Jermie Arnold and BCCM hosted one of its many clinics for traveling high school bands. Acalanes High School Wind Symphony visited from the Bay Area. Their conductor, Norm Dea, brought them in to work on Wild Nights! by Frank Ticheli, with Prof. Arnold.
Monthly Archives: March 2013
CSULB’s Trumpet Ensemble Gains National Attention with Third Place Win
Everything Long Beach ran a terrific article about the BCCM Trumpet Ensemble’s Third Place showing in the National Trumpet Competition. Pictured to the left are Kurt Peregrine, Esther Hood, and Tony Belletti. They were joined by Devin Henderson, Jackson Niebrugge, Drew Ninmer, and soloist Casey Martin
“This weekend we showed the country what Long Beach music is all about. Nobody saw us coming, but we came and we conquered…It was so amazing to hear how much everyone enjoyed the music we played and how well they thought we did. Never have I been so proud to call myself a Long Beach trumpet player,” said Casey Martin in the article.
We have a lot to be proud of, and as Rob Frear stated, “Their training and professionalism was apparent throughout the weekend both in their level of performance and their wonderful demeanor. The piece they played, the Moffett-Klein Phenomenon, is a tour-de-force among trumpet ensemble compositions, and was by far the hardest piece presented this year, in my opinion. Casey Martin played the treacherous solo part with apparent ease.”
Carnell Harrell Performs with JLo at Muhammad Ali Fundraiser
Alumnus Carnell Harrell performed with Jennifer Lopez at the fundraiser for the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center’s Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix. The event raised more than $9.1 million.
Jennifer Lopez received the Muhammad Ali Celebrity Fight Night Awards honoring her humanitarian efforts. Lopez’s charity, the Lopez Family Foundation, works to improve the health and well-being of children and women around the world. Carnell is JLo’s keyboard player.
Michael Malinowski Studies in Brazil
Alumnus Michael Malinowski (percussion) spent the past month in Brazil for Carnaval and studying/playing music. Studying a wide array of genres, he began in Rio de Janeiro and traveled along the coast to Recife, in the northeast.
While in Rio de Janeiro, Michael attended Sambôdromo. As he explains, “It’s a huge strip where the Rio Carnaval Parade happens where a bunch of groups have massive parades for a contest. Each of these top groups have about 4,000 people in them, fully decked out with costumes and floats. Each group has about 200 drummers too, and then a few singers with microphones and they sing ONE song over and over and the groups get judged… At the end of the last group people will rush to the floor, so that’s what I did.”
If you are interested in Brazilian music or culture you can reach him at: michaelfmalinowski@gmail.com
Stavros Choplaros Collaborates with Sculpture Artist
Alumnus Stavros Choplaros composed music for CSULB senior sculpture artist Colin Lindsay’s performance this weekend at the Dutzi Gallery on campus.
Steve Trapani and Rena Urso-Trapani at World Baseball Classic
Adjunct faculty members Steve Trapani and Rena Urso-Trapani performed at the World Baseball Classic Championship Finals at AT&T Park in San Francisco on March 19th. Oakland East Bay Symphony was hired to record and side line (“air bow”), playing each country’s national anthem as well as the “Parade of Flags” on the field.
The game was televised on ESPN and the MLB network.
Ryan Darke performs Don Quixote in Malaysia
Alumnus Ryan Darke recently returned from performing Principal Trumpet on Strauss’ Don Quixote with the Malaysia Philharmonic in Kuala Lumpur. He will be performing with the Pagent of the Master’s Orchestra this summer.
Perry LaMarca and Stavros Choplaros in Book on Animation
School of Art faculty member Aubry Mintz co-edited “Ideas for the Animated Short” which will be published shortly by Focal Press. In his chapter, “Developing a Short Animated Film,” he followed a student team which included BCCM alumnus Stavros Choplaros through the process of making an animated short. BCCM film music composition instructor Perry LaMarca is also featured in a chapter entitled “Creating Music to Support Narrative: An Interview With Perry LaMarca”
Alex Berru Travels the World
Alumnus Alex Berru just completed three contracts with Holland America Line aboard the Statendam, Maasdam, and Noordam. His travels as a cruise ship musician took him to Canada, New England, Alaska, Pacific Northwest, Mexico, Caribbean, Central America, and Panama Canal. He is currently performing with the Esquires Swing Band for another season with a concert at Edwards Air Force Base and at Westchester Elks Lodge
CJO On Tour
The BCCM Concert Jazz Orchestra, CJO, returns from tour today. They were in the Seattle (WA) area to perform several joint concerts with jazz bands from International School the Bellevue HS (Bellevue WA), Glacier Peak HS and Snohomish HS (Snohomish WA). Jarvis and members of the CJO will provide several clinics for students from the various schools. The tour will culminate with an invitation to perform at the Frontier Jazz Festival in Graham WA. The second half of the CJO’s festival program will feature trumpet sensation Byron Stripling (former lead trumpeter for Count Basie, and artistic director of the Columbus Jazz Orchestra).