Blog Archives
“One Nation” Success, New Video
Thank you to everyone who came to the “One Nation, Under God” event. I enjoyed performing the patriotic music with the different choirs. The youth choirs were especially fun to listen to (and watch…some of them were so little!). I hope everone had a good time.
I have also updated the Featured YouTube video with a fine rendition of the first trombone solo in Mahler’s Third Symphony. This is one of the very few instances of orchestral literature that features the trombone in such a prominent way, and van Rijen does a great job. Check it out on the sidebar.
New Menus, New Videos, New Stuff!
Howdy! It’s been a while since I have done an actual post, but things have been somewhat busy behind the scenes with some new stuff and a bunch of tweaks.
Menus – WordPress.com has finally added in customizable drop-down menus! I have been trying to keep navigation simple and straightforward without, but I have been hoping for these since I started the site! This will make it so I can add a lot more and still keep it easy to find. I have already added several items under the main pages – take a look!
Featured YouTube Link- I have been featuring different YouTube videos with excellent playing. There is a link to previously featured videos just under the current feature, but since the links are kind of hard to see, most of you have probably not clicked it. So, for those who have missed any, the link is still there, but there is also a drop-down link under “Media”.
New YouTube Feature – Speaking of YouTube features, check out the latest video of the Metropole Orchestra Big Band with Martin van den Berg on bass trombone. This guy’s got a great bass sound and leads the group in a fun, bouncy tune.
New Events
- Bells on Temple Square – This is after the fact, but I performed in a brass choir that assisted the Bells on Temple Square on Friday, June 11th. We accompanied them on several pieces and also performed Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man.” This was a great concert and I really enjoyed working with the bells. If you get a chance to see a hand-bell choir, take it!
- BYU SummerFest – I am assisting the Orchestra at BYU’s Summer Music Festival. The concert is Saturday, June 19 at 3:00 in the DeJong Concert Hall.
Phew! I think that is everything for now. Thanks for visiting.
New – Featured YouTube Video
YouTube contains a treasure trove of amazing playing which is surrounded by a lot of junk. I have just heard a euphonium concerto that has inspired a new feature. Most will be trombone related and all will be high quality music. I will post links to some truly amazing playing that I encounter and hope you enjoy.
OTS Summer Tour Documentary
Dear Friends,
As you know, I’m a member of the Orchestra at Temple Square. Last summer, the Orchestra and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir went on tour to the Central States region of the U.S. Our friends at BYU Broadcasting accompanied us and shot hundreds of hours of footage. Out of that has come a documentary entitled “One Voice” which will air in April on BYU Television. I was able to see the preview of it and the special really captures what it’s like when we go out on tour. If you click on this link (http://byutv.org/onevoice) you can see a short trailer about the documentary.
It will air for the first time on BYU-TV between sessions of General Conference on Sunday, April 4th. You can click here (www.mormontabernaclechoir.org/events/#417) for all the current airtimes, including live streaming over the internet. BYU-TV has also made a 90-minute special of the our last concert of the 2009 tour at Red Rocks outside Denver. I hope you’ll enjoy both shows.
Site Facelift
The site needed a bit of reorganization for some ideas I have rumbling through my head. I have combined the “Project” and “Event Calendar” pages into one page and added a “Media” page. Here I will add various video and sound recordings as I get them prepared.
This is not quite how I am going to want the organization to be in the end, but it will give me a starting framework to build upon.
