Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble to present Carnegie Hall preview concerts

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. (Jan. 10, 2003) – It’s not every day that Middle Tennessee audiences can catch musical performances worthy of Carnegie Hall — but next week will be an exception, thanks to the Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble.

The only group of its kind to perform at the famed New York City performance hall, the student ensemble will be making an unprecedented sixth appearance there on Saturday, Jan. 25.

And the TTTE has scheduled two special "Carnegie preview programs" so local audiences won’t have to miss out on the show.

The first will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 20, at the Heydel Fine Arts Center at Cumberland University in Lebanon, and the second will be held at 8 p.m. the following night at the Wattenbarger Auditorium of TTU’s Bryan Fine Arts Building.

Music professor and ensemble director Winston Morris initiated a completely new musical concept when he formed the university’s first student tuba ensemble in 1967.

"It allowed students of tuba and euphonium to develop their musical skills to the same level as students of other instruments," Morris said.

However, no specialized musical repertoire existed when the TTTE first began.

Hundreds of pieces have now been and continue to be composed for tuba and euphonium choirs. In fact, the ensemble plans to present the world premier of Leroy Osmon’s "Frescos de Bonampak (Octet No. 2)" in its Carnegie Hall show.

Other featured works will include Handel’s "Arrival of the Queen of Sheeba," Vivaldi’s "Winter," and Thelonius Monk’s "’Round Midnight."

For more information about the TTTE and its preview concerts, call the Bryan Fine Arts Building at 931/372-3161.

--Tracey LeFevre

This information posted 14 JANUARY 03