Sheet Music Cello and Alto Sax

[ESJohn]

My granddaughter is in her second year of playing the cello in her middle school orchestra. I've mentioned to her that I'd like to play a duet with her for the family and would appreciate any suggestions from the Cafe. I do see a book from Wild Music Publications (UK based?) that has 33 easy tunes (Christmas included) but I don't see any individual tunes online that can be purchased. As we are also several hours apart, it would have to be something that each of us could practice on our own a few times until the family gets together later in the year. The book isn't a huge investment so maybe it would be just as easy to purchase a copy for her as well as myself and let her pick out what she would want for us to play together. A further possibility is that my other grandchild has also begun to learn the cello, so maybe a trio? Or is it too early to think of such a thing? Just think--someday we could be playing something like this together!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YhkmNpl1wQ

 

[wakyct]

It seems like there would be a site that could arrange duets for simple songs with instruments of your choice, but I don't know of one like that. You could have a crack at taking sheet music from a site like Bach, Johann Sebastian - Minuet for Violin-Cello Duet - Free Sheet music for Violin-Cello Duet | 8notes.com and then transposing the violin part for example to your saxophone, with your choice of MuseScore, Dorico etc?

Maybe buying two books is easier 🙂.

 

[Colin the Bear]

Just get on with it. Call the tune, pick a key, count it in.

 

[Tenor Viol]

There are online sites which transpose the piece to whatever you want to download it in. If you have a keyboard player, that would open up the trio sonata repertoire with cello on the bass continuo. There's also stuff like the Handel recorder sonatas which you can play without keyboard

 

[Pete Effamy]

The easiest option would be a program like Sibelius that users make arrangements / tunes available to other users.

Musescore is a good free score-writing program, and if that has the same facility from users then you can download a tune and transpose to any key /clef that suits you both.

 

[Pete Effamy]

Oh, like he said above.

 

[Tenor Viol]

@ESJohn one thing that I should have mentioned. The IMSLP web site has zillions of works on it - classical/baroque rep etc. You can download the PDFs. Some works have more than one edition online. You're unlikely to find arrangements of works (generally) but you can always write out the treble part (e.g. violin, flute, oboe - or even trumpet or clarinet) for alto sax. Have a look at say Corelli, Handel, Telemann, Bach (numerous members of the family), Boyce, Purcell, Avison etc.

 

[ESJohn]

Thanks to all for the suggestions! I'll be looking into these. It surprised me that I could even find cello/alto sax duets online to begin with. It should be an enjoyable experience!

 

[LostCircuits]

I am originally a classically trained cellist, at least I was some ~50 years ago. My old teacher's favorite was Francesco Tenaglia's Aria

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbx3uV6NPQc

If you can just play the baseline to that piece (not very difficult even though a bari would lend itself more to it) you could do a killer duet.
Alternatively and please don't judge me to harsh (after decades of hiatus I finally bought a cello off Facebook market place and started dabbling again) but here is an original that you are more than welcome to play, if you or she is interested, I'll try to find the piano track (it's somewhere) and you can do your own arrangement:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNjNQ49irUI

 

[ESJohn]

Absolutely awesome, LostCircuits! I've forwarded the link to her dad. I'm hoping she goes for that since you have been so kind to offer it to us. I've also mentioned the book with the 33 tunes and was checking out the IMSLP site last evening. Thank you, TenorViol! Lots of possibilities! I'm getting excited and anxious to begin practicing.

 

[LostCircuits]

Absolutely awesome, LostCircuits! I've forwarded the link to her dad. I'm hoping she goes for that since you have been so kind to offer it to us. I've also mentioned the book with the 33 tunes and was checking out the IMSLP site last evening. Thank you, TenorViol! Lots of possibilities! I'm getting excited and anxious to begin practicing.

I just realized that the folder was on a drive that crashed but I'll just re-record the piano part in the next few days and post the MP3 file along with the chord sequence, just give me a day or two.

 

[LostCircuits]

I just realized that the folder was on a drive that crashed but I'll just re-record the piano part in the next few days and post the MP3 file along with the chord sequence, just give me a day or two.

I found the files, need to clean them up a little but I'm going to be home tomorrow, hopefully I can get it done then.

 

[LostCircuits]

@ESJohn, I had a crazy week but I don't want to let you hang there, this is the track used in the original recording, there are some glitches and "patzer" but I just haven't had the time to practice piano again and next week looks about the same:

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

If I have any chance, I'll re-record it, I really wanted to do it but ....

The track is in Gmin, in AABCA format, chord sequence:
Gmin - F - Gmin - F - Cmin - Dmin - Cmin - Dmin resolving into Dmaj
Gmin - F - Gmin - F - Cmin - Dmin - Cmin - Dmin resolving into Dmaj
Gmaj - Cmin -D - Eb - Gmin F - Cmin - Dmin resolving into Dmaj
Gmin - Cmin - D - Gmin - Dmin - Cmin - Dmin resolving into Dmaj
Gmin - F - Gmin - F - Cmin - Dmin - Cmin - Dmin resolving into Dmaj

If you have a halfway decent piano player it should be breeze to record or play it.

Let me know if you have any problem accessing the file - I no longer have my professional account and dropbox does some funny things. And if anybody else want to play around with this file, please go ahead.

 

[ESJohn]

Thank you, LostCircuits! We had a long weekend and just got back yesterday so I haven't had a chance until today to get back to you.
My son hasn't mentioned if he had presented the idea to my granddaughter, but I'm sure that I will soon.
In the meantime, I'll be taking a harder look at your music. Thanks so much!

 

[LostCircuits]

Thank you, LostCircuits! We had a long weekend and just got back yesterday so I haven't had a chance until today to get back to you.
My son hasn't mentioned if he had presented the idea to my granddaughter, but I'm sure that I will soon.
In the meantime, I'll be taking a harder look at your music. Thanks so much!

I am spending more time on construction right now than music, my house got completely flooded and I am just at the point where I have a working kitchen again (as of yesterday). That's been a major impediment for trying to record piano tracks, keyboard and sledgehammer don't mix very well 🙂

 

[ESJohn]

It's good to light up your life, but not like that! No worries and take all the time you need!

 

[LostCircuits]

Ok, I think I have something that is at least halfway presentable (rainy days here so construction projects have to take a back seat). I am not a keyboard player so that is kind of the limit of my capabilities and I wouldn't perform as a solo artist but I think it'll be fine for a backing track.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com