabble on alto, and quite another thing to have a goal to work towards.

My setup is a Bach 39 with a Yamaha Al Kay signature mouthpiece (a Canadian offering, but just think of it as a very good, consistently made Bach 11C). The Bach alto plays similarly to my other Bachs; It does the job nicely.

A few points worth mentioning:
- The 9-piece wind section was added to a local audition-only chamber ensemble. Everyone was dedicated to their instruments. We had an orchestra of 24 musicians, and a good choir of 25. One of the soloists flew from Vancouver to the Toronto area specifically to sing the alto part.
- The woodwinds were 2 bassoons and 2 basset horns (They are similar to alto clarinets, but designed for Mozart's music). I was surprised that amateurs would own basset horns, as some people might rather buy a small car. It really emphasized using the alto and smaller bore instruments for the other bones.
- The brass were 2 trumpets, mostly in D, and 3 trombones.
- At each of the 2 concerts, the basset horn and the alto trombone were demonstrated for the audience prior to the performance. People commented that the alto sounded like a French horn (to some degree).
- There were several challenges for me: getting my alto clef reading up to a higher level, learning the alto trombone to a consistent level, and then learning alternate positions to be able to play several bars of running 16th notes.
- The trombones will be heard; there is no need to play that loud.
- The alto part is mainly in the top half of its range - you are playing the alto voicing. Mainly D above middle C up to the D above the alto clef.
- Fortunately, the running 16ths are doubled in other instruments.
- There are lovely exposed parts for the trombones.

[Bach5G]

We played the final concert of our season last night. Magic Flute overture, a Haydn cello concerto, and Tchaik 5.

I played alto on the Mozart and it came off very well I think. A clam or two, but overall I was satisfied. Of course no one but my colleagues in the trombone section noticed.

Next fall, it’s the Rheinish.

[KWL]

Martin - Thanks for the informative recap of your performance. I had a chance to play the Mozart Requiem (on bass) when someone with a good deal of money hired the Louisville Bach Society chorus and orchestra to perform it as a dedication to his recently deceased wife. My brother-in-law (also Martin) played the alto part. It was a great experience.

[sammm]

Magic Flute is a great alto part! Sarastro's Aria is a nice one. Also Don Giovanni is great because the trombones don't play until well into the opera, so I've actually sat out in the audience and watched the first act before going down to play.
I play a lot of alto, playing some of the Barber of Seville next week (the version with trombones of course.)
In addition to practicing excerpts, I just play Bordogni's in alto clef, Arban's, and scales/arpeggios.