During the month of July, I’m home in New York; firmly ensconced in the usual routine of practising, teaching and playing rehearsals and gigs in and around the city. One exception, that takes me a little further afield, is a gig on July 10th up in Springfield, MA. On this occasion, I’ll be playing Lead Trumpet with Kendrick Oliver’s New Life Jazz Orchestra for their performance at the Hoop City Jazz and Art Festival. If you’re in the area, I hope to see you there – details are on my Schedule page.

Looking back to June, I had a great trip back to the UK, visiting family and friends and doing some playing and teaching. One highlight while I was there was resurrecting the “Quarter To Four” band at Grimsby Jazz. We had a great time playing and it was so nice to see so many old friends, both on and off the bandstand. I made a reference recording of the evening and have posted a couple of samples in my Soundcloud account – they are linked elsewhere on the site.

Just before I left for the UK, I spent a chop-bursting evening at the Tea Lounge in Brooklyn, attempting to play the lead book with The Chase Experiment. Bandleader Jackie Coleman has painstakingly transcribed much of the music of Chase; the iconic Trumpet-section-led Jazz/Rock group devised by former Woody Herman lead trumpet, Bill Chase. I’ve enjoyed that music for a long time and playing it gave me a new appreciation for what a monstrous player he was!

Upon my return to New York, I played with the Nathan Parker Smith Large Ensemble for the Jazz Vespers service at St Peter’s Church. Nathan has written some great, if slightly unconventional, music and it was tremendous fun to play something a bit different. I look forward to playing with them again soon.

Hope you’re having a great summer.

BD

June sees a welcome return to the UK, the first since my emigration to the States. I’m very much looking forward to seeing family and friends. I’ll be predominately based in Cleethorpes, at my parents’ place, from June 7-14 but am open to offers, if anybody finds they could use me for a gig elsewhere.

The one gig I do have on the books is at Grimsby Jazz in Thursday, June 9th. We will be reprising the so-called “Quarter to Four” band that proved so successful a few summers ago. So called because of a last minute mix up, on the day of a supposed Grimsby Jazz gig with a different band; the replacement group was finally settled at 3:45pm! It will be a great pleasure to play with Pat McCarthy (guitar), Piero Tucci (piano/saxes) and Tony Burkill (tenor sax) again. Rounding out the band this time will be Ken Marley (bass) and John Perry (drums). It promises to be a good night!

There are some lesson spots available, while I’m in the UK. I will likely be visiting friends in Leeds on Sunday, June 12th and can be elsewhere as the situation dictates. Please check the Teaching page for details and drop me a line if you’re interested. Skype lessons are always available, as well, as when I’m in NYC. However, the smaller time difference may make them more viable for interested students in Europe – I know that can make scheduling a headache sometimes.

On the subject of lessons, I must offer my apologies for the current absence of the Store on my site. If you would like to organize a lesson, please drop me a line and I can send you a PayPal link to prepay your Skype (or in-person) lesson. The store will be fixed shortly.

Enjoy your summer!
BD

After as quiet a start to the year as I can remember, it’s time to hit the road again! From February 17th to 24th, and on February 26th, I’ll be touring with The Artie Shaw Orchestra. We have 8 dates on this little sojourn and I’m looking forward to my first trip out with an actual “ghost band” of one of the great American bandleaders. Should be lots of fun!

The dates and cities are as follows. For more details, please check my schedule page.

• Feb. 17 – Richmond, VA
• Feb.18 – Newberry, SC
• Feb.19 – Henderson, NC
• Feb.21 – Lancaster, PA
• Feb.22 – Zelionople, PA
• Feb.23 – Princeton, NJ
• Feb.24 – Nashua, NH
• Feb.26 – Mahwah, NJ

Looking forward to March, I’m actually playing my first gig in New York City, since the move here. On March 18th, I’ll be tackling the Lead trumpet chair with Mr Ho’s Orchestrotica, on their CD release concert at Le Poisson Rouge, in the West Village. This peculiarly named group plays the music of the great Juan Esquivel – considered by many to be Mexico’s answer to Duke Ellington! The style has been described both as ‘exotica’ and ‘space-age’; all I know is that it’s a lot of fun, particularly since the Lead book is somewhat high!! Hope to see some NY folks there – either for moral support, or to point and laugh!

More news about my prospective trip to Europe in June, upon my return from this round of travels.

BD

It’s been quiet around here lately, much as it has in my musical world in general. I had a terrific trip to Austria back in late October/early November for the Gansch & Roses CD Presentation Tour, as has already been mentioned. It’s always a great pleasure to be in the company of Thomas Gansch, and the rest of the guys in the group, both on and off the bandstand. The new CD, Resal, is now out and receiving good reviews. It is available, so far, from Schagerl or Hoanzl in Austria; as yet it’s not showing up on Amazon or iTunes – I’ll post those links when they’re available. For folks in the USA, I do have a few copies left in my online store – you will find the price to be a bit more reasonable there. If you’re in Europe, it will work out cheaper to buy from the Austrian stores.

Included on the Resal CD is the studio version of “Der Rock des Trompeters – A Tribute to Bill Chase”. If you’re looking for the live video, with Thomas Gansch and Adam Rapa, which has been frequently posted on my homepage, you can find it here.

Since my return from Austria, life has continued apace in New York. Most of my musical activities have been in the educational realm; not only teaching trumpet lessons but also doing some “substitute band directing” at NYU. I’m pleased to say that the Online Skype Trumpet Lessons have become increasingly popular, with students on both sides of the pond. During 2010, I’ve worked with students from Austria, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, in addition to the USA. The Skype technology has improved noticeably over the past couple of years I’ve been teaching through it – it really is worth considering!

Looking forward to 2011, it seems likely that I will be visiting Europe again in June. There are a couple of likely projects in Austria at the beginning of the month and I’m already starting to schedule some gigs and lessons in the UK afterwards. Aside from musical endeavours it will, of course, be good to get back and visit my family. More details will be forthcoming as they are firmed up, but please keep it in mind if you are interested in booking a lesson, or could use me for any kind of gig!

In the meantime, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and all the very best for the New Year!

July commenced with Bryan Davis on the road, playing some dates in New England with Danny Seraphine (the original drummer from Chicago) and his new band; CTA – California Transit Authority. They played shows at the Blue Ocean Music Hall in Salisbury, MA; Twin Rivers Casino in Lincoln, RI; and the 4th of July celebrations in Clifton Park, NY. A great time was had by all – CTA are a tremendous band and Bryan is looking forward to playing with them again in the future.

Bryan is back home in New York City for the rest of July, unless the phone rings! Unfortunately the same is now true of August as well. His previously planned trip to play with the LACJO in Austria has been cancelled – following his recent move to the USA, Bryan is temporarily unable to leave the country without authorization papers, which haven’t arrived in time to book flights. Apologies to the band, and to the students who had requested lessons. The good news is that Bryan will definitely be making the trip to play with Thomas Gansch in late October – lessons will be reorganised for during that tour.

The Gansch & Roses CD Launch Tour is set for October 29th – November 3rd, 2010; further information is on the Schedule page. The current plan is for Adam Rapa to be back with Thomas and Bryan in the Trumpet section once again. The early mixes of ‘Resal’ – the new CD – sound terrific. Included is Thomas’ tribute to Bill Chase – “Der Rock des Trompeters”. Here is the performance of this piece from last Autumn’s concert at Porgy & Bess in Vienna:

We look forward to sharing more information about the CD, as it becomes available. Bryan will be in Austria from October 27th to November 7th, so there will be plenty of opportunities to organise lessons/masterclasses.

Please check out the information in the Teaching section of the site if you wish to avail yourself of Bryan’s services as a Trumpet teacher for Private Lessons or Clinics, or as a guest artist with your School/College band. Don’t forget that Online Lessons via Webcam are available if you are elsewhere in the US, or indeed the world!

You can find all Bryan Davis’ contact information on the Contact page of this website. He looks forward to hearing from you soon!

We are pleased to announce that Bryan Davis has now joined the Artist Roster on JazzCorner.com – the premier portal for Jazz sites. Big thanks to Lois Gilbert, JazzCorner supremo, for welcoming Bryan to the family. In celebration of that, we will be upgrading and redesigning the site before long. Watch this space…

Have a great summer!