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Week of 14 November 1997 Vol. I, No. 12 Arts ABQ's acclaim resonates with students & audiences By Judith Sandler The musicians in the Atlantic Brass Quintet are more than successful and dedicated artists with impressive awards behind them and the prospect of continued growth and innovation ahead. They are also dedicated educators. In addition to performing and touring in Europe, Asia, and North America, since 1995 the ABQ has also served as ensemble-in-residence at SFA, where its members, each an adjunct assistant professor, teach, coach, present concerts and master classes, and organize the brass chamber music program and Atlantic Brass Quintet Seminar at Tanglewood. Seth Orgel, Joe Foley, Jeffrey Luke, John Faieta, and John Manning. Photo by J. Henry Fair "The thing I most admire about the quintet members is their complete devotion to their students," says Roger Voisin, SFA professor of trumpet and former Boston Symphony Orchestra principal trumpet. "They are always available for consultation &emdash; they've opened their studio, they've made innovations, and they've made a big difference." "Our private studios continue to expand," says ABQ trombonist John Faieta. "We are working to develop a schoolwide plan to bring the brass students together more. We do mock auditions and work on the orchestral literature to prepare students for the challenges ahead. And we've recently started up trumpet, trombone, horn, and large brass ensembles." Those ensembles are thriving. The brass ensemble organized by BU student trumpeter Rich Candelaria (SFA'00) and conducted by Faieta presents its first concert November 22 at noon in the BU Concert Hall, and plans additional concerts and competitions. Candelaria came to SFA specifically to study with the quintet. "I think the Atlantic is the epitome of what a brass ensemble should be," he says. "Working with them is some of the most intense musical learning I've ever done. When I got here, I thought I would learn to play the trumpet, but instead I'm learning how to be a musician. And that's why I'm here. They're also the most caring individuals I've met." The Tanglewood program is also taking off. "Last summer," says ABQ French horn player Seth Orgel, "we had nine quintets a session &emdash; the biggest the program has ever been &emdash; plus professional quintets that drop in for coaching. It's becoming bigger and bigger each year." "The record high enrollment in the Brass Seminar was thanks mainly to the efforts of the ABQ," according to Tanglewood administrator Cynthia Plumb. "I was really struck this summer by their dedication to helping the students reach their goals and gratified to see that all of the students, regardless of their level when they entered the program, grew tremendously over the course of the summer." The Atlantic Brass Quintet was created in 1985 in the chamber music program at SFA by trumpeter Joe Foley, tubist John Manning, and Faieta. Aided by members of the Empire Brass Quintet, the SFA ensemble-in-residence at the time, they soon found players to complete the quintet. (These players were replaced by trumpeter Jeffrey Luke in 1989 and Orgel in 1993.) "It was just something we started up," says Faieta. "We made recordings of ourselves, started performing, and eventually we entered competitions." Recognizing the exceptional chemistry and professionalism of the young group, Columbia Artists Management International offered to manage them in 1987. The following year, Musical America named the ABQ Young Artists of the Year. Soon they began to tour. "We got in a van and drove, eventually traveling through the 48 states," recalls Orgel. "We played in many out-of-the-way places in Montana, Wyoming, Kansas, and Nebraska for audiences that had never heard a formal concert before." Soon the prizes began stacking up. Winning the Shoreline Competition gave them a 1987 début in Carnegie Recital Hall, and in 1992, the biggest of their six international chamber music competition victories, the Narbonne International Brass Quintet Competition in France, established their international reputation. As the group's recognition grew, so did the critics' praise. Brass Bulletin reported, "The ABQ's performances are lively, dynamic, and rich in colors, arousing emotion as well as admiration. . . . The [ABQ] has attained a rare level of perfection, placing it among the finest quintets of our time." The Boston Globe said of a recent performance, "A tour de force of virtuosity, the quintet displayed breathtaking feats of ensemble built of impressive individual performances, full of nerve and panache." The Atlantic Brass Quintet has a distinctive performance approach and style. Members introduce each piece and make every effort to reach out to the audience. "We stay on stage during intermission and people come up to chat and ask us questions," Faieta says. "We like to look at our concerts as educational, because we feel we're an educational entity. If someone can understand something new, if he can understand at least one more new thing, then we've done our job." The Atlantic Brass Quintet performs Wednesday, November 19, at 8 p.m. in the Tsai Performance Center. The program will include Georg Frederic Handel's The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba; Michael Praetorius' Dances from Terpsichore; Sweelinck's Ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la a 4 voci; Aaron Copland's Two Selections from "The Red Pony"; Malcolm Arnold's Quintet for Brass; Ira Taxin's Fanfare for Brass Quintet; Richard Danielpour's Urban Dances; and Leonard Bernstein, selections from On the Town.