Elegant Trumpet Music Elegantly Played
J Scott Morrison | Middlebury VT, USA | 06/29/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I love everything about this CD. It is primarily a solo album by Chris Gekker, one of the finest trumpet players around. I've known his playing since he arrived in Kansas City more than twenty-five years ago, a kid just out of school, to assume the second trumpet chair in our local symphony. He went on to become a long-time member of the American Brass Quintet, to play in the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestra of St. Luke's. He is now professor of trumpet at the University of Maryland. His playing just gets better and better. This CD consists of pieces by Eric Ewazen (one of my favorite composers for brass whose neo-romantic music has been commissioned repeatedly by the ABQ and whose concerto disc on Albany featuring the International Sejong Soloists rated a rave from me and others) and David Snow, a composer new to me. It turns out that Gekker, Ewazen and Snow have known each other since they were students together at Eastman in the 1970s; in fact, Gekker and Snow were roommates. Ewazen is represented by 'Three Lyrics for Trumpet and Piano,' 'Elegia,' 'An Elizabethan Songbook' (which also features trombonist Milt Stevens; his and Gekker's duets are delectable in this music), 'Aftershock,' and 'A Hymn for the Lost and the Living.' Snow's contributions are the four-movement 'Winter' for trumpet and piano (which gives this album its title) and 'A Baker's Tale.' The fine assisting pianists are Ted Guerrant and an old acquaintance from the Aspen Music Festival, Rita Sloan. All of the players are in one way or another associated with the strong school of music at the University of Maryland. Ewazen's music is notable for its unfailingly beautiful melodies (and here Gekker is in his element; his lyrical playing is very nearly in a class of its own) and piquant harmonies. Snow's is rather more jazz-inflected (and indeed he has recorded his own jazz CD entitled, I'm not kidding, 'Larry, the Stooge in the Middle'). The overall tone of the entire 70:12 minute CD is gently songful, although there are some occasional dramatic and rollicking moments. If you have the idea that trumpet music is always martial, you need this CD as an antidote: this is lovely and contemplative music-making.Highly recommended.Scott Morrison"
When in the history of brass recordings has the music been p
G. Maske | Iowa USA | 11/26/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is not your typical trumpet showcase album. The music is beautiful and moving. Eric Ewazen is a great composer because, among other things, he knows how to write melodies and set them to music. No forearms to the piano keyboard. No pyrotechnics. Everything starts with his melodies. Of course his craftsmanship is found in the wonderful ways he sets these musical ideas. He has four pieces on this CD, and I cannot pick a favorite. The duo with Milt Stephens on trombone is somewhat lighter music, but by no means inferior.
As much as I admire Ewazen's music here, David Snow's "Winter" surpasses it. A more noble principal theme I have not heard. In three movements, the last two without interruption, it is a twenty-minute masterpiece. Episodic in character, it is the anti-sonata. This is music where form follows function. Despite the fact that the trumpet plays the eleven-bar theme only three times in roughly twenty minutes, the entire piece hangs on those three statements. Snow's craftsmanship consists in the success with which he sets and resets this theme. The result is hugely enjoyable. One cannot help but feel ennobled when listening to this music.
Which brings me to Gekker's playing. The best trumpet players are first of all lyrical; everything else is secondary to an ability to play a melody without resorting to musical cliches or schmaltz. Gekker's playing is first and foremost lyrical. Secondly his playing is marked by an austerity foreign to trumpet players. The beauty of his sound is in its clarity coupled with his judicious and sparing use of vibrato. There is no tiring bravura in his sound.
With this CD Gekker elevates the trumpet as a lyrical vehicle. His style highlights the music and not his own capabilities. He eschews flashy displays. His technical command is a means to an end and not an end in itself. There is a quality of understatement in his playing I find unique. He seems to always hold something in reserve. It says everything about Gekker's playing that the music is paramount, the performer secondary. Suffice to say I would not want to hear any other trumpet player playing "Winter." They would overproduce it.
I have not heard a more enjoyable, accessible, and yet substantial chamber music recording."
Great composers
Steve D. Ward | 03/27/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I loved most all the pieces. Two great American composers. Great trumpet performances. The music cathes a light jazz flavor with a classic Romatic feel. Mr. Snow and Mr. Ewazen keep up the good work. We're listening
Steve Ward"
Track Listings (7) - Disc #1