Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet Premiere New Work With UA Wind Ensemble Tonight

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The Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet, a guest artist chamber group, will premiere "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" by Jeff Cortazzo with the University of Arkansas Wind Ensemble at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, in the Jim and Joyce Faulkner Performing Arts Center.

Cory Mixdorf, assistant professor of trombone at the U of A and a member of the Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet, said the quartet came up with the idea for a trombone quartet feature with wind band because it is unconventional, yet complementary.

"Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" was commissioned by a trombone quartet consortium composed of seven trombone quartets from across the United States, including and directed by the Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet

"It's especially important to bring new music into the trombone world because there are not a lot of pieces composed for trombone quartets from the time when they originated," Mixdorf said.

The Cortazzo piece not only features the trombone quartet in a unique fashion, but it also boasts a captivating story along with a bold and sweet binary. The source material for the work was taken from the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelations, which describes the end of times.

The University of Arkansas Wind Ensemble, led by Director of Bands Dr. Chris Knighten, will collaborate with the Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet for their upcoming concert, Wednesday, October 3 at 7:30pm at the Faulkner Performing Arts Center.

"It's appreciated that Dr. Knighten is so open to collaborating with the music faculty," Mixdorf said. "The dynamic expressions and percussive qualities that the wind ensemble is bringing to the table make this thrilling."

In addition to the premiere with the Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet, the Wind Ensemble will play a full concert on Wednesday featuring pieces by Leonard Bernstein and Eric Whitacre. Composer Jeff Cortazzo will be present at the concert for the premiere of his new piece. As part of their residency at the University of Arkansas, the Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet will work with trombone chamber groups and one-on-one with student musicians. They gave a featured guest artist performance on Tuesday evening at the Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall.

The Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet is also looking forward to playing "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" at the American Trombone Workshop this coming March with a premier military band.

About the ensemble: Members of the Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet include Cory Mixdorf, a professor at the University of Arkansas; Drew Leslie, a professor at Appalachian State University; Nathan Dishman, a professor at Iowa State University; and Sean McGhee, a Cincinnati-based freelance trombonist.

The quartet formed in 2002 near the Blue Ridge Parkway, which stretches the length of the Appalachian Mountains and inspired the name Blue Ridge Trombone Quartet. Since forming, the quartet has traveled to multiple universities and conferences to perform standard repertoire, arrangements produced by the quartet's members, and new works commissioned specifically for the quartet.