ITEA Journal Volume 47 Number 2 (Winter 2020)
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2019 Leonard Falcone International Euphonium & Tuba Festival
by Randy Westmoreland
The Thirty-fourth annual Leonard Falcone International Euphonium and Tuba Festival took place over the span of four days from Friday, August 9th through Monday, August 12th. Thirty-one competitors from around the world converged on the campus of Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Manistee National Forest in west Michigan. These competitors represented musicians from the United States, South Africa, the Netherlands, and Japan.
Adding to the rich international representation at the Falcone Festival was our guest artist, Thomas Rüedi from Büren, Switzerland. Rüedi began playing the euphonium at the age of 11 and later studied the instrument in England with Phillip McCann and Peter Parkes at Sheffield University. He was awarded first prize in the European Solo Competition for Brass Players in Munich in 1999. Rüedi has appeared as a soloist, clinician and conductor throughout Europe, Africa, Asia and the USA. He is extremely active in the brass band world and has composed or arranged over fifty works for wind instruments. Rüedi is euphonium tutor at the Bern University of the Arts and the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
Following organizational and welcoming meetings on Friday afternoon, competitors, adjudicators, Blue Lake campers and staff and music fans in general were treated to a guest recital by Thomas Rüedi and pianist Dr. Mary Jo Cox. The recital included works by Turrin, Rossini, Ibert, Kroll, and D'Rivera. Prima SonatRina is a composition by Rüedi which he wrote for and about his daughter, Rina, born in 2018. The three movements were "Arrival," "Lullaby," and "Playtime." Mr. Rüedi concluded his recital with his own version of Nicholas Falcone's Mazurka, which was to be performed the following day in the Euphonium Student Semi-Final Round. Rüedi urged competitors to not be unduly influenced by his interpretation.
From Thomas Rüedi:
It has been a privilege for me to be featured as Guest Artist at this year's Falcone Festival. As a guest you always notice when things are running smoothly, when you are not really aware of the organization. Instead, there is ample time for exchange of thoughts and ideas; the focus is set on music and friendship.
As a member of the jury, I really appreciated that all the semi-finalists were given the opportunity to perform two works of contrasting style over a period of two consecutive days, thus allowing them to sharpen the performance focus or simply getting "another chance." It was wonderful for me to hear that not only the technical standards of the performances were high, but also the devotion to making personal musical statements was notable. My sincere congratulations to all competitors!
On a personal level, being given the opportunity to perform some solo works with the wonderful Festival Band in the setting of the magnificent Stewart Shell was an impressive experience. As a Swiss, I know many wonderful places in nature, but warming up for the concert overlooking the Blue Lake left me quite emotional. I left the Falcone Festival wearing a wonderful "Falcone Medal of Honor" around my neck and highly enriched by the warmth, devotion and friendship shared by all.
Saturday, the first full day of the Festival, has semi-final unaccompanied rounds for all competitors from in the morning and early afternoon, followed by rehearsals with collaborating pianists. The four pianists for the 2019 Falcone Festival were Dr. Mary Jo Cox, Marie Blair, Dr. Hyekyung Sia Lee, and Ling Lo (who deserves a special thanks for filling in for Dr Sheryl Lott, who could not attend because of a foot injury).
Saturday evening was the Festival Adjudicators Recital, consisting of solo and small ensemble performances by Festival adjudicators, board members and guests. Two very new works were performed in this recital. The first was David Gillingham's Appalachian Counterpoint 2019, written for the University of Kentucky Tuba-Euphonium quartet. The melody was based on the Appalachian folk song "All the Pretty Little Horses." The work will soon be published by C. Alan. The other new work, premiered by Dr. Chris Combest and written by Ben Miles, was entitled Mutation for Tuba and Electronics. From the composer:
Mutation for Tuba and Electronics
was composed for Dr. Chris Combest, who requested a solo tuba work with
recorded accompaniment. His only requirement was to include the "charm" of
video game music. Inspired by other solo tuba works with electronics and
classic video games, Mutation's accompaniment features basic 8-bit
sounds to unify the slow-fast sections and to capture the feel of the '80s
and early '90s. The overall theme of the work, much like many games, is
essentially a hero's journey through dark and light, eventually saving the
day or the world. The piece is intended to challenge the tubist and excite
the audience.
The 2019 Festival adjudicators were Thomas Rüedi, Thomas Broka, Dr. Chris Combest, Dr. Mark Cox, Marty Erickson, Dr. Jamie Lipton, Dr. Matthew Murchison, Phillip Sinder and Randy Westmoreland. Preliminary Round adjudicators were SMSgt Jen Dayton Cox, SFC Lauren Veronie Curran, Dr. Matthew Murchison, Dr. Gail Robertson, Dr. Richard Demy, Nick Keelan, Dr. Matthew Mireles, Dr. Gary Bird, Derek Fenstermacher, Dan Neesley, Dr. Benjamin Pierce, James Hicks, Stephen Kunzer, William Samson, and Scott Tegge.
Sunday included semi-final accompanied rounds in the morning, a photo session with competitors and judges by Festival photographer Tom Hentschel, a luncheon following which the finalists were announced, finalist rehearsals with pianists and the Blue Lake Festival Band, and clinics for Blue Lake campers led by Tom Broka and Mark Cox. The evening performance by the Blue Lake Festival Band, led by conductor Joe Manfredo, featured guest soloist Thomas Rüedi and the Festival Euphonium and Tuba Ensemble. It was broadcast live over Blue Lake Public Radio and emceed by the velvety voiced Phil Sinder.
Monday started with a group warmup session led by Randy Westmoreland, followed by student and artist level master classes led by Thomas Rüedi and Dr. Mark Cox. These were followed by a master class by Dr. Matthew Murchison and Dr. Chris Combest on electronic music composition and performance. The finalist competitions for all divisions took place during the afternoon and evening. 2019 Leonard Falcone International Euphonium and Tuba Festival medalists were:
Euphonium Artist Division
Rie Kaizuka, Jason Donnelly, Natsuhiro Aoyama
Tuba Artist Division
Alex Purdy, Joseph A. Guimaraes, Nick Beltchev
Euphonium Student Division
Peyton Sills, Isaac Brooks, Matthew Wise
Tuba Student Division
Caleb Chambers, Evan DeRicco, Troy Rowlands
A special note of thanks to everyone who makes the Falcone Festival possible-the Falcone family, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Joe Manfredo and the Blue Lake Festival Band, Falcone Board members and volunteers, and our award sponsors and advertisers.
See you next year!
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