The music department displayed refined technique and style Tuesday with
a concert highlighting faculty and impressive student trumpet ensembles.
A wide array of repertoire was included in the program to show how versatile
an instrument the trumpet is. With works ranging from G.P. Telemann
(1681-1767) to Miles Davis (1926-1991) the tunes were a testament both to
the tastes of the faculty and its abilities.
The show opened with Trumpet Ensemble 2’s interpretation of Telemann’s
“Allegro for Six Trumpets.” Though young and unrefined, the players’
individual talents were audible and promising.
Veterans Rex Richardson and Taylor Barnett were on hand to perform
both classical and jazz pieces. Richardson and Barnett displayed their solid
musicianship by playing Miles’ classic “Milestones,” during which Richardson
played bass lines under Barnett’s solos, and Barnett played thoughtful melodic
lines under Richardson’s solos.
The stage lit up when newest trumpet faculty members Mary Bowden
and Brian Strawley were accompanied to the stage by Richardson. The trio
performed a delightful fanfare from the 20th century by Benjamin Britten
(1913-1976), titled “Fanfare for St. Edmundsbury.” This performance made
it clear students are in capable hands.
Bowden and faculty accompanist Laura Candler-White stole the crowd’s
hearts with a seven-movement piece titled, “Siete Canciones Populares Espanolas”
(“Seven Popular Spanish Songs”), by Manuel de Falla (1876-1946).
Using a variety of mutes, including a Crown Royal bag attached to a straight
mute, and classical techniques, Bowden showed why Yale’s graduates are so
highly regarded.
Aside from the utter dominance the faculty showed over Thomas Steven’s
(b. 1938) wonderful “A New Carnival of Venice,” my hat went off to the
Trumpet Ensemble 1, which performed a Rex Richardson original titled,
“Rhapsody Hijaz,” a piece inspired by a Turkish scale.
Comprised of the six most capable classical trumpet students at VCU,
the group showed amazing solidarity and understanding that allowed them
to move the audience with their lush blend and inspirational technique.
Richardson’s abilities as a writer were also evident and reminiscent of the
marvel he unleashed upon the world last February at VCU’s Concert for New
Music for Trumpet and Jazz Orchestra.
Following the show, Richardson’s CDs were sold in the lobby to funnel
profits to the trumpet ensemble, which will be traveling to London’s Trinity
College of Music for its Brass Festival in February.