| 2009 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition | updated 19 October 2009 |
||||||||||
   |
|||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||
On October 10, 2009, James Ackley hosted the Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina. Five finalists were selected among the thirty-four applicants - all under the age of 30 - from Finland, France, Trinidad & Tobago, Israel, New Zealand, the U.K., and 18 separate states within the United States. The preliminary judges chose the finalists based only on their recordings, which were distributed anonymously to the judges via a password-protected webpage. Only the candidate’s number of entry was listed to maintain anonymity. The preliminary judges were Ralph Alessi, Brad Goode, and Joey Tartell. The five finalists included: Pete Clagett (Denton, Texas, USA), Matthew Holman (New York, New York, USA), Kalevi Louhivuori (Helsinki, Finland), Jason Palmer (Roselindale, Massachusetts, USA), and Jonathan Saraga (New York, New York, USA). Jason Palmer took first place. Kalevi Louhivuori took second place. All of the competitors received travel expenses for their trip to Columbia. First held in 1993, The Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Competition is considered the most prestigious competition for jazz trumpeters in the world. The International Trumpet Guild and the Herb Alpert Foundation sponsor this bi-annual event. The winner of the competition receives $10,000 (USD) and the runner-up receives $5,000 (USD). All events were open to the public and were held at the University of South Carolina. Vince DiMartino presented a morning clinic on the Carmine Caruso Teaching Method. The final competition was held in the afternoon in the Recital Hall of the USC School of Music. An evening concert was held in the Koger Center for Performing Arts and featured the U.S. Army Blues and solo performances by each of the distinguished judges and the competition finalists. Carmine Caruso was one of the world’s greatest brass teachers. It is to the man and his work that the 2009 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition was dedicated. Caruso was born on November 2, 1904, lived his entire life in New York, and died on May 26, 1987. Caruso made his living as a saxophone player, performing in ballrooms and on radio shows. In 1941 he gave up performing for full-time teaching. In 1942 Caruso took his first trumpet student and within a year had forty brass students. Brass players from all over the world traveled to New York to study with him, and he developed a reputation for being able to help players improve. This year's judges included Ralph Alessi, Brad Goode, Joey Tartell, Sean Jones, Brian Lynch, and Terell Stafford. Clinic by Vincent DiMartino DiMartino began his clinic, held in the USC School of Music’s Recital Hall, by recounting lessons that he had with Carmine Caruso early in his career. He went on to describe how Caruso’s teaching has been incorporated into his own approach to teaching and playing. DiMartino’s clinic covered a wide range of topics and ideas. He spoke of both physical and psychological approaches designed to aid a player’s development. He defined a trumpet embouchure as “the ability to play any note, in any order, at any time, at any dynamic,” and compared it to a clarinet mouthpiece. He explained that the lips of a trumpet embouchure are like the reed, the teeth like the facing of the clarinet mouthpiece, and the pressure of the mouthpiece on the lips equal to the clarinet’s ligature. Just as a clarinetist sets the ligature, which does not change, regardless of the register in which the clarinetist plays, so should a trumpeter “set” the amount of mouthpiece pressure “for good.” This amount of pressure should not change throughout the course of a piece of music. He next spoke of the use of air. DiMartino said one of the most important things he ever heard came from Allen Vizzutti, who stated, “Everything you do is ‘one complete blow’ of the trumpet.” He likened “the swing of the air” to a baseball pitcher’s motion: the wind-up (the inhalation), and the pitch (the note or the phrase). He spoke of the need to always keep the air “energized.” DiMartino said that balance and control are important and that a player’s physical attributes are not important. He also stated that students need to be their own teachers, and that they need to learn something each day that they play. He suggested that students not worry about playing repetitively until after they learn to play something correctly, and to not reinforce incorrect approaches. Most importantly, he said, “Our MIND makes the trumpet play poorly, not our air or our lips.” DiMartino ended his clinic by talking about jazz improvisation, and stated that he never looks at chord changes when improvising. Rather, he creates musical lines based on the sounds that he hears. He invited an audience member to sit at the piano and to play four-note chords at random. DiMartino then played improvised lines based on those tones. He told those in attendance – from young students to adult trumpeters – that “we are leaders.” Our instruments are designed to be heard, and other instruments will “follow our lead.” A handout (that you can download here) provided each player with a series of exercises for further development. THE PRELIMINARY COMPETITION The Competition began with greetings from James Ackley, host of the Competition, who introduced the judges and members of the combo. A small but enthusiastic audience was present. Each contestant performed four works with the Competition Trio, which was made up of faculty members from the University of South Carolina. Each finalist performed four works, including the required piece: Minor Issues by Raleigh Dailey. The players drew lots to determine the performance order of the competition.
Pete Clagett Clagett started his set with It Could Happen to You by Jimmy Van Huesen. His up-tempo rendition featured an extended coda. Minor Issues by Raleigh Dailey was next. The head of the required piece was in a swing style, while the bridge transitioned into a Latin feel. Clagett performed Sonny Rollins’ Oleo as an up-tempo swing and had bassist Craig Butterfield join him on the head. The final work was Invitation by Bronislaw Kaper, performed in an up-tempo Latin style.
Matt Holman Holman played all four works in a seamless, constantly evolving set. He began with the required work - Minor Issues – but chose a slower swing tempo than the previous competitor. An extended open solo led to the first of two original works, the first entitled Looking Glass. This work featured shifting meters and styles and was suggestive of Nicholas Payton’s more recent works. Holman switched to the flugelhorn for What are You Thinking? This work was in a Latin style, and led to the final work of the set, Thelonius Monk’s Evidence.
Jason Palmer Palmer played his first two selections, Blue Five by Nicholas Payton and Wayne Shorter’s Dance Cadaverous, as a set. Blue Five was in a Latin style, preceded by an extended solo by Palmer. Dance Cadaverous featured an interesting juxtaposition of styles, a ballad over top of a bright 3 groove. His next work, Christine by Buster Williams, was a ballad. Palmer performed the required work, Minor Issues, last in his set.
Jonathan Saraga
Repertoire: Pure Imagination - Bronislaw Kaper Pure Imagination by Bronislaw Kaper was Jonathan Saraga’s first work. Made popular in the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, this work was an interesting selection. His second work was Nefertiti by Wayne Shorter. Raleigh Dailey’s Minor Issues was the next selection. His final work was Steve Swallow’s Bite Your Grandmother. An up-tempo swing chart, this was easily the most energized piece of the set. Kalevi Louhivuori
Kalevi Louhivuori began his set with an original work entitled The New Way. This piece was for trumpet, bass and drums only. Minor Issues came next. Louhivuori's rendition of Bronislaw Kaper’s On Green Dauphin Street featured a shifting between swing and Latin styles. Louhivuori ended the set with Johnny Green’s Body and Soul. THE GALA CONCERT
Host James Ackley welcomed the more than 530 members of the audience to the Koger Center for the Performing Arts and introduced The U.S. Army Blues. The Blues, after beginning informally in 1970, became an official part of the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” in 1972. Over the years it has evolved into the premier jazz ensemble of the U.S. Army, and has performed at world-renowned venues including the Monterey Jazz Festival, the Montreux Jazz Festival, New York City’s historic Birdland, and Washington, DC’s Blues Alley. The program began with two works by members of the Blues’ trumpet section: Minor Matter was written by and featured SGM Craig Fraedrich and Jolie Blonde was composed by and featured SFC Graham Breedlove. The finalists and judges then joined the US Army Band on different pieces. The first soloist for the evening’s concert was Pete Clagett, who performed an up-tempo rendition of the Sammy Fain standard Secret Love. Vince DiMartino played next, performing Aim for the Heart, arranged by Bill Armstrong, and Sy Johnson’s arrangement of Blue Bossa.
Jonathan Saraga was featured next on his original composition, The Reiki Practitioner. Sean Jones began his set with an arrangement of Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust. For his second work, Jones chose Just Friends by John Klemmer, and performed with just the rhythm section. Matt Holman played Darcy James Argue’s Transit for the evening concert. Following a chorale-like opening, the work developed a Latin/rock feel that at times was reminiscent of a Pat Metheny/Lyle Mayes composition. Next was Kalevi Louhivuori, who performed Footprints, arranged by Rich Shemaria. Skylark, as arranged by Alan Baylock, was Jason Palmer’s selection for the evening. Terell Stafford performed Dear Ruby, as arranged by Charlie Gray, and Berda’s Bounce, arranged by Bill Cummings. Brian Lynch ended the concert with two of his own works – an arrangement of Blue Moon and Palmieri Effect. After the Lynch arrangement, the five competitors returned to the stage for the announcement of the competition’s winners. President Kevin Eisensmith thanked James Ackley for hosting the Caruso Competition and thanked the Herb Alpert Foundation for its continued support and presented the winners. The final piece of the night, Count Basie’s Blues in Hoss’ Flat, featured SFC Graham Breedlove and all of the competition’s finalists and judges. While awaiting their turn at the microphone, the trumpet players improvised several background riffs. SGM Tony Nalker, the pianist for the Blues, soloed after all of the trumpeters and, quite appropriately, quoted The Party’s Over during his solo! This was an exciting evening of big band jazz and trumpet playing.
At present there has been no location selected for the 2011 Carmine Caruso Trumpet Competition. Anyone interested in hosting this prestigious event should contact President Kevin Eisensmith or another member of the ITG Board of Directors.
Links: Judges
Finalists
The Combo
Source: Kevin Eisensmith, ITG President, photos courtesy of Anne Hardin, ITG Board of Directors |
|||||||||||
|
|