[Trombone-l] Trombone Day at Tennessee Tech

[Dave Demko]

Good summary, Mearl. Trombone Day at Tennessee Tech was a great
weekend (or week for the students participating). Out of all I could
write about it, here are the main points:

1. Joe Alessi is a monster-good trombonist. OK, you already knew that.
Still, hearing him play live is eye-opening--a treat and an education.
I can think of seven solo pieces he played, and I'm probably
forgetting some.

2. Alessi has a fine touch as a coach. During the master class with
several college players and one high-schooler, he always remarked on
the good points in their playing and offered critiques in an
encouraging manner. His teaching style is both gracious and incisive.
In 15 or so minutes apiece, he brought out some audible improvement in
each player's performance.

3. Joshua Hauser runs an excellent program at TTU. He knows what he's
doing as a music educator. The TTU trombone studio includes a number
of talented, polished players, and they're working on challenging
literature. Hauser sounds great, too, serving as a role model. Check
out http://iweb.tntech.edu/jhauser/ for the warm-up routines we used
Saturday and other resources: useful stuff.

4. The weekend was a success because of the large amount of effort Dr.
Hauser, the TTU students, and Joe Alessi put into it. These people all
knocked themselves out playing, teaching, conducting, schlepping stuff
around, selling sheet music and CDs (and doughnuts), and handling all
sorts of chores. I found the whole weekend smooth-running, fun, and
educational. A big thank-you to everyone who made it happen.


On Nov 18, 2007 8:41 PM, Danner, Mearl <jmdanner at samford.edu> wrote:
>
> A brief report on Tennessee Tech's Trombone day.
>
> Got to hear an old style Sousa concert by the Symphony Band at TTU with
> Joseph Alessi as soloist ("Air Varie" and "Bolivar") Friday night. Great
> concert band and Joseph Alessi was tremendous as always.
>
> Saturday we has a mass warmup session in the morning using material
> provided by Dr. Joshua Hauser. It was hyper-ventilation time!! We were
> told if anybody looked dizzy grab the horn and let them fall.
>
> After that a 2 hour masterclass by Joseph Alessi teaching some of the
> TTU trombonists and a local high school student.
>
> After lunch (and exhibits) we participated in a 2 hour reading session
> conducted by various folks - including Joseph Alessi. The count I heard
> was 70+ trombones, and a euph and a tuba that got past security.
>
> Later there were performances by Bone Therapy (Nashville), Faux-tet (4
> of Dr. Hauser's students), the Belmont Trombone Choir, and the Lee
> University Low Brass Ensemble.
>
> That evening Joseph Alessi gave a recital along with the TTU trombone
> studio.
>
> There was also a concert by the Bryan Symphony with Joseph Alessi as
> soloist. Unfortunately I did not get to attend it.
>
> Many kudos to Josh Hauser and his students. Quite an impressive group of
> young players. I was a pleasure to participate in these activities with
> them.
>
> I sincerely hope that Tennessee Tech can make this a regular thing. If
> they do I'll be back.
>
> Mearl Danner
> Weekend Warrior - after my chops recover from Saturday.
>
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