Welcome to Discovering Brass!

Welcome to Discovering Brass! My name is Max Gradisher and this blog is an opportunity for me to learn more about brass ensembles and to share my findings. 

I am ashamed to say that as a graduate level trumpet player I am not well versed in the vast array of brass ensembles. My knowledge of brass ensembles is rooted in drum corps. I marched with The Cadets in 2023 and it was the most intense and fulfilling experience of my performing career. This photo is from our performance at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.


I would be ecstatic to talk about drum corps for every post, but that wouldn't be much of a discovery for me. So instead I will widen my horizons and find something new for every post... and perhaps include a favorite drum corps fun fact, memory or show. :)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Listening Presentation

Image
Metropolis 1927  by Peter Graham. Performed by the Black Dyke Band.          Peter Graham is a highly respected composer in the brass band community. He is known for his innovative and challenging pieces that have pushed the boundaries of the brass band genre. Metropolis 1927 is one of Grahams most Signiant works and required a high level of technical skill and musicality. The piece was inspired by the 1927 silent film Metropolis, by Fritz Lang. Grahams pieces captures the film's dystopian atmosphere, industrial intensity, and emotional turmoil in its dramatic music. DCI fun fact: Santa Clara Vanguard based their 2018 show Babylon,  around this piece and took 1st place at the DCI World Championships. Tre-Mendez Polka,  by Rafael Mendez. Performed by the Mendez family.     Rafael Mendez and his sons Ralph and Robert performed the Tre-Mendez Trio , on the Art Linkletter show in 1957. This piece showcases the families exceptional talent and...
Read more

Live Reaction of Niele's ABEL Listening Presentation

Image
This is a live reaction of Niele's ABEL listening presentation. Niele chose a wide variety of pieces, many of those were from underrepresented composers. I had not heard a single piece from this playlist and I was pleasantly surprised with each one. Some surprised me with their beauty in composition and performance and others surprised me with their powerful message. These are my thoughts: A Song for Japan by Steven Velherst performed by Tokyo Brass Symphony     The Tokyo Brass Symphony's precision and expressiveness made this piece a compelling tribute to Japan. The precision, musicality and phrasing filled the piece with emotion and beaty.  Princess Kaguya Suite for Trombone Quartet by Keiko Takashima performed by TINTS Trombone Quartet     This piece is musical telling of the Japanese folktale The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter . There are three chapters with narration in between each one: Chapter 1 , Chapter 2 , Chapter 3 . The TINTS Trombone Quartet was pheno...
Read more