News

At the BTS London Trombone Day on 24 February, Ian Bousfield interviewed Denis Wick in a highly entertaining 45-minute session, which has now been encoded and is available for download in MP3 format: Ian Bousfield interviews Denis Wick (8MB).

American trombonist Howard Hedges, was only 21 when he was appointed bass trombone in the famous Stan Kenton band in 1978. He went on to tour with several major musicals and in backing bands for the likes of Aretha Franklin and Mel Torme.

But aged 37 he suffered a massive stroke and was left severely disabled, paralysed on his left side. Last Spring, aged 45 his heart problems worsened, was diagnosed as terminal and finally passed away last week.

The Anchorage Daily News has a large article about Hedges’ playing heyday, the on-stage pranks he was well loved for, and the support he has now from his community in a small town called Homer, Alaska.

Touring with the show “Pippin,” he doubled his pay by barking on cue for an unreliable dog.

Read the full article here.

The Ni Ensemble has won the International Brass Ensemble Competition in Passau. The brass quintet includes trombonist Leon Ni, who now plays for the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg and has lived in Britain for several years. Until three years ago he was Principal Trombone at Scottish Opera and before that in 1999/2000 he studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he originally established the ensemble.

Ni Ensemble with Passau cultural attache Dr. Max Brunner (l) and head judge Frigyes Hidas (r)

The jury headed by Hungarian composer Frigyes Hidas, awarded the quintet not only first prize in the professional section, but also a special prize for best interpretation of an original piece for brass ensemble for Victor Ewald’s Quintet No. 2. The rest of their programme included Lutoslawki’s Mini Overture, Kerry Turner’s Ricochet, and Handel’s Arrival of the Queen of Sheba. Second place went to the Extreme Trombone Quartet from Hungary and third place went to L’Or Notes Brass Quintet from Paris.

The ensemble is comprised of Heather Madeira Ni (trumpet), Isabelle Marois (trumpet with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg), Kristina Mascher (solo horn with the Flemish Radio Orchestra), Leon Ni (solo trombone with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg) and David Polkinhorn (solo tuba with the Saarbrücken Radio Orchestra). Each of these players lives either in or near Luxembourg and, while none is Luxembourgeois, the group includes three Americans, one Canadian, and one Englishman - each very happy to be residing in this small, but culturally wealthy, country. The group wanted to thank Kerry Turner in public for his support, advice, and music during preparation for the competition.

BTS News caught up with Leon Ni to find out how thing have been going for him personally in Luxembourg since leaving Scotland.

I’ve been doing well, thanks, and the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg has been a really nice job. I’ve really enjoyed the international flavour of the orchestra as we have musicians from all over Europe, the Americas, and Asia. The trombone section itself is half French and half American. The mix of nationalities gives the orchestra a really unique and interesting sound.

Since my arrival here, we’ve got a new musical director, Emmanuel Krivine, and a beautiful new concert hall. I have to say that I’m quite happy here. The orchestra plays at a high level and is filled with wonderful, talented, and sympathetic colleagues.

I think the hardest thing to adapt to here is the languages. Over the years, I will have the learn the three official languages of the country: French, German and Luxembourgeois. I’ve reached a conversational level in French and am just starting to study a little bit of German. I am probably a good five or six years off being able to have conversations in all three! Luckily for my children, they probably will adapt much faster as they can already speak Luxembourgeois at a good level.

Trombones feature in the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra October 2006 podcast. The PodGuide to the Orchestra features CBSO principal trombonist Philip Harrison and bass trombonist Alwyn Green as they reveal their instruments’ characters and talk about the great trombone solos in Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 and Ravel’s Bolero.

CBSO October 2006 podcast.

It’s been a while since Matt Guilford interviewed his last candidate for his collection of bass trombonist interviews. This time it’s the turn of Stephen Saunders, bass trombonist in the BBC Symphony Orchestra and bass sackbut with His Majesty’s Sagbutts and Cornetts.

Steve tells of his studies with Denis Wick at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and working with Ray Premru, Maurice Murphy, Derek Watkins, James Watson and Don Lusher. He also describes a bizarre occurrence involving a rat and a euphonium.

Read the interview with Stephen Saunders at Matt Guilford’s weblog.

Matthew Guilford, bass trombonist in the National Symphony Orchestra, who has already brought us interviews with bass trombonists Douglas Yeo and Alastair Sinclair in recent weeks, now contributes an interview with one of the most highly respected bass trombonists to have graced the stages of London concert venues, Bob Hughes. Bob speaks of his illustrious past in the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra, as well as his recent suffering from Task Specific Focal Dystonia, which has unfortunately led him to resign his position in the LSO in the last few weeks. Read the interview with Bob Hughes on Matt Guilford’s weblog.

Royal Scottish National Orchestra bass trombonist Alastair Sinclair has been interviewed by National Symphony Orchestra bass trombonist Matthew Guilford in the first of a series of interviews. Says Alastair:

When I was 11 I wanted to play the trumpet but all that was available at my school was a trombone. Two of us were to share it for a week on a trial basis to see who was most suited. On the second day I managed to get the slide bent around a desk and when it came back from being repaired, six months later, I was the only one still interested.

In Matthew Guilford’s own words:

This series will feature all kinds of bass trombone players, from high school students to seasoned orchestral players and everything in between.

Based on his recent interview with Boston Symphony Orchestra bass trombonist Douglas Yeo, we have much to look forward to in this forthcoming series of interviews from Matthew Guilford.

Interview with Alastair Sinclair at Matthew Guilford’s weblog.

National Symphony Orchestra bass trombonist Matthew Guilford has published a fascinating interview with his teacher, Boston Symphony Orchestra bass trombonist Douglas Yeo. Doug’s insights into life in the back row of an orchestra are refreshing and worth reading by every trombonist.

My favourite thing to do in the orchestra? Play soft chorales. I love playing softly. Really softly. For me, the most rewarding part of any piece is the moment when I get to play a soft chord with the rest of the low brass section. It may not be moment that has any great musical significance and most people won’t even notice it. But the satisfaction I get from being part of a soft chord is something that I find deeply rewarding, far more rewarding than blowing my head off in some fortissimo passage.

Interview with Douglas Yeo.