Foothills Brass, a rare musical treat

Nov 18, Invermere –

The exceptional musical group, the Foothills Brass Quintet, has been, for the past nearly thirty years, dedicating themselves to outstanding artistic performances, meaningful educational activities and creative leadership among musical artists. The members originate from all across North America.

Chris Morrison, trumpet, who is one of the co-founders of the group in 1981, was born in Trail, BC and grew up in the NWT. He studied music at the U of A, U of T, the Banff Centre, Keystone Brass Institute, and the National youth Orchestra. He has performed as principal trumpet with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra, played with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the Edmonton Symphony, the Calgary Philharmonic and the Banff Festival Orchestra. In his spare moments, Chris loves all things outdoors and vintage motorcycles.

Jay Michalak, also on trumpet, was born in Chicago, Illinois, studying music at Northwestern University, UBC, the Aspen Music Festival and School and the Banff Centre. He has performed with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, the Tacoma Symphony, the Bellevue Philharmonic and the Lyric Brass Quintet. He loves fishing, skiing and yoga, among other things.

Joanna Schulz plays the French Horn. Born in Nanaimo, BC, Joanna studied at UBC, and in Switzerland and Norway. She has performed with the Auckland Philharmonia, the Vancouver Symphony, the Victoria Symphony and the Vancouver Island Symphony. She is an avid reader of science magazines and neuropyschology.

Mike Tutton plays trombone. The Toronto-born musician studied music at the U of T, the Glenn Gould School and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. Mike has performed with the Canadian Opera Company, the Windsor Symphony, the Toronto Wind Orchestra and L’Orchestre de la Francophonie Canadienne. He has been soloist with the Hannaford Street Silver Band and the Toronto Wind Orchestra. He loves driving, movies and is a big Leafs fan.

Bob Nicholson, on the tuba, hails from Montague, PEI. He studied at U of PEI, Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto, and Musical Academy of the West. He performed “In the Pit” with “Phantom of the Opera in Toronto for four years and Anne of Green Gables in Charlottetown in the summers. Bob has performed with most symphony orchestras eastward from Thunder Bay and was founder of EMCA-winning Jazz band The Jive Kings. Golf is his favorite pastime.

Inspiring and opening the minds of young people to share their passion for brass music is one of the group’s favorite things to do. As a result, school performances have an educational flavor for the quintet.

Invermere will be honored with a performance of The Foothills Brass Quintet on Wednesday, November 18th at 7pm at Christ Church Trinity. This has to be a rare event for our community.

Visit their website at www.foothillsbrass.ab.ca

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