Jose Martínez, tuba, Receives Tenure with National Orchestra of Spain

After a successful audition in January 2017, Jose Martínez was recently granted tenure as the Principal Tuba player of the National Orchestra of Spain. The orchestra makes its home at the National Auditorium of Music in Madrid where it performs the majority of its concerts.
In addition, the ensemble occasionally presents concerts all around Spain and abroad, including tours to Switzerland, Italy, Slovenia, and South Korea during the 2017-2018 season. Martínez is thankful for the occasional guidance and support received from Alan Baer, Anne Jelle Visser, Chris Olka, Dennis Nulty, Don Lucas, Floyd Cooley, Ingemar Roos, Jimmy Olsson, Ramiro Tejero, Randy Hawes, Sergio Carolino, Toby Oft and credits a great deal of progress to summer studies at Tanglewood, Music Academy of the West and the University of Redlands. He will forever be indebted to Mike Roylance, Gene Pokorny, Morten Agerup and Sergio Finca, his greatest influences. During his years of full-time study in the USA, Martínez was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and was fortunate to perform as guest with the Boston Symphony and Pops, Chicago Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and the Saint Louis Symphony. Martínez is currently completing a doctorate at Boston University College of Fine Arts.

Michael Bush (1964-2017)

The International Tuba Euphonium Association mourns the sudden passing of our dear friend and colleague Michael Bush, a member of the Board of Directors and Life Member of ITEA. Hopefully many of you had the opportunity to meet Michael at recent conferences. For those that did, I’m sure you would agree that his enthusiasm for the continued progress and success of our organization was paramount. Serving as our development officer, his work and dedication has been pivotal.

In addition to being a tubist and his service to ITEA, Michael was currently serving as minister at Pisgah Presbyterian Church, Versailles, Kentucky (USA).

For additional information, please visit http://www.blackburnandward.com/memsol.cgi?user_id=2028801.

New Hire: Dr. Jarrod Williams, East Carolina University

Dr. Jarrod Williams began his position as Teaching Professor of Tuba at East Carolina University in August of 2017. His responsibilities there include teaching tuba, the appreciation of music, and performing with the ECU Faculty Brass Quintet. Active as a performer and educator, Dr. Williams is recently retired from a 22-year career as principal tubist with The United States Naval Academy Band. Prior to joining the faculty at ECU, Dr. Williams held teaching positions at Pennsylvania State University, Salisbury University, Goucher College, and Anne Arundel Community College and is a design consultant for the Eastman Music Company.

New Hire: Jason Casanova, Jacksonville State University

Jason Casanova is joining the faculty at Jacksonville State University in Alabama as Adjunct Euphonium Instructor beginning with the 2017/18 academic year. https://www.facebook.com/CasanovaEuphonium.

This will be in addition to his duties at Georgia State University (GA) and Kennesaw State University (GA). He holds degrees from Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA and St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, TX. In addition to his college teaching, Jason teaches in some of the best schools and counties in Georgia. In terms of performance, he is Solo Euphonium with the Georgia Brass Band and a founding member of the tuba-euphonium quartet Divergence; he also plays with other diverse ensembles such as the 4th Ward Afro-Klezmer Orchestra and Mercury Orkestar. For more information, please visit his Facebook page:

New Hire: Robert Johnson, Royal Canadian Artillery Band

Robert Johnson is the newly appointed euphonium player for the Royal Canadian Artillery Band (RCA Band) based in Edmonton, Alberta. The duties of this band are to provide musical support to official Canadian Armed Forces ceremonies, outreach events, and public concerts throughout Canada and internationally. Recently, the RCA Band traveled to France to participate in the 100th anniversary commemoration of the battle of Vimy Ridge as well as to London to take part in the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. Robert is a multi-instrumentalist specializing in low brass and has performed with ensembles nationwide, including the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, the Naden Band of the Royal Canadian Navy, the Griffon Brass Band, and the Vic Vogel Big Band. His education includes the Schulich School of Music of McGill University, the University of Alberta, l’Université de Montréal, and in 2015 was an Artist in Residence at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. In addition to the RCA Band, he will be performing as a euphonium player with the Edmonton Winds as well as Solo Eb Bass with the Mill Creek Colliery Band. Robert resides in Edmonton with his wife Quincy and their cat Nala.

New Hire: Dr. Jennifer Jester, Missouri State University

Dr. Jennifer Jester is the newly appointed Instructor of Euphonium at

Missouri State University beginning in Fall 2017. Her duties will focus on teaching applied euphonium, Music Business, and Language of Music. Prior to her appointment, Dr. Jester held a teaching appointment at Millersville University as Director of Music Business and Technology and is currently owner and manager of School of Rock in Springfield, Missouri. She holds degrees from Arizona State University, California Institute for the Arts, and UCLA. Dr. Jester has performed with the River City Brass Band, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, Ft. Smith Symphony, Washington Symphonic Brass, and many others on euphonium, trombone, and bass trumpet. Her past teachers include Sam Pilafian, Doug Tornquist, Tommy Johnson, James Miller, and Dale Lonis. Jennifer is the Coordinator for Tuba Christmas in Springfield, MO. She is a Life Member of the International Tuba Euphonium Association and has served as a past Executive Director from 2007-2010.

New Hire: Joseph Alvarez, University of South Florida

Joseph Alvarez has been appointed to the position of Adjunct Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at the University of South Florida beginning fall of 2017. His duties will focus on applied instruction and directing the tuba-euphonium ensemble. Since 2016, Joseph has been the principal tubist of the Imperial Symphony in Lakeland. Before that, he served as principal tubist of the Sinfonia da camera in Urbana, IL since 2014. Joseph has performed with ensembles such as the Sarasota Orchestra, Sarasota Ballet, New World Symphony, Illinois Symphony, Champaign-Urbana Symphony, and Chicago-based new music collective dal niente. He has performed under the baton of conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Barry Wordsworth, Leonard Slatkin, James Gaffigan, Yan Pascal Tortelier, Larry Rachleff, Peter Oundjian, and Kristjan Jarvi. Joseph can soon be heard on the upcoming CD release—“ARISE”—featuring the music of Ola Gjeilo by the Key Chorale of Sarasota. With a passion for expanding the repertoire of the tuba and euphonium, Joseph regularly programs his own arrangements on recitals. His arrangement of Prokofiev’s Five Songs Without Words is published through Cherry Classics. Joseph Alvarez was the tuba fellow at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, CA in 2011, 2012, and 2013 where he studied with Ralph Sauer and Mark Lawrence. He also served as the tuba fellow with the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, CO in 2010. Mr. Alvarez holds degrees from the University of South Florida (BM) and Northwestern University (MM) and is a doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois. His primary teachers include Jay Hunsberger, Rex Martin, and Mark Moore.