Dave Taylor play the music of David Taylor

The Mood of the five movements of Too Suite (2009) (Concertino no.1) for Bass Trombone, Piano, Contrabass,and Percussion is based on the words of the poem "Die Nebensonnen" by Wilhelm Mueller.

Although the haunting Franz Schubert song, "Die Nebensonnen" in "Die Winterreise" has many symbolic meanings, in my interpretation, the poem has a protagonist contemplating his own demise (perhaps suicide?). Each of the five movements deals with the mood swings that might accompany an individual’s thinking of an end so dark. And each movement has a subtitle of a correlating part of the poem.

Too Suite, is dedicated to Vincent Van Gogh, and was commissioned by the Washington Square Chamber Music Festival. It’s premiere was with full wind band, and has also been scored for trombone choir, and string orchestra

I Loose Canon - " I saw three suns in the bright cold sky" (“And Watched Them All With Steadfast Eye”)

II Concatenation – is an improvised movement based on Franz Schubert’s song. The percussionist and trombonist are free to be wild, encouraged to vocalize and use any available percussion sounds, micro tonality, multi-phonics, and all varieties of mutes, including electric mutes for feedback and color.

III Dance – “And On Me Shone As If They Never Would Be Gone” –is a song of elation.

IV Song – I sing Franz Schubert’s song "Die Nebensonnen" with Wilhelm Mueller’s words

V Blues – “And If All Were Dark” (“T’were Better So”) is the last line of Mueller’s poem. Too Suite ends with an open undefined chord.

Hoppy Daze Is Here Again (2014) (Concerto N0 3)

This piece is dedicated to Gertrude and Abraham Taylor: my parents, and Bob and Edward Taylor: my brothers. It was Originally performed as a duo with piano, and Trombone Choir with Organ

The 1st movement: “Then”, is a celebration of growing up in Brooklyn NY in the 1950’s. In the middle of the stream of melodies, I wrote a cowboy song, Hoppy Daze Is Here Again. It’s my tribute to Hopalong “Hoppy” Cassidy, and to have a go at all those politicians who want to be cowboys.

The 2nd movement: “Now”, includes material from ancient Middle Eastern countries, and a Catalan folk song. I re-harmonized the folk song, Song Of The Birds, to honor my family and one of my musical inspirations cellist Pablo Casals.

In its review of Hoppy Daze Is Here Again, The N.Y. Times wrote:

“David Taylor’s Concertino for bass trombone and accompanying trio…performed by the trombonist-composer together with the pianist Ron Stabinsky, the double-bassist Moppa Elliot, and the percussionist Kevin Shea, brimmed over with comic effects, flights of virtuosity and sultry melodies, some lifted from Catalan folk songs and the Yemenite Jewish liturgy….resulting in a scintillating, raucously confident new form of chamber jazz.”

Swathe Cozen (2016) (concertino no.2)

The Concertino no. 2 was commissioned by the Washington Square Chamber Music Festival. The piece developed into four movements with “fanciful” titles, and premiered with a string orchestra

a)The Hanging Jargons of Babylon –a mix of styles and rhythms

b) Faux Faustian Fugue – an imitative form based on a thought I had of Tommy Dorsey’s hit tune, I’m Getting Sentimental Over You.

c) Waltz Heteroclite – an odd metered waltz with a buzzing mute

d) Swathe Cozen – to bind together with artful coaxing