2007 International Trombone Week

A Partial Recap by Colleen Wheeler

Sunday, April 1st

Central Michigan University, with Dr. Robert Lindahl, Professor of Trombone, presented a joint trombone choir concert with Just Trombones, a community trombone choir from Midland, Michigan. After Just Trombones and the CMU Trombone Choir played their individual programs, they joined forces and performed Tchesnokoff's Salvation is Created, Lassus Trombone, and America the Beautiful.

Capital University kicked off Trombone Week with a twoday event featuring guest artist Phil Wilson. The events were sponsored by Edwards Trombones, the Columbus Jazz Arts Group, and Capital University. Day One (Sunday) began with a morning master class and ended with an evening concert that featured Wilson, his arrangements, and the Capital University Trombone Choir under the direction of Tom Zugger. Monday continued the festivities with Wilson providing private lessons to Capital students and appearing as guest soloist with Vaughn Weister's Famous Jazz Orchestra. Forty people attended the master class, one hundred and twenty-five people attended the concert on Sunday, and one hundred and fifty people attended the concert on Monday night.

The Ohio University Trombone Choir performed as part of the Palm Sunday services at the First United Methodist Church in Athens, Ohio.

Fruhling Posaunen or "Spring Trombones" is an annual Palm Sunday event now in its 18th year. The trombone professors from The Pennsylvania State University, Ithaca College, and The Eastman School of Music organize the event and take turns hosting it. Fruhling Posaunen features intense practice sections between the three choirs, a guest choir, and demonstrations by various clinicians. The day culminates in a concert that features performances by each of the individual choirs, as well as a massed choir piece. The Pennsylvania State University hosted this year's event.

The Stentorian Consort performed a recital at Henderson State University in Arkansas.

Monday, April 2nd

Spring Trombone Night at the University of South Carolina featured the Carolina Trombone Collective, the USC Trombone Choir, chamber groups, and a variety of soloists.

Tuesday, April 3rd

John Renfroe and John Larson performed their Junior Performance and Senior Certificate recitals at Florida State University.

Henderson State University's Trombone Studio presented a studio recital featuring their Trombone Choir and student soloists on its campus in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.

Dr. James Bicigo presented a master class at Central Michigan University, performed an unaccompanied composition of his own ("Interior Passages"), and worked with four members of CMU's trombone studio.

A group of trombonists from Cincinnati presented a concert for the residents of Cottingham Retirement Center. Cincinnati trombonists have presented a concert at a retirement center in observance of ITW for the last three years.

Oklahoma State University's sophomore trombonist Isaac Washam performed the Ferdinand David Concertino with the OSU Symphony Orchestra. Washam is the 2006-2007 OSU Concerto Competition Winner.

Jemmie Robertson performed music by Malcolm Arnold, Ralph Vaughan-Williams, Thomas Tallis, Lawrence Borden, and Sharon Davis in a recital at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois.

The trombone quartet "Slide Factory" performed at Patrick Henry Mall in Newport News, Virginia.

Wednesday, April 4th

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Ellis Seiberlin, graduate bass trombonist, offered a recital that featured works by Bozza, Lassen, Fetter, and Hidas at the Ohio University School of Music.

The University of Texas at San Antonio's Trombone Ensemble performed classic and modern repertoire.

Southeastern Oklahoma State University's second annual Trombone Day included soloists David Begnoche, Brent Phillips, and Barney McCollum performing works by Richard Wagner, James Kazik, Tommy Pederson, and Leonard Bernstein.

John Fedchock joined the South Florida Jazz Orchestra in performance at Arturo Sandoval's Jazz Club in Miami Beach, Florida.

Virginia's Tidewater Trombone Choir performed with professional, military, and ex-military musicians in support of ITW.

Javier Stuppard presented his graduate trombone recital in Bates Recital Hall at the University of Texas.

Thursday, April 5th

The Ohio University Trombone Choir, under the direction of Associate Professor of Trombone Chris Hayes, performed "Legacy" by Mark Phillips for five trombones and soloist (written in memory of Reginald Fink, former trombone teacher at Ohio University); Palestrina's "Four Renaissance Movements" using alto and small trombones; and an arrangement of "12th Street Rag" by Tutti Camarata with rhythm section.

Ouachita Baptist University's Faculty Brass Ensemble, with Sim Flora and Josh Bynum on trombone, performed works by Poulenc, Blacher, Cheetham, and Reynolds.

Prapat Nujoy presented a senior bass trombone recital that included "Fly Me to the Moon" with the University of Alaska's (Fairbanks) Trombone Quartet.

Henderson State University offered a low brass chamber recital that featured performances by the HSU Trombone Choir, Trombone Quartet, and Tuba Choir.

The University of Louisville Trombone Ensemble performed works for small and large trombone ensembles.

The University of Texas at Austin Trombone Choir, winners of the 2007 Remington International Trombone Choir Competition, presented a concert in Bates Recital Hall on the UT campus. The concert featured the Stoltzer Fantasia, one of the oldest trombone choir pieces, and "Stardust for the Chief" as a tribute to the trombone and Emory Remington, one of the instrument's most important pedagogues. The UT Choir also performed works by Dukas, Bach, Mendelssohn, and Wagner. The concert culminated in a rousing massed-choir performance of Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever," complete with the infamous piccolo part transcribed for trombone soloist. Members of the massed ensemble included nearly seventy players of all ages hailing from Austin, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and other surrounding cities. UT hosted other ITW events, including recitals by students Brian Hecht and Javier Stuppard.

Josh Bledsoe, candidate for the Bachelors degree in Trombone Performance at Florida State University, offered a program of works by Gilroy, Albrechtsberger, Beethoven, Crespo, and Z. Randall Stroope (world premiere of Three for Two for trombone and piano). Assisting Josh were members of the FSU Trombone Choir.

Wichita State University's Russ Widener and his trombone class offered an hour-long presentation of videotaped performances and commentary. Featured pieces included a high school trombone quartet performing Robert Elkjer's arrangement of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer," bass trombone excerpts prepared for a festival audition, Eric Cook's Bolivar, Daniel Schnyder's Sonata for Bass Trombone (written for Dave Taylor), and the Sonatina for Bass Trombone by Halsey Stevens. Widener's event was broadcast live over the web and offered a chat messaging channel for audience interaction. This event was part of The Slide Heard Round the World, a series that has been part of every ITW. To hear Wichita's audio stream and learn about The Slide, please visit www.wheatoncollege.edu/it_s/internet2/trombone or contact Colleen Wheeler at cwheeler@wheatonma.edu.

Friday April 6th

National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master, Slide Hampton, performed with the Oklahoma State University Jazz Ensembles in OSU's Seretean Center for the Performing Arts.

David Vance, candidate for the Master of Music degree and student of Dr. JoDee Davis, presented a recital at UMKC Conservatory. His program included Darius Milhaud's Concertino d'Hiver, Gustav Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, and Buxton Orr's Concerto. Over forty people enjoyed this successful performance.

Matt Laube presented a recital at the University of Utah. Laube performed works for alto and tenor trombone by L. Mozart, Ropartz, Serocki, Rabe, Debussy, and Larsson.

The Frost Trombone Choir, under the direction of Tim Conner, gave a short performance at the Brass Forum in Filmore Hall at the University of Miami.

Saturday April 7th

The Texas Jazz Bones presented a concert in Homer Rainey Hall-Jessen Auditorium at the University of Texas. The ensemble was the winner of the 2007 International and National Jazz Trombone Ensemble Competition.

Florida State University's Trombone Choir performed in FSU's Opperman Music Hall. Their program included works by Bruckner, Dvorak, Edwards, Ewazen, Mendelssohn, Nelhybel, Rachmaninoff, and Saint-Saens.

The Bartlett Street Brass, a brass trio of director and trombonist Paul Frontiero, trumpeter Nick Colosani, and tubist Jack Fuller, performed before a packed house in the auditorium at Springmoor Retirement Community in Raleigh, North Carolina. Their charts were popular American music, Sousa marches, and Irving Berlin classics. That evening, a duet of Frontiero and Colosanti performed as the "sassy brassy jazz band, Who's Your Daddy" at the Raleigh cafe Hereghty's, where classic jazz and dixieland dominated the evening.

Sunday April 8th

The Anchorage Trombone Choir performed at the Anchorage Lutheran Church, Alaska, under the direction of Shawn Campbell, USAF, retired. Choir members included amateur and professional musicians, University of Alaska faculty and students, and former and current members of Air Force bands.

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone who participated in 2007's International Trombone Week! Your musicianship and generous spirit made this year an important and successful milestone for our community.

Thank you to ITA member Brad Edwards, who composed new trombone music in honor of the week. All of his ITW fanfares are available at no cost for download!

Get the Word Out

Start planning your 2008 International Trombone Week event now. Set aside the week of April 6-12, 2008, and watch The ITA Journal for more information.

Colleen Wheeler is the Asst. Director for Web Strategy Team at Wheaton College in Norton, Mass. She also plays trombone in the Swing 7 band.