Several small chamber ensembles will perform as part of a recital featuring Northwestern State University faculty member J. Mark Thompson Wednesday, March 21 at 7:30 p.m. in Magale Recital Hall. Admission is free and open to the public.
The recital will include “Trio Italiano” by American composer Mary Jeanne van Appledorn, who taught at Texas Tech University. This piece won the International Trumpet Guild Brass Trio Composition Competition in 1996. It will be performed by Two Rivers Brass, a regional brass trio that includes Thompson on trombone, Thomas Hundemer, principal horn of the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra, and Michael Scarlato, former trumpet with “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band.
Warren Benson’s “Largo Tah” was written 40 years ago as a commission, and it is dedicated to the memory of his colleague, Emory Remington, who taught trombone at the Eastman School of Music for 50 years. The piece is for bass trombone and marimba — fitting, as the composer himself was an accomplished percussionist. NSU percussion professor Oliver Molina will join Thompson, performing marimba.
The final piece on the program is a premiere of a new sonata for bass trombone and piano entitled “Three Imaginary Landscapes.” It is by James M. David, who teaches at Colorado State University. The piece is in three movements, each of which provides a backdrop for a story in the horror/science fiction vein. This includes references to the writings of H.P. Lovecraft and Edger Rice Burroughs as well as the macabre, ironic events found in the “Southern Gothic” style. This work is the result of a commissioning consortium of 15 professional bass trombonists. NSU professor Dr. Chialing Hsieh will perform with Thompson on piano.