Jazz and heavy metal
George A. Speckert has set jazz pieces from his homeland for two cellos, David Floer has captured the sound of heavy metal.
The boundaries between serious and popular music in music lessons and concerts are becoming increasingly permeable, and the mutual influence of the different musical styles is an enrichment. The compositions for two violoncellos discussed below take this development into account.
The American composer George A. Speckert was born in 1951 in Missouri (USA), a center of American jazz culture. The booklet The Roots of Jazz includes arrangements of well-known catchy tunes by Scott Joplin (The Entertainer), Arthur Harrington Gibbs (Runnin' Wild) and Nick La Rocca (Tiger Rag) as well as witty original compositions by Speckert himself. Both cello parts have the same level of difficulty and do not go beyond the fourth position. The collection will give pleasure to pupils and teachers and will not fail to have an effect on the audience.
The heavy metal sonata Cantus by David Floer is technically demanding and combines heavy metal rhythms and harmonies in the form of a classical three-movement sonata. The piece is aimed at advanced cellists and combines extended cantilenas with guitar-like rock fingerings. If you want to enhance the heavy metal sound even further, you can use effects devices such as wah-wah or sound distortion to achieve the desired effect.
You can get an impression of the piece on Youtube provide.
George A. Speckert: The Roots of Jazz for two violoncellos, Ready to Play, BA 10649, € 14.95, Bärenreiter, Kassel 2019
David Floer: Cantus, Heavy Metal Sonata for two violoncellos, Floer Music Verlag, Cologne 2017, ISMN 979-0-700351-13-7
