mazzrick

Ed,

Being that you were in an orchestra at a fairly young age I thought this might be a nice topic to discuss under your supervision.

There is a second trumpet audition coming up for an orchestra here in Berlin and I was talking about it with a friend. This friend of mine is 21, has played in the Berliner Statsoper, Israel Philharmonic, subbed with the orchestra holding the audition, and has played concertos with the Israel Phil also. He doesn't want to take this audition because it is a second trumpet audition and his ultimate goal is to hold a first trumpet job. This got me to thinking, which would be better to have? a principal job or a section job when you're hoping to move onwards and upwards?

My thought was of course he should take the audition and if he wins the audition, then he won't have to worry about practicing too high or too much before concerts and will have chops left after rehearsals. At the same time, on his side of the argument, he'd have to work up his low playing and would gain experience as a section player, not as a principal player. So for those out there hoping to become a principal trumpeter someday, what is the ideal stepping stone job? Of course we would all love the option, right? and that's not always possible, but ideal worlds here...

Matt

ecarroll

Matt,

As you know, I was associate principal trumpet in Houston when I was 21, gaining a wealth of knowledge about how an orchestra works both behind and on the stage, dealing with colleagues, conductors, and the like. I too had my eye on an eventual first trumpet position and was fortunate to land them later on.

In the US, Bob Sullivan (NY Phil. and Cleveland), Phil Smith (Chicago), and George Vosburgh (Chicago) are a few of many examples that have moved up to principal positions elsewhere. Don Green (LA Phil) and Tom Rolfs (Boston) are two of many that have ascended to the top chair via the section.

I think your friend is crazy if he passes on this. . .

Best and watching this thread with interest,
EC