Play Ballads: Alto Saxophone and Piano by John Kember

Play Ballads: Alto Saxophone and Piano

Faber Music ISMN 0-571-52008-1

'The joy of ballad playing is indulgence pure and simple: performing the smoothest and most expressive of melodies'.

These melodies are similar in style and are attractive, providing opportunities for developing tonal quality, phrasing and legato playing. Play Ballads offers the Grade 4-6 (intermediate) instrumentalist the inspirations of some of the greatest exponents of the form.

First published in 2000, Alto Saxophone and Piano is intended for Grades 4 to 6. It has 9 arrangements on 32 pages and includes separate parts for each instrument.

Price £8.99

As well as a selection of 5 original pieces in ballad styles for the solo instrument, each volume contains an individual arrangement of 4 modern standards:

Hello: Lionel Richie
What the World Needs Now: Burt Bacharach
Killing Me Softly: Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel
Your Song: Elton John

Original ballad compositions for Alto Saxophone:

Wishful Thinking
We Can Work It Out
Bright and Breezy
Nostalgia
The Latin Touch

What they say

“a lovely book of nine pieces” “Play Ballads is a lovely book of nine pieces for alto saxophone and piano. Some pieces, like Burt Bacharach's classic 'What the World Needs Now', have written out improvisations, which help expand the piece. Kember's touching composition 'Nostalgia', is not out of place next to classics such as Elton John's 'Your Song'.”
Gerard McChrystal, Professor of Saxophone at Trinity College of Music and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, in 'Music Teacher', Sept 2002.

See a sample page

Small image of a score with the words 'sample page' diagonally across it