The Trombone Studio: University of Maryland At College Park

With the start of the fall semester of 2007, the University of Maryland at College Park welcomed two new members to the faculty of the School of Music. They are: Christopher Dudley, Principal Trombonist of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and Craig Mulcahy, Acting Principal Trombonist of the National Symphony Orchestra for the 2007-2008 season. National Symphony Orchestra Trombonists John Huling (Assistant Principal) and Matthew Guilford (Bass Trombone) continue their long-standing positions on the faculty. You will find the trombone faculty biographical information below.

The School of Music at The University of Maryland at College Park is housed within The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, a state-of-the-art facility on the edge of the College Park campus. The campus is located about 15 miles northeast of Washington D.C. Easily accessible by public transportation, many students regularly venture into Washington D.C. The Foggy Bottom metro stop will get you to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, home of the National Symphony Orchestra. The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra performs at both its’ home address, Meyerhoff Hall in Baltimore, but also at Strathmore Concert Hall in the Washington D.C. suburb of Rockville, MD (Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro Station). The Washington based U. S. Military Bands are located around the Washington, DC area as well, offering free concerts to the public on a frequent basis.The University of Maryland offers degree programs for undergraduate, masters and doctoral level students. A small number of scholarships and assistantships are available. For more information about the admissions process and general questions about the various degree programs, please consult the school website at: http://www.music.umd.edu/, or call the admissions department at: (301) 405-8435.

Each trombone faculty member brings to the music program at UMD unique skills and experiences. Although trombone students attending UMD are assigned one instructor, the four of us work together in many ways to assure that the students are being exposed to as many musical experiences as possible. For example: Each week, Matthew Guilford holds Performance/Studio Class. This is an opportunity for all trombone students to participate in a forum, which can range from master class, to mock auditions, to discussion on any music related subject. John Huling leads the UMD Trombone Ensemble. All the trombone students in the School of Music get together to read to read quartets, quintets, sextets, octets and various transcriptions. The Trombone Ensemble also gives performances within the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. The Wind & Percussion department schedules weekly noon-time student recitals. Five to ten students of all levels perform one short work for the entire departmental student body and faculty. This helps refine the special skill of recital preparation and gives the students a number of opportunities over their college careers to feel the excitement of solo performance. Other performing ensembles on campus (admittance by seating auditions in the fall) include the Symphony Orchestra, Repertoire Orchestra, Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Brass Ensemble, Concert Band, Jazz Band(s), and Brass Chamber Music quintets coached by the faculty. Additionally, there is a student-run chamber orchestra, a full scale Marching Band, and various pep bands.

The University of Maryland brass department is very strong on every level. Trumpet faculty members are; Professor Chris Gekker, formerly of the American Brass Quintet, and Steve Hendrickson, Principal Trumpet of the National Symphony Orchestra. Associate Professor of horn and Wind & Percussion Division Chair, Greg Miller, also performs with the Empire Brass. Steven Kellner is the instructor of euphonium, having recently retired as Principal Euphonium with the U.S. Marine Band in Washington, DC. Toby Hanks, former Principal Tuba player of the New York City Ballet and N.Y. Brass quintet, instructs all tuba majors.

TROMBONE FACULTY

Christopher Dudley is Principal Trombone of the Baltimore Symphony, the Aspen Festival Orchestra and the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra. He graduated from the Interlochen Arts Academy with the school’s highest artistic honors and received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Curtis Institute of Music. In addition to the above orchestras he has performed and recorded with the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia and Atlanta Symphony Orchestras, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Iris Chamber Orchestra, the Washington Symphonic Brass and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, as well as with his smooth jazz ensemble Mythology, the Rittenhouse Jazz Quartet, and the Monarch Brass. He is currently recording transcriptions of the Shostakovich string quartets with the Mir Brass Quintet and is a member of the Tres Bone, Trombone Trio. As a teacher Chris carries on the traditions of his mentors: Joseph Alessi, principal trombone of the New York Philharmonic; Glenn Dodson, principal trombone emeritus of the Philadelphia Orchestra; and Steve Norrell, bass trombone of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. He is a member of the Trombone Faculty at the University of Maryland , teaches privately and is on the faculty of the Aspen Music Festival and School. He has also been on the faculty of the Tidewater Music Festival, and the Empire Brass Quintet Symposium at Tanglewood. Chris is also in demand as a soloist and clinician at numerous trombone workshops, colleges, universities and music camps. He performs on Shires trombones and is sponsored by the S. E. Shires company. Beyond his orchestral and chamber music engagements, Mr. Dudley is an active studio musician on trombone and the Akai Wind Synthesizer. He has composed and produced jingles for radio and television and has released a recording of original jazz/fusion compositions entitled Lovely Daze. E-mail Christopher at: bsobone1@yahoo.com.

A native of Colorado, Craig Mulcahy joined the National Symphony Orchestra trombone section in 2006. He is currently serving as Principal Trombone of the NSO for the 2007-2008 season. Prior to this appointment, he held the position of Principal Trombone of the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra for seven years. Formerly Mr. Mulcahy was second trombone with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. Previous orchestral engagements include Principal Trombonist of the Tulsa Philharmonic and second trombone in the Greeley Philharmonic. During his training at the Juilliard School in 1998, he won the first annual Zellmer-Minnesota Orchestra Trombone Competition. He also holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Northern Colorado. During the summers, Mr. Mulcahy has frequently performed in the Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson, WY, where he enjoys hiking its many trails. E-mail Craig at: mulcbone@gmail.com.

John R. Huling has been the assistant principal trombonist of the National Symphony Orchestra since 1986. A 1980 graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, he received his bachelor of music with distinction on full scholarship. His principal teachers include John Swallow, Ronald Barron, and Milton Stevens. In the years between 1980 and 1986, Mr. Huling was a member of the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra and played regularly with the Boston Pops, Boston Symphony, and Boston Ballet orchestras, as well as other ensembles in and around the greater Boston area. He can be seen on many “Evening at Pops” television shows from those years and is on several recordings with the Boston Pops and Boston Symphony orchestras. Mr. Huling played the 1985-86 season with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra as acting principal trombonist. He has also performed with the San Francisco Symphony, and in 1991, attended the Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. E-mail John at: thehulings@hotmail.com.

You can access Matthew Guilford’s biographical information through his website at: http://www.matthewguilford.com/?page_id=2 E-mail Matthew at: matt@matthewguilford.com.