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Estrellas Azules - Jonathan Tirado [DIGITAL]
Genre: Vibraphone (4-mallet)
# of Players: 1
Level: Medium | Duration: 3:30
Publisher: C. Alan Publications | Copyright: 2020
Download mp3 | Click on images to left for score sample
Rating:
Price:
$15.00
Item #:
27560D
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Notes & Instrumentation
Spanish for "blue stars," Estrellas Azules is a vibraphone solo featuring a lyrical, sweet melody using extended 4-mallet techniques while bringing in the use of the motor. It explores voice leading and phrasing through mallet dampening and pedaling to demonstrate a high level of musical interpretation and expression.
Genre: Vibraphone (4-mallet) | # of Players: 1
Level: Medium | Duration: 3:30
Instrumentation
Vibraphone (3-octave)
Program Notes
Estrellas Azules is Spanish for “blue stars” and was written for my wife, Estela, who of Hispanic descent also has blue eyes. The piece juxtaposes two contrasting styles of music to present a wide variety of musicality for the performer. The first presents a playful “Shuffle” feel to give the sense of a classic, timeless lullaby sound found in a music box. This is brilliantly defined in the vibrato of the motor creating an imaginative perspective to mimic the “twinkling” of stars in the distance.The second style takes the vibraphone on a pianistic role in a quasi “half-time ballad” feel demonstrating a modern approach to the instrument. Its lyrical melody seems to float effortlessly above the surging 4 mallet permutations depicting a night sky swirling in its milky way beauty. The inspiration came from a star trail photograph which uses long exposure times to capture the individual streaks of stars across the night sky.
- J.T.
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Video
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Estrellas Azules for solo vibraphone by Jonathan Tirado
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Product Reviews
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Beautiful piece for learning 9/8
This beautiful piece has a great melody and helps intermediate mallet players learn the ways of playing in 9 over 8. The piece shifts to 4 over 4 but still maintains its exquisite harmonies.
A very emotional piece. @shanna.hits.things on Jul 23rd 2023 -
Percussive Notes New Literature Review
Spanish for “blue stars,” “Estrellas Azules” is a combination of two musical styles that is pleasant to listen to and will be fun to play for any intermediate keyboardist. The piece is structured in a simple ABA form. The A’s in this case are a shuffle feel in a triple meter. The B section has a straight duple feel and a thicker accompaniment texture sitting under a simple melody. The change from shuffle to straight is not as sudden as one might think it would be, since the two styles are fairly contrasting. Using a simple syncopation early in the duple section, the composer makes this shift from swing to straight seamless and organic. The piece ends with a return of the A section that is then gradually slowed down until the ending arpeggios and cadencing chords — a standard way to end such a piece on this instrument.
As with most vibraphone solos, there are specific technical issues to bear in mind. First are the requisite mallet dampens and pedaling that are unique to this instrument, and Tirado makes good use of such markings and instructions. Next is assurance that the melodic lines and accompaniment are treated appropriately so the one instrument clearly has two voices involved, despite the permutations and syncopated rhythms that are employed.
Musically speaking, the piece remains in D-flat throughout, with the occasional B-double-flat to create a borrowed sonority. There is a short portion where the key-signature changes to G-flat, but the centricity never shifts. “Estrellas Azules” is a lovely vibraphone work. It would be suitable for a student recital or as something that professionals can have in their back-pocket if they ever need to pull out a three-minute piece.
Kyle Cherwinski
PERCUSSIVE NOTES
VOL. 59, NO. 3, JUNE 2021 Kyle Cherwinski on Jun 29th 2022
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