DSU Music Dept. Hosts 2nd Annual Brass Day

Sunday, February 7, 2010

The Delaware State University Music Department will hold its second annual Brass Day that will feature clinics and performance opportunities for brass musicians of all ages as well as be highlighted by three separate concerts by a number of DSU Brass Ensemble groups, the U.S. Naval Band Brass Quintet and the Rodney Mack Philadelphia Big Brass, all taking place throughout the day on Friday, Feb. 12 in the Education and Humanities Building and Theatre.

The day will begin at 12 noon with a concert featuring all of DSU’s brass groups – the DSU Trombone Ensemble, the Tuba/Euphonium Ensemble, the “Sting” Brass Quintet, the “Valve” Brass Quintet, as well as DSU faculty members Dr. Patrick Hoffman and Dr. Frank Gazda.

That will be followed by a 1 p.m. clinics/reading session for trumpet, horn, trombone, baritone/euphonium and tuba. These sessions are open to all participants

At 2 p.m. the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) Band Brass Quintet will perform a concert in the Education and Humanities Theatre. The USNA Band Brass Quintet, which is dedicated to the promotion of traditional and contemporary brass quintet literature, is based in the Annapolis area where it has been widely hailed as clinicians by schools and colleges of that area. This concert is free and open to the public.

The DSU Trombone Ensemble -- (l-r) James Scarborough, Ashton Haines, Shawn Walker, Dr. Frank Gazda (director), Ruben Fountain and Janae Huff -- will be one of several DSU Brass Ensembles to perform during the Brass Day event.

At 7:15 p.m. there will be a prelude concert featuring the DSU Brass Ensembles and the “Mass Brass” Ensemble.

At 8 p.m. the Rodney Mack Philadelphia Big Brass will perform the feature concert of the day. The band is composed of some of America’s top brass musicians, with member of the group having been performers with elite symphony musicians such as the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Baltimore Symphony, Sào Paulo State Symphony Orchestra, Imani Winds, Canadian Brass and the Boston Brass. The bandleader Rodney Mack is a cousin of renowned jazz trumpet player Wynton Marsalis.

The Rodney Mack Concert, which will also be held in the Education & Humanities Theatre, will cost $5 for student and $10 for adults.

All of the day’s events will take place in the Education & Humanities Theatre on campus. Students (DSU and non-DSU) of all ages, amateur and professional brass players, and all music lovers are welcome for a day of clinics, workshops, and concerts.

With the exception of Rodney Mack concert, all other activities are free and open to the public. Please contact Frank Gazda at (302) 857-7885 or fgazda@desu.edu for directions or additional information.