Exploring Brass in Greece 2015

Since 2006, students and teachers from around the world, predominantly from the US, travel to Kalavrita, Greece to take part in Exploring Brass In Greece. At the seminar, they participate in masterclasses, take part in concerts, and explore the country.

Conceived by international trumpet soloist Vincent DiMartino, the festival was brought to fruition by his good friends Greek trumpet players George Babarakos and Gerassimos Ioannidis. This year, festival organizers decided to offer the attendants a different Greek experience than in previous years, and from January 3-10, 2015, the course took place at the Poseidon Palace Hotel in the city of Leptokarya, a one-and-a-half-hour drive from Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece.

55 students and their 7 teachers arrived Saturday, January 3 at the Thessaloniki airport, where course organizers picked them up and took them to the hotel. Classes began on Sunday. Vincent Di Martino gave the first master class, when he talked to the students about the importance of paying attention to every word the teachers say. University of Kentucky trumpet professor Jason Dovel presented Perspectives of Science in Modern Brass Pedagogy, and University of Richmond trumpet teacher Mike Davison taught about jazz articulations. Individual university groups rehearsed for seminar performances, and a combined large brass ensemble worked on The Great Gate of Kiev and Strauss Stars. Later that day, they visited Palios Panteleimonas, a nearby old village on the foothills of Mount Olympus which has preserved its traditional style and has a breathtaking view of the sea and valley below. They also visited the Venetian castle of Platamon.

On Monday, January 5, participants participated in two warm-up sessions, one led by Jason Crafton, Professor of trumpet at Virginia Tech, and one led by Alex Van Duuren, lecturer of trombone at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. University of North Carolina School of the Arts trumpet teacher Judith Saxton presented her master class Healthy Playing Habits: Principles of Alexander Technique and how it applies to brass players. Richard Illman, trumpet professor at Michigan State University, gave the master class Using a Digital Effects Processor for Practice and Performance. That evening the University of Richmond Jazz Combo performed the opening concert with special guest Vince DiMartino. 

Tuesday, January 6 began with a tour of the ancient site Vergina, home of Alexander the Great’s father, king Fillip II, and a guided tour of the city of Thessaloniki. That evening the university ensembles and the mass Exploring Brass in Greece brass ensemble performed a concert in a theater in Thessaloniki.

Jason Dovel and Daniel Zehringer, associate professor at Wright State University, led the warm-up session on Wednesday, January 7. There were three master classes that day. Mike Davison led a master class with his jazz combo about the evolution of rhythms into different styles of music. Gerassimos Ioannidis gave one titled The Opera Trumpet Player, and Jason Crafton taught It’s Just Music: Approaching Jazz Repertoire as a Classical Musician. Everyone rehearsed for the last concert of the festival. At the end of the day, the students held an impromptu jazz concert, improvising with the University of Richmond Jazz Combo. The following day, the group visited an ancient Greek theater and expored Larissa, visited some of the most important complexes of Eastern Orthadox monasteries, built on natural sandstone rock pillars, in Meteora, and had free time in the small city of Trikala.

On the last day of the seminar, Rich Illman and Judith Saxton led a group warm-up session together, and Vince DiMartino gave a master class before the closing ceremony. In the closing concert, which took place at the great hall of Poseidon Palace, the university groups played their pieces and the students were awarded diplomas. The teachers performed La Virgen de la Macarena featuring Vince DiMartino and Mike Davison as soloists, and as a finale all students and teachers combined with the Jazz Combo of the University of Richmond to conclude Exploring Brass in Greece with Snarky Puppy’s Quarter Master under the leadership of Mike Davison. After the concert, the group took a final walk at the streets of Litohoro, a very picturesque small village near Leptokarya, where the course was held. 

Source: George Babarakos, Exploring Brass in Greece co-organizer, Christina Barlogianni, Exploring Brass in Greece assistant, Kalavrita, Greece

Photo sources: Meteora photo--Brian Ross; concert photo-Natalia Michailidou