Trumpet Teacher Talk

Episode 52: "Keep the phrase going" - a conversation with Charles Daval

Trumpet player Charles Daval has held positions in some of North America’s most prestigious orchestras including the Boston Symphony, the Cincinnati Symphony and the Seattle Symphony. His principal appointments have included the Boston Pops and the Solo Trumpet position of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. In 1993, Mr. Daval was appointed Professor of Trumpet at the University of Michigan. Mr. Daval moved to Pittsburgh in 1998 to enable his wife to accept the Principal Second Violin position in the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Since the move he has been appointed Principal Trumpet of the Pittsburgh Opera and Pittsburgh Ballet Theater Orchestras and continues to maintain an active teaching and performing schedule. In the spring of 2008, Mr. Daval fulfilled a lifelong dream when he received the degree of Juris Doctor (Cum Laude) from the Duquesne University Law School, where he enrolled in the fall semester 2004. As a law student, Mr. Daval worked to secure benefits for Veterans and their families through his participation in the Duquesne University Veteran’s Benefits Clinic in 2006-07, and he participated in the Civil Rights Litigation Clinic at Duquesne University’s Center for the Bill of Rights. After passing the bar examination in the summer of 2008, Mr. Daval was admitted by the State Supreme Court to the bar of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In the winter of 2009 he passed bar exams in Colorado and Wyoming, and is admitted to the bars of both states.

Highlights from his performing career include appearances on PBS broadcasts of “Evening at Pops” with conductor – composer John Williams and the Boston Pops from 1984 to 1988. In 1986, he was featured on Maryland Public Television’s “Live from Wolftrap” as cornet soloist with Keith Brion’s “New Sousa Band.” Additional appearances as soloist include concerts with the Boston Pops, the Cincinnati Pops, the Toronto Symphony, the Rochester Philharmonic, the Detroit Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony, the Naples Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony, and the Carmel Bach Festival. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from San Jose State University, Mr. Daval went on to study with Vincent Cichowicz at Northwestern University where he earned his Masters Degree and was elected to the Pi Kappa Lambda music honor society. While in Chicago, he also performed with the Chicago Civic Orchestra and studied with Principal Trumpet of the Chicago Symphony, Adolph Herseth.

The trumpet playing of Charles Daval has been met with much critical acclaim. The San Francisco Chronicle called him “downright sensational”, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer praised his “musical finesse and technical polish”. His performances on the piccolo trumpet at the Carmel Bach Festival hailed this response from the Monterey Peninsula Herald; “Daval’s sound is all that can be asked of the Baroque trumpeter: He is polished, accurate, and articulate.” And the San Francisco Examiner says; “He made every note a personal treasure.”

Email: [email protected]

When the student is ready, the Teacher will appear-A conversation with Dr. Keith Winking

Episode 50: Creating Aural Images-A Conversation with Kurt Gorman

Kurt Gorman, D.M.A., Professor of Music, joined music faculty at the University of Tennessee at Martin in 2004. He directs the UTM Big Band and Small Jazz Group and teaches applied trumpet. Prior to his appointment, Gorman served as the Principal Trumpet of Orquesta Sinaloa de las Artes, in Culiacan, Mexico.

Dr. Gorman holds the position of Principal Trumpet of the Paducah Symphony Orchestra and performs regularly with the UTM Faculty Brass Quintet. He is an active member of the International Trumpet Guild and appeared as a soloist at ITG Conferences in 2009 and 2012. Dr. Gorman commissioned and premiered the Sonata for Trumpet and Piano, Op. 45 by the renowned composer Easley Blackwood, as well as the Sonata for Trumpet by hornist, composer and long-time friend, Wayne Lu. Dr. Gorman’s primary scholarly interest is chamber music. He was awarded a Reagan Leave for spring 2015 to continue research on his doctoral dissertation entitled, “The Trumpet in Mixed Chamber Music of the Twentieth Century.” Dr. Gorman is Vice President and editor of Veritas Musica Publishing. 

 Dr. Gorman holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Chicago and graduate degrees in performance from the University of North Texas and the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He has studied privately with Keith Johnson, Keith Benjamin, Jeff Curnow, John Holt, and Guy Victor Bordo.

Episode 49: Teaching to Their Strengths - A conversation with Max Matzen

Noted for his sharp and persuasive playing (Jack Bowers, allaboutjazz.com), Max Matzen is steadily emerging as one of America's prominent trumpet artists. He maintains an international performing career as a soloist, and member of a variety of ensembles.

Mr. Matzen has tallied performances on some of the world’s most prestigious stages and festivals. He has performed with the Eastman Wind Ensemble at Carnegie Hall, and has also performed at the famed North Sea, Vienne, and Montreaux jazz festivals. He has performed and assisted in master classes administered at the International Association of Jazz Educators (IAJE) conferences in Toronto, New York City, and New Orleans.

In May of 2011, Matzen completed a solo recital tour in the Osaka and Kyoto areas of Japan. As a member of the Emerald Brass Quintet, he was a featured performer in the premier of Jim Stephenson’s Dodecafecta for brass quintet and wind ensemble, accompanied by the Eastman Wind Ensemble. The Emerald Brass Quintet was also a featured performing ensemble at the Frankenwald Brass Festival in Hof, Germany in July 2009. Notable jazz artists he has performed with include Terence Blanchard, Benny Green, Slide Hampton, Antonio Hart, The Heath Brothers, Conrad Herwig, Pat Martino, Bob Mintzer, James Moody, Eddie Palmieri, Maria Schneider, Ira Sullivan, and the legendary Clark Terry.

In April 2011 Matzen completed the Doctor of Musical Arts at the Eastman School of Music where he studied trumpet with esteemed brass pedagogue James Thompson. He currently holds a Master of Music in trumpet performance and literature from the Eastman School of Music, and a Bachelor of Music in jazz studies from the University of North Florida. From 2010 until 2012 Matzen was the Assistant Professor of trumpet at Texas Tech University. Matzen joined the faculty at Utah State University in fall of 2012.

Max Matzen is a Yamaha Performing Artist.

Episode 48: Audiate! A Conversation with Dr. Eric Swisher

Before his appointment to Murray State University in 2003, Dr. Eric Swisher worked as freelance musician in Oklahoma, Indiana, California, and Texas performing with: the Dallas Wind Symphony, the Dallas Opera Orchestra, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, the Irving Symphony, the Evansville Philharmonic, the Paducah Symphony (KY) and the Jackson Symphony (TN).

Episode 47: "Simplify" A conversation with Kyle Milsap

Kyle Millsap is Assistant Professor of Trumpet & Jazz at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. In addition to applied teaching duties, Dr. Millsap directs Jazz Band 3, the TAMUK Trumpet Ensemble, the Jazz Trumpet Ensemble, and performs with the Kingsville Brass Quintet. His performances span orchestral, chamber, and jazz/commercial idioms, including opportunities to perform in England, Germany, Mexico, and throughout the United States. He has performed with The Temptations, Mannheim Steamroller, Johnny Mathis, the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, Al Kapone, Jon Mayer, Rufus Reid, Kirk Whalum, Memphis Symphony Orchestra, Eroica Ensemble, Memphis Repertory Orchestra, Germantown Symphony Orchestra, Corinth Symphony Orchestra, Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfonica UANL, Jazz Orchestra of the Delta, Memphis Jazz Orchestra, as well as productions with Ballet Memphis.

Theater credits include performances for nearly a dozen national touring company productions, including The Addams Family, Anything Goes, Chicago, Dreamgirls, High School Musical, South Pacific, and Young Frankenstein. He has performed at halftime for the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies, the Elvis Presley 35th Anniversary concert, and been seen on BET television. He has been frequently heard on the Memphis Public Radio WKNO Live Lunch series. He has been a featured soloist with the Corpus Christi Wind Symphony and the TAMUK Wind Symphony.

A proponent of new music for trumpet, Dr. Millsap has commissioned and premiered several new works for trumpet: Shalom, Salaam, Peace… (2010) written for two trumpets and organ, Scatter the Darkness (2011) for trumpet and organ and A Whisper of Angels (2012) for trumpet quartet and narrator, 2x4: Domestic Tranquility (2013) for trumpet and flugelhorn duet, Cuando las ranas crien pelo (2014) for trumpet sextet. His recording of these compositions will be released on the album Scatter the Darkness: New Music of Stanley Friedman. He can be heard as principal trumpet with the Memphis Repertory Orchestra on their recordings Dvorak & Tchaikovsky and Voyagers, and as lead trumpet on the Southern Comfort Jazz Orchestra recording Voices.

Dr. Millsap has written articles and reviews for the International Trumpet Guild Journal and serves as a music reviewer. He has published compositions and arrangements through Cimarron Music and Triplo Press. He has performed at the International Horn Symposium and presented at the Texas Music Educators Association and Tennessee Music Educators Association conventions. He is a member of the Artist Faculty for the National Trumpet Competition.

Dr. Millsap holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Memphis, Master of Music degree from the University of North Texas, and Bachelor of Music degree from Wichita State University. Prior faculty appointments include the University of Memphis and Murray State University. He is a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors, Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Jazz Educators Association, and Pi Kappa Lamba.

Dr. Millsap is a Yamaha Performing Artist, as well as an artist for Torpedo Bags.

For more information on the trumpet studio or Dr. Millsap, visit tamuktrumpets.com or millsaptrumpets.com. 

Episode 46: Letting Go of Expectations - A conversation with Pete Estabrook

Pete Estabrook earned a Bachelor of Music Degree in Professional Music from Berklee College (Boston, MA) in 1987 and Master of Fine Arts Degree in Jazz Studies from California Institute for the Arts (Valencia, CA) in 1991. He is also an AmSat certified Alexander Technique Teacher and completed that training at the Northern California Center for the Alexander Technique (Redwood City, CA) in 2011.

Pete is a student of internationally recognized Yamaha Trumpet Artist and Clinician: Bobby Shew. He has also studied trumpet privately with 25 teachers, including: Mario Guineri, Roy Poper, Jon Lewis, and Steve Braet (who were all students of James Stamp).

Formerly on the Jazz Faculty at Sonoma State University (1999-2011), Pete has been on the at Santa Rosa Junior College Faculty for over 20 years, where he has taught Jazz Courses, Music Fundamentals, and Applied Music (Trumpet). He has also been an Adjunct Faculty Member for Pacific Union College and Napa Valley College. He has been and active Private Trumpet Instructor for 34 years. He has transcribed over 400 Jazz Trumpet Solos as well as numerous Original Jazz Compositions and Arrangements by various Blue Note Artists. Pete's Transcriptions of Miles Davis' Solos were included as bonus material with the 2006 and 2009 re-releases of the 50's Prestige Sessions by the Concord Music Group. Under the guidance of James Newton (Downbeat Poll Winner-Jazz Flute), Pete transcribed and arranged portions of Duke Ellington's "Queen's Suite". This work, previously unreleased, was performed by the Danish National Radio Orchestra in 1991. As a student, Pete had the good fortune to perform with, and arranged for, ensembles featuring such well-known jazz artists as Bobby Shew, Charlie Haden, James Newton, Red Calendar, Bruce Forman, Tom Scott, Carl Fontana, Joe Williams, Albert Heath, Ernie Watts, and Roscoe Mitchell.

In addition to performing regularly in a variety of musical settings which include Orchestral, Theater, Dance, and Brass groups, Pete also plays with his own Jazz Quintet (the Blue Note Collective). He has appeared on several albums by local artists including: Mel Graves' "Ear Shot", Bonnie Brooks' “You are the Song in Me”,and Steve Wolf's “Joy Button”. For the past 31 years, Pete has served as the Racetrack Bugler on the Northern California Fair Circuit, performing each summer for Fairs in Alameda, Humboldt, Sonoma, Solano, and San Joaquin County, as well as the Sacramento State Fair, and in the “off season”, for Cal Expo Harness Racing. Prior to teaching at the College level, Pete worked Holland America, Princess and Carnival Cruise Lines as a featured soloist and lead player.

Episode 45: Finding the Beauty in Your Sound - A conversation with Dr. Christopher Moore

Grammy Award-winner, Professor Christopher Moore has been teaching trumpet at FSU since 2003. Prior to his appointment at FSU, Dr. Moore was Associate Professor of Trumpet at the University of Kansas, where for seven years he directed the trumpet studio, conducted the trumpet ensemble and performed as a member of the Kansas Brass Quintet. Dr. Moore also served as Assistant Professor of Music at Morningside College from 1989 to1993, and from 1994 to 1996 was a full-time member of the Philadelphia professional brass quintet, The Chestnut Brass Company, recording 4 CD’s with that group and winning the Grammy Award in their field in 2000 with Hornsmoke, a CD that featured the brass chamber music of Peter Schickele.

Dr. Moore holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music, a Master of Music in Performance from the University of New Mexico, and a Bachelor of Music in Performance from The Florida State University. He has won numerous solo competitions, including top prize at the ITG competition and at state and regional MTNA competitions. Professor Moore has also been a finalist at the Ellsworth Smith International Trumpet Competition as well as the MTNA National Finals.

Dr. Moore has presented clinics at the Midwest Clinic, the NACWPI National Convention, and has performed at the National MENC. He is on the Executive Board of the National Trumpet Competition, is a Selmer Artist, and can be heard on his first solo CD, Trumpeting the Stone, on the Mark Masters label, and most recently recorded the Progressive Etudes by Sigmund Hering for Carl Fischer Publications.

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.fsutrumpetstudio.com

Episode 44: Practicing What You Preach - A conversation with Jim Johnson

Dr. Jim Johnson grew up in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Before joining the faculty at Kansas State University, he earned his D.M. in Trumpet Performance from The Florida State University under the guidance of Dr. Christopher Moore, his M.M. in Trumpet Performance from Kansas State University with Dr. Gary Mortenson and his B.S. in Music Education from the Indiana University of Pennsylvania under Dr. Kevin Eisensmith. As an active performer, Dr. Johnson currently serves as the Principal Trumpet of the Salina Symphony Orchestra in Salina, Kansas and performs with the Kansas State University Faculty Brass Quintet.  He has performed with the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra (Tallahassee, FL), Albany Symphony Orchestra (Albany, GA), and Sinfonia Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra (Destin, FL). Dr. Johnson is also an accomplished arranger as well, having his music performed at the National Trumpet Competition, the Kansas Music Educators Association All-State Conference, and at the Haus Marteau Brass Chamber Workshop in Lichtenberg, Germany

Episode 43: Guidebook for the Beginning Trumpeter-A conversation with Dustin Williams

Dustin Williams is the Adjunct Professor of Trumpet at Graceland University and a freelance teacher in the Kansas City area. He has written a new method book for trumpet titled: A Guidebook for the Beginning Trumpeter. Much of the material is based on his experiences and needs in working with many young trumpet students throughout his career.

The book can be purchased at squareup.com/store/wmc.  The wmc stands for Williams Music Company.  

Dustin can be contacted at  [email protected]