Tom Erdmann, reporting


International Recording Artist Rodney Mack, a graduate of the Curtis Institute, is well known as being a trumpeter of the highest caliber. As a musician he has worked under Leonard Bernstein, Michael Tilson Thomas, Gerard Schwarz, and Christopher Hogwood, to name just a few.

After making his solo debut with the New Orleans Symphony at the age of 15, he has since gone on to solo with the San Diego, Tenerife, Orquestra Sinfonica de Barcelona i National de Catalunya, and other symphonies throughout the United States and Europe. A few of the positions he has held include principal trumpet with the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra and head of the trumpet department at the Escuela Superior de Musica de Catalunya.

It is impossible to list all of the concepts and thoughts covered during his wonderfully informative session, but some are included here. Opening up the session Mack performed Bernstein's Rondo for Lifey. Throughout the trumpeter demonstrated a fluid tongue, clear phasing, and his characteristically beautiful tone. Mack's rejoinder to the performance focused on his topic for the day's session - What You're Thinking About While You're Playing Is The Most Important Thing About Trumpet Playing. Mack discussed how Bernstein's work is intended to be light hearted and so he thinks about how it was written for a dog and not on the technical aspects. “What I have in my head dictates how I will sound,” Mack said.

The second movement from Hailstork's Sonata for Trumpet and Piano, which was composed for Mack, followed. His controlled use of vibrato on sustained notes and full and open sound throughout all dynamic and tessitura levels was astounding. Following the performance Mack discussed how he tries to convey the emotion of what Hailstork was feeling and what he was going through in his life during this time period - the pain and suffering along with those moments of joy.

To demonstrate how he practices, Mack talked about the final variation from the Carnival of Venice, and how it must be practiced slowly. He said too much time is wasted if all one does is run through it over and over again. “Break things down into their smallest components and work on that,” Mack said. By playing the wide leaps in a sustained manner Mack performed his practice routine for this section, which was followed by a full run-though of the variation. The applause for his awe-inspiring performance was truly genuine.

The reiteration of how the worst thing one can do is to think about the trumpet was stressed not only when working with the finalists from the ITG Solo Competition but also when Mack discussed playing Spanish music. “Think about the music and what's in your heart. Get the message out. It's all about the conversation between you and the audience.”

This was demonstrated aptly when he conveyed a story about playing a Spanish fanfare in the Canary Islands and a subsequent impromptu lesson he received from a member of the orchestra he was playing in at the time. Mack went on to say, “People identify with playing in correct style and I always try to think about the style and getting the message of the piece across. As trumpeters we're going to mess up, but it's even more important to get the message of the music across.”

Another lesson imparted was to understand that time happens differently when we perform as opposed to when we listen, so it's important to take your time when playing. “Allow rests to help make your message more personal to the audience,” Mack said.

With the students in the masterclass setting Mack focused on what they were feeling with regard to energy and what imagery they had in their head as they performed. Again, there were too many incredible concepts imparted during his short time with the audience, but perhaps the following quote sums up the session, “Technical problems melt away if we focus on non-musical imagery.”