January 2022 Winner: Jack Towse

This issue’s featured young artist award winner is Jack Towse, a nineteen-year-old trumpeter and Cannonball trumpet artist from Huntington Long Island, NY. Jack graduated from Friends Academy High School in June 2021 and began his bachelors degree in jazz performance at Juilliard this past fall. Ever since he was 12-years-old, Jack attended the Manhattan School of Music PreCollege division studying both classical and jazz trumpet. While attending MSM, he studied with Jonathan Heim, Nadje Noordhuis and Jeremy Manasia, he attended theory, ear training, jazz history and composition and arranging classes, performed in jazz combos and also played in the orchestra. Speaking of Jack’s playing Nadje Noordhuis says, “he can transcribe difficult passages on the spot, play with a beautiful and full sound, and execute challenging intervallic leaps perfectly. He can swap between classical and jazz interpretations with the greatest of ease, and is an extremely gifted soloist in both jazz improvisations and in the classical realm.” In 2017, Jack was invited to join the Jazz at Lincoln Center High School Jazz Academy where he played under the direction of Ted Nash and Tatum Greenblatt. With the Lincoln Center band, he had the opportunity to play three to four shows a year at Dizzy’s club performing with several artists. Jack also performed in his high school’s jazz band and participated in All County and All State competitions, performing with the All State jazz band his junior and senior years of high school. In 2018, he attended the Summer Jazz Academy at Lincoln Center studying with Marcus Printup followed by the opportunity to tour Taiwan and China with Sean Jones in 2019.  

Jack has also been successful in national and international competitions. In the National Trumpet Competition Junior Division, Jack placed in 3rd place in 2016 and 2nd place in 2017. In 2018, Jack placed in 2nd place in the I.T.G. Youth competition. In January 2021, he was one of seven high school students named a finalist in the Young Arts Jazz Division. Jack also excels academically, taking several AP classes sophomore through senior year of high school and earning top honors each year for his grades.

Some of his favorite trumpet players include Kenny Wheeler, Freddie Hubbard and Eddie Henderson. He is very grateful for his experiences at MSM and Jazz at Lincoln center as they greatly shaped his character and his playing. He also cites Nick Mondello as being very influential in his development as a player since he introduced Jack to opportunities such as NTC and ITG. Jack’s family is another important influence as his older brother Sam plays jazz piano and studies at MSM, his younger brother Spencer plays the drums and attends the MSM PreCollege division and Jazz at Lincoln Center and his father plays guitar. Jack’s favorite hobbies include photography, hanging out on the beach and swimming in the ocean. As the January 2022 ITG Young Artist Award recipient, he will receive a one-year complimentary membership to ITG.  Congratulations Jack!

October 2021 Winner: Jeremy Bryant

This issue’s featured young artist award winner is Jeremy Bryant, a 18-year-old trumpeter from Tucson, Arizona. Jeremy graduated from Catalina Foothills High School in May 2021 and is slated to pursue his major in trumpet performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music studying with Michael Sachs beginning in fall 2021. 

Jeremy began playing trumpet at five-years-old in his elementary school’s Mariachi band program and the first five years of his playing were with this group all playing by ear. Since fifth grade, Jeremy has been studying classical trumpet with his private trumpet instructor, Betsy Bright, who performs with the Tucson Symphony. When describing Jeremy’s promise as a young trumpeter, Betsy says “his sound, style sense, musicality and intonation are already on par with many professional orchestral trumpet sections.” As a young musician, he has already gained orchestral playing experience through performing with the National Youth Orchestra of Carnegie Hall (NYO) in 2020 and 2021, performing co-principal trumpet in the Honor Orchestra of America in 2020, and performing with the Tucson Philharmonia Youth Orchestra since 2015 and serving as the principal trumpet in 2021. Other performance experience includes playing trumpet in a brass quintet with Tucson Brass Workshop from 2013-2021, performing in Interlochen's World Youth Wind Symphony in 2019, and performing in his high school’s marching band and as principal trumpet in their wind symphony. As a soloist, Jeremy performed a demanding full recital for a prominent recital series at Tucson's St Philip's in the Hills in spring 2021. 
Jeremy has also competed in several competitions including the ITG Youth Solo Competition, the Tucson Philharmonia Youth Orchestra concerto competition, and All Regional and All State competitions in Arizona. He earned second place in the 2016 ITG youth solo competition and second place in the Tucson concerto competition as well in 2021. Jeremy performed with the All Regional Orchestra in 2018-2020 and performed in the Arizona All State Band in 2019. Another performance highlight from his high school career was traveling with his high school marching band to perform in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in 2019.

With his involvement in orchestral trumpet playing it is no surprise that some of his favorite trumpet artists to listen to are Bud Herseth, Phil Smith, Tom Hooten and Michael Sachs. He credits a lot of his success to his very supportive parents and the great tutelage and support he has received from his private trumpet instructor Betsy Bright over the past eight years. While most of his time is dedicated to practicing, school and work, Jeremy does enjoy skateboarding with his friends in his spare time. As the October 2021 Young Artist Award recipient, he will receive a one-year complimentary membership to ITG. Congratulations Jeremy!

June 2021 Winner: Hunter Story

This issue’s featured young artist award winner is Hunter Story, an 18-year-old trumpeter who graduated from Woodford County High School in Woodford County, Kentucky and is now majoring in Music Education at Eastern Kentucky University. While in high school, Hunter was actively involved in her high school’s band program in addition to pursuing several performance opportunities outside of school. She performed in her high school’s wind ensemble, symphonic band, and was active in the marching band all four years, serving as the drum major for her junior and senior year. She also performed principal trumpet in the Central Kentucky Youth Orchestra for two years, the Central Kentucky Jazz Orchestra for one year, and Asbury University Salvation Army Brass band for two years. She participated in the All State Symphonic Band for two years and in the Kentucky School for the Arts in 2019. Additionally she performed as a member of Buglers Across America.

Hunter started playing trumpet in the 6th grade and credits a lot of her success in music to the support of her private teacher, Dr. Rich Byrd, and her high school band directors Michael and Kelsey Collins. She began studying with Dr. Byrd after he heard her perform at a Solo and Ensemble contest and she feels very grateful for his support and guidance. The unwavering support of her band directors not only helped her during times when she felt discouraged but it also helped inspire her career goals. Hunter is interested in teaching elementary music and high school band because she really wants to be involved in the lives of young students helping them they way her teachers help her.

In addition to performing trumpet, she enjoys collecting vinyl records, singing, and experiencing the beauty of the great outdoors. She has sung in several choral groups and a cappella groups. Some of her favorite pastimes are gardening with her grandmother and hiking in Kentucky’s Red River Gorge and Raven Run. Some of her favorite professional trumpeters include Wynton Marsalis, Alison Balsom, and Vince DiMartino. As the June 2021 ITG Young Artist Award recipient she will receive a one-year complimentary membership to ITG! Congratulations Hunter!

March 2021 Winner: Elsie DiLisio

This issue’s featured young artist award winner is Elsie DiLisio, a 18-year-old trumpeter who recently graduated from Monument Mountain Regional high school in Great Barrington Massachusetts and began her undergraduate degree in trumpet performance at Northwestern’s Bienen School of Music on a full scholarship in Fall 2020. While in high school, Elsie actively participated in All County and All State competitions making the Senior Districts throughout high school and All State during the 2018-2019 school year. In addition to performing in her high school program, she performed in the Empire State Youth Orchestra and its Brass Quintet during her sophomore and junior years of high school. In 2019 Elsie also performed the first movement of the Hummel Trumpet concerto with the Stockbridge Symphonia and Bride of the Waves with the Eagles band a community band based in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. She participated in the 2018 and 2020 Boston University Tanglewood Institute, the 2019 Eastman Summer Trumpet Institute and during the 2019-2020 school year she studied with Ray Mase as a member of the Juilliard Pre-College program. Elsie was also selected as a semi-finalist in the 2020 National Trumpet Competition’s high school division.

In addition to being passionate about trumpet, Elsie enjoys a very active lifestyle. While in high school she competed as the captain of her Cross Country team, skied on her high school’s Alpine Ski Team and she actively pursues a Cross Fit regimen. Elsie also takes her academics very seriously which resulted in her becoming a member of the National Honor Society and earning several scholarships such as the the Blum Memorial Scholarship, Great Barrington Rotary Club Scholarship, Great Barrington Police Association Scholarship, and the Jed Blackwell Memorial Scholarship. She also enjoyed participating in her high school’s Mock Trial team and as a member of the student government.

Some of Elsie’s favorite trumpeters include Alison Balsom, Tine Thing Helseth and Wynton Marsalis whom she was thrilled to meet while studying at Tanglewood. She is also very thankful for the fine trumpet instruction that she received from her private trumpet teachers: Ray Mase, Eric Berlin and Paul Sundberg. She also credits her middle school band director who inspired her both due to the strong band program that they built but specifically because of the strength and comradery of the trumpet section who remained close all through school. Elsie hopes to pursue a career as a trumpet performer and educator, performing in an orchestra and teaching at a university. As the March 2021 Young Artist Award recipient, she will receive a one-year complimentary membership to ITG. Congratulations Elsie!

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