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Join us for A Night of Brass chamber music with a program curated by Artina McCain, featuring works by local composer Evan Williams, the swinging tunes of David Wilborn, Gershwin, and more at Crosstown Theater!
Doors at 7 pm | Show at 7:30 pm
Internationally acclaimed pianist Artina McCain will share the stage with special guest artists Burt Mason, Courtney D. Jones, Martin McCain, Robert Fant, and David Spencer.
ARTINA MCCAIN, piano
Described as a pianist with “power and finesse” (Dallas Arts Society), “beautiful and fiery” (KMFA Austin), and having a “sense of color, balance and texture” (Austin Chamber Music Center), Artina McCain has a built a three-fold career as a performer, educator, and speaker. Recent performance highlights include guest appearances with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Oregon East Symphony, and the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. As a recitalist, her credits include performances at the Mahidol University in Bangkok, Hatch Recital Hall in Rochester, and in 2022, her debut at Wigmore Hall in London.
Dedicated to promoting the works of Black and other underrepresented composers, McCain curates Black Composers Concerts for multiple arts organizations and is an American Prize winner for her solo piano recordings of these works. Recently, she won a Gold Global Music Award for her recent solo album project Heritage. Currently, she is Coordinator of Keyboard Studies at the University of Memphis. Artina McCain is a Yamaha Artist.
BURT MASON, trombone
Burt Mason performs regularly with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, serves on faculty at the Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program and is principal trombone of the Chamber Orchestra of New York. He has appeared as guest artist with the NY Philharmonic and as soloist with numerous ensembles, performing worldwide. As an advocate for diversity in the arts, he is founder and director of Ovation Concerts, an organization dedicated to balanced diversity in orchestral music. He has appeared as a guest on WQXR’s “Conducting Business” with Naomi Lewin to discuss the history and future of classical music and American orchestras.
Mr. Mason holds a BA in Music from the Crane School of Music studying with Mark Hartman, an MBA in Arts Administration from Binghamton University, and an MM in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music studying with David Finlayson. He has had additional studies with Joseph Alessi and Weston Sprott. Mr. Mason is a Yamaha Performing Artist and Clinician and will make his Carnegie Hall solo debut in March 2018.
COURTNEY D. JONES, trumpet
The newest directions in 21st Century trumpet performance are being explored and defined by Courtney D. Jones, an award-winning Bach-performing and recording artist who has also emerged as a leading figure in contemporary performance and pedagogy, conducting, and service to inner-city youth through music outreach programs. An artist who transcends stylistic boundaries, Courtney has performed with classical ensembles and orchestras throughout the United States and internationally and has won multiple solo awards and accolades through regional and national trumpet competitions.
Besides performing with well-known jazz and popular artists, he has shared the stage with famous artists or groups such as Kenny Burrell, B.B. King, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Rihanna, Lalo Schifrin, Vanessa Williams, Boy George and The Culture Club, and Stevie Wonder. In addition to his solo performance career, Courtney has performed classical music as a featured soloist or collaborative artist with the Golden States Pop Orchestra, the Southeast Symphony Orchestra, the Macao Orchestra (China), the Pasadena Orchestra, the Debut Orchestra, the Inspiravi Chamber Orchestra, the Orchid City Brass Band, the Oslo Philharmonic (Norway), the Long Beach Opera, Symphony of the Americas, the Los Angeles Trombone Collective in collaboration with James Miller, the Salt-River Brass Band, the Gateways Festival Orchestra, and was appointed Musical Director of the Orchid City Brass Band of South Florida. Courtney is also represented by the Naxos and Summit Music labels and his feature film and television credits include music performed for Glee, Notes from Dad, Cougar Town, and Criminal Minds, among other works mentioned on his personal website’s media category.
MARTIN MCCAIN, trombone
Bass trombonist Martin McCain’s career spans an impressive range of musical genres. He is a four-time winner of the Global Music Awards and was featured as their “Emerging Artist” in Billboard magazine. A third-generation musician, Martin maintains a versatile performance schedule as a soloist, recording artist, chamber, orchestral, jazz/commercial musician, and educator. His performances have been described as “solid and masterful,” (International Trombone Association Journal) with a “warm and beautiful” tone (Glissando Magazine).
McCain’s international recital credits include concerts at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory (Singapore), Mahidol University in (Thailand), the Zagreb Academy of Music in (Croatia), and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. His performances and arrangements have been broadcast on CKWR Toronto, Radio Television Hong Kong, and NPR’s “Performance Today.”
As a soloist, Martin has performed with the Croatian Army Wind Band, United States Army Concert Band “Pershing’s Own” and the United States Army Brass Quintet. He is a prizewinner in multiple competitions including the International Trombone Association’s Donald Yaxley Solo Bass Trombone Competition, the Kai Winding Jazz Trombone Ensemble Competition, in addition to the American Trombone Workshop’s National Bass Trombone Solo Competition and Jazz Trombone Ensemble Competition.
DAVID SPENCER, trumpet
David Spencer is one of the few musicians of his generation to enjoy international acclaim in so many diverse areas of the profession. His orchestral career as principal trumpet has spanned the continents of Asia, Europe, and the Americas in addition to the numerous guest principal posts he has served in worldwide. He is active as a soloist on almost every continent and enjoys a rich body of collaborative work with chamber ensembles, singers and in television and film. In the late ’80s, he was a fixture on the K-Pop scene, arranging and recording numerous number-one selling singles in Asia, fusing his abilities as a jazz musician with a keen sense of regional tastes and popular forms. Today, he continues to inspire with an increased focus on teaching the musicians of the 21st century. His ongoing appointments as a visiting artist and professor in both China and Brazil, have attracted countless students to his studio. A passionate advocate for music education, Dr. Spencer serves as a mentor and consultant to numerous international schools focused on developing innovative curricula, it’s implementation, and assessments. Trained in the best of both European and American pedagogical traditions, Dr. Spencer began his musical studies as a young boy while living in Western Scotland. His research interests are currently focused on the delivery of high-quality applied music instruction and synchronous performance in innovative ways across networks, integrating the latest and best technologies.
ROBERT FANT, French horn
Dr. Robert Fant is a highly sought after teacher, musician, and composer who brings a world perspective to his work. He is currently the Assistant Professor of Horn at the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music at the University of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee. Previous positions include Assistant Professor of Horn at Southwestern Oklahoma State University, Professor of Horn at MidWestern State University in Texas, and scholar, teaching, guest, or assistant positions at the University of North Texas, Trinity College London (guest), Royal Northern College of Music (ABRSM Scholar), University of Wisconsin, and the College Conservatory of Music – University of Cincinnati. He has regularly maintained a studio of private students during his performance career and strives to always inspire students to reach their goals. He has guided students to further study programs, full-time employment in performing ensembles, and increased their joy of horn and music. Early development of horn players is a particular education goal. For example, while in Texas he maintained a large studio of private students in Texas and had multiple “All-Staters” in the competitive state audition system at all levels from 7th to 12th grade. Robert spends most summers teaching children in India and performing around the country for a charity.
