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davewerden

Euphonium Player of the Year - Almost Time Again

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Now that the Summer is closing, it will soon be time to hear who is the 2007 Euphonium Player of the Year. There are other posts on this blog about the event, but I thought I would provide a bit more insight based on my own experience from 1980.

When I learned of the award, the Coast Guard agreed to pay my expenses to travel and accept the award in London. While there, I took a few days' leave on my own expense and toured London - what a great city and people!

The actual award evening started with a nice dinner in a tavern in London. Shown here is a photo from the dinner. My guide while I was over there is the great euphonium player from Her Majesty's Coldstream Guards Band, Jonathan Smith (on the far left in this photo). I met Bert Sullivan, a famous euphonium player from the brass band scene, who was for forty years the euphonium soloist with the British Mumm and Feltons/G.U.S. Band. Next to him is Trevor Austin, from the International Congress of Brass Musicians. I am in the middle, and to my right is Barrie Perrins, the first winner of this award (from 1979) and euphonium soloist with the Hendon Band. And on the right is Philip Catelinet, famous tuba player, and representing the National Association of Brass Band Conductors. There were many other noted euphonium players present that evening, and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting every one and talking to them (for all too brief a time).



I am holding the plaque I was just awarded (shown below). It is a "floating" plaque; that is, it passes from one winner to the next each year. Barrie Perrins won the first year, and his name is found on the top center. The annual awards go clockwise from that point, so my name is just to Barrie's right.



At the center is a large shield that says "Euphonium Player of the Year." You may notice the circle above it that has a treble clef - this IS a British award, after all, and treble clef is more common for euphonium than bass clef. Because I had to send the plaque to be engraved and passed on to the next recipient after a while, I took the trouble to get a photo of it, which is hanging in my home studio.

If all goes as usual, we should learn who the 2007 EPOTY is within a few weeks.

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