Issue 10, Page 2 I a Unique Approach to the Modern and Old: a Discussion with Brass Players of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe by Douglas Hedwig and Jefjy Nussbaum
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HISTORIC BRASS SOCIETY NEWSLETTER News, Views, Notes and Comments for Members and Friends of the Historic Brass Society Issue Number 10 ISSN - 1045-4594 Summer, 1997 I HBS Publications: Stewart Carter, Journal Executive Editor; Karen Snowberg, Newsletter Executive Editor; Jeffrey Nussbaum, Managing Editor; Barry Bauguess, Journal Production; Martha Bixler, Anne Bonn, Sandra Coffin, Peter Ecklund, Jeremy Montagu, Steven Plank, Richard Seraphinoff, Jeffrey Snedeker, Howard Weiner and Chris Whitehead, Associate Editors. Historic Brass Society: Executive Committee: Jeffrey Nussbaum, President; Jeffrey Snedeker, Treasurer; Karen Snowberg, Secretary; Thomas Huener, Membership Secretary, Tom Re~cher,Counsel. Board of Directors: Stephen C. Anderson, Barry Bauguess, Stewart Carter, Trevor Herbert, Jeffrey Nussbaum, Keith Polk, Jeffrey Snedeker, Karen Snowberg. Board ojAdvisors: Michael Collver, Allan Dean, Bruce Dickey, Ralph T. Dudgeon, Stephen Escher, Douglas Hedwig, Fred Holmgren, Douglas Kirk, Craig Kridel, William G. Mathews, Viola Roth, Richard Seraphinoff, Crispian Steele-Perkins, Robert Stibler, Franz Streitwieser and Edward H. Tarr. 6 Copyright 1997. The Historic Brass Society Newsletter is published annually by The Historic Brass Society, Inc. CONTENTS Page HBS Financial Report .................................................................................................................................................................2 A Unique Approach to the Modem and Old: A Discussion with Brass Players of The Chamber Orchestra of Europe By Douglas Hedwig and Jeffrey Nussbaum ......................................................................................................................3 A Report on Natural Horn Makers World-Wide, by Richard Seraphinoff ................................................................................. 9 A Brief History of the Finnish Brass Band, by Paul Niemisto .................................................................................................13 Message from a Cornettist at St. Mark's, dated 16 14, by Bruce Dickey ..................................................................................16 Letters to the Editor ............................................................................................................................................................. 17 Recording Reviews .................................................................................................................................................................. 19 Book Reviews ...........................................................................................................................................................................34 Music Edition Reviews .............................................................................................................................................................37 News of the Field .....................................................................................................................................................................40 Thirteenth Annual Early Brass Festival ....................................................................................................................................47 Historical Musical Instrument Colloquium ..............................................................................................................................48 HBS Membership Directory .....................................................................................................................................................57 PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE Greetings to all old members and welcome 'to those new to the HBS. There are a number of exciting projects lined up this year that I'm thrilled to mention. For the first time the Early Brass Festival will not be at Amherst but will be at the campus of the Indiana University School of Music in Bloomington, IN. We hope to continue to have Amherst as our home base but thought that it would be a healthy step to present the EBF at different locations from time to time. This year the EBF # 13 and the Historic Brass Society will be the subject of a film series on the early music movement and will be filmed by the BBC. I look forward to seeing many of you there and since we are going to be filmed, please remember to wear your snazziest T-shirts and sandals! ! Now that we have firmly established an important forum with the HBS Journal, HBS Newsletter and our new book series, BUCINA, (the second in the series, the Proceedings of the 1995 HBS Symposium is due soon), we are working hard to span bridges to other areas in the music world. Some of those groups have, unfortunately, been quite unaware of the great work being done in the brass field. Having presented several successful events in cooperation with the American Musicological Society and Galpin Society, the HBS will present a special Early Brass Study Session at the upcoming International Musicological Society 16th Annual Congress (Aug. 19th) in London. We took advantage of this rare opportunity to also present a day-long Colloquium on the day before the IMS starts (Aug. 13th). Both events will have the participation of many leading scholars and performers and look to be quite important. The HBS will also participate in a forum sponsored by EMA at the Boston Early Music Festival. The HBS is a not-for-profit organization and contributions are tax-deductible, very much needed, and very much appreciated. Your support is, of course, needed for us to continue the good work we have done to date. Please consider sending in a contribution along with your annual membership dues. The new-comers might not realize, but the HBS is a great labor of love for many who work long and hard for free. My thanks, as always, to the members of the Board of Directors, Editorial Board, and Board of Advisors. Jeffrey Nussbaum President, Historic Brass Society The Historic Brass Society - 148 W. 23rd Street, #2A - New York, NY 10011, USA - TelIFax (212) 627-3820 E-Mail: [email protected] WWW site: http://www.classical.net/music/guide/society/hbs/ FINANCIAL REPORT: HISTORIC BRASS SOCIETY, INC. FISCAL YEAR, January 1,1996 -- December 31,1996 Cash on-hand, January 1, 1996 FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS AnchorIDime Checking Account Barclay's Account (plus cash transactions) OPENING BALANCES $3194.94 E 1088.48 REVENUES (Earned) Membership Dues, Library Subscriptions Advertising income Sales of Back Issues Rental of database Account interest REVENUES (Unearned) Contributions TOTAL REVENUES OPERATING EXPENSES Journal and Newsletter costs Postagelmailing Office Supplies (including photocopying) Misc. clerical, legal, advertising, bank Advertising Expenses for Early Brass Festival Telephone TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES NET FISCAL (L0SS)lGAIN CLOSING BALANCES, December 3 1, 1996 Cash on-hand, December 3 1, 1996 $ -0- Cumulative Financial Status, December 3 1, 1996 $ 1517.60 +(£1488.3 1 @ $1.52475) $ 3786.90 Respectfully submitted, Jeffrey L. Snedeker, Treasurer r-------------------------------- I I I New WBS Submission Deadline I Notice of Annual Meeting I 'I The annual meeting of the Historic Brass Society, Inc. will be ' A new submission schedule has been established for the HBS Journal and HBS Newsletter. I conducted at 4:00 PM, Saturday July 12, 1997, at The School ] I of Music, University of Indiana, ~loomin~ton,IN. Plans for I Article submissions for the HBS Journal must be submitted by I the direction of the HBS will be discussed. I February 1. Six copies of the article plus a floppy disc and all I work and illustrations must be sent. I art I I Submissions for the HBS Newsletter must be submitted by I March 1. L--,-,,-,------------------------. I 1 I I HBS Newsletter, Issue 10, Page 2 I A Unique Approach to the Modern and Old: A Discussion with Brass Players of The Chamber Orchestra of Europe by Douglas Hedwig and JefJy Nussbaum On November 22, 1996 the following William Brown. Richard is playing a of a performance, and that audience's discussion took place, after the dress Bach 36 medium-bore instrument, and musical experience is different from 150 rehearsal of Beethoven's Ninth Patrick just bought something in Times years ago. Obsession with details has Symphony, under the direction of Square. led, in my view, to a lot of bad music Nikolaus Harnoncourt, at Carnegie Hall, making being allowed to hide behind a NYC. We spoke with trombonists Simon Patrick Jackman: It's a Holton 57 small- mantle of "correctness." Harnoncourt's Wills, Richard Cheetham, and Patrick bore bass trombone with a single plug, approach seems to be that you can Jackman; and trumpeters Nick Thompson and I used that for the Beethoven Ninth. I reproduce the impact of a piece on an and Julian Poore, all members of the also use a King 3B. It's nice to be able to audience, but if you want to do that you Chamber Orchestra of Europe. have a different approach. On both the are going to have to accept that the Ninth and Fifth, the complaint is often details will be different in quite Jeffrey Nussbaum: I'm thrilled that that the trombone is too loud. Before you substantive ways from what was heard, Richard Cheetham suggested this even play a note, people complain that say, in 1819. He restores the narrative of meeting and was able to set it up. Your it's too loud! With these small-bore the music and strives for some of the rehearsal was fantastic and absolutely instruments you can get the edge and power it had to shock when it was new. striking in so many ways. A