Leonard Falcone International Tuba and Euphonium Festival
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{{otheruses, Falcone (disambiguation) The Leonard Falcone International Euphonium and Tuba Festival ("Falcone Festival" or simply "Falcone" for short) is an amateur
tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...
and
euphonium The euphonium is a medium-sized, 3 or 4-valve, often compensating, conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument that derives its name from the Ancient Greek word ''euphōnos'', meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced" ( ''eu'' means "well" ...
festival and competition, held annually the second week in August at the
Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp is a Michigan nonprofit organization located in the Manistee National Forest that provides summer fine arts camp and international exchange programs in music, art, dance, and drama. The Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp was found ...
at
Twin Lake, Michigan Twin Lake is an unincorporated community in Muskegon County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a census-designated place (CDP) for statistical purposes. Local government services are provided by Dalton Township. As of the 2000 census, the co ...
.


Origin and goals of the festival

Leonard Falcone Leonard Vincent Falcone (Fal-CONE-ee) (5 April 1899 – May 2, 1985) was an Italian-American musician, conductor, arranger, lecturer, and educator. He was well known as a virtuoso on the baritone horn, having extensively performed, written, and ...
(b. 1899 Roseto Valfortore, Italy, d. 1985 East Lansing Michigan) was a longtime director of bands and professor at
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
who taught, performed and recorded as a master of the
baritone horn The baritone horn, or sometimes just called baritone, is a low-pitched brass instrument in the saxhorn family.Robert Donington, "The Instruments of Music", (pp. 113ff ''The Family of Bugles'') 2nd ed., Methuen, London, 1962 It is a piston-val ...
and a pioneer of
euphonium The euphonium is a medium-sized, 3 or 4-valve, often compensating, conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument that derives its name from the Ancient Greek word ''euphōnos'', meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced" ( ''eu'' means "well" ...
artistry. The festival was founded by former Falcone students in 1986, to honor his memory. Among its stated goals are to enhance the repertoire of the euphonium and tuba through the commissioning of new works, to promote outstanding artistry on these instruments, and to encourage young people to study them. Over the years, the Festival has become highly competitive and visible; it is among the most prestigious amateur competitions for both the tuba and euphonium. Presently, there are four divisions: Student Tuba and Student Euphonium, for players age 20 and younger, and Artist Tuba and Artist Euphonium, for amateur players of any age, though in reality this translates to college students, mostly at the graduate level.


Developments in the festival

The Falcone Festival has undergone several changes since its inception. Some prominent developments include: *In 1991, the Festival began inviting prominent guest artists to give masterclasses, lessons, and solo recitals, and over the years, numerous new works have been commissioned and premiered at the festival by these artists. It could be said that at this time it truly became a ''festival'', rather than merely a competition. The first such euphonium artist was
Brian Bowman Brian Leslie Bowman (born July 22, 1946) is an American virtuoso euphonium artist and music professor who, among other things, held the principal euphonium chair and was a featured soloist with the premier concert bands of the United States Navy ...
.Eggers, Leah, Dr. Brian L. Bowman Faculty Biography, University of North Texas, http://music.unt.edu/euphonium/bowmanbio.html retrieved 4/15/2011 *In 1996, the Festival added Student and Artist divisions for the tuba in addition to the euphonium. *In 2003, the number of players admitted to each Student division was lowered from ten to six. *As of 2007, the requirement that participants in the Student divisions still be in high school has been dropped; the only requirement is that they not have turned 20 by the December 1 following the Festival.


Prestige of the Festival and famous alumni

Many past winners of the Festival's various divisions have gone on to win major performing or teaching jobs. Some well-known Festival alumni include: Euphoniumists *Angie Hunter, 1986 Artist winner, now instructor at the German Bible Institute in Koenigsfeld, Germany *Lance LaDuke, 1986 Student winner, now instructor at
Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened as the Pittsbu ...
and former principal player with the
River City Brass Band The River City Brass Band (River City Brass, RCB) is a modified British-style brass band based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The 28-piece ensemble tours extensively throughout the United States and performs more than 35 concerts each year as part ...
*Matthew Tropman, 1990 Student and 1993 Artist winner, former member of the U.S. Marine Band, now instructor at the University of the Pacific. * David Thornton, 1994 Student winner, now principal player with the
Black Dyke Band Black Dyke Band, formerly John Foster & Son Black Dyke Mills Band, is one of the oldest and best-known brass bands in the world. It originated as multiple community bands founded by John Foster at his family's textile mill in Queensbury, West ...
*Adam Frey, 1997 Artist winner, now instructor at
Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...
and
Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the ...
and a freelance soloist *Dr. Benjamin Pierce, 1998 Artist winner, now professor at the
University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...
*Mark Jenkins, 1996 Student and 2000 Artist winner, currently euphoniumist with the "President's Own" Marine Band in Washington, D.C. *Matthew Murchison, 1997 Student and 2001 Artist winner, now acting principal euphonium of the
River City Brass Band The River City Brass Band (River City Brass, RCB) is a modified British-style brass band based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The 28-piece ensemble tours extensively throughout the United States and performs more than 35 concerts each year as part ...
and a freelance soloist *Ryan McGeorge, 2003 Artist winner, currently euphoniumist with the "President's Own" Marine Band in Washington, D.C. Tubists *Joseph Skillen, 1997 Artist winner, now professor at
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
*Dr. Charles Guy, 1999 Artist winner, now professor at the
State University of New York at Potsdam The State University of New York at Potsdam (SUNY Potsdam or, colloquially, Potsdam) is a public college in Potsdam, New York. It is the northernmost member of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Founded in 1816, it is among the ...
* Carolyn Jantsch, 2000 Student and 2004 Artist winner, principal tuba of the
Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription ...
*Dr. Benjamin Pierce, 2001 Artist winner, now professor at the
University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...


References

Music festivals in Michigan