Asturias, By Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909)
arranged by Neal Corwell
Instrumentation (4 versions):
1: euphonium or trumpet solo with no accompaniment
2: euphonium or trumpet solo w/piano accompaniment
3: euphonium or trumpet solo w/band accompaniment
4: tuba-euphonium quartet
Copyright: 2007 (solo alone version) and 2012 (other versions)
Duration:
3:50 for unaccompanied and quartet versions
6:20 for versions with band or piano accompaniment
Range (for solo versions): FF-sharp to f-2 for euphonium, but with ossias range is reduced to E to b-flat-1 (concert pitch). The trumpet solo is one octave higher.
Difficulty: V
Publisher: Nicolai Music
Price: $10 for solo alone version, $15 for tuba-euphonium quartet version, $15 for solo with piano version, $55 for solo with band version (score and parts included)
Other Info: Although all original versions were created and premiered in 2007, newer versions were premiered in later years. All solo versions were premiered by Neal Corwell, and the quartet versions were premiered by, and created specifically for, The US Army Band, “Pershing’s Own”, Ceremonial Band Tuba-Euphonium Quartet.The version with band was first performed with the Hagerstown Municipal Band, in Hagerstown, Maryland. The updated band version was subsequently altered substantially and this new and improved version will be premiered in January 2013 by Dr. Corwell, accompanied by The US Army Band, Pershing’s Own, during the feature concert at the annual Army Band Tuba-Euphonium Conference.
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Dr. Corwell has created several arrangements of the popular and demanding guitar solo Asturias, by the Spanish composer Isaac Albeniz. Named for a beautiful mountainous region of northern Spain, Asturias, features both haunting nationalistic melodies and exciting technical passages. Although it was originally composed for solo piano, it is the version for guitar solo that is best known. Neal became acquainted with the piece during his study of classical guitar, and decided he had to create a wind soloist version. Although quite demanding, his adaptation of the work is playable by an advanced performer with good triple-tonguing skills and endurance.
The genealogy of the various versions of Asturias can be a bit confusing. In 2007 Dr. Corwell created and premiered all three solo versions (solo alone, solo with piano, and solo with band) and his Army Tuba-Euphonium Quartet premiered the ensemble version. All four of these first versions adhered closely to Albeniz’s original. In 2010, Neal condensed both the solo alone version and quartet versions to make them more practical for performance. These two versions, although shorter, still adhere closely to the original. In 2012 he created a freer more creative version of Asturias for solo with piano or band accompaniment. These two new versions feature an original musical introduction, and other freely created material inspired by Albeniz’s original themes. Although nearly identical, be aware that there are some small differences in the solo part between the piano-accompanied version and the version with band accompaniment.