Searching for Ewald

Hi all,

What a whirlwind this week has been!  It's been tough getting back to business, but I'm confident that this week will be easier.

In my readings this week I focused on the Ewald article.  Honestly, I didn't know much about him before I started reading.  I played his second quintet with the graduate brass quintet one day, and I brought in his third quintet for my listening presentation.  Andre Smith seems like a very patience man.  He took such a long time to carefully gather the research he needed to present a true picture of Ewald.  I think this teaches us that we must start our research early and be extremely thorough in that quest.  A question that this article brought to mind was, why did Mary Rasmussen behave so carelessly with her research of Ewald.  In a way, when you come to a dead end with a subject like Rasmussen may have, it is easy to just say, "Forget it!" There are deadlines to make, things like that, but what is more important?  Presenting a clear picture of such a influential composer, or giving a vague outline of his works?  I think we all know the answer to that one.  I have been playing rotary trumpet for a little while.  I used it once for an orchestra concert and some on my own.  I gathered from the article that they are the norm in Europe.  Since I have very little experience with rotary instruments I can't really make up my mind on a rotary vs. piston battle.  But I can say that if I ever moved to Germany to play with a brass quintet or a large brass ensemble and everyone was playing on rotary horns, I would get one.  From what I know they have a darker sound, I'm not entirely sure this has anything to do with the valves though.  But in order to match the other players a rotary would definitely be needed.  I disagree with the statement, "there is no true legato on trombone."  I think Smith makes a great point when he writes, "trombone players would basically be unemployed if they didn't know how to play legato..."  A trombone player must learn to be proficient in the lyrical sense to be able to match the the other players in the brass quintet or large ensemble.  Although it took a long time, the ABQ brought the Ewald quintets to Carnegie Hall.  As it states in the article, the rediscovery of the Ewald quintets 2-3 are due to the Empire Brass Quintet.  The handwritten parts were obtained by Werke.  Werke had brought them back from Leningrad and exchanged them for a medley of Gershwin tunes.  Amazing....they might have never gotten to America without him!  

In the UK

Hey all,

I wanted to expand my blog to military bands outside of the U.S.  I figured it was about time.  The first one I'm going to blog about is the Corps of Army Music, which is the band for the British Army.  The Corps of Army was formed in 1994.  The primary role of Army Bands is to play music in support of the Army's moral component and to assist in its engagement with civilian communities.  If you leave the band, you're able to re-enlist.  I'm not sure if you're able to do that in America.  This division has a jazz band, a rock and pop group, big bands, and includes fanfare trumpets.  The primary goal is to provide first class music for any military event, but other duties include guarding key installations, close protection, driving, and guarding prisoners of war.  That's pretty serious!  I wouldn't know how to guard a POW.  But I believe they give training to the musicians to do such things.  There is so much information on their website.  I wonder if an American can become part of one of these groups?  Check out the info HERE.

Until next time!

Air Force Brass Quintet

Hey all,

The Air Force Brass Quintet is a component of the Air Force Band in Washington, D.C.  The quintet performs at children's concerts to official protocol functions in the National Capital Region.  Members include Master Sergeant Andrew Wilson, trumpet, Technical Sergeant Michael F. Bosch, trumpet, Technical Sergeant Kathleen L. Monroe, Horn, Senior Master Sergeant Lindsey Smith, trombone, and Technical Sergeant Christopher Wade, Tuba.

I would really like to be apart of this group one day.  But what am I saying? I'm sure we all want to be apart of a great group that plays great music and gets paid for it!  I'll be keeping an eye on auditions so that one day I can sit with these guys! Read all about them HERE.  Watch some vids too!

Trumpet Audition for the Air Force Band

Hey all, 

I just found out there was a position for a trumpet in the concert band in the Air Force.  I probably won't take this audition, but I thought I would post the requirements just in case anybody wanted to.  The audition process can be rigorous.  Lots of places ask for a preliminary CD and this one is no different.  I thought all of the auditions were live, but apparently you must be approved before you can take a live audition.  These "tapes" as we call them are due June 1st of 2012.  The live auditions take place in Washington D.C. on July 30th.  It is important to start the taping process as soon as possible.  It can be a little tricky to get exactly what you want from a recording i.e. the right kind of sound, the right room, the proper format.  This isn't a post about electronics or anything, but the preliminary recording can mean the difference between a rejection or an acceptance.  Just something to keep in mind!  Here is a link to the site AIR FORCE.  Check out the career section if you want to know more.

On the trail...

Hello all! I'm having a great time here in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  The SoM is beautiful and so is the campus.  Surprisingly, I'm getting a lot of work done.  Megan mentioned on my blog that the Tokyo Metropolitan Brass Trio was probably taken from member from the Tokyo Metropolitan Brass Quintet.  Unfortunately my search lead to on the members names: Hiroyuki Odagiri, Kiyoshi Sato, Osamu Takahashi, and Takashi Nakayama, Takato Saijo.  I'm pretty interested in finding out more about this group.  It seems that they have some recordings at the moment: Brass Quintet "Dragon Quest" Part 2 and Part 3, Tokyo Metropolitan Brass Quintet Plays Sugiyama Koichi Songs, and Brass Quintet "Dragon Warrior" Dragon Quest.  Hmm they seem to care a lot about dragons.  I'll definitely keep on the trail of this group!

Down in the Treme just me and my baby.....

Hey all!

Shelby did a great job today.  His presentation was super fun, educational, and overall well put together.  I'm so glad he played some NOLA brass bands in class.  I mean, that stuff is apart of African American history as well as American history and it's important to recognize that.  He got me thinking about this show called Treme, which I mentioned briefly in class.  It is a show about a neighborhood in New Orleans called Treme (apart of the Lafitte Projects) and the people who live there.  The main characters are Batiste, a teacher and freelance trombone player, Davis, a local musician and radio DJ, Albert, carpenter and Indian Chief.  Then there is LaDonna (ex-wife of Batiste) who owns a local bar, Toni, a lawyer, Jannette, a chef, Delmond (Albert's son) freelance trumpet player, Annie who is dealing with the murder of a friend and violin player, Sonny, a fisherman and guitar player, Terry, a cop, Creighton, a jazz enthusiast and teacher (husband to Toni), and Sofia, their teenage daughter.  This show starts off right after hurricane Katrina and follows each of the characters as they recover and try to build back their lives.  The reason I like this show is because it is deeply rooted in music.  To be honest, I sometimes find myself wondering what an episode was about, but the music is always burning!  It spends about half the time with the characters and half the time in some bar with Batiste and his band just making music.  I'm talking long sequences of these bands playing, their musical struggles, and what it is sometimes like to manage a band (in Batiste's case).  There was a particular episode with a funeral procession and it was just like the video Shelby showed today.  That's how it really goes down in NOLA and it's pretty fantastic.  Unfortunately, Treme is only offered to HBO subscribers, but you can buy the first 2 seasons on Amazon if you really wanna get into it.  Check out www.hbo.com and type Treme in the search box.  You can get a better explanation of this fantastic show there.  Check it out--it's worth a peek!


Have a good spring break!!

The New Layout

Hi all!  I thought I would post some things I forgot to put in my handout from my listening session the other day.  It was fun to present music to my colleagues and enjoy some listening for about 40 mins.  I still can't find any info on the Tokyo Metropolitan Brass Trio.  Can anyone help with that?  So here it is! The updated version of the listening.  Thanks for reading!  

Chamber Brass Listening Session

Center City Brass Quintet

Fire Dance (3:46)  --Anthony Dilorenzo From the album "Streetsong"

4 Outings No. 2 Blues Tempo (5:03)---Andre Previn From the album "Streetsong" 

Anthony DiLorenzo, trumpet Ryan Anthony, TrumpetRichard King, Horn

Steve Witser,Trombone Craig Knox, Tuba

Steve Witser has served as Assistant Principal Trombone of the Cleveland Orchestra since 1989.  He received his Bachelor of Music Degree and Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music in 1981.  That same year he was a prize winner in the Munich International Solo Competition.  In 1988 Mr. Witser returned to Europe and won second prize in the Geneva International Competition for Music Performers.  Mr. Witser has served as Principal Trombone with the Music of the Baroque Phoenix Symphony.  A faculty member of the Cleveland Institute of Music since 1993, he has also taught at the Eastman School of Music and The Oberlin Conservatory

*Since his unexpected death in 2009 Steve Witser has been replaced by Ko-Ichiro Yamamoto.  

Richard Kind was appointed Principal Horn of the Cleveland Orchestra by Christoph Von Dohnanyi in 1996, having held the position of Associate Principal Horn since the age of twenty.  As a soloist, he has performed with the Auckland Philharmonic as well as numerous appearances with his own orchestra; his recent performance of the Mozart Horn Concerto #2 was noted by the Cleveland Plain Dealer for its “silken stream of beautiful tone” and “flawless performance”. 

Geoffrey Hardcastle is Second Trumpet of the Buffalo Philarmonic.  He received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with Bernard Adelstein, David Zauder, and James Darling.  Geoffrey performed for several seasons as an acting member of the Cleveland Orchestra.  He was a founding member of the Burning River Brass Ensemble, and is currently a member of Proteus 7.  Geoffrey is on the faculty at Celeveland State University. 

Anthony DiLorenzo has appeared as a soloist with the Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, and New York Philharmonic, and has held positions with the Philadelphia Orchestra, New World Symphony, Santa Fe Opera, and Utah Symphony.  Anthony is also a member of Proteus 7 and the Burning River Brass ensemble.  DiLorenzo is an Emmy Award-winning composer, whose works have been performed by the San Francisco Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Utah Symphony, and New World Symphony.  The CCBQ takes full advantage of Anthony’s composition talent, and regularly enlists him to write new music for the quintet.  His original work, “Firedance”, which the CCBQ premiered and recorded on its Street Song album, has become a favorite among student and professional brass quintets around the world. 

Craig Knox, tuba, is Principal Tuba of the Pittsburg Symphony Orchestra, Adjunct Professor of Tuba at Duquesne University, and Artist-Lecturer in Tuba at Carnegie Mellon University.  He has served as Acting Principal Tuba of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, and held the Principal Tuba chair of the Sacramento Symphony and the New World Symphony, with which he appeared as soloist.  He has held teaching positions at Kent State University, California State University-Hayward, as well as the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he was Director of Brass Chamber Music.  In addition to being a founding member of the CCBQ, he is also tubist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Brass and has played and toured with the Chicago Chamber Musicians Brass Quintet and Empire Brass. 

                                                                        -http://www.centercitybrassquintet.com/

American Brass Quintet

Brass Quintet No. 3 In Des-Dur, Op. 7: 2. Intermezzo Moderato (4:37)--Victor Ewald 

Solfeggiamento (0:48)- From the album "Fyre and Lightning" Consort music of 1600

Fancy a 6 (2:18) From the album "Fyre and Lightning" Consort music of 1600

Raymond Mase, Trumpet

Chris Gekker, Trumpet

Robert Biddlecome, Bass Trombone

David Wakefield, Horn

Ronald Borror, Trombone

“Now in its 51^st season, the American Brass Quintet has been internationally recognized as one of the premier chamber music ensembles of our time and an icon in the brass world….Equally committed to the promotion of brass chamber music through education, the American Brass Quintet has been at residence at The Julliard School since 1987 and at the Aspen Music Festival since 1970.”

                                             -http://www.americanbrassquintet.org

Triton Trombone Quartet

                                                                             

The Triton Trombone Quartet was formed in 1982 under the name of Bielefeld Trombone Quartet.  The four musicians initially concentrated on performing early music and selected twentieth-century compositions.  Gradually the repertoire expanded to take in the entire literature for this instrumental ensemble from the Renaissance to the experimental music of today.  The ensemble has been praised for its stylistic security, its homogeneous sound and its fascinating expressive power. 

Sonata In E Minor for 3 trombones (3:29)--Daniel Speer 

Kindermann: Sonata “La Affetuosa” for 3 trombones (3:14)--Erasmus Kindermann

Olaf Ott, Ulrich Behrends , Hermann Baumer ,Ulrich Dieckmann           

Tokyo Metropolitan Brass Trio

Divertissement –Maurice Faillenot

I.                   Prelude (1:38)

II.                Sarabande (2:07)

III.             Menuet (2:53)

Trio For Brass- Vaclav Nelhybel

I.                   Leggiero marcato (1:43)

II.                Andante moderato (2:42)

III.             Molto viva con bravura (0:28)

For a New Theatre (0:45)

Reinhold Friedrich and Wolfgang Bauer

 

 -Dedicated to Lincoln Kirstein and George Balanchine, this fanfare was composed for the New York State Theatre at Lincoln Center, new home of the New York City Ballet.

                                                                             

                                                            -http://www.talkingtrumpet.wordpress.com

Rebirth Brass Band-

Here To Stay (4:00)

Aint No Party (6:43 tentative)

***In February this group won a Grammy for their album "Rebirth of New Orleans"  Congrats!!  

“Simply put, the Grammy Award winning Rebirth Brass Band is a New Orleans institution. Formed in 1983 by the now infamous Frazier brothers, the band has evolved from playing the streets of the French Quarter to playing festivals and stages all over the world.  Rebirth is committed to upholding the tradition of brass bands while at the same time incorporating modern music into their show.  Their signature brand of heavy funk has not only won over several generations of music lovers, it has become the soundtrack to an entire city.  In the wake of the sometimes-stringent competition amongst brass bands, Rebirth is the undisputed leader of the pack, and they show no signs of slowing down.”

                                                     -www.rebirthbrassband.com