Just had a first rehearsal of James Rae's Waltz for Emily (G3 alto sax). The speed indication is "Bright jazz waltz tempo", plus a clear instruction that the quavers (eighths) should be swung, but no guide as to the actual speed. I enjoy playing music in jazzy styles, but don't have the background knowledge to know the range of actual speeds that JR is likely to have had in mind for this piece. On the other hand I'm convinced that the slow speed we rehearsed at yesterday isn't "bright"! I would expect to aim at a jazzed up version of a Viennese Waltz tempo e.g. Blue Danube. I'd be interested in suggested metronome marks please.

I don't know if this is any help - my clav has J Waltz (which I assume is jazz waltz) on the rhythm section; the metronome speed for this is 160.

When I see "bright" on a jazz piece I usually think "Oh ----, I'll struggle with this one". They're usually at least 160+ bpm, and if they're bebop more like 200+. But I can't see the excessive speeds being required at grade 3 level, I would think 160 or maybe a touch up if the student can manage it would be OK. Anything under 140 I wouldn't regard as bright.

Thanks both of you, that's very helpful. I think my comparison to a Viennese waltz was quite close. The girl concerned knows the notes (as so often happens had more problems with the rests and tied notes...) and I think we should be able to push it on at the next rehearsal.

Thanks. That's also useful to know.

I don't know. I was just going on what I had heard at the first rehearsal, but I didn't get the impression that the child had already been told that it would need to go faster. At 140 I can easily feel 1 in a bar, but it was definitely 3 in a bar on Monday. I've emailed the teacher (I've worked for him before and we keep in touch during the rehearsal process).