On Your Own Now by Steven Verhelst

Denson Paul Pollard, bass trombone
Stefan Wiebe, recording engineer
Recorded in February 2020 in Ford Hall at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University
Steven Verhelst (b. 1981) is a trombonist and composer from Belgium. As a trombone player, he has played with several different orchestras in Europe, as well as performing with various other chamber and wind groups. However, as a composer, Verhelst holds a special place in the trombone community because he has done a significant amount of contribution to the repertoire of the instrument. He has worked with a number of prominent players to produce a number of new works for the instrument from solo trombone to trombone choir. His piece "On Your Own Now" is one of these pieces, commissioned to be written by a group of prominent bass trombone soloists and educators. The group of colleagues and friends responsible for commissioning Verhelst to write this piece is comprised of Brian Hecht, George Curran, Zachary Bond, Jeff Dee, James Markey, and Denson Paul Pollard. In the composer’s own words on the piece, “It’s about stepping into the worlds as an individual in different stages of life. There’s no accompaniment, there’s no support, there’s only you, on stage…” The progression of these different stages is apparent in the work as it is a type of theme and variations, with an introduction of the theme that outlines its own harmonic structure, and two variations on this theme that escalate in rhythmic activity with interludes in between each section. This could be considered a fairly accurate representation of one’s life, as there are a lot of opportunities for rubato to do what the soloist feels is right, but at times there is a need to adhere to a specific groove or steady rhythmic pulse as the piece (or stage in life) gets more difficult and requires more work. Written by Thomas Cavender.