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Concert: Boston Brass Jim Donaldson, Reporter The Boston Brass began their performance of all memorized music without formal announcement by taking the stage and loosely gathering around the tuba player, who had the only chair on the stage. They launched suddenly into Gottshalk’s Tournament Gallope at high velocity. While technically not a circus march, the piece had everything that one expects from that genre—except the elephant. The superb playing was accompanied by a gentle choreography, the players slowly moving to arrange themselves with others playing either the same melodic line or counter melody.
Thus began a concert of amazing diversity and virtuosity. The second tune consisted of dances from the works of Alberto Ginestera, based on Latin rhythms, the performers played with amazing precision and control, alternating duplets and triplets building to a thundering conclusion. In contrast, the first two movements of Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8 started with the slow, dark mood of the first movement, reflecting the pain and despair of the darkest days of World War II, with the enemies of Russia at the gates of Stalingrad. The second movement contrasted by portraying the violence of the bombing and devastation during the siege. Between each song, the players exchanged entertaining and humorous dialogue, at one point demonstrating how the group rehearses difficult passages and how they organize their rehearsals. They indicated that Following the Shostakovich was its opposite in mood and character: All Right, OK, You Win, a blues based jazz tune popularized by the Count Basie Band. The Boston Brass showcased their abilities to play real jazz with first rate improvised solos by all the players including the ones that don’t usually improvise, the French horn (complete with growls and shakes) and the tuba player. During a question and answer period, questions were posed about the difficulty of memorizing the music and the players each answered with their individual strategies. Each agreed that memorization improved their ability to listen to the others and concentrate more clearly. Other questions addressed how to maintain interest while playing the same material repeatedly. Their common response was that the more difficult the music (and every tune was difficult) the easier it was to maintain focus. When their focus began to wane, it was time for yet more difficult pieces. The concluding piece, Duke Ellington’s Caravan, again displayed the improvisational skills of each player, concluding in a way that earned the group a standing ovation from those who had started the day having never heard of The Boston Brass. |
Trumpet Prelude
Second Place ITG Composition Winner Matt Inkster, Trumpet Ann Bommelje, Piano Three Episodes (2001).................................... James Curnow I. Allegro con moto II. Largo moderato e espressivo III. Allegro energico |
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presentation, Matt Inkster performed the second place winner of the 2001 ITG Composition Competition by James Curnow. Inkster played C trumpet and was accompanied by Ann Bommelje. The piece, Three Episodes was traditional in melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic content. The music unfolded in the form of an extended fanfare containing strong articulations and arpeggios. The work came across in the tradition of heroic music for brass.
