Houghton Horns

High-quality repair, restoration, and custom services for brass players.

Interviews

by on Leave a Comment

2018-2019 ATSSB All-State Trombone Etudes

John Romero

John Romero began his position as Principal Trombone with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in September 2018, after serving as Principal Trombone of the Fort Worth Symphony from 2016. A local of Longview, Texas, he has a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance from Baylor University studying with Brent Phillips and a Master of Music degree from Rice University studying under Allen Barnhill.

Romero has been an active and successful solo competitor. His accomplishments include winning the Larry Wiehe competition in 2012 at the annual International Trombone Festival in Paris, France, as well as ITF’s Marstallar competition in 2013, the Big XII Trombone Conference Tenor Competition, Eastern Trombone Workshop’s Division II Tenor Competition, and Baylor University’s Concerto competition. In addition to the concerto performance at Baylor, he has been a featured soloist at Blast of Brass’s summer festival.

As a private lessons teacher, Romero currently teaches in the Houston area but will begin teaching in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in August of 2016. His students range from many backgrounds and experience levels and frequently show improvement in placement auditions and competitions such as Texas UIL All-State and UIL Solo and Ensemble. As a native Texan who was trained in Texas and who is working in a Texas Symphony, Romero knows from experience what the judges are looking for and how to combat the challenges of the experience.

When not practicing classical music, Romero’s non-trombone related passions include rock climbing, mountain biking, guitar, piano, jazz. cooking, good coffee, and golfing.

Etude 1 - Andante affettuoso

Etude 2 - Allegretto by Bohme

by on 2 Comments

2018-2019 TMEA All-State Trombone Etudes

John Romero

John Romero began his position as Principal Trombone with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in September 2018, after serving as Principal Trombone of the Fort Worth Symphony from 2016. A local of Longview, Texas, he has a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance from Baylor University studying with Brent Phillips and a Master of Music degree from Rice University studying under Allen Barnhill.

Romero has been an active and successful solo competitor. His accomplishments include winning the Larry Wiehe competition in 2012 at the annual International Trombone Festival in Paris, France, as well as ITF’s Marstallar competition in 2013, the Big XII Trombone Conference Tenor Competition, Eastern Trombone Workshop’s Division II Tenor Competition, and Baylor University’s Concerto competition. In addition to the concerto performance at Baylor, he has been a featured soloist at Blast of Brass’s summer festival.

As a private lessons teacher, Romero currently teaches in the Houston area but will begin teaching in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in August of 2016. His students range from many backgrounds and experience levels and frequently show improvement in placement auditions and competitions such as Texas UIL All-State and UIL Solo and Ensemble. As a native Texan who was trained in Texas and who is working in a Texas Symphony, Romero knows from experience what the judges are looking for and how to combat the challenges of the experience.

When not practicing classical music, Romero’s non-trombone related passions include rock climbing, mountain biking, guitar, piano, jazz. cooking, good coffee, and golfing.

Etude 1 - A minor - Allegro Moderato

Etude 2 - B Major - Adagio

Etude 3 - E minor - Allegro Vivace

by on Leave a Comment

20 Questions on the 20th featuring John Romero

20 Questions on May 20th, trombone edition!

John Romero, Principal Trombone of the Fort Worth Symphony, recent winner of the Principal Trombone audition for the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra!

1. When and where would you go if you had a time machine? – About 1000 years into the future! I’d be quarantined as a health issue initially, but then they would probably have a cure to every disease and space travel and stuff. If you go more than 50 years into the past, you’re bound to catch some terrible disease and die. Plus, they didn’t wash their hands back then…

2. Favorite vacation spot? Tough choice between the Colorado mountains and Florida beaches when there’s not that many people out.

3. Dogs or cats? False dichotomy. I like both, but currently own two cats.

4. Favorite piece of music that doesn’t have trombone? Anuna’s “Blue Bird.”

5. Beer, wine, or spirits? Beer!

6. Most memorable concert you were a part of? Shostakovich Symphony 7 with the Baylor Symphony Orchestra. It was my first time playing with an orchestra. I had no idea you had to play so loudly!

7. Trombone and mouthpiece you mostly play? Shires horn with the 7GYM bell, Rose tuning crook, Axial Flow Valve, TW47LW slide, 1.5L Sterling silver leadpipe, and a 4.5 GM New York Greg Black mouthpiece.

8. A composer you would like to write a piece for trombone? Debussy if he were alive. Living composer? Jennifer Higdon.

9. Bitsch or Blazhevich? Bitsch, except for etude #7!

10. Favorite non-classical/jazz artist? It’s a tie between Dream Theater and Coheed and Cambria.

11. Sports team or player you are a big fan of? Shaun White

12. Good book you have read recently? “The Nurture Assumption. What Makes Kids Turn Out the Way They Do.” It was a Pulitzer runner up.

13. Favorite color? Emerald Green

14. Dream car? Tesla Model S P100D

15. What inspires you to get to work? Not wanting to be late!

16. Conductor alive or dead that you wish you could work with? Beethoven or Liszt

17. Candy of choice? Kit Kats!

18. Favorite Arban exercise? Characteristic Study #1. Either that or just any of the multiple tonguing exercises as fast as I can go.

19. Arthur Pryor or Tommy Dorsey? Arthur Pryor

20. Best/favorite note on the horn? It’s a tie between super Eb or trigger Db

by on Leave a Comment

20 Questions on the 20th featuring Bernhard Scully

1. Started playing horn at what age: 11

2. First private teacher? David Mills (now head band director at UCONN), and Mark Belcik (now Associate Dean at U Oklahoma City School of Music)

3. Favorite Composer? JS Bach (but that’s an impossibly hard question to really say)

4.  Favorite piece? (Another impossibly hard question) JS Bach’s Mass in B minor

5. Most memorable concert? Performing at Midwest Clinic in Chicago with the the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphony in high school.

6. Most embarrassing moment on stage? Not being able to get the water out of the high F side on my descant horn before the high B-flat entrance in the second movement of Beethoven’s 4th symphony. I only had to use the high F side for the first note and when I played it was so full of water that that it sounded like a rattling percussion instrument. I asked the principal clarinet if he could hear the water after the show and said, “Hear it? I could FEEL it!!”

7. If you could not play the horn, what other instrument would you choose? Cello

8. Favorite excerpt? Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto #1”

9. Least favorite excerpt? Mahler 1

10. Mountains or Beach? Beach (but close to mountains too, like California:)

11. Cats or Dogs? Cats

12. F horn or C horn? C horn

13. Treble or Bass clef? Treble clef

14. Would you rather play Ravel’s Piano Concerto or Shostakovich 5? Ravel’s Piano Concerto

15. Beer or wine? Wine

16. On the leg or off the leg? Off the leg

17. Kopprasch or Kling? Kling

18. Would you rather be stranded on a desert island with a saxophone or trumpet player? Trumpet

19. Favorite movie score? Oliver Stone’s JFK

20. “Stars and Stripes” or “Washington Post”? Washington Post

Cheers, Bernhard Scully

 

by on Leave a Comment

20 Questions on the 20th featuring Jeff Nelsen

It’s time for March’s 20 questions on the 20th!

Here’s the fearless Jeff Nelsen!

  1. Started playing horn at age:
    • 12, then quit 16-19
  2. First private teacher?
    • David Hoyt – Hn 1 Edmonton Symphony
  3. Favorite composer?
    • Mahler and Mozart
  4. Favorite piece?
    • Barber Violin Concerto
  5. Most memorable concert?
    • Christmas concert on Canadian radio with my parents singing, sisters flute and bassooning, and me! 1993 in Edmonton
  6. Most embarrassing moment on stage?
    • Same concert! Wow did I get nervous!! Played a simple piece quite badly…I have video! I’ll share it!
  7. If you could not play the horn, what other instrument would you choose?
    • Electric guitar
  8. Favorite excerpt?
    • To play – Don Quixote var 7&8, To hear – Mahler 5 obligate
  9. Least favorite excerpt?
    • Depends on what I’ve neglected?
  10. Mountains or Beach?
    • Winery!
  11. Cats or Dogs?
    • Dog winery!!
  12. F horn or C horn?
    • Eh horn!
  13. Treble clef or Bass clef?
    • Bass
  14. Would you rather play Ravel’s Piano Concerto OR Shostakovich 5?
    1. Aw come on! Both soooo good. Pieces or excerpts? I’ll go with Shostakovich!
  15. Beer or wine?
    • Beach
  16. On the leg or off the leg?
    • Yup!
  17. Kopprasch or Kling?
    • Maxime Alphonse!
  18. Would you rather be stranded on a desert island with a saxophone or trumpet player?
    • Ha!! I’ll take the saxaphone. Without the player, right!?
  19. Favorite movie score?
    • Field of Dreams – James Horner (Jim Thatcher on incredible horn lines!)
  20. “Stars and Stripes” or “Washington Post”? 😉
    • New York Times!? Oh Canada?

by on Leave a Comment

20 Questions on the 20th featuring William Caballero

It’s time for February’s 20 questions on the 20th!

Here’s Bill Caballero, Principal Horn of The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra:

  1. Started playing horn at age:
    • 9
  2. First private teacher?
    • Mr Dunnam. A trombone player.
  3. Favorite composer?
    • Prokofiev
  4. Favorite piece?
    • El Niño, John Adams.
  5. Most memorable concert?
    • 10/89 Mahler 7th with Maazel in Warsaw Poland.
  6. Most embarrassing moment on stage?
    • Playing 1st [Wagner]tuben on Bruckner 7 after working out my abs. Haven’t worked out since.
  7. If you could not play the horn, what other instrument would you choose?
    • Pipe Organ.
  8. Favorite excerpt?
    • One I played well!
  9. Least favorite excerpt?
    • Ravel piano concerto in G.
  10. Mountains or Beach?
    • Mountains
  11. Cats or Dogs?
    • Both!!
  12. F horn or C horn?
    • F please!
  13. Treble clef or Bass clef?
    • Treble
  14. Would you rather play Ravel’s Piano Concerto OR Shostakovich 5?
    • SHOSTAKOVICH!!
  15. Beer or wine?
    • Both!!
  16. On the leg or off the leg?
    • Off the keg, I mean off the leg.
  17. Kopprasch or Kling?
    • Kopprasch
  18. Would you rather be stranded on a desert island with a saxophone or trumpet player?
    • Trumpet player. (They’re funnier)
  19. Favorite movie score?
    • The Matrix and the new Star Trek.
  20. “Stars and Stripes” or “Washington Post”?
    • Stars and Stripes!!