When Brass Band Battle Creek put on its spectacular entertainment at the National Brass Band Championships at the Royal Albert Hall in October 1998, I took the opportunity to talk to Scott Hartman about his decision to leave Empire Brass to teach, and enter the world of bands.
Empire Brass has gained worldwide popularity, not only with their array of recordings but with their entertaining and versatile concert programmes. Until 1993, Scott Hartman was trombonist with this fabulous group of performers, and he has now decided to relinquish his position to concentrate on his solo and teaching commitments at the New England Conservatory and Boston University.
Scott began his chamber music career as a member of Empire Brass, and from 1984 to 1993 he played concerts in all 50 states and throughout Europe and Japan. Popular on television as well as on stage, Empire Brass has been televised in concerts in Russia, Iceland, Japan, Venezuela and Ireland; they were featured on the PBS documentary Sounding Brass and are frequent Christmas guests on Today and Good Morning America. They were invited to morning tea on Good Morning, Asahi! in Osaka, Japan and were even visited by Fred Rodgers in an episode of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood that demonstrated that grown-ups play together too! They have recorded on Telarc and EMI and are often featured on National public Radio.
Scott is now building a reputation as a solo recitalist, performing frequently in the United States, Europe and Japan. Solo appearances with orchestras include concerts with the Boston Esplanade Pops and Eric Kunzel, which were recorded live, and rebroadcast on National public Radio.
Further solo appearances have included the International Trombone Conference in Tokyo, and with ensembles including Brass Band of Battle Creek, The Central Switzerland Youth Brass Band and the University of Illinois Wind Ensemble. In addition to Empire Brass recordings, Scott can be heard on Four of a Kind (a trombone Quartet project) and with cornetist, Frank Tamburro on A Festive Cornet. Scott is a clinician for the Bach/Selmer instrument company.
Brass Band Battle Creek outside the Royal Albert HallNick: Good to see you over on our shores at last, and even more exciting that you're visiting with the Brass Band of Battle Creek. Your playing is very highly regarded over here. Could you tell us about your musical background and how you came to play the trombone?
Scott: It's good to meet you and talk to you too, Nick. I've admired your playing on CD, now I get to see the trombonist behind the trombone!
I began playing trombone at 10 years old, which is a common age in America to begin a brass instrument. My family is musical and my elder sister already played the clarinet in the school band, so even though I knew that I'd never be able to practise the 30 minutes a day that was stipulated to study an instrument, I wanted to give it a try. I had no preference other than to play a brass instrument. My father recommended the trombone since he was a fan of Tommy Dorsey and Jack Teagarden. That was fine with me.
Nick: What influenced you in your decision to study trombone at advanced level? Did you, or indeed have you still any mentors that influenced you in your early years?
Scott: We got some recordings of Dorsey and Teagarden when I was around 11 or 12 and they became my dominant influences right through high school and into college. I listened primarily to swing music and didn't really listen to 'classical' trombonists until I went to college at the Eastman School of Music. I didn't have much of an understanding of the music business at all since there was very little live music in my home town. I went to college hoping to follow in the footsteps of Jack Teagarden. When I got to school, there were a lot of excellent jazz trombonists and I soon realised that my gifts as a trombonist are in areas other than improvising!
Nick: The versatility and musicianship displayed on Empire Brass recordings makes us aware of the importance of being facile in a variety of styles. Was this crossover in styles emphasized to you by your teachers?
Scott: In the Empire Brass we played a wide range of music with a bias towards serious music, but touching on jazz and pop music in almost every concert. My early teachers were all crossover players with good fundamentals, and I have always been encouraged to play music of all kinds. My trombone teacher throughout High School, Doug Durnin, is a jazz musician as well as an orchestral player, and my junior high school teacher, Vince Stepulis, led a jazz band in the Musicians Union. He was the person that first hired me to play professionally. From the time I was around 13 years old, I would play for dances and pop music concerts several times a year, and in the summer, I got to play with the local wind band during the outdoor concert series.
Luckily, as a young player, I didn't fall into the trap that I find many trombonists are susceptible to, which is to play the horn depending upon our limited knowledge of technique rather than trusting our ears. How do you know if you're doing the right thing? That's easy! Listen! Always let the music rather than the technique dictate whether you are doing it right. It is always most important that the music sounds appropriate rather than whether we are tonguing in the right place or not! Technique can only work if we are trying to achieve a specific sound!
Nick: In your college days did you envisage your career taking this particular path?
Scott: Never! When I went to school I hoped to be a jazz trombonist....... when I got out of school I hoped to be an orchestral trombonist. Now I'm primarily a chamber trombonist and teacher! I've tried not to limit myself unnecessarily and it seems to keep manoeuvring me into new areas.
Nick: Were there any highlights in your time with Empire Brass that are particularly memorable?
Scott: Wow! There are so many highlights from those days that I don't know where to start. I guess just getting the job was a highlight! In this business, whenever someone gets a gig it is something special.
I think that the opportunity to play with those wonderful musicians would be the greatest part of being in the Empire Brass. I learned so much by being a part of a quintet that pushed itself every day..... every year. The other members inspired me to learn and improve always. Of course, the chance to travel and see places and people that I wouldn't otherwise see was another outstanding treat.
Nick: What sort of things did you learn?
Scott: I learned things like how to follow, how to lead, blending, balance, intonation, use of tempo, releases, consistency, playing different styles, stage presence, programming, arranging for an ensemble, recording techniques, where do I stop!? Everything that comes up in a professional performing group was touched upon in some way. The high level of accomplishment and talent in the group pushed me to try to keep up and to attempt to understand what was going on.
When I joined the group it was already 13 years old so they had established their approach long before I got there. I remember a rehearsal where we were working on a transition and I couldn't catch what was going on. We tried four or five times and finally one of the guys said "Let's give it up for now, Scott just can't hear it." At the time I felt bad and wanted another chance but now I know what they meant. I just wasn't ready to hear the subtlety of the transition yet. I didn't understand enough.
I remember a similar situation back in school. John Marcellus spent half a lesson trying to explain the difference in the way I was articulating and the sound of a better way. It was the Stravinsky Firebird excerpt and I just couldn't distinguish between the way he played it and my way. I walked out the door afterwards wondering if I was deaf or just stupid! Now I chalk it up to the learning process, people build on what they understand and listening is a technique that can (and must) be developed.
Nick: What made you decide to end your time with Empire Brass?
Scott: I had been with the group for close to 10 years and was ready to move on. Sam Pilafian left about the same time and it seemed like an appropriate time to pass the gig on to someone else. There have been three trombonists since I retired from the Empire Brass and I'm pleased that all of them, Doug Wright, Darren Acosta and Mark Hetzler studied with me in Boston.
Nick: The Four of a Kind recordings are very popular here too. Tell us a bit about your involvement with Joe Alessi and the team.
Scott: I've had a lot of fun working with the quartet. The other players are Joe Alessi, Principal Trombonist with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Blair Bollinger, Bass Trombonist of the Philadelphia Orchestra and Mark Lawrence, Principal Trombonist of the San Francisco Symphony. They are obviously great players but they are a treat to work with too. We get along great and have a lot of fun together.
Joe grew up in the San Francisco area and studied with Mark before going to Curtis, so they're best friends. Blair and Mark also went to Curtis for their training and I met them all through various connections. Mark and Joe had talked about putting a trombone quartet recording project together for years and in 1990 they asked Blair and me to be part of it. It only took a year and a half for us all to find time to fit it in!
Our next project together was this last Fall when we toured Japan for a week. We are playing at the International Trombone Festival in Potsdam NY this June and we are also planning a second recording some time within a year. We are excited to be active again.
Nick: As part of the tour to the UK we were fortunate to hear you play with the Brass Band of Battle Creek at the Gala Concert of the National Brass Band Championships. I know you got a chance to listen to a few performances of the test piece. As a trombonist, what differences of style and approach to playing are immediately evident in our brass banding movement compared to trombone playing in the States?
Scott playing '76 Trombones' at London's Regent HallScott: It was a real pleasure to attend the Championships last October. The bands sounded great. I have played in the Brass Band Battle Creek for several years and it is a very different approach to the British style of playing. This is a very general statement, of course; there is often more variance between players than between national styles. For instance, I don't believe that I'm a typical American trombonist in many ways.
But back to your question. I notice that the brass band trombonists have to be extremely strong to balance the ensemble at the amazingly loud dynamics that are often played. Being the only three cylindrical players in the band, the trombone section has the responsibility to come through with the appropriate character of sound.
The British trombone sound is generally a vibrant, clear sound that is similar to mine in the sense that when I play at the extreme loud end of the dynamic range, the tone tends to get edgy. The typical American orchestral player has moved towards a heavier, less vibrant instrument that can play those huge dynamics without breaking up. But the trade-off is the colour of the tone - it tends to be less clear and less pretty. I have noticed that the bass trombone in the brass band has the tradition of taking on the role of 'Keeper of the Cylinders' by playing incredibly loudly and edgy. There are plenty of examples of American bass trombonists doing the same thing, so we can't say that this is solely a national characteristic.
Scott rehearsing with Constantine KitsopoulosNick: Your solo and recital schedule is pretty full. What are your future plans?
Scott: For the last two years I have been teaching in two cities, Boston and Bloomington, Indiana. I have restricted my performing to several groups like the BBBC and a new chamber group called Proteus 7. I've noticed that teaching is much more stressful than performing! Performing is an emotional outlet for me while teaching doesn't offer this release, so you can count on me doing more playing again soon.
I don't have any plans to come to Europe again in the near future, but I'm sure that I'll be back. Europe is my favourite place to tour because of its many different traditions. America is such a young and forward looking country that it has the habit of neglecting its past. Europe has so much history that it has always intrigued me. I love to explore, and I hope to spend a lot more time here in the future.
Nick: It has been a real pleasure spending time with you and hearing you play. I wish you all the best for your future career and hope to see you back on our shores very soon.
All graphics on this page are compliments of the Brass Band of Battle Creek and Rowe Digital Services. The URL for the BBBC: http://www.bbbc.net
