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The Atlantic
Brass |
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Atlantic Brass Quintet, January
25, 2009 Widely acclaimed as one of the world’s finest brass ensembles,
the Atlantic Brass Quintet has been heard in 48 of the United States and more
than a dozen countries across four continents, performing a unique repertory
spanning Dufay, Gesualdo, and Bach; Babbitt, Ellington, and Zappa; and ethnic
music from the streets of Brazil, Cuba, the Balkans, and New Orleans. Winner
of six international chamber music competitions, the Quintet’s
distinctive sound, impeccable ensemble, stunning virtuosity, and warm,
inviting stage presence have won praise from scores of critics. For
CMYS, they will play pieces from the two golden ages of brass music, the
Renaissance and right now. The Quintet Founded in 1985, the Atlantic Brass Quintet launched its career with a phenomenal
string of competition victories over a period of two years. Grand prizes
include the Coleman Chamber Music Competition, the Carmel Chamber Music
Society Competition, the Shoreline Alliance Chamber Music Competition, the
Summit Brass First International Brass Ensemble Competition, and the Rafael
Mendez International Brass Quintet Competition. Following these remarkable
achievements, the Atlantic Brass Quintet was honored by Musical America by being named “Young Artists of
1988.” In May 1992, by unanimous decision, the Quintet won the
“Première Prix” at the International Brass Competition of
Narbonne, France, recognized worldwide as the preeminent competition of its
kind. Highlights in the Quintet’s busy concert career include
performances at Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, the Santa Fe Chamber Music
Festival, the Boston Celebrity Series, Caramoor, and the White House.
Thousands have enjoyed their performances at Tanglewood-on-Parade, and in
1991, as part of Boston’s Fourth of July Celebration, Atlantic Brass
Quintet entertained an audience of over 350,000 on the Esplanade. Recent and
upcoming performances include the Festival of New American Music in
Sacramento, the Savannah Onstage International Festival, the Chautauqua
Institution, and the National Concert Association in Panama. The Quintet’s latest recording, “5 Chairs,” was
released by Summit Records in July 2004. It features music of Monteverdi and
Holborne, new works by Marti Eptstein and Ray Luke, the contemporary classic quintet
of Alvin Etler, and Oskar Boehme’s Sextet. Summit will reissue
“Picture This,” a favorite from the Quintet’s extensive
back catalogue, in early 2005. “Passages and Fanfares” was
released in the fall of 2002 and comprises music of Bach, Handel, Praetorius,
and Byrd alongside new works from Bernard Rands, Ray Luke, and Samuel
Headrick, as well as such audience favorites as Liszt’s
“Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2” and selections from the Atlantic Brass
Quintet’s “Brass Band Music from Around the World.” The Atlantic Brass Quintet has been the resident brass quintet of
Boston University, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and the Boston
Conservatory. The popular Atlantic Brass Quintet International Brass Seminar,
established in 1993 and now in residence at Boston College, has already
secured the ensemble’s legacy to the next generation of brass
musicians. A new annual seminar based at California State University, Sonoma,
was established in 2007. The Atlantic Brass Quintet can be heard on recordings from Summit
Records, Solstice, and Crystal. Alex Holton Alex Holton (trumpet) has performed with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra since 1977, the year he arrived in New York. He has been principal trumpet for the Long Island Philharmonic since 1983. On Broadway, Mr. Holton has played lead trumpet in The King & I, which won a 1997 Tony for Best Musical Revival, and currently plays in Les Misérables, Wicked, and Mary Poppins. His recordings include The King & I (Varese Sarabande Records), Baroque Trumpetissimo (ESS.A.Y Recordings), and A Grand Sousa Concert (EMI Records). In New York his brass chamber music career began in 1977 with the New York Trumpet Ensemble, founded by Gerard Schwartz, and he performed concerts with them nationally for almost 20 years. He has toured Europe performing with the Meridian Arts Ensemble. He has been a member of the quintets Brass Spectrum and the Columbia Brass Quintet. At age of 15, Mr. Holton won the North Carolina State Solo Competition, and was finalist as soloist in the Concert Artists Guild International Competition in 1991. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s in Music Education from East Carolina University and a Doctorate in Music Education from Columbia University. Louis
Hanzlik Louis Hanzlik (trumpet) is based in New York City, where he is active as an orchestral
player, chamber musician, and educator. Mr. Hanzlik has been a member of the
Atlantic Brass Quintet since 2002, and performs with the Orchestra of St.
Luke’s and Orpheus. In addition, he serves as co-principal trumpet with
the Riverside Symphony (New York), IRIS Chamber Orchestra (Memphis), and is a
member of the orchestra for Broadway’s Mary Poppins. As an
educator, Mr. Hanzlik is a trumpet instructor and chamber music coach at
Teachers College, Columbia University. Along with his colleagues in the
Atlantic Brass, he coordinates the ABQ International Seminar, now in
residence at Boston College and Sonoma State University. Originally from
Iowa, Louis Hanzlik is a graduate of the University of Iowa (B.M, 1998.) and the
Juilliard School (M.M., 2000). Seth Orgel Seth Orgel (French horn) is Assistant Professor of Horn Louisiana State University and has degrees from Northwestern University and Louisiana State University. His principal teachers were Dale Clevenger, Richard Oldberg, and Gail Williams. After spending more than ten seasons with the Syracuse Symphony horn section he moved to Boston to pursue and active freelance career including shows, jazz orchestras, orchestral, and chamber work. Orchestral credits include the Chicago Symphony, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the Filarmonica de Caracas, Rhode Island Philharmonic, Rochester Philharmonic, Buffalo Philharmonic, Louisiana Philharmonic, and currently principal horn with the Baton Rouge Symphony. Mr. Orgel has served on the faculties of The Boston Conservatory, Boston University, and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. In addition to the Atlantic Brass Quintet, Mr. Orgel plays regularly with the Timm Woodwind Quintet, and Norem Brass Quintet at LSU. Tim Albright Tim Albright (trombone) lives in New York City where he enjoys a diverse career as a sought-after chamber musician and a cutting-edge jazz artist. He is a regular member of many New York ensembles including Argento New Music Project, Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, and the Riverside Symphony. Mr. Albright is also a long-standing member of renowned saxophonist Steve Coleman’s group, Five Elements, widely considered one of the most challenging gigs in jazz. He can be heard on numerous recordings and has toured extensively throughout Europe, Africa, Asia and the U.S. Other appearances have included the International Contemporary Ensemble and the Maria Schneider Orchestra. He is frequently heard in the orchestras of current Broadway shows. Mr. Albright originates from the Napa Valley, California and attended the Eastman School of Music. He has been a member of the Atlantic Brass Quintet since 2007. John
Manning John Manning (tuba)
is a founding member of the Atlantic Brass Quintet and serves on the faculty
of the University of Iowa. Mr. Manning received his music degrees from Boston
University and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He has also served
as principal tuba of Air Force Band of the Golden West, the Albany Symphony,
the Vermont Symphony, and the Shirim Klezmer Orchestra. Professor Manning has
served on the faculties of Boston University, Boston Conservatory, and the
University of Massachusetts, and has performed with the Boston Symphony
Orchestra. Mr. Manning has performed at festivals and conferences in over
fifteen countries, including Costa Rica, Japan, and Kuwait, and at venues
such as Carnegie Hall, The White House, Boston’s Symphony Hall, The
House of Blues, The Knitting Factory, and the Santa Fe Chamber Music
Festival. His forthcoming debut solo recording, Four Corners: Tuba Music
from around the World, will be released on Summit Records. |
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