Appalachian Brass Quintet in concert at RCCAC

West Virginia’s premiere brass ensemble, the Appalachian Brass Quintet, will present a concert at the Randolph County Community Arts Center on Saturday, October 27^th at 8 PM.  Founded in 1989, this versatile group's repertoire spans five centuries of music, from Renaissance and Baroque to Contemporary and Jazz with an emphasis on traditional American music. Their concert at RCCAC will include pieces by Wilke Renwick, Morley Calvert, Creamer and Layton, Karl King, Julius Fucik, Collier Jones, Stephen Dodgson, and George Gershwin. 

With many of its members living nearly ninety miles apart, the Appalachian Brass Quintet members go to great lengths to sustain the quintet, with members driving hours to rehearse.  Their commitment has paid off as the quintet has enjoyed great success over the years and has become one of the most active quintets in the State.   The ensemble has performed as Artists-in-Residence, serving as clinicians at many of the colleges and universities throughout West Virginia and Pennsylvania. They have been featured artists at a host of concert series in the Mid-Atlantic region. Current members of the brass quintet are Joel Cotter, Andrew Scott, D. J. Graziani, Elaine Chapman, and John Schooley, all West Virginia musicians.

Joel Cotter, trumpet, is the director of the Orchestra and Jazz Ensembles and assistant director of bands at Morgantown High School.  He has served on the faculty of West Virginia University as an adjunct professor of music, while performing extensively as a free-lance trumpeter throughout the region.  Mr. Cotter holds a Bachelor’s Degree and a Master’s Degree in Music Performance from West Virginia University and has done post-graduate study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA.

D. J. Graziani, trumpet, received a Bachelor of Music degree from Marshall University where he studied with J. D. Folson.  He also studied at WVU with Roger Sherman and Dave Duro.  After teaching music for 18 years in the public school system, he now devotes time to private teaching and mentoring young musicians, readying them for college-level and professional-level study.  He was a member of the Orlando Colombo Orchestra and currently plays with the John Ross Farley Big Band.  He has been a member of the pit orchestra for the Act II Theatre Company, Fairmont Town and Gown Players and the WV Public Theatre.  D.J. is the founder of the Mountain State Brass Quartet which performs in the North Central WV area including the annual Service of Lessons and Carols in Clarksburg produced by the WV Choral Arts Foundation.

Andrew Scott, horn and a founding member, is Instrumental Music Director at Buckhannon-Upshur Middle School and Horn Instructor at West Virginia Wesleyan College.  A former student of Philip Farkas and Forrest Standley, Andrew’s orchestral background includes performances with the Bloomington Symphony in Indiana, the Pennsylvania Philharmonic, the Western Maryland Symphony, the Wheeling Symphony and the West Virginia Symphony.

Elaine Riffle, trombone, teaches music at Brookhaven Elementary school in Morgantown, WV, and is also an active freelancer and musician contractor.  She holds a B.A. in music education and a M.M. in trombone performance from West Virginia University.  Ms. Riffle has performed with a variety of groups over the years, including the Western Maryland Symphony, the Fairmont University Community Orchestra, the Clarksburg Symphony Orchestra, the Washington & Jefferson College Wind Ensemble, the Mon River Big Band, the Woodlands Brass Quintet, the Fairmont College Faculty Brass Quintet, the West Virginia Public Theatre Orchestra, Dancemasters II, the Dusty Rhodes Big Band, the Four Tops, and the Supremes.

John Schooley, tuba and a founding member, is Professor of Music at Fairmont State University where he teaches low brass, music theory, and music education.  He holds degrees from the Royal Academy of Music in London, Mansfield University and East Carolina University.  A former student of John Fletcher and William J. Bell, Mr. Schooley has played tuba with the Corning Symphony in New York, the Eastern Kentucky University Brass Quintet, the Fairmont State University Faculty Brass Quintet, the Fairmont University Community Orchestra and the West Virginia Public Theatre Orchestra.  Schooley has written compositions for brass, woodwinds, voice and band.  He is the owner of Heilman Music in Fairmont, West Virginia.

The Appalachian Brass Quintet will also present two educational performances on November 2^nd at Harman School as part of the Randolph County Community Arts Center Outreach Program which is supported by the Tucker Community Endowment Foundation. The 2007-2008 Concert Series is locally sponsored by Family Dental Practice, Allegheny Insurance, The InterMountain, WDNE Radio, and Graceland Inn & Conference Center, with additional support from the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the West Virginia Commission for the Arts.

Randolph County Community Arts Center is located on the corner of Randolph Avenue and Park Street, in Elkins. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, $5 for students, and may be purchased at the RCCAC Office or at the door while they last.  For more information or reservations, call the RCCAC office at 637-2355.