The Brass Junkies

TBJ147: Andrew and Lance revisit the bonus interview, with Sam Pilfian from December of 2018. Originally only available to Patreon patrons, we wanted to share the amazing interview with Sam to a wider audience. Enjoy! You can find show notes, links and this episode's Easter eggs on the Pedal Note Media website: http://www.pedalnotemedia.com/tbj/blog/tbj147 For instant access to the complete back c...

Mike Roylance, Principal Tuba of the Boston Symphony Orchestra on gigs during Covid-19, playing for Disney, and life as an orchestral tubist in a major symphony orchestra. You can find show notes, links and this episode's Easter eggs on the Pedal Note Media website: http://www.pedalnotemedia.com/tbj/blog/tbj146 Check out the offerings from Hitz Academy and see if it is right for you!: www.hitzacad...

TBJ145: Tom Hooten, principal trumpet of the Los Angeles Philharmonic on transparency, air direction and coyotes. Trumpet master Tom Hooten joined Andrew & Lance to discuss how he has taken advantage of his time during quarantine to become an even better player, teacher and musician. Want to help the show? Here are some ways: Unlock bonus episodes galore by becoming a Patreon patron. Help others f...

TBJ144: Legendary horn player and teacher Marty Hackleman on All Star Brass, poetry and fire tornadoes. Marty joins The Brass Junkies for a second time to share some amazing stories, including a very honest explanation of how he decided to end his playing career. LINKS https://info.umkc.edu/cmad-roohorns/martin-hackleman/ http://www.bravinntech.com/trumpetjenswebsite/all-star-brass.html Want to he...

TBJ143: Brittany Lasch, Trombone Professor at Bowling Green State University on Covid recovery, Star Wars and Goal Setting. Brittany Lasch shared her incredible story about losing an Easter gig and getting Covid, a bad tradeoff. LINKS https://www.brittanylasch.com/ https://www.bgsu.edu/musical-arts/faculty-and-staff/brittany-lasch.html https://www.astralartists.org/artist/brittany-lasch/ https://m...

TBJ142: Chris Martin, Principal Trumpet with the New York Philharmonic on auditions, fundamentals, and 340 mouthpieces. Really. Master trumpeter Chris Martin joins Andrew & Lance to explain how he landed two of the best gigs in the world. LINKS Chris' page NY Phil bio page Juilliard page Yamaha Artist page TBJ63 with Mike Martin Full show notes at pedalnotemedia.com (including Lance's show notes/E...

TBJ141: Quotes from the 2020 TBJ Academy Summer Workshop. Andrew & Lance highlight some of their favorite quotes from Donna Parkes, JD Shaw, Mary Bowden, Tage Larsen, Jen Montone Demondrae Thurman, and Richard White. We had an amazing week at The Brass Junkies Academy Summer Workshop! 20 amazing hours with the best of the best in an extremely informative and powerful five-day run.  BUT WAIT, THERE...

TBJ140: John Lofton, Bass Trombone with the Los Angeles Philharmonic on YOLO, diversity in the arts, and a crazy trip to Venezuela. John Lofton is a great guy and thoughtful musician and shared some great insights and ideas with Andrew & Lance. In this fun and lively discussion, we cover: Oh yeah, and Lance Carol dissed Lance John starting with the LA Phil officially in 2008 but played as a long t...

In today's episode, we cover: Lance is leaving town for two days and everyone is happy about it Welcome to Abby Lannan to the Pedal Note Media team! Doc's various names JustNix is yummy! Rage Medley viral video hit over 120M views New Pedal Note Media podcast, "Doc Nix Talks To..." Air Bud and Beethoven Listening and learning Black Lives Matter Driveway chats w/Doc Nix while Andrew's kid made mini...

TBJ138: Julie Landsman on being the first woman in the brass section of The Met, the teaching of Carmine Caruso and JFL. Legendary is a term that gets thrown around a lot. Sometimes, it is deserved. This is one of those times. We're playing around with the show notes organization. Let us know your thoughts! In this fun and lively discussion, we cover: Julie being on our initial "wish list" of gues...

TBJ136: Boston Brass joins Andrew & Lance sharing stories both new and old. The five current members of Boston Brass catch us up with how the quintet is dealing with quarantine, swaps stories, and future plans.  From their website: For 31 years, Boston Brass has set out to establish a one-of-a-kind musical experience. Performing exciting classical arrangements to burning jazz standards, Boston Bra...

TBJ135: Jeff Nelsen on Fearless Performance, habit formation and how Canadian Brass is responding to the international quarantine. Horn performer, teacher, and magician Jeff Nelsen joins The Brass Junkies for the second time to catch us up on his efforts to make art and help others. From his bio: Having grown up on a Canadian pig-farm, Jeff Nelsen's multiple non-porcine professions show him to be...

TBJ134: Rex Martin on online lessons, Arnold Jacobs and tuba mute hatred. Master pedagogue (and Andrew's former teacher) and tuba soloist Rex Martin shares stories and insights with Andrew & Lance from his new home in Bern, Switzerland.   From his Wikipedia Page:   Rex Martin is one of the world's virtuoso tuba players, appearing on over 70 symphony orchestra recordings. He primarily studied under...

TBJ133: Christopher Bill on his amazing and amazingly powerful guide to remote music education. And bidets. Christopher is back for another interview with a deep dive discussion of how to learn and teach in the age of social isolation. To save you some scrolling, here's a link to the oft-mentioned documents: Christopher's guide to remote music education Christopher's multitrack editing 101 documen...

TBJ132: Phil Snedecor on diagnosing playing issues, his new publications and the challenges of small-holed instruments. Phil returns to the show to share even more wisdom and shares takeaways from his studies with Arnold Jacobs. From his bio: Phil Snedecor is Associate Professor of Trumpet at the  Hartt School  (of the University of Hartford) in Hartford, CT, and a former faculty member at The Pea...

TBJ131: Listener's Choice: Andrew & Lance warm up to the idea of warming up and other brass nerd stuff. Two listeners' questions are featured, covering warmups and practice routines. Thank you to Susan and Mark for these great questions! In this fun and lively discussion, we cover: Barking dogs Andrew's dog can read Fancy playgrounds Lance can't remember anything Recording the TBJ theme song with...

TBJ130: Gretchen Renshaw James on conducting, diversity and playing tuba in Seraph Brass. She eloquently explains how she balances teaching low brass, conducting, arranging and touring. From her bio: Gretchen Renshaw James enjoys a multifaceted career as a conductor, tuba and euphonium performer, and arranger. She is the Director of Bands/Applied Low Brass at Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas; t...

TBJ129: Martin McCain on travel, creating new repertoire and BBQ. Trombone player and educator Martin McCain gives us a peek at his diverse and prolific career.  From his bio: Global Music Award Gold Medal Winner and Grammy Award-nominated trombonist Martin McCain enjoys a career that spans an impressive scope of genres. A third-generation musician, he maintains a versatile performance schedule as...

TBJ128: Euphoniumist Chris Buckley of the US Army Band on growing up in Laredo, Texas, euphonium repertoire and his love of cooking. Chris Buckley is a great player and a great guy. This wide-ranging conversation included great information on the Army Band Tuba-Euphonium Workshop. That's a lot of greats. From his bio: SFC Christopher Buckley is one of the newest members of the United States Army B...

A "distilled and refined" Patrick Sheridan returns to the show to share his thoughts on passion projects and reflects on the loss of Sam Pilafian. In this fun and lively discussion, we cover: Shiverfest Wide in the hips Harry Watters Susan Rider Marine Band Scratch and Sniff How he picks projects Playing, teaching, conducting and publishing Distilled and refined Seeing Pat in action at American Ba...

TBJ126: Trumpeter Susan Rider of "The President's Own" United States Marine Band on overcoming doubt, the importance of focus and jamming with her dad. Susan dropped serious conversation ninja on Andrew & Lance and made them have a normal conversation. Weird. From her bio: Trumpeter/cornetist Master Gunnery Sergeant Susan Rider joined "The President's Own" United States Marine Band in July 1997. M...

TBJ125: Andrew & Lance Give Thanks. Lance drops a bunch of questions on Andrew, testing his ability to be thankful. Hilarity ensues. In this fun and lively discussion, we cover their gratitude related to their favorite or most memorable: Artist (Lance: Jeff Conner and Elvis Costello) Piece of art (Andrew: Monet, Leaves of Grass, The Godfather, "Two From the Vault" by the Grateful Dead, "Linchpin"...

TBJ124: Alan Baylock on arranging for the Airmen of Note, running the One O'Clock Lab Band at UNT and falling in love with the F Major 7 chord. Alan is an amazing arranger and bandleader and still manages to be a great guy! From his bio: Born and raised in a small town in Southwestern Pennsylvania, Alan Baylock has composed music that is performed throughout the world. One of the most respected an...

TBJ123: Sam Pilafian Tribute On October 25, 2019, Sam Pilafian would have turned 70. To mark this special occasion we decided to reach out to some of Sam's best friends to ask for stories, thoughts, reflections, and impressions. Mark Gould, Marty Hackleman, Jose Sibaja, Michael Sachs, JD Shaw, Patrick Sheridan, and Jose Sibaja shared stories ranging from hilarious to moving and we hope you find it...

TBJ122: Shelagh Abate on playing horn on Broadway, meeting Sting and the importance of networking. She gives us a great overview of life in a Broadway pit and what it takes to get (and stay) there. From her bio: SHELAGH ABATE is unquestionably one of New York's most sought-after musicians. Shelagh's love for the horn is almost as old as her love for music itself. Known for her simultaneously warm...