Judas Maccabaeus Winds

Hi again,

In addition to string players, the previously-mentioned Handel oratorio sing-along could use a few more wind players, as follows:

• 1 oboe
• 1 bassoon
• 1 French horn
• 2 trumpets

Let me know if you're interested.

Rehearsal is December 2 at 7 PM, and the event is December 8 at 7 PM.

Judas Maccabaeus Still Accepting Players

I understand that there is still room in the orchestra for the Judas Maccabaeus sing-along scheduled for December 8.

This is a volunteer job, but it's one that I'm jumping on because I've always been curious about this, Handel's second-most-popular oratorio. The schedule is pretty light: rehearsal December 2, sing-along December 8.

If you're interested, shoot me a note.

And, of course, there's plenty of room for sing-alongers.

Brass Quintet Needs Trombonist

I'm aware of a brass quintet looking for a trombonist. The ensemble typically rehearses in the Silver Spring and Columbia areas, and plays occasional money-making gigs.

If this piques your interest, get in touch with me and I'll connect you with the group.

December 8 Follow-Up

I have more information from Ron Isaacson, the director running the Judas Maccabeus sing December 8.

Orchestra: Rehearsal Sunday evening, December 2 at 7 PM. Possible rehearsal Wednesday, December 5 if needed.

Singers: "Non-instrumentalists are invited to sing or to listen, hopefully to sing. . . . If the singers want to come by on Monday, Dec.3 (7pm), and sit in while I work with my temple choir on Judas parts and other stuff, that would be o.k. with me."

This is a fund raiser for their congregation, so all singers and audience should expect to pay about $10 to get in. Sounds totally worth it, to me. I just bought a recording of the work so I'll know what to expect, and just getting to play or sing the final chorus should be quite rewarding.

Judas Maccabaeus Sing

Greetings, fellow musicians,

I hope the summer has been good to you.

I recently became aware of a "Judas Maccabaeus Sing" to be held at Congregation Or Chadash in Damascus December 8 at 7 in the evening. It is to be a fund raiser, and they're looking for volunteer musicians. The director, Ron Isaacson, writes "We can give the players letters of donation of time, for tax purposes."

I'm in, as I've always wanted to make an acquaintance with this oratorio. At last count, they still need 3 violins, 2 violas, and 2 cellos.

If you're interested in playing, send me a note and I'll get you in touch with the director.

Also, if you're interested in singing, let me know, and I'll update you when I've confirmed any chorus details.

Kind regards,

Daniel

Fauré Requiem

Trinity Lutheran Church in Bowie, MD, is presenting the Requiem of Gabriel Fauré as a part of their Easter Vigil, Saturday night, April 7. If you would like to be a part of the choir or orchestra, I would like to hear from you.

S. P. B. H.

Our drive to and from church takes us past a number of housing developments with buildings of significant size. Vicki and I commiserate that we would make much better use of such a house, since most of those owners are almost certainly not trying to host musical rehearsals and festivals, as we would.

This weekend a thought struck me: perhaps we can arrange a program of mutual benefit. Suppose that there existed a Society of People with Big Houses, and a collection of aspiring, dedicated string players. Perhaps we could arrange a program whereby a handful of string players, perhaps twelve or so, could meet every other weekend at another of the big houses owned by members of such a society. Said string players would then have a place to sight-read quartets and other chamber music, and homeowners would get a free afternoon of music in multiple rooms of their big house.

If you play a stringed instrument, would you be interested in spending up to 26 Sunday afternoons a year reading chamber music?

I have a feeling that this is not far from a good idea. Unfortunately, I don't know how to proceed in making the idea even better, or bringing it to fruition.

Suggestions?

Seeking A Violinist

A small, mostly string ensemble is preparing to play for the Williamsport SDA church this coming Sabbath, July 8. We could use an additional violinist. The music is simple, and we can send you a PDF to review ahead of time.

We offer lunch, good fellowship, and transportation from Germantown to Williamsport and back. Other terms negotiable. If you're interested, please send me a note.

Thanks!

Brasscast

During my commute each day I have been listening to a podcast from down under called Brasscast.

A podcast is like a radio program, delivered (typically) as an MP3 file that you can download to your computer. You can use your computer to listen to it, or use any of the host of MP3-playing portable devices, such as an iPod or certain cellular phones. Some recent car radios can play MP3 files, including podcasts. The Brasscast shows are typically around 20 minutes in duration, so listening on a weekly basis doesn't require a major investment of time.

I find Brasscast to be instructive, as well as pleasant listening and entertainment. The show is focused on the music of bands, mostly all-brass bands, and, more often than not, bands that are conformant with the British Brass Band instrumentation. Each show features an interview with one of the featured musicians, and some of these are very instructive and encouraging.

I recommend this podcast to each of you, whether you are a brass player or not. The show features a wide variety of bands, many of whom are repeat competition winners. I find it interesting to compare the bands from week to week. Some are simply good bands playing challenging music, but some are truly remarkable in their sparkle and professional performance. I suggest that you listen to these podcasts as a means of training your own ear, giving thought to why some bands sound so much better than other winners.

If you know of other podcasts that relate to music performance, whether band, chamber music, orchestra or choir, please post a comment here.

Brass Blast!

As I described in this earlier post, the Washington Symphonic Brass are presenting concerts at three locations this month, with the final concert being Sunday evening. My family and I attended the concert this evening in Annapolis, and it was a fantastic experience.

If you play a brass instrument, you owe it to yourself to hear this ensemble. If you play in the MCO Brass, please rearrange your schedule and shake out your piggy bank and meet me in McLean, Virginia this Sunday evening at 7:30. Brass players, if you have ever needed to have the "brass dream" refreshed in your heart and your imagination, this concert will do it for you.

If you are familiar with string repertoire, this will be a moving experience for you no matter what instrument you play. The concert this evening contained the following numbers, and I expect to hear the same Sunday evening:

• Holst - Jig from St. Paul's Suite
• Albinoni/Giazotto - Adagio in g minor
• Vaughan-Williams - Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
• Schostakovich - Chamber Symphony from String Quartet No. 8
• Barber - Adagio for Strings, Op. 11
• Tchaikovsky - Serenade for Strings, Op. 48 (although omitting the third movement)

Four of the six selections were arranged or adapted by WSB founder Phil Snedecor, so the arrangements are perfectly suited to the instrumental forces of this ensemble.

This concert was particularly moving for me because I am intimately acquainted with these works in their original string settings, and observed with amazement and joy the way in which the brass transcriptions met the challenges presented. The opening Jig by Holst set the scene perfectly, showcasing the technical abilities of these musicians. And I was moved to tears again by the opening and closing of the Tchaikovsky Serenade. The full brass presention of those opening and closing chords would surely have met with approval from the composer.

The conductor, Milt Stevens, gave very appropriate commentary on the background of each of the works, and I'm glad to have thus become acquainted with Schostakovich' 8th quartet.

Overall, this was an experience that I cannot put into words. I urge you to make time in your schedule to catch their last performance Sunday evening.

See you there!

Worthy Student Recital

I received notice today that Gabrielle Liverpool will be presenting a recital this weekend, at five o'clock in the evening of April 29, at the Metropolitan Seventh-day Adventist Church, 6307 Riggs Road, Hyattsville, MD.

Gabrielle was one of the student violins who played for our recent Messiah performance, and I think she attended as many rehearsals as any other orchestra player. She supported us, so lets take time to support her in this recital.

Washington Symphonic Brass

I have avoided WSB concerts in the past not because of their quality: on the contrary, they play very professionaly and their concerts are a pleasure to experience! Rather, most of their recent concerts have featured explicitly anti-sacred music (such as Carmina Burana) performed in the dedicated sanctuaries of churches.

Although they are still performing in church sanctuaries, their current repertoire, as listed in their advertising, does not apparently include such overtly secular music, and so I am very eager to hear their next performance, and I recommend them to you. The remaining concerts are Wednesday evening, April 26 and Sunday evening, April 30. You can find more information on their website.

Their tickets are a little pricey, perhaps, but the performances are worthwhile and awe-inspiring.

Seven Last Words, Seabrook SDA, April 8

Hello fellow musicians,

As some of you have heard, the Seabrook SDA church choir is presenting Dubois' Seven Last Words of Christ for church this coming Sabbath morning. An orchestra is forming to support the choir in this performance.

• Rehearsal - Tuesday, April 4, 7:30 PM
• Performance - Sabbath, April 8, morning service

We have openings for a few more musicians. If you are interested, please let me know.

Thanks,

Daniel

Singing Sundays

Hello music lovers!

I am scheduled to direct the choir at Rockville UMC for the next two Sundays, April 2 and April 9. The music will be as follows:

• April 2 - Farrant - Hide Not Thou Thy Face From Us, Oh Lord
• April 9 - Randall Thompson - Alleluia

If you know either of these pieces, I invite you to join the choir.

• April 2 - 11 AM service, arrive around 10:15
• April 9 - 9:15 & 11 AM services, arrive around 8:30

There's no pay involved; just an opportunity to sing some great music. I hope to see you there!

Community Service by Voice

Our rehearsals need more singers.

Even if you expect to be out of town Easter weekend, you can help your fellow musicians by coming to choir practice and supporting (dare I say leading?) your section as we study the choruses of Handel's Messiah Parts The Second and The Third.

We need voices in all sections (SATB) to help us learn this awesome music, even if you cannot sing in the performances.

Choir practice is Wednesday night at 8:15 in Bowie, and Sunday night at 6:30 at Triadelphia. We need your help at both.

Send me a note if you have any questions, or visit MDMusic.org for more information.

Chance to Sing Thompson Alleluia

I know of a church choir looking for a few extra singers for Palm Sunday, two morning services, modest pay, main anthem the Randall Thompson Alleluia. Let me know if this sounds like fun to you.

Choral Competition

My father wrote a setting of Oh Love that Wilt Not Let Me Go, and his composition is a finalist in a choral competition. (Sorry, I'm not sure exactly which competition, but it would appear to be one of the competitions described on this page.)

The final judging will be Sabbath afternoon, February 25 at a Presbyterian church in Wayne, PA. (Not all of the compositions are certain to be sacred.) The winning composition will be performed again that evening.

My folks will be visiting Triadelphia with us Sabbath morning, and we'll have lunch together before driving up to the event.

Would you like to meet us for lunch? (or for any other part of the weekend?) As we make plans, we need to know how many people would like to get together so that we can plan appropriately. If you're interested, please send me an RSVP.

Maryland Choral Exchange

This is an idea that developed over this weekend, and before acting on it, I'd like to bat it around with all of you here in the Maryland Music weblog and mailing list.

I would like a way to unify the church-choir community in our area. As you all know, we're working on a fairly significant performance opportunity right around tax time. (April 15 & 16) I've seen a few other big performance opportunities go by. I would like a way to get the word out quickly to many other church choir directors and singers about what we're doing, and the fact that a) we would welcome more singers and b) we would welcome additional churches that wanted to participate and host a performance.

Similarly, when some other churches are cooperating to present, say, the Brahms' German Requiem, as happened recently in Silver Spring, I want to know about it early enough so that I can get involved.

My idea is to start a weblog and calendar for exactly this purpose. One possible title for the site would be Maryland Choral Exchange, and it might be worth registering a domain like MDCE.org for these purposes.

The calendar and weblog would provide a place for any choir to list the major performances they are proposing, along with comments and links to further information, including rehearsal schedules and locations. Choir directors and singers could watch the site (or subscribe via RSS) to see what opportunities are coming up.

How does this idea strike you? Can you imagine this becoming a useful resource? How would you reformulate or restate the idea to make it more appealing or useful to all church choirs? How would you get the word out to all these singers and directors after the site is up and operational?

As always, your comments will have a longer shelf-life if you post them directly to the weblog.

Two Invitations

1. As was mentioned in the previous post, we're planning two performances of Handel's Messiah (parts II and III) around Easter time. You are invited to sing or play in these performances. Further information is available. If you are interested, please subscribe to the mailing list on that page.
   
2. Chamber Music Weekend is an event focused on playing string quartets, piano quintets and other chamber works. We would like to send occasional (monthly? bi-monthly?) reminders and updates to you so that you can plan to participate. If that's OK with you, you are invited to subscribe to the mailing list using the form found on our contact page.

Messiah at Easter Time

You are invited to join the choir or orchestra to perform the 2nd and 3rd parts of Handel's oratorio Messiah Sabbath and Sunday evenings, April 15 and 16. (We hope that the evening performances will not collide with your regular Easter plans.)

If you are interested in singing or playing, please visit this page and subscribe to the mailing list. Please also drop me a note reminding me which instrument(s) you play or which part you sing.

Thanks!

January 28: Further Details

As was mentioned in this post, this Sabbath we celebrate the baptisms of both William and Beth. We want to share this celebration in your company.

Here is some more information:

Sabbath Schedule
  9:00 AM Brunch at Triadelphia (breakfast potluck)
  9:30 AM Sabbath School
 10:45 AM Divine Worship, including baptisms
Lunch: potluck at our house

Most of the company will be vegetarian: you may wish to plan any potluck dishes with this in mind.

Addresses:

Triadelphia SDA
12950 Brighton Dam Rd
Clarksville, MD 21029

Ashton Family
11726 Zebrawood Ct
Germantown, MD 20876

Here are directions from Triadelphia SDA to our home.

See you there!

Baptism January 28

Vicki and I are delighted to announce that both of our children, William and Beth, are planning to be baptized at the end of this month. The ceremony will be part of the regular Sabbath-morning church service on January 28 at the Triadelphia SDA church.

We have not finalized plans for the rest of the day, but it seems likely that we may augment the regular potluck. We invite you to share this special occasion with our family.

Manhasset Voyager Music Stands

Through a curious twist of fate (ask me sometime) I wound up with one of these stands and, for a portable stand, I like it very much. I have suggested that the brass ensemble standardize on these, and a handful of players have already ordered both the stand and the carrying case. These links should take you to the Woodwind & Brasswind site. If you purchase there, a small percentage of your purchase should eventually come back to help our ensemble buy more music and equipment.

Please suggest name for brass group

Hello Everyone, (including non-brass-group-members: I'd like your opinions too.)

The Triadelphia Brass has consisted, until quite recently, of musicians from the Triadelphia SDA church. Now we are beginning to expand our membership and, I hope, becoming capable of performing, without significant embarrasment, in churches where our members are not already known and loved individually. <grin>

There are two reasons that I feel it would be wise to distance ourselves from association with any particular congregation.

1. In the past we have been refused use of GC space for practice purposes because we were associated with one congregation. They wanted to avoid the appearance of favoritism.
2. I'm concerned that association with one congregation will dissuade members of other congregations from joining our group.

The Southeast Asia church, where we will be playing January 7, would like to list us as a group with a name. Do we have one? A couple of options come to mind, but I'm not sure that either is spot-on:

1. The brass group I conducted in Atlanta was and is known as Zephyr Brass. Zephyr is a name for the west wind, which was appropriate because that group originated on the west side of Atlanta. There was talk of extending the Zephyr organization to embrace additional ensembles, potentially including brass ensembles in other cities, so I would feel comfortable using this name, at least on a temporary basis.
2. The name Adventist Community Brass was abandonded by David Workman in favor of Washington Community Brass, which has fallen into disuse as that group has remained in hibernation. I think we could lay legitimate claim to ACB if we wanted to.

Association with a larger organization might be appropriate: the Columbia Union Conference encompasses a wide enough area that we would not need to fear excluding any potential members, I think. However, this would require agreement from whatever organization we wanted to associate ourselves with.

What do you suggest?

As always, your comments will have a longer shelf-life if you post them directly to the weblog.

Update: Here are the options I have observed so far.

• Triadelphia Brass
• Zephyr Brass
• Adventist Community Brass
• Sounds of Brass
• Triadelphia Regional Brass
• TriBrass
• TriBrass.org (If Amazon.com can do it, I suppose we can too.)
• Maryland Music Brass
• Maryland Chamber Orchestra Brass

TriBrass Performance Dates

Hello brass players,

I just received a call asking if we can assist, January 7, with the dedication of the new Southeast Asian church near the GC offices. We would be responsible for playing with two hymns and one number as an offertory.

Are we available on January 7?


Also, can we provide service music at Triadelphia February 11 or 25? or another date?

Thanks,

Daniel

TriBrass at CU Office

Hello brass players,

Please remember that we have rehearsal this week, Wednesday evening at 6:00 PM at the Columbia Union office. Be 15 minutes early to unpack and warm up, please. We will probably rehearse for an hour and a half or somewhat less.

Please bring a music stand.

See you there!

TriBrass Rehearsal Before Thanksgiving

I have heard that some brass players are interested in meeting this week even though we know the group will not be complete. I concur.

However, I expect to be working in Germantown tomorrow: meeting at the church would be significantly better for me than meeting at a house on the I-95 corridor.

What is your pleasure? Six o'clock? Where?

Calling All Singers

. . . Vocalists . . . Choristers

Triadelphia SDA plans to present a Christmas Concert, a.k.a Choral Evensong, December 17 at 4 PM. We could use you in the choir.

Group rehearsals will be at Triadelphia at 8 or 8:30 Wednesday evenings (or whenever prayer-meeting finishes). If you can't make the group practices, contact me anyway: I'm willing to meet at another time to help you learn your part.

We will be singing well-known selections such as Still, Still, Still, and Carol of the Bells.

TriBrass Rehearsal Changes

I am delighted to announce that Harold and Christine Greene are interested in joining the brass ensemble at Triadelphia. We will meet with them on Wednesday evenings (at 6 PM) at the Union office(?) near the intersection of Highways 29 and 175. (Will we need to bring music stands?)

This will give us an ensemble with the following configuration:

• 2 Trumpets
• 1 French Horn
• 2 Trombones
• 2 Baritones
• 1 Tuba

(The trumpet players can also double on low-brass instruments: perhaps we can handle some 8-part music in a few months.)

The above configuration doesn't look perfect for standard quintet music: I have a strange belief that standard quintet music (especially Canadian Brass) is intended for exactly five players.

However, the Salvation Army numbers are clearly intended for multiple players on a part. I have a few of these (five or six, I think) but I hope we can buy more in the near future.

Please think over what these changes may mean for us. Let me know what sounds interesting to you. And if you know more brass players, this might be a good time to invite them to join us.

TriBrass Rehearsal Schedule Update

Hello brass players,

We have a new schedule conflict making Tuesday and Thursday nights undesireable for the duration of this month, plus a week or two. We agreed to meet on Wednesday evenings (at 6:00?) until further notice. I would like to have a second rehearsal every week. Mondays are out. Perhaps Sundays? Comment here in the weblog, please.

P.S. We're still on for Thursday night this week, 10/6/05, at 5:00 PM.

TriBrass Postlude 10/29

Hello brass players,

By means that are murky at best, we have been listed to play the postlude at Triadelphia on Sabbath, October 29. Please let me know if this is possible, given your schedule.

TriBrass Rehearsals Update

Hello brass players,

This week we decided to hold Thursday night rehearsal at Triadelphia, beginning at five o'clock. See you there!

TriBrass Rehearsal Update

Hello brass players,

Our discussion last night left us with the following arrangements:

We'll meet Tuesday evenings at six o'clock (call time 5:45 PM) at Triadelphia. We'll meet Thursday evenings at six o'clock (call time 5:45 PM) at Rockville United Methodist Church in Rockville. That address is

112 W Montgomery Ave
Rockville, MD 20850-4213

Meeting in Rockville is a tentative arrangement, subject to change as we learn more about travel times, et cetera.

Please let me know whether this is in agreement with your recollection.

TriBrass Rehearsals

Hello brass players,

We need to choose new rehearsal times. For this coming week (September 4 through 10), please meet Tuesday evening at 5:45, at which time we can decide on a schedule for the coming weeks.

Thanks much,

Daniel

What groups can we form?

Perhaps I've been thinking of ensembles from the wrong direction, or communicating our options poorly. Whatever the case, it might be helpful to list some of the common ensembles. It's fairly easy to get music for these combinations.

String Quartet

2 violins, viola, cello

String Orchestra

Multiple players covering 2 violin, viola, cello and string bass parts

Brass Quartet

2 trumpets, 2 trombones (one of which must have a trigger in many cases)

Brass Quintet

2 trumpets, French horn, trombone, tuba or bass trombone

Woodwind Quintet

Flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon

What other types of ensemble exist? For what other groups could you say "It's easy to get music for that combination of instruments?"

Social Plans for Sept./Oct.

Hello friends,

Last night's supper, hymn sing and game night was a pleasure and a blessing. My deep gratitude to each one who shared their company with us last night.

I would love to have every person on this list together in one place, especially for hymn singing. Is there a Sabbath evening in September or October when many or even (dare I hope?) all of us can meet?

Here's the list of Sabbaths. Let me know what would work for you, and I'll try to pick the week with maximal coverage.

• Sept. 3
• Sept. 10
• Sept. 17
• Sept. 24
• Oct. 1
• Oct. 8
• Oct. 15
• Oct. 22
• Oct. 29

One more question: Someday I'd like to see Fallingwater. It's something like three hours drive from Germantown. Do you want to make plans and go as a group?

TriBrass to play Triadelphia August 27

Hello members of the Triadelphia Brass,

As I mentioned this evening, we have been asked to play for church August 27, providing special music. I don't know who the organist will be: David, could you check on that?

For special music we can play the Chesnekoff "Salvation is Created" or the Dvorak "Gloria."

** Update **

Actually, the Chesnekoff will be problematic, since it takes 6 parts, and Milton and his music will not be with us on the 27th.

As Geri reminded me, we should also prepare a special music for Sabbath School.

Game Night at the Ashton's Home

Hello friends,

Based on the responses received so far, August 27 looks like a good evening for our get together. So the invitation now reads as follows:

You are invited

to

Sabbath Supper

(Pakastani Curry)

and

Hymn Sing

followed by

Game Night

this time featuring

Rook

beginning around

6:00 PM

on

August 27

Please RSVP by posting a comment here or sending e-mail to Daniel@AshtonFam.org.

Need string players August 20

Hello String Players,

We have an opportunity to play prelude and offertory at the Sligo church on August 20. Are you open? When can we practice together? What repertoire would you like to play?

Please leave a comment here in the weblog or reply to Daniel@mdmusic.org.

I'll add to this list as I hear from you.

Violins
• Evonne B.
• Daniel A.
• Celisti
• Myles

Cellos
• Jamey M.
• Anastasia Z.

** UPDATE **

We have rehearsals tentatively scheduled for Friday, August 12 and August 19, at 7 PM at the Beltsville SDA church. Repertoire may include a little Ravel or Holst.

If I haven't heard from you yet, please reply or post a comment to let me know if you're interested.

** UPDATE **

The second rehearsal will be at 7:00 PM in the choir room of the Sligo church. (Please be early.)

We will be playing for both first and second services, so please arrive at the church by 8:15 Sabbath morning.

TriBrass: Time to Get Together

Hello brass players,

July "has came and went," as they say, and August is pressing on. I think I'm ready to start practicing with you again. What works for us? Are we still happy with Monday and Thursday at 5:45?

TriBrass plans changing

As is becoming obvious, even to me, I won't be playing tuba for the next week or two. Jamey, if you have a sore throat, please don't blow too hard. David Greene will also be absent for the next few rehearsals, as he and his wife enjoy the sights of another country.

What I suggest is this: for the next five weeks (now through August 4) that Milton, Wes and Joel consider themselves to be self-organizing and find times and places when two or all three can get together to practice. If you want to bring in other music, go for it. When Jamey or David or I can manage to get together with you, great. It's important for someone to call Joel, since he and his family won't see this weblog posting.

I'm assuming that you/we won't have sufficient music to play the prelude and postlude on July 30. If you disagree, let me know. Otherwise I'll try to let the organist know that they must cover it.

So, let's plan to resume formal rehearsals August 8.

Please reply here with your opinions.

Thank you!

TriBrass 3Q Appointments

After the usual grilling [Hi Geri!] we've been assigned the following dates:

• July 30 - Prelude & Postlude
• August 27 - Special music for Sabbath School & special music for church

Brass players: Please let me know (here in the weblog, if you don't mind too much) whether those dates fit into your calendar, what music you would pick for each date, and whatever else comes to mind.

Thanks!

Get together Sabbath Afternoon?

Hello friends,

Would you like to get together this Sabbath afternoon? for a walk? a bike ride? What is your pleasure?

TriBrass Recess

Between now and July 1 I'll be focusing on music and preparations for the GC Brass Choir. With this in mind, I wish to place our brass choir in recess until after July 2. Let's plan to meet again on Thursday after Independence Day, which means we'll meet again July 7. Good enough?

Please keep your lip and mind going between now and then. We need to avoid loosing ground on the Bach fugue, on Domine, Salva Nos, and on the other things we've spent time working up.

TriBrass: No Rehearsal on Memorial Day

Brass Players,

For one reason and another it seems appropriate to cancel rehearsal for this evening. Please get in a few minutes of practice on your own: twenty minutes or more, if possible.

See you on Wednesday!

Trombone on e-bay

Jamey pointed out this Holton large-bore trombone with trigger going (presently) for $99 on e-bay. I think I'm going to pass on this one, but I want you to know about it. I hope you get this note fairly soon: the auction ends during Sabbath hours.

Brass @ Triadelphia 4/30 Update Again

Good work tonight, guys!

Please plan to arrive at the church at 8:30, so we start practicing between 8:40 and 8:45. Can anyone pick up Joel so he can warm up with us?

See you Sabbath!

Brass @ Triadelphia 4/30 Update

Hello friends,

This evening in rehearsal we selected the following pieces:

Sabbath School
	Special Music:		Sweet Hour of Prayer
Worship Service
	Prelude:		I Know That My Redeemer Liveth
	Call to Worship:		Dear Lord and Father
	Special Music:		Deep River
	Postlude:		Little Fugue

At this point I wish to avoid having an extra rehearsal Friday evening or Sabbath morning. However, I cannot deny the possibility that it would help us. But, if Joel can't be there,…

Brass @ Triadelphia 4/30

Hello friends,

It turns out that TriBrass are scheduled to play at Triadelphia SDA this coming Sabbath. Please make every effort to be at both rehearsals.

I believe that our best plan is to bring back one or two of the hymn settings we've used in the past. However, I would like to use the Bach Little Fugue for a postlude, if we think we can manage it without catastrophe.

So, what do you think?

TriBrass Rehearsal Schedule Update

As the Prophecy Code Seminar Series has come to an end, we agreed to move our Wednesday rehearsal back to 6:00 PM. So our rehearsals are as follows:

• 6:00 PM Monday evenings
• 6:00 PM Wednesday evenings

Please arrive at rehearsals 15 minutes early so that you can unpack and warm up before we begin. I will do my best to have the church open by 5:45.

See you there!

Chamber Music Mini-Festival

Hello everyone,

This weekend we're having, as guests, two fine cellists from the Atlanta area. We'd like to spend Sabbath afternoon reading chamber music at a residence near the Beltsville SDA church. If you're interested in playing, please RSVP by posting a comment here in the weblog, or by sending an e-mail to jdashton@AshtonFam.org.

See you there!

TriBrass Progress!

Excellent work tonight, brass players! I'm very happy with our progress.

For those who have been practicing frequently: It shows! Your investment is paying off. Keep up the good work!

Resources

In rehearsal last night we had a brief discussion on where to purchase music supplies. Here's a short list:

• Woodwind and Brasswind - Pretty much everything you could imagine: instruments, supplies and equipment of all kinds.
• Musician's Friend
• J. W. Pepper - Music and supplies, especially geared toward schools
• Robert King - Huge selection of brass music

What are your favorites?

TriBrass Update

As of last week, we've decided to practice twice a week for the next eight weeks, i.e. the duration of David's evening class. We'll meet Monday nights at 6:00 and Wednesday nights at 5:45.

I'd like to welcome Milton McHenry, who dusted off his trombone to rehearse with us this evening. Thanks for joining us! I'm looking forward to learning some new seven-part music.

More Details on Google Groups

The group/mailing-list is a one-way mirror of what's posted in the web-log. If you reply to a posting using your e-mail program, it (probably) will be distributed to everyone on the mailing list, but it will not show up in the blog itself.

If I could, I would configure the group so that would accept only e-mail sent through Blogger.com. But I can't see how to do that. So I leave it to you: for the majority of posts and comments, please post through the Blogger.com interface. Only reply to e-mail if you're not a member of this weblog (i.e. can't post (although you can still comment: anyone can leave a comment)) or if you want (for some reason) to have your words show up in the group archive, but not in the weblog itself.

[The proper solution would be for Blogger to make it possible to send notices directly to multiple people, but they haven't seen fit to do that yet. Their standard answer is to set up a Google Groups-Beta group, which leads to this kind of confusion. Sorry!]

[Another solution would be for me to set up our own blogging software, possibly based on SlashCode.]

Brass rehearsal days

I let this one sneak up on me: starting tomorrow, I have a class at 6:15 for the next 8 Mondays. Is it OK to move rehearsal to Wednesday? Is it too late to make such a change this week?

Birthday Plans - Vicki

This coming Monday is Vicki's birthday. We're making plans to celebrate by eating supper at Vicki's favorite restaurant, California Pizza Kitchen, in Bethesda. Because of brass rehearsal we won't arrive at CPK until 7:45 or 8:00 PM. Can you meet us there?

Please RSVP so we'll know how large a table to ask for.

Leo Hogendorp Concert this Sabbath

For those who haven't heard: Leo Hogendorp is a gentleman who has been attending our church recently with his daughter and son-in-law, Cindy and Paul Possinger. He owns a collection of violins and violas, and the family has decided to feature a few of these instruments in a vespers concert this weekend. Soloists (tentative list) may include:

• Daniel Ashton
• Evonne Baasch
• Frank Hardy
• Enno Mueller
• Dr. Douglas Potts

with assistance from David Greene and others. Concert details:

• Sabbath, February 19, 4:30 PM
• Triadelphia SDA Church
  12950 Brighton Dam Rd
  Clarksville, GA 21029

Triadelphia Brass: This week?

Hi guys,

It turns out that there's no one scheduled for the special music for church this week. I can cover it, but I thought that, after our rehearsal this week, we might feel interested in playing one of the hymn settings like Deep River, especially since we're already playing along with the hymns.

What is your pleasure?

Group-beta Created

I've created what is essentially a mailing list using the Groups-beta function of Google. Anytime an item is posted to our weblog, a copy will to go all the blog members, as well as to a few who haven't accept membership yet.

Rehearsal Reprise

Here's my understanding of our consensus regarding rehearsals:

• Beginning next week (1/17) rehearsals will be at 6:00 PM on Monday evenings.
• This week we're meeting on Wednesday (1/12).

Happy 1st Wedding Anniversary to Corey and Christy!

Recorders! Strings!

Triadelphia SDA Church invites all interested blockflute/recorder players to join in for two hymns just before the 11 o'clock service December 11. The hymns will be #122 and #124 in the Adventist Hymnal.

Triadelphia SDA Church invites all interested violin, viola, cello and string bass players to join in for two hymns just before the 11 o'clock service December 18. The hymns will be #125 and #132 in the Adventist Hymnal.

The church is at
12950 Brighton Dam Rd
Clarksville, MD 21029-1411

For more information, send an e-mail to jdashton@ashtonfam.org.

Hymns for November 20

This being the third Sabbath of the month, the brass are expected (as I understand it) to play with the hymns. I obtained this morning the list of hymns, and here they are:

• 86 - How Great Thou Art
• 616 - Soldiers of Christ Arise.
• 615 - Rise Up, O Church of God
• 377 - Go Forth, Go Forth With Christ

See you there!

Oops! My bad…

I have received further information about the December 4 concert I mentioned in this earlier posting. I have been made to understand that the ensemble I envisioned would not fit well into the organizer's plans for this event. Mea culpa. Please accept my apologies. I look forward to playing Corelli and much more with you at some future date. And enjoy a free evening.

Calling All String Players

If you're a Maryland-area string player and reading this, please either leave a comment on this posting or send me an e-mail.

We have two opportunities to do "a little something" together. Here's what we have:

1. A family at our church owns a collection of violins. They would like to present a vespers recital in which many different violinists play solos and ensembles using the violins in this collection. I have access to pieces like Eine Kleine, the Pachelbel Canon, the Corelli Christmas Concerto, and the Brook Green Suite. Please let me know whether or not you would be willing to help with an event like this, playing a solo and/or being part of an ensemble. We need violas, cellos and basses for the ensemble numbers, too. If you're willing to play, when? The family was hoping for a Friday or Sabbath evening in November, but I realize that we will have difficulty pulling this off in two weeks. Could you do November? Or perhaps January or February?
2. A concert is being planned for December 4, at Triadelphia SDA, at 7 in the evening. Would you like to throw together the Corelli Christmas Concerto for that event? Plans change: see this posting for a little more info.

Please let me know if you're interested. If it's out of the question, at least let me know that you read this posting.

Thanks!

Practice update

It's been a sparse week for me and brass practice, but I got in about an hour of tuba today, and a few minutes trombone. AND, I broke loose my trombone tuning slide, and greased it properly.

How about you?

My brass practice time I spent playing with the Canadian Brass Advanced Quintets book and CD. This makes for an intense work-out for my lip, as there are no significant breaks between pieces. I highly recommend this as a fall-back activity, for those days when you can't get yourself to drag out the music we're learning. Just three or four pieces with this CD, daily, would make a huge difference in your endurance and tone. Try it!

One more time

Triadelphia Brass members: How many of you can meet at 6 Friday evening at the church? Please comment here ASAP so we can decide whether to hold a rehearsal or just wing it.

Brass Rehearsals

In rehearsal this Monday we agreed to the following rehearsal schedule between now and Christmas:

• Monday evenings at six o'clock (6:00 PM) at Triadelphia SDA

In addition, we agreed to hold at least one extra rehearsal this week, at 6:00 tonight (Wednesday) at David's home. We'll need to bring music stands.

I'm delighted to have Corey back in our ranks, and in honor of his return I ordered a handful of pieces for six trombones. Please remember to look around for brass music that interests you.

See you tonight!

Brass: Call for Repertoire

I'd like some help with selecting music for our brass group. I typically order from http://www.rkingmusic.com, but other sources exist. Please spend a few minutes browsing through whatever sites you can find and send me a list of music you are interested in playing.

Thanks!

Brass Rehearsal Tonight & Personal Practice 11.01

Triadelphia Brass members, we have rehearsal tonight at 7:00 at the church. See you there!

Oh yeah, comment here if you squeeze in practice before or after rehearsal today, Monday, November 1.

Personal Practice 10.31

Comment here when you've practiced, or missed practicing, Sunday 10/31.

Brass Practice for October 31 - November 6

Hi guys,

Practice schedule discussion was incomplete for future weeks (among the difficulties prominent in my memory: Wes has meetings the second and third Mondays of each month) but for this week, with our upcoming performance for church, we agreed to meet Monday night with a good chance of also meeting Wednesday and/or later in the week.

I'm wondering, for future weeks, whether the meetings and our rehearsal could be dovetailed, with our practice session beginning an hour before the meeting, perhaps?

Personal Practice 10.29

Comment here when you've practiced, or missed practicing, Friday 10/29.

Personal Practice 10.28

Comment here when you've practiced, or missed practicing, Thursday 10/28.

Brass for church 11/6

OK folks, here's what I see us playing for church November 6. I'm putting this out here so you can discuss and consider it and offer your opinions and suggest alternate plans. Please do!

Call to Worship:	Es ist genug - Bach
Offertory:	Augsburg Hymn - Kugelmann
Special:	Amazing Grace - Wagner
Postlude:	Little Fugue - Bach

I'm assuming (could someone find out for sure?) that we won't be playing for Sabbath School.

Let me know what you think: are we up to this? Should we do less? more? other pieces?

Personal Practice 10.25

OK, I did it. It wasn't long or pretty or strenuous (for me, that is: can't speak for the rest of the family) but I did have my lips on my trombone for a few minutes this evening. You practiced too? No? Leave a comment!

Rehearsals moving to Monday evening

Hello all,

This is the week in which David's class switches to Wednesday evening, such that our brass practice needs to switch to a different night. Sunday and Monday nights are options. What can we do for this week? Can we actually get ourselves together tonight?

update 9:30 PM
Given the overwhelming(ly silent) response, and our upcoming performance November 6, I think we'd best be planning to rehearse this Wednesday evening. See you then.

David, we play in two weeks. Um, is there any way you could, um . . . ?

Who wants to do a vespers?

Westminster church is now scheduling their musical Sabbath vespers series for 2005. (Geri's group has done this program in recent memory.) Are there any who would be interested in doing a vespers service? I think the brass does not currently have the stamina for a full program, but we can fix that between now and then or add other types of numbers if we're interested. What have we been wanting to do that's just waiting for such an opportunity?

Brass @ Triadelphia 11/6

Under the current recommendation, we'll be playing for church at Triadelphia on November 6. Please respond here ASAP if you have a schedule conflict.

Because this is Family Sabbath, we may not be needed to play for Sabbath School.

Thanks!

Gone Oct. 30

Contrary to my statements on Wednesday, I'm actually scheduled to play organ for Burnt Mills on the 30th. If it matters, I'm ALSO not at Triadelphia on the 23rd.

I shouldn't be confused, since I've got a copy of the music schedule. It might be helpful to keep our upcoming schedule in the "Dates" area of the blog, for a reality check. Really, though, I'm just confused in general lately. :-)

Music Retreat 2005

After spending the weekend in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, I find myself wondering if we want to try an en masse retreat next spring/summer, some sort of pre-CMW. The "cottage" we stayed in has a great room easily large enough for a string quartet. I'm making inquiries about the house on that property, which could be large enough for several families to share.

What would such a vacation be like? I can imagine string ensembles, if we bring the right people, but we may not have access to a piano. I think we could read recorder or flute ensemble music pretty much anywhere. I'm not sure whether the property is sufficiently sound-proof to politely manage brass ensembles.

What are some things we would need? Repertoire is the show-stopper we face here or anywhere, specifically having a good match between players and parts. Nice chairs and music stands would help.

What extra-curricular activities would we want to plan? I have some info on cruises, including whale-watching. There's a state park nearby perfect for Laser/Sunfish sailing, and we watched people kite-boarding. (Looks awesome!) The boardwalk and beach are a very short walk away, and it was nice to have our bikes along.

Who and what instruments (beyond the current members of this weblog team) should we try hard to include? (e.g. I'd like to make sure Jeremy is there for recorder sessions, Ellen for violin/viola, Anastasia as an additional cello)

Brass Practice tonight…

…as usual at the church. I'm still trying to find out whether we can swap with the dulcimers for 10/30.

Birthday Plans

We're rapidly approaching the end of my 37th year on earth, and the 3rd anniversary of our move to Maryland, which made it possible for us to get to know you or renew our acquaintance with you, as the case may be. I'd like to celebrate with an early-evening meal together with you. The questions are where and when. (Oder wo und wann, if I remember correctly.) (No gifts needed: just come share your company with us.)

For where, I suggest Romano's Macaroni Grill in Gaithersburg. Romano's menu offers six vegetarian entrées, according to our recent count, as well as a handful of vegetarian appetizers. If we're there early enough in the evening, perhaps 5:30 or 6:00, we should be able to quickly get a table in the quieter section of the restaurant.

Regarding when, I think we must decide on what works best for the most people. My b-day is the 24th of this month, but that's Friday (a busy night for restaurants) and Corey will not be experiencing perfect dental comfort. So I think we must choose an evening a few days later.

I know that Tuesday evening is tied up for at least four of us. I would be willing to see our brass rehearsal time exchanged for this event, if people would find Wednesday to work well for the most people. Or we could look at Monday or Thursday.

So, please reply here: let me know what evening after the 24th sounds like a good fit for your plans, and also let me know whether you could be in Gaithersburg as early as 5:30 on that evening. Please remind us, too, if your birthday falls in this time period, so we'll know we're celebrating for you as well. (Jamey? Others?)

Thanks!

ALL BRASS AT 11: Details Below

(Sorry for the local news joke)

All brass players are invited to play with the hymns next Sabbath, September 11, at Triadelphia SDA. The hymns will be 1, 17, 25 and TBD.

Know a brass player? Spread the word!

PS. I think I should save De De the trouble of stating that we should soon have a woodwinds-welcome Sabbath.

TriBrass Rehearsals Move to Wednesdays

This week we agreed to move our rehearsals to Wednesday evenings, same time, same place, to accomodate David Greene's class schedule. According to current plans, this will remain for 9 weeks, then switch to Mondays for 9 weeks.

To clarify: our next rehearsal (as of the time of posting this blog entry) is Wednesday evening, September 8. Brass players, family and friends, I'll see you there!

Personal Update

As you have heard by now, I'm seeking a new project within IBM, or another place of employment. Some of the entries in my weblog talk about my job hopes, opportunities and interviews. Both my weblog and my resumé are linked from my homepage.

I've recently added to my weblog a list of other weblogs that I follow, including Corey's Life, The Universe, & Everything. See the bottom of my weblog's left-hand sidebar. If/when you have a weblog or website, let me know: I'll be there, reading what you write.

Sept 4, Sept 10, Sept 11

For September 4: Geri has asked that some string players, specifically including Beth and William, among others, provide offertory, and some players (including or not including these two) provide special music. I have a couple of numbers from the Sheila Nelson Quartet Club that could be used, or it might be better to play a hymn a couple times through.

This might also be a good time for Jamey, David and I to play a cello-cello-bass trio. We'll bring instruments to practice Tuesday evening. If anyone wants to call and invite others (Becky? Carla? Christina? others?) please do so. We've already talked with the Possingers about having Leo H. practice and play with us. Jamey fired off an e-mail to Enno, but a follow-up call may be in order.

For September 10: Don Crane asked us to play something at Elternhaus. I suggested filling the program with a very long song service, and that seemed acceptable. David, if you'd like, perhaps we could throw in Meditation or Adoration or some such.

For September 11: Ekkehardt mentioned that he's planning to have Ryan and trumpet on hand for special music, and asked if the lower brass would join in for the hymns.

Brass Sept. 25 - Triadelphia

[Posted on behalf of Geri]

September 25: Brass is playing with all the Hymns.

Strings Sept. 4 - Triadelphia

[Posted on behalf of Geri]

September 4: Offertory and Special Music with all the strings. They can just play the favorite Hymns that were played on August 14.

Potluck vs The Community of the Involved

Potluck diatribe moved to my personal weblog.

Potluck this week

Hi everyone, just letting you know I am on for potluck this week. Come keep Danny company. :)

Real-Estate Dreams

Hello friends,

As a few of you heard last night, we bid on a townhouse near the Maydens' home. You can get a bit more info from these two posts in my weblog:

• on Thinking of Buying a House
• Not This Time

TriBrass Practice Tonight

Hello friends!

Wes, David and Jason: Let's plan to meet as usual: 6:45 call time at the Triadelphia SDA church. I have two new numbers for us to look at, too.

Corey, one of the new numbers is for bass (vocal) solo with brass and organ. It's by Schütz, and in Latin. The part looks difficult, but I'd like to hear you sing it if you're interested in the challenge. Stop by rehearsal this evening to look at it with us.

CMW: How to keep it going?

CMW: better than ever? I think each year is better than the last, and that's saying something huge.

Are we essentially relegated to one CMW each year? Are there things we can do locally to encourage, precipitate even, chamber music through-out the year?

What are we going to need to make it happen? We have the Trout piano quintet, we have some Haydn string quartets, and a few Mozart piano quartets. Are these enough to start bringing people together? Can anyone get serious about buying string and flute music? Can we find another strong violinist? Geri, which string instrument will you learn first?

Should we start planning a recital? If we do, will we feel awkward about playing together Sabbath afternoons?

Fun for the day

Spelling Quiz: 10 questions.

Also, I saw this license plate this morning on a new Infiniti FX SUV:

 NBEYND 

William's Birthday: Thanks!

Thank you all for sharing your time with us last evening. William really enjoyed it, and so did we. :-)

William's Birthday

William turns 12 this week, and he would like to see you folks. Seeing as we will be seeing quite a few of you at brass rehearsal on Tuesday, I was wondering if it would make sense to do a little something downstairs afterwards. No presents, just friends :-). I'll bring some sculptured watermelon that we can stick candels in (he doesn't really like cake). Perhaps we will have time to squeeze in a quick game of Uno, Catch Phrase, or something of that sort, he would really love that. I will bring several things along just in case. I would like to extend this to those of you who aren't brass memebers as well. Rehearsal (which is at Triadelphia SDA Church) is usually over by 8:00pm so that gives you an idea of what time it would be.

A Sabbath Proposal (aka Chamber Music revisited)

Come one, come all; join at any time

Itinerary:

• Church at Triadelphia; highlights include specials by Daniel Ashton
• Potluck picnic at the capitol; suggestions on location include the reflecting pool, Roosevelt memorial, Capitol building steps…
• Afternoon visit to various Smithsonian areas.
• Supper at the Ashtons (ask them how you might contribute)
• Chamber music following supper, including the ever-popular Trout

Suggested lunch menu:

• Strawberry shortcake - Greenes
• Sandwiches - each bring enough to share
• Chips - each bring enough to share
• Fruit and other picnic-friendly items - welcome
• Water - each to his own

Special guest: Sherilyn Johnson, my mother

[Daniel adds the following:]

Supper is likely to be Pakistani Curry. If, for any reason, this would discourage you from joining us, please speak up quickly! We would far rather enjoy your company.

Please bring your parts for the Hummel Septet, as I want to have them in hand before leaving for CMW. I believe that means flute and horn parts from the Maydens, and piano and viola parts from the Greenes.

Dooley is welcome.

Also, I really enjoyed the recorder trios, etc. that we played last time. I hope we get to do more music like that.

Chamber Music Sabbath Afternoon

Anyone interested? We can go through the Trout again, as well as Eine Kleine and whatever else we have on hand. Recorders too, if you want.

Also, please think of who else we can invite ahead of time.

Christy-Party!

I have been given to understand that this Tuesday evening will witness a celebration of life's annuality on behalf of the young Mrs. Corey Cottrell. Therefore, I recommend that we forego our usual musical exertions in favor of camaraderie and the eating of cheesecake. Details, Mr. Cottrell, we need details!