Great 3 days of recording with Stiletto Brass

I recently had a chance to record and produce for an outstanding brass quintet, Stiletto Brass. This ensemble has been around for quite a few years, and has been a consistent presence at international brass festivals and workshops. They have a previous album, featuring none other than Doc Severinsen on trumpet, and they contacted me this spring about putting a new album together this summer.

I simply love recording brass quintet. The ability to hear the sonic blend and resonance of a great brass ensemble, hearing the overtones produced when all the voices are in tune and balanced, is truly a special experience in the musical world. Stiletto Brass has the enviable trait of having 5 individuals who each have a stylish musical voice of their own, able to stand out as soloists, yet still come together to produce a beautiful, sonorous, and blended sound quality that fits the various styles they recorded perfectly.

Speaking of style, Stiletto Brass is able to play anything from jazz, to baroque, to modern music composed just for them, in a convincing way. It was a treat to hear a new work commissioned by the ensemble by Drew Bonner, as well as a jazz tune called Boy Meets Horn (nicknamed Girl Meets Horn by both the group and me), a baroque standard by William Boyce, and a piece by Andre Lafosse that I wasn’t familiar with called Suite Impromptu. Lafosse was professor of trombone at the Conservatoire de Paris from 1948 - 1960, and contributed some important works to the trombone, and brass quintet literature. The piece Stiletto found and recorded is an absolute delight.

For the recording, I covered all my bases and used two sets of main mics (omni and cardioid), plus my stereo ribbon mic to gather the sound in the room where we recorded. Flank mics to add width, and spot mics for any minute balance adjustment in post production rounded out the mic-ing plan. The chapel at Mt. Vernon Unitarian Church was a beautiful venue for us to record in for the three day session.

Oh, and did I mention that this ensemble is all WOMEN?!?! I figured you might guess that… ;) I have to say it is wonderful to see these musicians leading the way as brass players in a field that is starting to see greater numbers of women as professionals. I can only imagine the young girls who might be inspired to know that they can play trombone, tuba, horn, or trumpet, and that they have professional role models to hear and emulate. A discussion about the title of “Boy Meets Horn” needing some reworking for this recording just might have taken place… I can’t wait for you to hear it!

Release details will be forthcoming, and I will certainly make an announcement here when the finished recording is ready. I’m excited for you to hear and to get to know Stiletto Brass.

Stiletto Brass is Amy Gilreath and Susan Rider (trumpets), Rachel Hockenberry (horn), Natalie Mannix (trombone), Velvet Brown (tuba)

You may find their website HERE.

Their first album is HERE.

Happy faces when the producer says, “OK, that’s a wrap!!!”

Another George Hamilton Green rag arranged by the amazing Jonathan Bisesi!

Hi friends,

Whew!!! Summer is in full swing, and you know what that means?!?!?!?!  THE KIDS ARE OUT OF SCHOOL!!!  Seriously, what it means around the Clark household is a lot of fun pool and beach time, and a lot of bike rides as well.  The boys are getting older and able to ride longer and/or on their own, so we are having super fun just biking everywhere we have the chance.  Combine that with some recent bike commuting for me, beach rides, and even recharging some bike mechanic skills, and the summer is just ROLLING.  Love it.

One other thing I've done is to complete a few projects that were begun in the spring.  One of my favorites of this year was the brass quintet and xylophone arrangements my good friend and Marine Band colleague, Jon Bisesi.  We recorded four of his arrangements in the spring, and you can hear Jovial Jasper over on Youtube.  I'm going to introduce another one here below, Chromatic Fox Trot.  

For my audio folks out there, if you haven't ever recorded solo xylophone, I highly recommend it! It is a challenge, due to the nature of the instrument (think snare-like transients, but pitched and moving in the stereo field like marimba, or even piano.   Separating that from the brass players, and allowing them to both see and hear each other enough to play as one ensemble, is quite challenging.  I had some help from my good friend, Will Samson, and I think the final recording turned out great.  

Jon is a master of the xylophone, and his improvisations over these rags in this particular style are so natural and fun to listen to.  Thanks for reading, and thanks for listening!

David Bowie and brass quintets...

No not really, sorry!  But I am embarrassed to say that it took David Bowie's death for me to discover his music.  And wow, have I been missing out!  His new album, Blackstar, is amazing, and due to my wife's amazing Christmas gift to me of a new turntable, I did order it on vinyl!  

Tonight, I watched a great video produced by the BBC, with producer Tony Visconti, about the recording of another seminal Bowie album, Heroes.  The video was posted by one of my favorite writers, Austin Kleon, and it's well worth the 20 minutes you'll spend watching...

http://bbc.in/1QqfRTZ

I think one of the most interesting things about insights like this is the debunking of the myth that great creations spring from some fully formed vision of the artist, and that it all comes out in one clear and finished product.  Just like one of my favorite podcasts of late, Song Exploder, you see that that is most often not the case...

So, what does David Bowie have to do with brass quintets?  Well, nothing yet... maybe we can get our good friend Tom Holtz, who has arranged so many great tunes for Valor Brass to arrange something cool...???  Tonight, we had the chance to perform on a recital of the Composers' Society of Montgomery County in Bethesda, Maryland.  We played a new piece by composer Jeffrey H. Bauer, titled Danse Macabre.  Jeff is a conservatory trained (Peabody Institute) pianist and trombonist, and he contacted Valor Brass a few months ago about working together.  We really enjoyed his new work, and it just reinforced the fact that relationships between creators (composers) and musicians (performers) are such a rewarding experience.  Check out Jeff's scores at Balquhhider Music.

Here's a rehearsal recording from a few days ago of Danse Macabre...

ATW Events

Hi Everyone, Well, Jim Nova just tore out of here in his M3 on his way back to Pittsburgh... what a great week!  I have been attending the ATW (formerly Eastern Trombone Workshop) most years since 1993, and I can say it just keeps getting better.  The folks at Pershing's Own, U.S. Army Band just do a fantastic job of putting the week together.  For those of you that don't know, the workshop is run by the trombonists in the Army Band, and they all do it on a voluntary basis.  It is clear what pride they, and the entire Band, take in putting on this fantastic event.  If you are so inclined, WRITE to the commander of the Army Band, Col. Timothy Holton, and let them know how much you enjoyed the week!  Chris Branagan and Sam Woodhead and their crew did a superb job once again!

Here's a few more things I heard that I really enjoyed:

Tim Higgins and Steve Menard performing an arrangement of Brahms Four Serious Songs on one of the noon recitals.  Sophia Kim Cook played piano for them, and she is fantastic!  Tim and Steve sound like they were trombone-cloned at birth, or at least studied with the same well-known Australian in Chicago.  Really beautiful playing, and the guys even looked like they were having fun, despite the "serious" nature on the music.

Tim Higgins, recital.  Tim sounds so beautiful, and he's one of those players that when you hear him, you just want to hear more.  Notably, Tim played a piece he composed, Three Selections from Poesis, which was a really interesting combination of solo trombone (2 movements) and writing for trombone section (1 movement).  He was beautifully assisted by Steve Menard, Chris Davis on bass trombone, and Seth Cook on tuba.  Following his own work, Tim premiered Radiant Spheres by David Biedenbender.  The composer related to the audience an interaction he had on a flight with a woman who was dying of cancer, and spoke of her realization that time was moving both quick and slow... The piece reflected that and was very touching.  Really beautiful playing, and friendly guy too.  Go get his solo CD, HERE...

Jim Nova gave a very cool presentation on his whole overdub process.  If you don't know what I'm talking about, visit here and here... With the proliferation of software that facilitates overdubbing and "looping", it's easy to lose sight of the time, artistry, and sheer musical ability that goes in to creating Jim's recordings.  Jim has performed with the Boston Pops for going on 19 years, and John Williams knows Jim and his playing very well.  Jim's passion for this music is totally evident in his performance, but also in the way he is willing to share his creative process for making his recordings.  During his class, he took the audience (that were connected using multiple headphone amplifiers, hubs, and provided earbuds) through the process of recording one of his arrangements.  He demonstrated by live recording on bass, tenor, and alto trombone, then he had two trombonists join him on stage to work on standard orchestral excerpts using some of the same recording techniques.  It was a great way to bridge the learning gap and relate what you hear on a recording to what you might do in your own practice.  Jim's grasp of current technology, and more importantly how to use that to your advantage to foster true improvement was very inspiring.  Jim has some exciting ideas in the works for his recordings... stay tuned!

Another highlight this year was the playing of both Angel Subero (bass trombone) and Wesley Hopper (tenor trombone).  Both players are members of Triton Brass, and they demonstrated amazing flexibility performing different styles.  Angel has such a fat bass trombone sound, and plays with such style and energy, I really enjoyed everything I heard him play.  Wes has such a beautiful, clear sound, and he was a joy to hear.  I really liked his mohawk, too.  Triton Brass' performance of the Anthony Plog Concerto 2010 was very well done, and the piece was interesting and as another attended said, very "Plog-ish"!  Valor Brass will be giving that piece a serious look in the coming months!

Another great highlight this year was the playing of Brian Hecht.  Brian is currently bass trombonist of the Atlanta Symphony.  Brian played in the US Navy Band in Washington, DC, for a hitch, and I am sorry to say I never ran into him when he was in DC, and the Sail Loft where the Navy Band works is literally about 200 yards from the Marine Band's facility.  Yikes.  Well, I'm happy to say I got to hear him this year.  He played a bit on one of the noon guest recitals, and then again in a master class on friday and Saturday night with Col. Holton and the Army Band.  He sounds fantastic!  Great guy, and beautiful player.

Well, that's it for now.  It was a great week and I hope that if you didn't make it this year that you will consider it for next year.  I heard a rumor that next year's workshop will occur a week earlier in the calendar, so think about your plans now!

Your Virtually,

Chris