Saturday, December 15, 2012

Concerto for Tuba and Orchestra by Ron Newman

Philip Sinder, professor of tuba and euphonium at the Michigan State University College of Music, recently presented two performances of the exciting Concerto for Tuba and Orchestra, written by Ron Newman. The premiere performance was held on January 27, 2012, on the MSU campus, with the Michigan State University Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leon Gregorian. Sinder had an additional opportunity to perform the work on September 30, 2012, in Big Rapids, Michigan, with the Grand Rapids Symphony and conductor John Varineau, as a part of the annual TubaBach festival.


L-R, Leon Gregorian, Ron Newman, Jere Hutcheson, and Philip Sinder

Composer Ron Newman, a member of the faculty at Michigan State University, has written several works featuring the tuba. His compositional approach merges elements of classical and jazz styles in a fresh and unique manner. The tuba concerto is a seventeen-minute work in three distinct movements, with the following titles: 1) "Interactions, with resulting reactions," 2) "Clarity, with a touch of nostalgia," and 3) "Maynard Ferguson played the valve trombone." Set against a liberal dose of percussion effects and grooves, the tubist navigates challenging solo lines and intricate ensemble color voicings throughout the orchestral palette.

The tuba concerto of Ron Newman was written in part to recognize two longtime colleagues at Michigan State University. It is dedicated to composer Jere Hutcheson and celebrates the legacy of conductor Leon Gregorian.

Double Concerto for Euphonium and Tuba by James Grant

As a professional tuba/euphonium duo, SYMBIOSISDUO (Gail Robertson, euphonium and Dr. Stacy Baker, tuba) was enthusiastic to join the consortium, led by Dr. Mark Nelson and Dr. Pat Stuckemeyer, to commission James Grant to write a double concerto for euphonium and tuba with wind ensemble. The concerto is in three movements. The first movement is called "Playground" and, as Grant describes in his program note, the relentless technical challenges may remind the audience of seesaws, sliding boards, and other playground equipment. Grant says that the second movement, "Passage," "is best described as the recollection of a journey," a journey which is followed by the third movement - "Sprint" - which brings the concerto to an exciting close.


James Grant with Stacey Baker, L, and Gail Robertson, R

Dr. Grant was in residence with SYMBIOSISDUO on October 8 and 9, 2012 at Morehead State University in Morehead, KY. Residency activities included a presentation by Dr. Grant on his choral symphony, Such Was the War, based on Walt Whitman's poetry written during the American Civil War when Whitman served as a volunteer nurse. Dr. Grant also gave a presentation on Composition and Business. Robertson directed the MSU Tuba/Euphonium Ensemble in rehearsal of her original composition, A Eupher's Dream for 8 euphoniums and provided her insights into composition versus arranging. The residency culminated in the premiere performance in its final version of Dr. Grant'sDouble Concerto for Euphonium and Tuba and Wind Ensemble by SYMBIOSISDUO with the MSU Symphony Band under the direction of Dr. Richard Miles. SYMBIOSISDUO premiered the version of Dr. Grant's Double Concerto with piano on October 28th, 2012 at Michigan State University on one of Robertson's DMA recitals. (www.jamesgrantmusic.com, www.symbiosisduo.com)

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Call for Photographs, Videos, or Recordings from the First International Tuba Symposium and Workshop in Bloomington, IN, 1973.

As part of our documentation of the history of T.U.B.A./I.T.E.A, we are seeking any photographs, videos, or recordings from the 1973 Tuba Symposium in Bloomington, Indiana. There was an official photographer for that event, though to this point, to the knowledge of the author, the photographs have not been located. Additionally, there is some question about whether any of the performances/presentations may have been documented by either audio or video recordings. If you have any photographs or other media from the 1973 Symposium that you would be willing to share, please contact Mike Lynch (mikelynchtubahistory@gmail.com).

Thursday, November 1, 2012

PODCAST: Oystein Baadsvik and Tuba Civil Rights

Sam Quinones interviews Øystein before a masterclass at USC. Podcast of the interview is available at the author/journalist Sam Quinones's website: samquinones.com.

Monday, October 8, 2012

New Harvey Phillips Book now available from IU Press

With warmth and humor, tuba virtuoso Harvey Phillips tells the story of his amazing life and career from his Missouri childhood through his days as a performer with the King Brothers and the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circuses, his training at the Juilliard School, a stint with the US Army Field Band, and his freelance days with the New York City Opera and Ballet. A founder of the New York Brass Quintet, Phillips served as vice president of the New England Conservatory of Music and became Distinguished Professor of Music at Indiana University. The creator of an industry of TubaChristmases, Octubafests, and TubaSantas, he crusaded for recognition of the tuba as a serious musical instrument, commissioning more than 200 works. Enhanced by an extensive gallery of photographs, Mr. Tuba conveys Phillips's playful zest for life while documenting his important musical legacy.

Click to order your copy!!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

1st Annual Bob Stewart Tuba Competition

The 1st Annual Bob Stewart Tuba Competition, created by The Duke Ellington Center for the Arts, will be held on Saturday, October 20, 2012 from 2 to 5 PM as part of The 37th Annual 52nd Street Duke Ellington Jazz Festival. The competition has been created to provide enhanced exposure to the many dynamic tuba players who perform in improvisational music ensembles in and around the New York area. The five groups chosen for the competition perform in a wide range of genres from traditional and contemporary Jazz to Blues, hip-hop, funk rock and world music.

“There are five of the top-rated music ensembles today whose musical repertoires are built around the tuba,” said Bob Stewart, a world-famous tuba player and Board member of the Duke Ellington Center, who is coordinating the competition. “I was very fortunate to have had wonderful opportunities as a young tuba player, and through this competition I’d like to show my appreciation for those who helped me launch my career by sharing my knowledge and experience with some of the young musical lions of today,” Stewart said. “It is my sincere hope that this forum will shine a spotlight on some very deserving musicians and spread the appreciation of the tuba’s unique voice in today’s textured and rich music scene.”

The tuba has long been one of the most important instruments in the jazz world, especially in New Orleans, Stewart noted. “From the legendary marching jazz bands who have patrolled the streets of Bourbon Street for ages to jazz orchestras who perform in prestigious concert halls across the world, the distinctive sound of the tuba has been a major component of jazz compositions written and created by current and past jazz greats, among them Duke Ellington,” he said.

Participating in the 1st Bob Stewart Tuba Competition are these five music organizations: the ten member Pitch Blak Brass Band, who describe their musical style as ‘Hip-Hop Brass’; Ralph Hamperian’s Tuba D’Amore, a five piece ensemble specializing in ‘Hard Bop’; Stumblebum Brass Band, a trio specializing in ‘Punk Influenced Rock’; Tuba Joe and the New Tuba Love, a quintet that performs ‘Rock/Jazz/Funk’; and Kenneth Bentley’s Color 4, a four-piece ensemble specializing in ‘Contemporary Jazz.’ 1st Annual Bob Stewart Tuba Competition Announcement

The judges for the competition are Larry Kerchner, a renowned songwriter, arranger and composer and a member of the Drum Corps International Hall of Fame, and Marcus Rojas, a world famous tuba player, teacher and composer.

As a warm-up to the Tuba Competition, the first two hours of the 52nd Street Jazz Festival on October 20 -- 12 Noon to 2 PM – will feature a Trio composed of members of the Duke Ellington Center Big Band in an all-Ellington music program featuring jazz vocalists Marion Cowings and Antoinette Montague, tap dancer Alex Cowings, ballroom dancer Michael Choi and his partner.

A small “traveling tuba ensemble” will perform along 52nd Street between 5th and 7th Avenues, and at the CBS Broadcast Plaza at the corner of 52nd Street and 6th Avenue, to ‘promote’ the competition in the hours before it begins. The entire five-hour program, including the Tuba Competition and the Jazz musical performances preceding it, will take place on the Festival Performance Stage located on the northeast corner of 52nd Street and 6th Avenue, directly opposite of the CBS Broadcast Center.

For additional information, visit www.thedukeellingtoncenter.org or www.bobstewartuba.com/.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Newly Revised ITEA By-Laws

After careful study of the 2010 revision of our By-Laws, the ITEA Governance Committee, recommended a variety of editorial changes to the ITEA By-Laws to the Board of Directors. As directed by Article 13 of the 2010 By-Laws, the Board of Directors examined, discussed and subsequently voted to pass the recommended changes on September 14, 2012. To see the revised By-Laws, go to the members section of the ITEA Web Site and click on TUBA/ITEA History to navigate to the By-Laws. Or CLICK.
~Jerry Young, ITEA Vice-President-President Elect

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

MWRTEC CHANGE!

The ITEA Midwest Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference has changed venues/hosts. The conference is now going to be hosted at Illinois State University by Andrew Rummel on May 17-19, 2013. Dates and Conference Information is forthcoming! Many thanks to Dr. Rummel for taking on the change, as I'm sure he'll put together a spectacular conference!!

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

From Madisondotcom: Paul William Haugan

MILWAUKEE - Paul William Haugan, age 57, passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, July 28, 2012. A resident of Milwaukee, Paul grew up in Madison where he attended Nakoma, Cherokee and West High Schools. He attended UW-Madison briefly and went on to study in Montreaux, Switzerland.

Music was a huge part of Paul's life once he discovered the tuba in junior high. Paul would say, "I never remember a day when I didn't love playing the tuba." A descendant of J. S. Bach, and a distant cousin of Richard Wagner, his talent had historic roots. He began musical training at age 12 and over the years studied with renowned tubists Arnold Jacobs, Chester Schmitz, and Abe Torchinsky.
Paul started his career under the bigtop at age 15 with a night with Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus Band as a last minute replacement for their tuba player. The circus wanted to hire him but his parents objected. Friends sometimes jokingly referred to him as the "Last of the Bigtop Tubaists". As an adult he played on the band wagon in the Milwaukee Circus Parade.

Paul became Principal Tuba of the Nuremberg Philharmonic at age 18. Returning to the United States he played in the Chicago Brass Ensemble and worked as a studio musician in Chicago. Primarily an orchestral player, Paul traveled to Europe three times as a featured soloist with separate musical organizations. He played and/or recorded with various diverse groups including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; The Lyric Opera of Chicago; The Moody Blues; Emerson, Lake and Palmer; Blood, Sweat and Tears; The Bavarian Radio Symphony, Tony Brown and the Landing Crew; Preservation Hall Jazz Band and others. He played backup for Sinatra, Streisand, Arlo Guthrie, Count Basie and various classical artists on their stops in the Midwest. At the time of his passing he was playing tuba with The Madison Symphony, The Rockford Symphony, The Green Bay Symphony, The Milwaukee Festival City Symphony, and The Capitol City Band.

Paul's other interests included natural history and zoology. He even one time captured and handled rattlesnakes as part of a Wisconsin DNR wildlife relocation program. He said what his symphony colleagues didn't know was he was more concerned about the future of endangered species than the future of the tuba or symphonies. He combined both interests when he practiced outside. He admitted his oddest practice quarters may have been playing tuba on the shores of Horicon Marsh surrounded by hundreds of geese.

Paul is survived by sister, Judi Haugan Ryan; by nephews and niece, Noah, Henry and Lark Ryan; and by dear friend, Walter Marozick. Paul was predeceased by parents, Robert William and Dorothy Bach Haugan.

Memorial contributions in Paul's name can be made to The Nature Conservancy in Wisconsin. We know he would love to think that a small piece of the nature he loved was being preserved in his name as a way to honor his memory.