Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Trumpetfest coming to WCU this weekend
WEST CHESTER >> West Chester University’s Swope Music Building and Performing Arts Center will be “full of hot air” Feb. 2122 as hundreds of trumpeters from around the region gather together for the 13th Annual Trumpet Festival.
The weekend-long festival is free to WCU students ($25 for adults/$20 for students outside of WCU) and includes mass ensemble rehearsals, clinics by worldclass trumpeters, exhibits, and performances by the U.S. Army Blues Band featuring Etienne Charles and the esteemed West Chester University Wind Ensemble.
Jean-Christophe Dobrzelewski, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and Professor of Trumpet at WCU says, “The Trumpet Festival is a great opportunity for our West Chester University Brass students to work with and experience world-class soloists. We open it to the wider community because we want to give trumpeters of all skill levels these same opportunities. They can come and play with the group, take clinics with world-class artists and then see them on stage for free or very low cost.”
The fun starts Friday evening with a mass trumpet ensemble rehearsal for trumpeters of all skills from elementary school on up. It’s followed by a FREE performance of the U.S. Army Blues Band, the premier jazz ensemble of the United States Army. The band will perform with soloist Etienne Charles, whose latest recording, Creole Soul has received worldwide critical acclaim for its fusion of root grooves from the Afro-Caribbean. This performance opens with the West Chester University Trumpet Ensemble.