cdgwaf

What's up with the Canadian Brass trumpets...lots of turnover...anything official or unofficial for that matter? Tey are an interesting ensemble but this much turnover sounds weird...thoughts?

cornetguy

only thing i can think of and this is just a guess, is the travel gets to them

Manny Laureano

This very question was asked on Trumpet Herald.

People come and go in this business once an founding group is no longer together. The ones that join don't have the same stake in it as the founders. It's truly as simple as that.

ML

tom turner

Yep . . . and the original members still get the royalties from the many recordings they did with the group . . . and possibly are still owners in the "group."

There was ONLY one "Canadian Brass," and their relaxed, crowd-pleasing antics opened the door for mainstream audiences to really connect with brass quintets.

The reformed "group" thus becomes a great place to "start." A good crowd every night is still pretty much guaranteed and recordings still happen some . . . so its a good place to develop a reputation . . . but probably doesn't pay that well for the fine young musicians who join, vs. what that person is worth as a stellar performer.

Plus . . . living your life in a suitcase, and missing sooooo many events on the lives of one's family just to play the same repertoire night after night, truly sucks for most folks.

For many performers, the adulation of the fans starts to mean very little compared to the loneliness of the road . . . the same-looking, boring motel rooms . . . and lack of wonderful home-cooked meals with the ones you truly love and miss.

The founding members can now enjoy the fruits of their labor, and go home at night to their loved ones. They truly "paid their dues," and can now offer an opportunity for other brilliant young performers.

Not a bad deal at all.

Tootsall

I believe that Chuck Daellenbach and Gene Watts are still the original members of the group and since they perform, must put in as much travel as the "new guys". Interesting that it is the Horn and Trumpets where ALL of the turn-over has occured.

Veldkamp

Check out the austrian brass ensemble "Mnozil Brass" if you liked the Canadian Brass. They are one of the best and funny brass ensembles to watch and listen to.

http://www.mnozilbrass.at/

uatrmpt

So, this raises the question: has the Canadian Brass become the "Maynard Ferguson & BBN" of the quintet world? A group for the up and comers to get their feet wet and then move on to bigger and better things?

Alex Yates

I can say this, traveling gets old QUICK. I toured with three different shows and the last one, a few years ago, was six months long. It was the longest six months of my life. Some folks really like "the road", but I am not one of them. At this point in my life I don't think anyone could pay me enough to tour again for long periods of time unless I had one of those really fancy buses all to myself. LOL.

The CB are a "brand name" now. They will always be around, but I don't know if they will ever regain the fame they once had. They were unique for their time, but other groups have popped up and audiences are changing. I don't think they will ever disappear and will always have a loyal following, but they are not the only guys on the block anymore.

maccluer

There are some organizations that have continued to grow and improve long after their founding members have moved on. The Minnesota Orchestra is an example, as are many string quartets that have had to replace members (excluding the Audubon Quartet). The reason why those groups have continued to thrive is that they have made their new members feel as though they also had a stake in the group, and ideally a similar stake as the continuing members of the group.

Any group that treats its new members as mere replaceable employees and not full artistic collaborators will not inspire much loyalty. It seems that the goal of the survivng members of those sorts of ensembles is merely to cash in on the past successes of the original group. That strategy only works for so long, as people start to sense what's going on, audiences dwindle, and the legacy of fine music making is tainted.

Brekelefuw

I was told that Stuart Laughton was fired a few months ago.

A side note: I was at a jazz club here in Toronto and I was talking to a guy. Turns out he was one of the french horn players in the CB (not any more though I dont think) He asked what I was drinking and he bought me a whole pitcher. What a nice guy. He said he had just done 90 days on the road with like 85 gigs or something. That is frightening.