The tour coincides with the release of their new album, ’35,’ which celebrates the anniversary of Spanish Brass
Valencia, December 18, 2023
Spanish Brass will embark on three tours in the United States this year, starting the first one on January 5. A month of concerts, educational performances, and masterclasses will take them through Hawai’i, Illinois, New York, Oregon, California, and Texas.
During this tour, the quintet will present their new artistic proposal, celebrating their 35th anniversary by returning to their purest roots as a brass quintet. They will intertwine some of the most significant works from their career with new compositions or adaptations written expressly for the occasion.
The first two performances will be in Hawai’i on January 7 at the Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall in Lihue, and on January 8 and 9 in Hilo.
On January 11 and 12, they will visit the University of Chicago, followed by a performance in Temecula, California, on the 13th.
On January 14, they will be at Rockefeller University in New York, and then they will offer a Masterclass at the prestigious Juilliard School on the 17th.
Their next performance will be in Oregon at Chamber Music Corvallis on January 19, followed by appearances at Neskowin Chamber Music on January 21 and 22, where they will also provide an educational concert.
On January 27, they will travel to California to perform at Four Season Arts in Berkeley, followed by a three-day course for brass students at the Colburn School of Arts in Los Angeles, where they will work on the pieces “Berlanguiana” by Vicent Ortiz Gimeno and “Excursions” by Gregory Fritze.
Those who wish to closely follow the tour will have the opportunity to watch live streamed performances: on January 16 at Rockefeller University in New York and on February 4 at FUMC Lubbock (Texas), where they will perform alongside organist Bradley Vogel in the final concert of the tour.
35 years of history
Founded in 1989, Spanish Brass has graced more than 2,000 stages worldwide and released thirty-two albums. In 1996, it won the First Prize at the 6th International Competition for Brass Quintets “Ville de Narbonne” (France), considered the most prestigious for this formation. In 2017, it received the I Bankia Prize for Musical Talent in the Valencian Community, and in 2019, the Espai Ter Music Prize in Torroella de Montgrí for the project Mira si hem corregut terres… They hold five Carles Santos Awards by the Valencian Institute of Culture, and in 2020, they received the National Music Prize in the Interpretation category by the Ministry of Culture of Spain.
Spanish Brass has performed in the world’s most important festivals, performed at the Prince of Asturias Awards ceremony (1995), and annually organizes two brass festivals: Spanish Brass Alzira-SBALZ (www.sbalz.com) and Brassurround Torrent (www.brassurround.com).
Spanish Brass plays with Shires trumpets, Paxman horn, Shires trombone, and Melton tuba, using Romera Brass mouthpieces and mutes, along with the BlackBinder app. Additionally, it uses and owns Bags, a brand of instrument cases.
Spanish Brass is supported by the Institut Valencià de Cultura and the Ministry of Culture-INAEM.
Five Carles Santos Awards
On November 24th, Spanish Brass received the Carles Santos Music Award for their latest album, ‘Resurrección,’ in the category of ‘Best Classical Music Album.’ The album is dedicated to Astor Piazzolla with arrangements by Thierry Caens, marking the fifth recognition from the Institut Valencià de Cultura for the ensemble. The same award was presented in the same category in 2022 for their album ‘Spanish Brass (a) LIVE.’
Tours in France, South Korea, and the United States
The ensemble continues its international tours on July 15th, participating in the World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) International Conference in Gwanju-Gyeonggi, South Korea. The tour concludes with a concert alongside the Wind Orchestra of the Festival on July 19th.
Their upcoming ’35’ tour in France will take them to four major summer brass events, starting on July 7th at Le Son des Cuivres, Mammers, July 24th at Cuivres en Dombes where they will perform alongside German trumpeter Matthias Höfs, July 25th and 26th at Eurocuivres, Montbéliard, and July 30th and 31st at Cuivres en Ardennes, Sedan.
In the first week of August, Spanish Brass will perform for the first time on Chinese stages with the show ‘Caminos de España,’ featuring Spanish music and flamenco dance.
In the fall, they will return to the Americas to perform with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra alongside conductor Salvador Brotons on September 28th and 29th, and collaborate with Commonwealth University on October 6th, 7th, and 8th.
Concerts with Major Ensembles
The anniversary season will be completed with performances alongside orchestras such as ORTVE under the direction of Joseph Young, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (Canada) conducted by Salvador Brotons, Toledo Symphony Orchestra (OH, USA) with Alain Trudel, and the Extremadura Orchestra directed by Andrés Salado. Additionally, the quintet will collaborate with bands such as the Barcelona Municipal Band, the Bilbao Municipal Band, and the Soria Municipal Band.
