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Brass Quintet To Perfrom In Palm Harbor
From Florida Fanfare Brass
Florida Fanfare Brass will perform tomorrow, March 1, at Presbyterian Church of Palm Harbor. Members are, from left, Walt Freytag, Joe Bonelli, David Helfrich, John DeGelleke and Phil Golson.
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Published: February 27, 2009
Updated:
What do you do if you keep running into fellow musicians as you all play in various groups?
Form another group, of course.
That's what Florida Fanfare Brass did in 1991 after members were inspired by a concert by the brass ensemble Dallas Brass at Ruth Eckerd Hall.
They're still going strong, with three of the original members still in the group. They are a steady presence at area venues.
The Florida Fanfare Brass will perform a varied musical menu tomorrow, March 1, at a free concert at Presbyterian Church of Palm Harbor.
The quintet will do some completely new numbers and will throw in old favorites, including George Gershwin's "Strike up the Band," Billy Strayhorn's "Take the 'A' Train" and Joe Zawinul's "Birdland."
The quintet regularly performs concerts at the church on Christmas Eve and Easter, but this year they are throwing in an extra concert for the challenge of it.
The concert will be especially poignant because it will mark the debut of a new member, Philip Golson, who joined the quintet after last year's death from cancer of tuba player Lee Felton.
"We didn't know if we would continue," said trumpeter John DeGelleke, who is one of the three members of the original group.
They sent out an inquiry to Clearwater Christian College for prospective tuba players. It went no farther than Golson, an instrumental teacher at the college, who said he would like to join the band.
Other members are David Helfrich, French horn; Walt Freytag, trombone; and Joe Bonelli, trumpet. The two other members of the original group are Helfrich and Freytag.
Drummer Dale Hutchinson will join the quintet for the Palm Harbor concert.
The quintet has had a long association with the Canadian Brass, the first chamber ensemble to solo on Carnegie Hall's main stage.
They studied with them at a music camp and then played in the lobby at Ruth Eckerd Hall before the Canadian Brass's concert there.
They expect to repeat their lobby performance when the Canadian Brass plays at Ruth Eckerd next year.
Playing chamber music hones the musical muscles, said DeGelleke. "It allows a small number of performers each to play an important role in the overall ensemble sound. You're very reactive to what other people in the group are doing."
Finding times when all five members can rehearse is difficult but worth the effort on performance day, he said. "You can rehearse, but it's not the same as performing in front of an audience."
The lowdown
The Florida Fanfare Brass will present a free concert at 3 p.m., Sunday, March 1, at the Presbyterian Church of Palm Harbor, 2021 Nebraska Ave., Palm Harbor.
Cheryl Bentley can be reached at 727-815-9 cbentley@suncoastnews.com.
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