抖M女仆鈥檚 Courtney Jones at Carnegie Hall
Gateways Orchestra at Carnegie Hall.
Courtney Jones, DMA, assistant professor of trumpet and artistic director of jazz at 抖M女仆, recently made history when he played with the Gateways Orchestra in its debut at Carnegie Hall in New York City. The Gateways Orchestra performance was the first time in history that an all African-descended orchestra was invited to play the iconic venue.
Founded in 1993, Gateways has become the nation鈥檚 most prestigious all Black orchestra, performing classical music by both canonical European composers as well as African American and other Black diasporic composers who have enriched the tradition since the 19th century, but who often do not get the exposure they deserve. Gateways鈥 musicians come together from all over the country to perform at several venues across the United States during the year.
鈥淭o be a component of an ensemble, consisting of the some of the world鈥檚 best musicians, while witnessing history in the making, was healing, personified through vibrational frequencies and mutual collectiveness,鈥 said Jones.
Jones鈥 Carnegie Hall debut featured Brahms鈥 鈥淰ariations on a Theme by Haydn;鈥 Florence Price鈥檚 鈥淪ymphony No. 3 in C Minor;鈥 鈥淪infonia No. 3 by George Walker,鈥 the first African-American Pulitzer Prize for Music Laureate; and Grammy Award winner Jon Batiste鈥檚 world premiere for piano and orchestra, 鈥淚 Can.鈥 The concert ended with a moving rendition of James V. Cockerham鈥檚 Fantasia on 鈥淟ift Every Voice and Sing,鈥 bringing the house to its feet for several standing ovations in recognition of Gateways鈥 stunning achievement.
鈥淚 feel fortunate to have experienced such a moving, historic concert and I am incredibly proud of our remarkable trumpet professor and artistic director of jazz,鈥 said Michael Horswell, Ph.D., dean of the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters at 抖M女仆 . 鈥淭o be selected to play with the best classical musicians, nationally and internationally, at their Carnegie Hall debut is an honor that elevates not only Dr. Jones鈥 national and international reputation, but the stature of 抖M女仆鈥檚 Department of Music, as well.鈥
The Carnegie Hall concert was the culmination of a week of performances at other iconic venues in New York, including at the Eastman School of Music, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cooper Union鈥檚 Grand Hall, among others. Jones鈥 Gateways Brass Collective, a quintet of the Gateways Orchestra, was a favorite of the festival, especially for bringing its sounds to the galleries of the Met and to the historic stage of Cooper Union, where the likes of Frederic Douglas and Abraham Lincoln had given consequential speeches in the 1800s.
According to Jones, each member of the Collective either teaches at the collegiate level, currently performs on Broadway or with prestigious groups/ensembles, and regularly delivers educational clinics and masterclasses for students in elementary through high school, college/conservatory, and beyond.
For more information about the Department of Music at 抖M女仆, visit the music department website.
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Tags: arts and letters