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Preston Shepard

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Sal Cracchiolo Trumpet Interview – The Other Side of the Bell #122

Sal Cracchiolo Trumpet Interview

Welcome to the show notes for Episode #122 of The Other Side of the Bell – A Trumpet Podcast. This episode features trumpeter Sal Cracchiolo. Listen to or download the episode below:

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About Sal Cracchiolo

Salvator William Cracchiolo II was born in Long Beach, California as the son of two talented music teachers.  His father, Sal Cracchiolo I, owned a music studio where he taught piano and played professional accordion.  His mother, Edith, was his first trumpet teacher and started Sal on trumpet at the age of 12.  He played in concert, marching and jazz band in high school.  By his Junior and Senior year of High School, he was attending Cerritos College playing in their jazz and concert bands.

He started working as a professional musician at 15 in nightclubs with various R & B and Latin bands.   In 1975 he started a long musical friendship with Poncho Sanchez, which ultimately let to 18 albums.  Between working with Poncho, in the 1980s, he was a member of the Pasadena City College Big Band under the direction of saxophonist, Gary Foster.  While in this band, Sal played with such jazz greats as Warren Marsh, Lee Konitz, and Peter Erskine.

In the late-80s, Poncho traveled internationally.  Since then, with Poncho and other acts, Sal has traveled to 45 countries globally.  With Poncho, he has played and recorded with Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard, Cal Tjader, Chick Corea, Stanley Turentine, Tito Puente, Mongo Santamaria, Clare Fischer, Gary Foster, Arturo Sandoval, Eddie Harris, Joey DeFrancesco, Dianne Reeves, Justo Almario, Andy Martin, Celia Cruz and Pete Escovedo.  He performed for and with these artists at the Monterey, Playboy, Concord, and Nice Jazz Festivals plus many others throughout the U.S., Europe, Canada, Mexico, South America, Thailand and Japan.

He has also done worldwide tours with such artists as Tom Jones, Vicki Carr, Harry Connick and Brian Setzer.

He was with the Clayton/ Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and has played with them since 2003. The CHJO has been rated as the #1 Big Band in the USA by Downbeat Magazine from 2007 to 2010.  He also performing with his own sextet featuring his wife, Melanie Jackson, on vocals  In 2001 “Fly” was nominated for a Latin Grammy. He has performed on the latest albums of Michael Buble, Gladys Knight, Joss Stone, Jamiroquoi, and Dr. Dre and on various sountracks for HBO.

In 2001,  their CD, “Fly”, was nominated for a Latin Grammy.  In 2002 they performed at the Du Maurier Vancouver International Jazz Festival.  In 2003 they will be performing for the warm-up for the Playboy Jazz Festival. In 2004 through 2006  Sal and Melanie’s sextet was sponsored by the California Arts Council.

Sal Cracchiolo Links

Podcast Credits

In podcast

Imani Duhe’ Trumpet Interview – The Other Side of the Bell #121

Imani Duhe’ Trumpet Interview

Welcome to the show notes for Episode #121 of The Other Side of the Bell – A Trumpet Podcast. This episode features trumpeter Imani Duhe’. Listen to or download the episode below:

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About Imani Duhe’

Imani Duhe’ is a versatile young musician from Atlanta, Georgia, known for her rich, soulful trumpet playing. Starting music at a young age, she’s been surrounded by different styles of music her entire life. Imani has performed regularly with orchestras, chamber ensembles, and in small solo settings as a trumpeter for over 12 years. Through her love for the trumpet and music she also discovered a talent for composing songs, which she performs with her ensembles. Imani has performed on podcasts, in multiple large music venues including the Hollywood Bowl, Carnegie Hall, and The Walt Disney Concert Hall. She has had the opportunity to play for live televised events and popular music festivals and continues to make her name known as a sought-after musician. She has worked with artists such as Ms. Lauryn Hill, Ani Difranco, Daniel Pemberton, Metro Boomin, T-Pain, and more. Imani also teaches for the Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles as a trumpet instructor and brass specialist and gives master classes around the greater Los Angeles area. Ms. Duhe received her Bachelors from Manhattan School of Music and her Masters at the University of Southern California.

Imani Duhe’ Links

Podcast Credits

In Horn Signal

Dylan Skye Hart Horn Interview – Horn Signal #2

Dylan Skye Hart Horn Interview

Welcome to the show notes for Episode #2 of Horn Signal! This episode features one of the busiest studio horn players in Los Angeles, Dylan Skye Hart.

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About Dylan Skye Hart

You may not know Dylan Skye Hart by name, but you have heard him play horn. Proud Latino and Los Angeles native, Dylan is a busy freelance musician. Depending on the day, he can be found recording for video games, motion pictures, theme parks, or television shows.

He has recorded films with many great composers including John Williams, Hans Zimmer, John Powell, Randy Newman, Alexandre Desplat, James Newton Howard, Bruce Broughton, David Newman, and Alan Silvestri. Some movie titles on which Dylan can be heard playing principal horn include: Star Wars IX: The Rise of Skywalker, Jungle Cruise, Onward, It 2, Call of the Wild, Ready Player One, Deadpool 2, Star Wars VIII: The Last Jedi, Violent Night, and The Jungle Book. Dylan has also recorded albums and appeared on television with music legends Lady Gaga, John Legend, Michael Bublé, Sting, Stevie Wonder, Wu-Tang Clan, M83, Gladys Night, Yo-Yo Ma, Neil Young, and The Beatles. His solos can be heard on his namesake Bob Dylan’s albums Shadows in the Night and Fallen Angel. 

Dylan has toured with John Williams’ Star Wars in Concert, Eden Espinosa of Wicked, and The Who, doubling on horn, trumpet, trombone, Wagner tuba, and mellophone. In the orchestral world, Dylan is principal horn of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and recently won a one-year position as associate principal horn of the Minnesota Orchestra. He also performs regularly with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Pacific Symphony, and San Diego Symphony. Dylan is a member of the Los Angeles Horn Quartet and Modern Brass Quintet.

In addition, Dylan co-produced the 75-minute film documentary entitled 1M1: Hollywood Horns of the Golden Years which recounts the history of the Los Angeles film studios told through the eyes of the legendary horn players of the golden era. In addition, he translated and published a book for musicians called In Tune: Exercises to Improve a Musician’s Performance and Quality of Life. Dylan is known for making French horn music videos as seen on his YouTube Channel and specializes in giving masterclasses on a variety of topics ranging from physics and anatomy to motivation and mental health.

As an alumnus of the University of Southern California, he studied with Vincent DeRosa, James Thatcher, and Richard Todd. Dylan currently teaches horn at California State University, Northridge. When not performing, Dylan, a “foodie”, enjoys cooking, playing ice hockey and soccer, golfing, and hanging out with his wife and fellow hornist Annie Bosler.

Dylan is a Conn/Selmer Artist and owns several vintage Conn 8Ds and currently plays on a C-series that his friend and fellow instrument junky Noah Gladstone helped him find. He also developed a signature mouthpiece line with the help of Brett Kendall at Bob Reeves Brass.

Dylan Skye Hart Links

Podcast Credits

  • “Haydn Symphony #31 “Horn Signal““, “Hornpipe” Water Music by Handel and “Elsa’s Procession to the Cathedral” from Wagner’s Lohengrin
  • Audio Engineer – Preston Shepard
  • Cover Art – Meg Ryia
  • Podcast Hosts – John Snell and Preston Shepard
In podcast

Ravi Best Trumpet Interview – The Other Side of the Bell #120

Ravi Best Trumpet Interview

Welcome to the show notes for Episode #120 of The Other Side of the Bell – A Trumpet Podcast. This episode features jazz and commercial trumpeter Ravi Best. Listen to or download the episode below:

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About Ravi Best

Ravi Best is a New York City based jazz and commercial trumpet player who has performed domestically and internationally for two decades. Most recently, he has been performing, recording, and touring with Kool & The Gang, Blood, Sweat and Tears, The Duke Ellington Orchestra, and Little Steven and The Disciples of Soul, where he had the chance to perform with Sir Paul McCartney, and Bruce Springsteen. He has performed with several Jazz, Rock, and R&B artists such as Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Lenny Kravitz, Queen Latifah, Annie Lennox, Robert Cray, ani difranco, Michael Buble, Clark Terry, Tony Bennett, and Herbie Hancock.
He has played in several Broadway shows such as The Heart of Rock and Roll, Merrily We Roll Along, Hell’s Kitchen, Diana, The Color Purple, Chicago, 42nd St., Sweet Charity, Annie, and several others.
He has made several TV appearances playing in the house band on SNL, Jesus Christ Superstar Live, Jimmy Kimmel Live( Kool and The Gang), Good Morning America(Boyz II Men), The Today Show(Little Big Town), The Late Show(Rufus Wainwright), and The Sherri Show. Ravi was also featured in the Chris Colombus film The Christmas Chronicles.
He can also be heard on many recordings such as, Kenny Garrett’s Pushing The World Away, Little  Steven and The Disciples of Soul’s Soulfire Live, and Summer of Sorcery, David Byrne & St. Vincent’s Love This Giant, David Murray Octet’s Octet Plays Trane, Lester Bowie’s Brass Fantasy’s The Odyssey of Funk & Popular Music, Sam River’s Rivbea Orchestra’s Culmination, Ani DiFranco’s Evlolve, So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter, and Mya’s Moodring, The Broadway cast recordings of Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert, Heart of Rock and Roll, Diana, Ain’t Too Proud, 42nd Street, and Baby It’s You.

Ravi Best Links

Podcast Credits

In Horn Signal

Steve Becknell Horn Interview – Horn Signal #1

Steve Becknell Horn Interview

Welcome to the show notes for Episode #1 of Horn Signal! This episode features principal horn of the LA Opera as well as adjunct professor of horn at USC, Steve Becknell.

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About Steve Becknell

Steve Becknell has had an extensive and varied career as a horn player. In
1982, he moved to Southern California to study with famed studio player Vince
DeRosa at USC, but began working professionally while still in school. He has played
in orchestras throughout Southern California including the Los Angeles
Philharmonic, the San Diego Symphony, the Pacific Symphony, and was a member of
the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra for 8 years. He is also in demand as a chamber
musician, and has performed with Santa Barbara-based Camerata Pacifica as well as
the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and the Mainly Mozart Festival. But the bulk of
Steven’s time was spent recording in the Hollywood studios. To date, he has played
on over 1,000 different motion pictures and numerous television series, as well as
playing on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and the Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Steve has played live for the Academy Awards, sat in the pit for Broadway shows,
and has had the honor of recording with such legendary artists as Frank Sinatra,
Barbra Streisand, Barry Manilow and Josh Groban.

Steve has been playing principal horn with the Los Angeles Opera for over 25
years. In 2010 he performed all the offstage and pit solos of Wagner’s complete
Ring cycle, the first time it had ever been produced in Southern California. To date,
he has played over 1,500 performances with the Los Angeles Opera.
Steve is currently on the faculty at the University of Southern California.

Steve Becknell Links

Podcast Credits

  • “Haydn Symphony #31 “Horn Signal““, “Hornpipe” Water Music by Handel and “Elsa’s Procession to the Cathedral” from Wagner’s Lohengrin
  • Audio Engineer – Preston Shepard
  • Cover Art – Meg Ryia
  • Podcast Hosts – John Snell and Preston Shepard
In podcast

Brian Swartz Trumpet Interview – The Other Side of the Bell #119

Brian Swartz Trumpet Interview

Welcome to the show notes for Episode #119 of The Other Side of the Bell – A Trumpet Podcast. This episode features  jazz trumpeter Brian Swartz. Listen to or download the episode below:

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About Brian Swartz

Trumpeter Brian Swartz is a diverse musician with a wide range of influences. He has appeared on multiple Grammy® nominated and winning recordings with artists including The (Dixie) Chicks’ Double Platinum “Taking the Long Way” which won 5 Grammy® Awards, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year in February 2007, John Beasley’s Monk’estra which has garnered 6 Grammy® Nominations for it’s 3 albums and 1 Grammy® Win for Beasley’s arrangement of “Donna Lee,” The Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Scott Healy’s Tentet and Kim Richmond’s Concert Jazz Orchestra. He has also performed or recorded with The Goo Goo Dolls, Michael Bublé, Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, Jennifer Nettles, Robin Thicke, Smashmouth, Patti Labelle, Natalie Cole, Dianne Reeves, Ivan Lins, Tom Harrell, Chucho Valdés, Brad Mehldau, Dave Douglas, Rickie Lee Jones, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, The O’Jays, The Temptations, The Four Tops,  Saint Motel, Azar Lawrence, Buddy Montgomery, Joe Henry, Keb’ Mo’, Jackie Greene, Josie Cotton, Lisa Loeb, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Gerry Gibbs, Connie Han, Taylor Eigsti, Raya Yarbrough, Bob Florence, The Luckman Jazz Orchestra, Francisco Aguabella, JazzAntiqua, The Los Angeles Jazz Collective, Jose Rizo’s Jazz on the Latin Side All Stars and many more.
Since 2005, Swartz has proudly held the trumpet chair in Oingo Boingo Former Members.

 

Brian Swartz has released five jazz albums as a leader: “There’s Only Me” (Noir Records 2000), “Live at the Jazz Bakery” (Summit Records 2005), “Three” (Summit Records 2006) and “Portraiture” (Summit Records 2014), “To Be With You” (DistroKid 2020). As an arranger, Brian has written for his own big band, Ruthie Foster’s 2021 Grammy® Nominated “Live at the Paramount,” Sussan Deyhim with the Pacific Symphony, the Ron Jones Influence Orchestra and has served as staff arranger for The Luckman Jazz Orchestra, John Beasley’s Monk’estra, Oingo Boingo Former Members and the ABC TV show, “Duets.” Brian‘s film credits include the 2012 Oscar® Winning Animated Feature “Rango,” Jennifer Anniston’s “The Break-Up,” “The Cooler” starring William H. Macy and “Let Them All Talk” with Meryl Streep. In 2021, Brian appeared with John Beasley’s Quintet on the Amazon Prime TV show ‘Bosch,” Season 7, Episode 1.

Born December 16, 1967, Brian is a second generation trumpeter. His father, CMSgt Lawrence Swartz (1937-1992), was a 30 year trumpeter in the United States AirForce. Brian’s early exposure to music made a profound influence on him and he started playing trumpet at the age of ten in Bellevue, Nebraska. As a teenager, his family moved to the San Francisco Bay Area where he attended Armijo High School. He played all through his high school years and won many honors and accolades. He graduated from Armijo in 1986 and began his music education at Solano Community College. In 1988, he moved to Los Angeles to attend California State University at Northridge and the University of Southern California where he could further hone his craft.

For five years, Brian studied with trumpet guru Bobby Shew. Bobby inspired Brian‘s passion for teaching and since 1997, Brian has maintained a very busy schedule of private students in the Los Angeles area and beyond. Brian also studied with John Coppola (SFO), Bill Bing (CSUN), John Thomas (USC) and LA studio legend Uan Rasey. Brian’s dedication to mastering his craft and continually building upon his knowledge has brought him to prominence in the global jazz scene.

Brian Swartz Links

Other Links Mentioned in this Episode

Podcast Credits