American Brass Quintet

In 1960 the American Brass Quintet first appeared at a moment when brass chamber music had scarcely reached concert audiences. Establishing a body of works therefore demanded near-total invention, a situation far removed from the three centuries of string-quartet literature available today. The ABQ have subsequently introduced more than one hundred new compositions for brass and assembled a catalog of over forty recordings, the largest repository of serious brass music produced by any single ensemble.

While numerous brass quintets have flourished by presenting popular, jazz, and rock arrangements in lighter programs, the ABQ have cultivated a reputation for earnest, reflective exploration of the medium. Their central repertoire encompasses recent works, their own editions of Renaissance and Baroque pieces, and revivals of neglected nineteenth-century brass literature. Composers commissioned by the group across the years include Jan Bach, William Bolcom, Elliott Carter, Jacob Druckman, Eric Ewazen, William Schuman, Ralph Shapey, Gunther Schuller, Virgil Thomson, and Melinda Wagner.

Having performed throughout Europe, Asia, South and Central America, the Middle East, Australia, and the United States, the ensemble has been characterized by Newsweek as “the high priests of brass,” by The New York Times as “positively breathtaking,” and by the American Record Guide as “of all the brass quintets, this country’s most distinguished.” The quintet’s sustained commitment to serious brass music is reflected in its uninterrupted residencies at the Juilliard School since 1987 and the Aspen Music Festival since 1970.

Entering its sixth decade, the ABQ have preserved both their artistic purpose and their sonic identity. Although none of the original members remain, transitions have occurred gradually; trombonist Michael Powell joined the group in 1983. Even after the vogue for brass-quintet music subsided in the 1980s and 1990s, the ensemble continued to obtain major commissions, among them a work by Joan Tower honoring the Juilliard School’s centennial in New York in 2006. The ABQ marked their anniversary with a double-CD recording devoted entirely to new music in 2010 and received the Richard J. Bogomolny Award for chamber music in 2012. Affiliated with the Summit label since 1992, they have sustained regular recording activity; Perspectives, containing works by Sebastian Currier, Eric Ewazen, Robert Paterson, and Jay Greenberg, appeared in 2017. At that time the members were Powell, bass trombonist John D. Rojak (joined 1991), trumpeter Kevin Cobb (joined 1998), trumpeter Louis Hanzlick (joined 2013), and hornist Eric Reed (joined 2014).