Piccolo Recordings

Mikester · Veteran Member Joined: 11 Nov 2001 Posts: 374

What are your favorite piccolo trumpet recordings?

I know each of us should have their own voice, but who's tone should we emulate?

Thanks.

_Don Herman · Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2001 8:16 am Post subject:

Maurice Andre.

Wynton Marsalis, though I think he's more "technical" than "musical". Note that if I could approach an insignificant portion of his technical _or_ musical ability I'd die happy. Well, maybe not die, but it would give me great pleasure.

Lindemann (sp? - Canadian Brass) or Ronald Romm.

Pat · Veteran Member Joined: 18 Nov 2001 Posts: 396

Perhaps because I'm an old guy, my favorite piccolo recordings are those by Gerard Schwarz. Mark Gould said that Schwarz, who is now the music director of the Seattle Symphony, played the trumpet like it was a violin. HIs playing was very musical; all of his embellishments are musical (rather than just flashy) and make the music move forward. His sound had a very lyrical and singing quality to it. --Gould said that he doesn't think anyone has played like Schwarz before or since.

There is a reissue of two of his recordings under the name "The Age of Splendour." The Teleman concerto (played with two oboes, a basson and a harpsicord) will give you an idea of his piccolo playing. The other CD in the set contains the sonatas of Fontana and Frescobadi and are played primarily on a D trumpet.

By the way, Schwartz was later appointed the principal trumpet of the NY Philharmonic. (after Vacchiano and before Smith) I have heard that he had some difficulties in that position. (In his ITG interview Gould said "it wasn't up [Schwarz's] alley." I don't know what the particulars were, although he did end up leaving the Philharmonic after 3 or 4 years and going into conducting full time.-----I have also heard somewhere that he had a problem with lip compression which caused some problems with intonation. ---None of those things, however, can take away from the wonderful recordings he made, especially on the piccolo.

gb1 · Regular Member Joined: 16 Dec 2001 Posts: 35

I agree that Schwarz' recordings are very special, and should be listened to by everyone interested in playing piccolo (or anything else, for that matter).

Also, Stephen Burns' "Telemann for Trumpet" is a beautiful CD. Check it out.

cgooding · Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2001 10:39 am Post subject:

If you can find it, Robert Nagel's recording of Brandenburg is one of the finest ever made. Also, you can hear Dominic Derasse play pic on the soundtrack to Mission to Mars. It's really amazing. He is considered my many to be today's best pic player in the New York scene.
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tptguy · Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2001 10:33 pm Post subject:

Gunther Beetz, "Trumpeten Konzert". You will have to order it from Germany. But, I think it's well worth it.

Kyle

Yoinks · Veteran Member Joined: 10 Nov 2001 Posts: 258

Well, I would say that Maurice Andre is my favorite. He has all the technical ability in the world, great musicality, and can play through grueling endurance pieces without fail. He has that extra sparkle to his playing that puts him in his own league.

big brian · Veteran Member Joined: 06 Nov 2001 Posts: 440

Apart from those mentioned, I would have to say that Rolf Smedvig is amazing on picc. I have his Virtuoso recording where he plays the telemann, the bach orchestral suite in B minor (originally for flute) , the leopold Mozart and the brandenburg. The brandenburg on that cd is something special. Also, Ryan Anthony of the canadian brass is something else. Anyone who has heard him play penny lane will know what I mean.

pedaltonekid · Heavyweight Member Joined: 15 Nov 2001 Posts: 1711

Wynton Marsalis (In Gabriel's Garden) and anything by Maurice Andre rank right up there. Timofy Dokshizer on the Tartini is one of the best.

SHS_Trumpet · Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2001 12:17 pm Post subject:

I like Andre on the Toot Suite album, that is one sweet suite. I don't know how he can do all that he has some killer endurance. Anybody else bought the music to that. Kina humbles you when you play along with Maurice for the first time.
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richj50 · Veteran Member Joined: 02 Dec 2001 Posts: 370

Maurice Andre -- check out his opera aria CD for some unbelievable playing of famous Italian arias. This is probably my favorite trumpet solo album.

Gerald Schwartz -- great dark but light solo tone without the harshness usually found with piccolo. (He also has an excellent large trumpet sound on his 20th century music recordings such as his rendition of the Maxwell Davies sonata for trumpet and piano.) Stephen Burns, a student of his, gets a similar sound on a Scherzer rotary on his recordings.

Ludvig Guttler -- very brilliant, flashy and flamboyant style, but also very musical and exciting to listen to.

Rolf Smedvig -- I really like his recording of the Telemann heroic music but I think it's out of print. I've never been impressed with Rolf's picc. playing in person (he always seems tired and on the verge of losing it) but the recordings are great.

--Rich

CTeneyck · Posted: Tue Jan 01, 2002 12:27 pm Post subject:

For me, the two mind-blowers are Andre and Gerard Schwartz with the NY Trumpet Ensemble. I remember getting in the early/mid seventies and was amazed on the lightness of the sound.

I own a ton of Andre recordings, and love the joy in his playing. The Brandenburgs with Andre and J.P. Rampal were my 1st. The 'Trumpet stuff' web site has some great clips from him, including 'hot canary' (the Maynard feature in the early 50s).

There was a feature on Schwartz in the International Trpt Guild Journal a while back. The only bit I remembered about the NY Phil was that one of the more experienced musicians in the orchestra gave him a number to call just before his 1st performance. It turned out to be 'dial-a-prayer'!

screamertrumpet · Posted: Sun Jan 06, 2002 5:25 pm Post subject:

I really like Rolf Smedvig's sound. It's nice and delicate, just how a picc is supposed to sound.
Wynton, IMO, overpowers his piccolo and makes it sound like a Bb (like at the end of the Brandenburg, he plays really loud).
All my recordings of Maurice Andre are really, really old, they're on LP's (what, I found them at a garage sale for $5).
My favorite recording is the Brandenburg played by Rolf Smedvig.
You might want to try Wynton Marsalis: The London Concert (It was one of his earlier recordings). Classic Wynton is pretty much all of his greatest hits on one CD.
Trevor