Search results for: 'tuba-euphonium quartet'

with Piano:

In early 2017, Dr. Chris Combest approached me about writing a new piece for tuba and piano to be premiered at the 2018 U.S. Army Band Tuba-Euphonium Workshop, where Chris had been invited to perform as a guest soloist. As Chris and I discussed the different directions this new piece could take, one idea swiftly broke away from the pack and excited both of us very much. 

"Onwards and upwards" is a favorite saying of Dr. Jerry Young, longtime professor of music at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, where he taught tuba and euphonium, among other things, from 1983 until 2016. In addition to being a friend and mentor to generations of low brass players, Jerry has enjoyed a multifaceted career as a soloist, clinician, lecturer, adjudicator, and additionally served as President of the International Tuba Euphonium Association (ITEA) and as Editor in Chief of the ITEA Journal. Chris expressed a desire to dedicate a new piece to Jerry, one that embodied the energy and optimism of this revered pedagogue and his "onwards and upwards" mantra. Over the course of his remarkable career, Jerry has been a profound influence on so many tuba players, and it is my absolute privilege to dedicate this new work to Dr. Jerry Young. Onwards and upwards!

Commissioners include:

commissioned by SchoolOfBrass.com

4 Trumpets, 4 Horns, 4 Trombones,  2 Euphoniums and 2 Tubas

School Of Brass artists:

Trumpet

Louis Dowdeswell – Youtube Content Creator & Music Producer

Elisabeth Fessler – Harmonic Brass & Trossingen University (Germany)

Jennifer Marotta – USC Thornton School of Music

John Powlison – American Military Musician

Rex Richardson – International Soloist and Jazz Artist

Michael Sachs – Principal Trumpet, The Cleveland Orchestra

Isaac Winland – West Liberty & Mount Vernon Nazarene University (trumpet and music technology)

Horn

Elizabeth Freimuth – Principal Horn, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

Albert Houde – Principal Horn, West Virginia Symphony

Ben Jacks – Principal Horn, Sydney Symphony Orchestra

Hugo Valverde – Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

Larry Williams – Yamaha Performing Artist / Clinician

Trombone

Hakeem Bilal (Bass) – West Virginia University, River City Brass, C Street Brass, Beauty Slap

Gabriel Colby – Wellness Coach, River City Brass, C Street Brass, Beauty Slap, Nu Deco Ensemble

Cristian Ganicenco – Principal Trombone, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

Frank Gulino (Bass) – Composer in Residence, Edwards Artist/Clinician

Jim Nova – Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra

Tim Smith (Tenor and Bass) - Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra

Jessica Sneeringer – Athena Brass Band, Central Ohio Brass Band

Euphonium

Jason Casanova – Georgia Brass Band, Kennesaw & Jacksonville State Universities

David Childs – International Soloist, University of North Texas

Adam Frey – International Soloist, University of North Georgia, SchoolOfBrass.com Artistic Director

Mark Jenkins – American Military Musician, George Mason University

Michael Waddell – Hiram College, SchoolOfBrass.com Technical Director

Tuba

Øystein Baadsvik – International Soloist

Zach Collins – Indiana University of Pennsylvania

James Gourlay – River City Brass, Duquesne University

Carson McTeer – West Virginia University & Principal Tuba, West Virginia Symphony

Christopher Olka – Principal Tuba, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

Gene Pokorny – Principal Tuba, Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Chamber Groups

C Street Brass (Brass Quintet)

Keystone Quartet (Tuba-Euph Quartet)

This duet book comes in both a low and high key and can be played by various combinations of low brass instruments.

This book seeks to provide low brass players with useful, enjoyable materials that can be used effectively as both pedagogical tools and performance pieces. By incorporating a variety of keys, articulations, meters, phrase structures, and styles, these duets present countless opportunities for musical and technical development without feeling so exercise-like as to preclude them from having a place on recital programs.

While thinking about this project, I received a number of messages from tubists, euphoniumists, and trombonists—performers and pedagogues alike—lamenting the various challenges they face when searching for duet literature. For example, trombonists looking for materials to play alongside their tuba students face a dilemma: most tuba duets are too low for the trombone, while most trombone duets are too high for the tuba. Others remarked that some tuba duets ignore the upper tessitura, making them unhelpful to players looking to build range and facility, or pointed out that many trombone duets are either musically fulfilling or technically accessible to non-professional players, but not both. The quality of low brass duet literature also varies widely, with little overlap between works that make useful teaching tools and those which are musically compelling enough to perform.

To address some of these issues, the duets in this book present a variety of technical challenges without losing sight of the importance of sound, pitch, phrasing and musicianship. Whether addressing technical issues like range, articulation, or velocity, each piece also requires that players pay attention to style, tone production, and ensemble playing. Moreover, each duet appears in two different keys, separated variously by a perfect fourth, tritone, or perfect fifth in order to avoid extreme ranges or particularly unwieldy key signatures. This allows players to learn each piece in the more comfortable tessitura first (tuba players beginning with the lower-keyed version, for instance), empowering them to subsequently approach the more challenging tessitura already armed with a musical plan of attack and command of the melodic lines and intervals.

Although some of the pieces in this book will undoubtedly be more or less challenging than others, depending on the combination of instruments and experience levels possessed by the performers, the hope is that each one adds value by providing opportunities to hone our musical and technical skills, allowing teachers to perform alongside their students, or allowing students to play with one another. I am grateful to all of those who reached out with thoughts about this project and hope you enjoy these Six Concert Caprices.

In 2018, Spanish bass and contrabass trombonist Javier Colomer will record a new album that includes works for trombone and organ as well as for unaccompanied bass and contrabass trombones. The music on this disc spans four centuries, from Palestrina and Gabrielli through Handel, Schubert, and Faure, among others. The newest piece on the album – a work for unaccompanied contrabass trombone by American composer Frank Gulino – had not been completed at the time

Javier Colomer is an internationally renowned bass and contrabass trombone soloist and teacher who has given recitals and master classes across the globe for more than 25 years. During that time, Javier has performed with orchestras and wind bands both as an ensemble musician and concerto soloist, and presented masterclasses to over a thousand students from some of the world's leading conservatories and universities. He is a past member of the ITA Board of Advisors and also authored “The World of The Contrabass Trombone,” the first comprehensive method book for that instrument. Javier's advocacy of the contrabass trombone as a solo instrument is a natural extension of his experience as a performer and pedagogue, and he continues to regularly commission and premiere new works for the bass and contrabass trombones. Please visit www.javicolomer.com to learn more.

with Piano

I. Dark

II. Reflective

III. Triumphant