Several years before there even was a Juilliard Trombone Choir, we received our first invitation to perform at the Eastern Trombone Workshop. Hosted by the United States Army Band in Washington, D.C., the Eastern Trombone Workshop is one of the largest annual events for trombonists from all over the world. The organizers of this workshop had first-hand knowledge about the high quality of the Juilliard trombone studio, since they frequently included Juilliard faculty and alumni on workshop concerts, recitals, and master classes. Because many conservatories and music schools throughout the United States and abroad have trombone choirs, organizers and participants of the Eastern Trombone Workshop also assumed that Juilliard had one too.

This assumption was further fueled four years ago, when the Juilliard trombone students organized an ad hoc ensemble and auditioned for and won the Remington Trombone Choir Competition.

After years of planning and countless hours of musical preparation, the Juilliard Trombone Choir loaded a bus on March 15 for its first concert tour.

As the winners, they performed a showcase concert at the 1998 International Trombone Festival in Boulder, Colo. Joseph Alessi, principal trombonist in the New York Philharmonic, and I shared conducting responsibilities for this group, and we were impressed with their initiative and dedication. "The self-motivation of the students to enter and win that competition demonstrated their strong desire to maintain an active trombone ensemble," said Joe.

Joe and I began developing a proposal to establish a permanent trombone choir for the students, and our dream became a reality in September 2000, when the Juilliard Trombone Choir was added to the School's curriculum. Members of the Trombone Choir are graduate and undergraduate students who are pursuing their musical training in the studios of Joe Alessi, Per Brevig, Don Harwood, Michael Powell, and John Rojak.

After years of planning and countless hours of musical preparation, the Juilliard Trombone Choir loaded a bus on March 15 for its first concert tour and the long-awaited performance at the Eastern Trombone Workshop. The students who participated in this historical event were tenor trombonists Hamod Abu-Eid, Jim Cumiskey, Jon Lombardo, Adam Peixotto, Lee Rogers, Amanda Stewart, Bradley Williams, and Jamie Williams, and bass trombonists Eric Banks, Ben Green, Jackie Harris, and John Schwalm. The students once again showed their commitment to the ensemble by returning early from spring break to do this tour.

Our first stop was in Wayne, Pa., a suburb of Philadelphia, where we performed our program to an appreciative audience at St. Mary's Episcopal Church. Our repertoire included the premiere of five compositions and arrangements written for the Juilliard Trombone Choir. At St. Mary's Church, we also had the opportunity to collaborate with organist Robert Gallagher (a Juilliard alumnus, M.M. '83) to premiere arrangements of Feierlicher einzug by Richard Strauss and Now Thank We All Our God by Sigfrid Karg-Elert that I wrote for this special occasion.

Since our performance at the workshop was scheduled for the next morning, we departed for Washington, D.C. immediately after the concert. By the time we got checked into our motel, it was after midnight. Despite a short night of sleep, the students were ready to take the stage at the workshop and perform in front of their toughest critics—other trombone players.

Playing to a standing-room-only audience, the Juilliard Trombone Choir opened the concert at the Eastern Trombone

"After the concert, people commented on the musical excitement in each piece and complimented us on how we brought out the spirit of the composer in the orchestral pieces arranged for trombone choir."

Workshop on March 16 with Declamation, a fanfare written by James Kazik for our exclusive use. The program continued with Kazik's arrangement of Procession of the Nobles by Rimsky-Korsakov, which featured Jon Lombardo, Lee Rogers, and Jamie Williams on alto trombone. Fantasie for Low Brass, an original composition for trombone choir by Arno Hermann, explored dramatic techniques and sounds unique to the trombone.

I took my place at the podium to conduct Empire Fanfare, written by Eric Ewazen (a Juilliard faculty member and alumnus) to commemorate the Trombone Choir's first tour, and my arrangement of London By Night by Carroll Coates. The ensemble and I also accompanied Joe on a Tommy Pederson composition for solo trombone, Cogent Caprice.

Joe returned to the podium to conduct two more orchestral masterpieces, The Perfect Fool by Gustav Holst and the Finale to Symphony No. 3 by Saint-Saëns. We concluded the program with an encore of New York, New York, arranged especially for the Juilliard Trombone Choir by Robert Elkjer.

The reception from the audience was overwhelming. Jamie Williams, one of the student leaders in the choir, was familiar with the Eastern Trombone Workshop as a winner of a solo competition in a previous year. He was aware of the significance of our performance, but was touched by the reaction and camaraderie from other trombone players who came backstage to congratulate the group on their performance.

"Other trombone players have a high expectation that the Juilliard Trombone Choir will sound good, but it was still nice to be recognized by them at this workshop," said Jamie. "After the concert, people commented on the musical excitement in each piece and complimented us on how we brought out the spirit of the composer in the orchestral pieces arranged for trombone choir."

One of the best compliments came when a staff member of the Eastern Trombone Workshop informed us that a representative from National Public Radio attended the entire workshop and was planning a radio program featuring three of the groups that performed there, including the Juilliard Trombone Choir.

Early the next morning, on March 17, we boarded the bus once again for the return trip to New York. The anticipation we felt prior to our tour had been replaced with an increased sense of professional and personal accomplishment.

"It was great to perform at the workshop and to be considered as something special by the audience," said Hamod Abu-Eid, another student leader in the Trombone Choir. "But the most significant thing we all came away with was that this was an experience that brought the group closer together as people."

"We already knew each other as colleagues, as trombone players," Hamod continued, "but this gave us a chance to know each other as individuals. As we became more comfortable with each other and bonded as a group, we improved musically."

Joe Alessi summed up his thoughts on the tour when he said, "Making music with our Trombone Choir is one of my life's passions. Touring with them was a privilege."

Virginia Allen, who teaches orchestral conducting for non-majors and is assistant director of the Juilliard Trombone Choir, has been a faculty member since 1999.