Cardinal Brass Quintet
Cardinal Brass Quintet Trip to Belgium and Germany, Summer 2007
By Michael Tunnell
The University of Louisville School of Music Cardinal Brass Quintet and U of L Professor of Trumpet Michael Tunnell presented concerts in Belgium and Germany during June and July, 2007. The student chamber ensemble, under the direction of Tunnell and U of L Professor of Trombone Brett Shuster, was nominated for this trip after winning the Brass Area Competition held on November 28, 2006 at U of L. Members of the group are: Michael Swope, trumpet; Charles Calloway, trumpet; Kate Reyman, horn; Audrey Davis, trombone; and Aaron Gaither, tuba. The ensemble also won the Macauley Chamber Music Competition in Louisville on March 31, 2007.
In Belgium concerts were given on June 23 at the Chalet of the Koninklijke Harmonie De Jonge Scheuten, a community band of Wuustwezel, just outside Antwerp, and on June 24 at the Academy of Music in Antwerp. Belgian trumpet artist, Arthur Vanderhoeft, organized and coordinated these two concerts for the group. Cardinal Brass Quintet shared the Wuustwezel concert with the Koninklijke Harmonie De Jonge Scheuten, and they shared the Academy concert with the Academy’s band. Both of these bands were under the direction of Arthur Vanderhoeft. Both concerts were wonderful events and were extremely well received, and a particular highlight was the performance at each concert of a terrific arrangement by Arthur Vanderhoeft of the Concerto in F for two corni da caccia and orchestra with Tunnell and Vanderhoeft as soloists.
On Monday, June 25, the group traveled to Bremen, Germany, and spent the day at the Thein Brass Instruments Factory. Max Thein hosted us for a wonderful breakfast in the workshop, and then, as my Thein corno da caccia was being equipped for extra tuning devices, we all tried the different types of incredible brass instruments that Thein makes. What an amazing and fun day!
From Tuesday, June 26 through Sunday, July 1, we then participated in the Brass in Frankenwald Festival in Germany hosted by Rekkenze Brass. Rehearsal and classes were held in Haus Marteau near Lichtenberg, where the students stayed with host families. Two fantastic concerts were given on June 30 in Lichtenberg and on July 1 in Hof. Another student quintet from the USA, the Texas Christian University Student Brass Quintet, coached by Jon Burgess, also participated in the festival,. In addition, area students and semi-professional players signed up for the festival and formed a large brass choir. The guest artist for the festival was Øystein Baadsvik, the incredible Norwegian tuba artist. Øystein, hosts Rekkenze Brass, Jon Burgess, and Michael Tunnell gave master classes and coached all the groups. Members of Rekkenze Brass are: Peter Knudsvig, trumpet; Benjamin Sebald, trumpet; Debra Luttrell, horn; René Jampen, trombone; and Rainer Streit, tuba. This festival was an awe-inspiring event, and all the students made incredible musical progress and growth as a result. On Saturday, June 30, during the morning and afternoon before our concert, we took a sightseeing trip to Bayreuth and saw Wagner’s house, the Bayreuth Festspielhaus, and the Markgräfliches Opernhaus.
We arrived back in Louisville on July 2. Tremendous thanks go to the many individuals and groups who made this trip possible: Arthur Vanderhoeft; Dean Christopher Doane and the School of Music, University of Louisville; Louisville Brass Professors John Jones, Bruce Heim, Brett Shuster, and Herbert Koerselman; the Applied Area of the School of Music, John Jones, Chair; the Office of Undergraduate Affairs, U of L; Dale Billingsley; Aaron Vowels; Paul Detwiler; Reid Tanouye; Jan Ward; Jim Rightmyer; Louie Bailey; Robert Boozman; Max Thein; and all the host families both in Belgium and Germany.
