Alex Knutrud: 30 Counterparts for Cimera Studies (Trombone)

"In 2013, I was a middle school band teacher during the mornings and teaching a studio of 40 low brass students in the evenings; my whole life was work, and every moment I had to practice felt like a gift. Realizing that chasing my dream of getting into graduate school with a world-class teacher would require lessons, I reached out to Steve Lange, who lived only a mile away from where I was teaching. I met him at his house and that day, he introduced me to the Cimera etudes. These melodies changed the way I thought about music. They were so simple, yet challenging each in their own right. Unlike the Bordogni etudes, the Cimera seemed straightforward in their design, but within that simplicity was bound a balance that stripped away complexities and distractions for me in my playing at the time. I could focus on where I was tense, what I was doing wrong, and what I needed to change. Rather than worry about the technical challenges in other etude books, I could just focus on singing through the horn. I've never improved as quickly as I did that spring. 

Now on the verge of completing my doctorate in trombone with Steve Lange and 15 years the wiser, I still find myself returning to the Cimera etudes almost every day. As both a dedicated trombonist and composer, my goal in writing these accompaniments was to create opportunities for instrumentalists of all walks to enjoy the Cimera's melodies as duets for both practice and performance. Whether you are using this book with a recording device to play both parts together or with a friend, I hope that these can be a vessel for self-discovery for you in the same manner they were--and continue to be--for me"

- Alex Knutrud