Andy\'s Blawg No.4
Trip to Elgin to meet Rex Richardson
I took a group of senior NYBBS players up to Elgin to meet Rex Richardson over a weekend at the end of June.
Rex Richardson was the guest soloist at the NYBBS Sumer Course in 2011 when he made a huge impact on the players, so this trip was an opportunity to reunite some of the players with him one year later. This involved a long minibus trip up to Elgin so that the players could have a masterclass with Rex. We also attended a concert with the Moray Concert Brass (with their excellent conductor Glen Munro) with Rex as the guest soloist, and on the following day we went to a recital by Rex before returning home.
This was a superb opportunity for the young players involved and Rex Richardson was truly inspiring. I felt that the trip was a great success, but here is an account from her perspective by one of the players who was on the trip, Catriona Boardman.
My thanks to Catriona for writing her article.
Andrew Duncan
Catriona plays 2nd Baritone in NYBBS and Solo Baritone with the Buckhaven and Methil Miners' Band.
She is currently studying for a MA in Spanish at Glasgow University.
On Saturday 24th June 2012, a group of NYBBS players, along with SBBA's Development Manager Andrew Duncan, travelled to Elgin to take part in a weekend of master-classes and concerts courtesy of the fantastic Rex Richardson, American trumpet virtuoso and Yamaha performing artist. The weekend began with a three-hour journey in the minibus, in which a number of the NYBBS members entered a fairly comatose state of sleep.
After waking up for a quick stop in Inverness, the group finally reached Elgin, where the weekend's events were to take place. It was at this point that the players greeted Rex for the first time since his involvement in the annual NYBBS course in St Andrews in 2011. The NYBBS players were then given the great opportunity to receive advice on and opinions about their playing during a master-class with Rex himself. All the players gained a great deal from Rex's comments, yet Rex also helped through the inspirational nature of his own playing.
On Saturday night the NYBBS group were wowed by a concert of the Moray Concert Brass Band in Elgin Town Hall, in which Rex featured as guest soloist. This concert marked the 20th Anniversary of the band, and so both players past and present came together to celebrate this special occasion. Rex played alongside Glenn Munro, conductor of the band and an extremely talented cornet player. The concert ended with a standing ovation, after which the NYBBS group retreated to the Stotfield Hotel in Lossiemouth, a small yet extremely welcoming hotel where the members chatted long into the night about the wondrous playing they had witnessed throughout the day.
On Sunday, after an exquisite breakfast and lunch provided by the hotel, the group travelled back into Elgin to watch another of Rex's inspirational recitals. Glenn Munro also took part in this recital, playing trumpet alongside Rex. Many classical and jazz improvisations were created as the valves of Rex's cornet flew with unimaginable ease and finesse. Another standing ovation following the recital marked the end of the trip, after which the whole group returned to the minibus for the long journey home. It was a truly phenomenal weekend for all concerned, and allowed the NYBBS members to once again witness the incredible talent and enthusiasm of Rex Richardson.
Catriona Boardman
