Carnegie VI
Program Notes
an album by...
The Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble
R. Winston Morris, director
Personnel
The Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble
Euphoniums
- Cory Belvin
- Anthony Brown
- Seth Fletcher
- Clint Isbill
- Keith Kile
- Aaron Marsee
- Ben McMillan
- Jacob Thorington
Tubas
- Scott Beaver
- Jesse Chavez
- Chris Crunk
- Brian DiDiego
- James Gronewald
- Joel Jones
- Justin King
- Angelo Kortyka
- Richard Lawson
- Jacqueline Newton
- Josh Rose
- Mark Smith
- John Visel
Percussion
- Paul Deatherage
- Matt Sliger
Program
- Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba.............G.F.Handel/arr. Joshua Hauser
Winter............................Antonio Vivaldi featuring Scott Beaver, solo tuba - I Allegro non molto
- II Largo
- III Allegro
- Pavane, OP. 50....................Gabriel Faure/arr. Kenyon D. Wilson
- Slavonic Dances, OP. 46, NO. 1 ............Antonin Dvorak/arr. David A. Butler
- Troika from "Lieutenant Kije".........Sergei Prokofiev/arr. David A. Butler
- Scherzo........................Greg Danner/tr. Jim Vaden
Giocoso from "Euphonium Concerto" ..........Vladimir Cosma/tr. Seth Fletcher featuring Seth Fletcher, solo euphonium - On Thin Ice .............................James C. Mobberley
- Frescos De Bonampak (Octet No. 2)...............Leroy Osmon
- Tubular Octad...................Fisher Tull
CD Review By Barton Cummings
for the International Tuba-Euphonium Association Journal, Volume 33, Number 2, Winter 2006, page 43/44
Carnegie VI . Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble, R. Winston Morris, Director. G.F. Handel/Hauser, Arrival of the Queen of Sheba ; Antonio Vivaldi, Winter ; Gabriel Faure/K.Wilson, Pavane, Op.50 ; Antonin Dvorak/Butler, Slavonic Dances, Op.46, No. 1 ; Sergei Prokofiev/Butler, Troika from Lieutenant Kije ; Greg Danner/Vaden, Scherzo ; Vladimir Cosma/Fletcher, Giocoso from Euphonium Concerto ; James C. Mobberley, On Thin Ice ; Leroy Osmon, Frescos De Bonampak (Octet No. 2) ; Fisher Tull, Tubular Octad . Mark Custom Recording Service, Inc., 10815 Bodine Road, Clarence, NY 14031-4769-MCD. Price will vary. TT: 61'44”.
This album from the world famous Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble is a collection of some of the best arrangements and original music for this genre. And it is nice to recognize one old favorite from amongst the program.
First up is the Arrival of the Queen of Sheba by Handel as arranged by Joshua Hauser. Originally written as the introduction to the third act of Handel's oratorio Solomon , this music is often used as a wedding march. The arrangement is excellent and allows the ensemble to display a wide range of articulations, dynamics, phrasing and musicality. The performance is excellent in all regards and is a fitting opening to this album.
The second piece is the Winter Concerto from The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi. In three movements, this piece was originally written for solo violin and string orchestra. Brilliantly transcribed by Scott Beaver, who is also the soloist, this performance will leave listeners awe struck by the virtuosity of the TTTE and soloist Beaver. While there is always a debate on such transcriptions, there can be no debate on the quality of the performance and that is the true test of any arrangement or transcription.
Next we have Pavane, Op. 50 of Gabriel Faure as arranged by Kenyon Wilson. It is for the most part a very slow and lyrical affair that offers the ensemble a chance to display some nice long singing lines. The performance is as musical as any could be and it is a most sensitive and extremely satisfying listen.
After this comes an arrangement by David Butler of the Slavonic Dance No. 1 from the Slavonic Dances, Op. 46 by Antonin Dvorak. It is a lively and bright piece that gives all of the instruments some very interesting lines to play. Originally these dances like the Hungarian Dances of Brahms were written for the piano. This particular dance alternates between a duple and triple pulse but is written in three throughout. The performance of this piece is right on the button. It is neither heavy and ponderous, not is it too light. A good healthy reading that is musically satisfying.
Troika from the film score for the movie Lieutenant Kije by Prokofiev as arranged by David Butler is the next piece on the disc. This is one of the most well known pieces ever written and is played very well on this disk. It begins slowly, and for some, it may almost be too slow, but the ensuing “sleigh” ride is right on the tempo and this arrangement is excellent.
Next is Scherzo by Greg Danner. This work was originally conceived for brass quintet and has been transcribed by James Vaden. Danner is a professor of theory at Tennessee Tech and is a hornist. This is a work that is filled with rhythmic vitality and is a work that allows all players to shine through. It is a brief piece but one that really allows the tuba ensemble to sparkle.
Carnegie VI Barton Cummings Review, page 2
Vladimir Cosma is a Romanian born composer trained in Romania and also with studies in Paris under Nadia Boulanger. His Euphonium Concerto was written for the 1997 World Euphonium Competition held in Guebwiller , France . The Giocoso from this concerto has been arrange for solo euphonium and tuba ensemble by Seth Fletcher who also serves as the soloist for this recording. This is a very demanding piece requiring virtuoso ability from not only the soloist but from the ensemble as well. To perform such an arrangement takes great patience and diligence, as there is a chance of great heaviness and over balance. Winston Morris and the ensemble are superb in achieving a perfect balance and dynamic level that never buries the soloist. Seth Fletcher is certainly up to the job of performing this piece and simply plays beautifully.
On Thin Ice by James Mobberley is the one piece that is so completely different from the rest of the album that it stands out in a particular way that is not quite as nice as it might be. The idea behind the piece is that at any moment some catastrophic event could take place. The piece is loud and bombastic and full of quite “indelicate” sounds. Undoubtedly it is well written and takes a deal of rehearsal and ability. It requires great patience to listen to, but for all of that, it is a good piece.
Leroy Osmon has contributed several compositions for tuba and his Frescos De Bonampak was commissioned by Mark Morette of Mark Custom Recording Service for performance by Winston Morris and the Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble. It was premiered in Carnegie Hall in January 2003. It is a one movement multi-sectioned work that allows the ensemble to show off its technical abilities and lyric singing ability. The sonorities are wonderful and the harmonies range from close to lush. All in all, this is a first class work and one that should become very popular with tuba-euphonium ensembles. A great performance.
The final work on this album is Tubular Octad by the late Fisher Tull. The piece was commissioned by the Tubists Universal Brotherhood Association and received its premiere performance at the 1980 T.U.B.A. Convention in Denton , Texas by the National Collegiate All-Star Tuba-Euphonium Ensemble conducted by R. Winston Morris. It is a single movement work with different sections with some dissonance, metric changes, rapid passages and reworking of the different ideas ending with reference to the opening materials in a quicker tempo. This work is one of the classics of the genre and it is a delight to have it on compact disc in such a distinguished performance.
This recording is a milestone in the history of the Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble and presents some of the finest literature ever composed for this type of ensemble in performances that are absolutely of the highest order. Nothing is out of place, intonation is right on and the quality of the sound of the ensemble is beyond reproach.
No one should be without this recording. It is the recording from which all future recordings must grow.
Highly recommended.
Reviewed for the ITEA Journal by:
Rodger Vaughan who is retired from the California State University, Fullerton, and living in Colorado. He continues to compose, arrange and practice the tuba, even at 7,500 feet.
CARNEGIE VI, featuring the Tennessee Tech Tuba Ensemble, R. Winston Morris, Director, Mark Custom Recording Service, Inc., 4769 MCB, Clarence, New York
This recording is of the ensembles' sixth and latest appearance on January 25, 2003, in Carnegie Hall. It includes:
- Handel - Arrival of the Queen of Sheba - arr. by Joshua Hauser
- Vivaldi - The Seasons, No. IV WINTER - tr. by Scott Beaver
- Faure - Pavane, Opus 50 - arr. by Kenyon Wilson
- Dvorak - Slavonic Dances, Opus 46, No. 1 - arr. David Butler
- Prokofiev - TROIKA from Lt. Kije Suite - arr. David Butler
- Greg Danner - Scherzo - tr. James Vaden
- Vladimir Cosma - Giocoso from Euphonium Concerto - tr. Seth Fletcher
- James C. Mobberley - On Thin Ice
- Leroy Osmon - Frescos De Bonampak
- Fisher Tull - Tubular Octad
Please get this disc and listen intently. Don't take a "tone bath." Listen intensely. Listen to the articulations. At times during the Handel and Vivaldi there seemed to be rosin dust rising from the speakers. (Actually it was snow flurries outside my window.) For legato phrasing, pay attention to the Faure. In the Dvorak you can hear (and almost "see") the slogging shoes of the peasants. Any one of these tracks would be suitable for a large paper in analysis.
Special mention must be made of the remarkable performances of Scott Beaver (tuba) and Seth Fletcher (euphonium) who are soloists on the Vivaldi and the Cosma respectively.
The program notes are thorough and offer many facts about the pieces and the arrangers and composers. Most of the composers and/or arrangers represented on this recording have a relationship with the Tenn Tech ensemble.
The recording quality is excellent. You are seated somewhat up-close. My B&W DM7 Mark II's were given a real workout. The Martin-Logan's in the listening room received the same challenges.
All of this is a tribute to the pedagogical genius of R. Winston Morris. The sound quality is always consistent, whether in the high, medium or lower ranges. Arrangers and composers should pay attention to the vertical textures which contribute to the harmonic clarity. The musical values are always present even when the styles change. The blend is wonderful and the ensemble is flawless. These students are fortunate to have such a musical director.
This could be a much longer review which would contain pages and pages that can't be included in this format. Were it a minimalist review it would be: Superb, spectacular playing in EVERY way!
Well, Mr. Morris, keep it up. But, what is next. How can you follow this?
