The Summerglen Files

Andrew and I (and quite possibly Velvet the cat) really dig Barack Obama, so we’re very excited to have him in North Carolina! Here’s an entertaining rundown of Obama’s visit with the UNC Basketball Team. I wonder if Mr. Obama would like to try his hand at trombone or percussion… Maybe on his next visit, [...]

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Whew! Last week was really packed–a show or rehearsal (or 2!) every day, a fair amount of travelling, and an ailing car. It will be nice to return to a more relaxed routine this week, and maybe get a little more sleep! For several days last week, I played in an orchestra accompanying the Mt. [...]

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One reason I’ve stuck around in Raleigh for the past six years is their wonderful Parks and Recreation Department. They offer all kinds of great classes and adventure getaways that are a great way to spark your creativity. I’ve found that if I just sit around and practice all the time, my technique gets better [...]

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Whew! I just finished up my busiest week of this year so far–a 3-hour-long opera orchestra performance every night, 4 daytime gigs, and my regular schedule of private students. It feels good to work so much, but burning the candle at both ends for too long can take its toll on anybody, including musicians! When [...]

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This week, when I wasn’t playing for The Yeomen of the Guard, I played a very interesting, record-breaking gig. This was the shortest gig with the smallest audience I’ve ever played, and is quite possibly the most whimsical gig ever as well. On Monday, I received a call from a man in Pennsylvania whose sister [...]

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I’ve spent the last week in the orchestra pit of the Carolina Theatre in Durham, playing for the Durham Savoyards production of Yeomen of the Guard. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Gilbert and Sullivan, they collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, with W. S. Gilbert creating the words and [...]

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Swedish trombonist, composer, and conductor Christian Lindberg is nothing short of a living legend. He has premiered over 300 works for the trombone, recorded over 70 solo CDs, and worked with almost every major orchestra in the world. And he’s accomplished all of this before turning 50 years old! Lindberg began playing trombone at age [...]

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Here’s a classic video of Bones Apart Trombone Quartet, performing John Philip Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever. Formed in 1999, Bones Apart is an internationally acclaimed all-female trombone quartet. Bones Apart performs a wide variety of repertoire in its effort to raise the profile of the trombone as a versatile chamber music instrument. For more [...]

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We’re well into International Trombone Week, so it’s time to celebrate the trombone with some great performances! The above video features Gunhilde and Gerd, two sisters from the remarkable Swedish Carling Family band, playing a mean trombone duet on the song Jubilee Stomp. The Carling Family band started playing jazz in 1983, and have since [...]

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After we lost our beloved Ella the Jazz Cat, we thought we wouldn’t get another kitty for some time. But when we stumbled upon a post on Craigslist that said a cat needed a nice home, we knew we could help. So, we introduce the newest addition to the Summerglen family…VELVET! Velvet was very skittish [...]

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