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O RCHESTRA S ECTION P ROFILE J ASON B ERGMAN , C OLUMN E DITOR B ILLY H UNTER , P RINCIPAL T RUMPET , M ETROPOLITAN O PERA O RCHESTRA BY J ASON B ERGMAN October 2020 • Page 79© 2020 International Trumpet GuildOctober 2020 / ITG Journal 79 O RCHESTRA S ECTION P ROFILE J ASON B ERGMAN , C OLUMN E DITOR Bergman: Would you please share a little about how you start- ed on the trumpet and what led you down this path? Hunter: I grew up in Austin, Texas, and was part of the famously strong Texas music programs. You know, in Texas, music is so strong. They start in elementary schools, continue through high school, and move into really advanced universi- ty programs. I picked out an instrument in sixth grade but didn’t start to really practice until later in junior high. My band director was a fellow named Leon Prause. I remember walking into the band hall one day, and he was playing Maynard Ferguson. I remember asking, “What in the world is that? Is that a trum- pet?” He said, “Yeah, it is.” I asked, “Can the trumpet really go that high?” So, he’s really the one responsible for getting me into the trumpet. From that point on, I kept seeking out music. I would listen to a lot of music and, in fact, didn’t listen to much trumpet music initially. All along the way there were key people who helped open doors to me, which was good because I was very curious. When I got to UT – Austin, Ray Crisara was the person who helped me to believe the sky was the limit. When I was initially looking at colleges, I wasn’t going to be a music major. I was going to be an engineer or go to business school, but I still wanted to play trumpet. I had a strong love for music and got a scholarship from the school. So, when I went in, I learned quickly that Mr. Crisara was amazing. I started to improve and Orchestra Section Profile is a “snapshot” of an orchestral player or section at a specific time in history. The column seeks to include sections from all levels of orchestras. Ideas and suggestions should be directed to Jason Bergman; orchprofile@trumpetguild.org B ILLY H UNTER , P RINCIPAL T RUMPET , M ETROPOLITAN O PERA O RCHESTRA BY J ASON B ERGMAN A native of Austin, Texas, Billy Hunter has been principal trumpet of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra since . He enjoys a versatile career in the classical music world that includes orchestral, chamber, and solo performances, as well as several educational and outreach initiatives. He is also a former member of the Grammy-nominated Grant Park Orchestra in Chicago. In addition to his yearly work with The Met, Hunter has appeared as guest principal trumpet with The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Malaysian Philharmonic in Kuala Lumpur, the Frankfurt Radio Symphony in Germany, the Spoleto Fes- tival Orchestra in Italy, the Charleston Symphony Orchestra in South Carolina, and the Chineke! Orchestra in London. He has also played concerts with the New York Philharmonic and the New Jersey, Dallas, and Boston symphonies throughout his professional career. He has held positions of principal trumpet, second trumpet, and third associate trum- pet with the New World, Baltimore, and Grant Park sym- phonies, respectively. As a chamber musician, Hunter has concertized with The Met Chamber Ensemble, Classical Tahoe Chamber Orches- tra, Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival, Martha’s Vineyard Chamber Music Festival, Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival, and the Music Kitchen concert series in Lower Manhattan, which features free lunchtime performances of various types of music for homeless shelters across Manhattan. As a soloist, Hunter has performed with a variety of ensembles, including the University of Texas Wind Ensemble and Symphony, Chattanooga Symphony, njcu Wind En - sem ble and Symphony, Lake Tahoe Chamber Orchestra, Prizm Festival Orchestra, the New World Symphony, Ser - aphic Fire and Firebird Chamber Orchestra, Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival, and the Chineke! Orch estra. He has appeared as recitalist at venues throughout the us, Europe, Africa, and Asia. His awards include the Roger Voisin Outstanding trumpeter prize from the Tangle- wood Music Center in the Berkshires and first prize in the Kingsville International Solo Competition Brass Division. In , Hunter was granted the University of Texas Outstand- ing Young Texas-Exes award, one of the highest honors granted to alumni. He has also won two Grammy Awards for playing in The Met Opera performances of John Adams’s Doctor Atomic and Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle. Hunter has given masterclasses nationally and inter - nationally at such institutions as the Curtis Institute; The Juilliard School; University of Mary; University of Texas – Austin; James Madison University; University of Memphis; Pittsburgh State University; Stellenbosch University in South Africa; and various venues in Tokyo, Japan. In addition, he is a frequent coach for the New York Youth Symphony in Man- hattan and the National Youth Orchestra. He is currently on the faculty at the Peabody Institute, njcu, and the Manhat- tan School of Music.© 2020 International Trumpet GuildOctober 2020 / ITG Journal 81 kept improving. By the end of my sophomore year, it was clear that I had to do music, and I left the other majors. From that point on, I just started listening constantly to music. At that point, I would listen to classical music, jazz music—all kinds of music. That was back when cds were a thing. I used to go to Tower Records once a week and purchase two cds at a time—one classical and one jazz. Often, I would pick up two or three others as well. I would pick up rock, rap, and even techno. I was just so curious. All of that listening really helped me develop a strong musical foundation. Once I got into Juilliard, I decided I wanted to perform in an orchestra; it was actually during my second year there. I was really green back then and hadn’t played in many orchestras, except for here and there. That was when I made that decision. From there, I performed as a member of the New World Sym- phony. I kept trying to learn and expand. That’s sort of my journey on the trumpet to where I am today. Bergman: I grew up in the Dallas area and fondly remember playing for Mr. Crisara several times at the Texas UIL State Solo and Ensemble Contests and working with him at the Longhorn Band Camp in the summer. I cherish those memories personally, but also recognize his legendary influence in the broader trumpet community. I would love to hear about his influence in your life. Do you have any spe- cial experiences or stories you would like to share about Mr. Crisara? Hunter: His tutelage was incredible. Here is a great example of the kind of teacher he was. He had this specific warm up that he did every day. So, for many years, I also did the “Crisara Warmup.” Years later, after he had passed away, a colleague of mine from ut was doing a research paper about Mr. Crisara and his teachings. My colleague asked me about the warmup I did. I told him I did the “Crisara Warmup,” and he asked what that was. I told him and wrote it out for him, and he said, “That’s amazing.” I said, “What? That he gave the same warmup to everyone?” He said, “No. Actually, I have found that he gave each student a different warmup based on their own abilities and what they needed to improve.” To me, that’s the sign of a great teacher. A lot of times we get caught up in certain methods and even say, “You have to do this method.” But, everyone’s face— everyone’s body chemistry—is dif- ferent. It takes skill to evaluate those differences in each student and determine what each player needs and what they do well naturally. Mr. Crisara was able to evaluate that well and bring out your best attributes. As far as Mr. Crisara stories, one that always sticks with me is this one. When I went to ut, I had a pretty terrible trumpet. It was one that someone had given me, because I didn’t have enough money to buy a decent instrument when I was in high school. We were sitting in a lesson, and I was playing on this trumpet and messed something up. I remember saying, “This stupid trumpet. Once I get a new horn, I won’t make these mistakes anymore, and this is going to all be better.” He said, “Now, Bill, I don’t care if you’re playing a trumpet from Sears and Roebuck; you should still be able to play ‘Twinkle, Twin- kle, Little Star’ and sound beautiful on it.” Then he picked up my trumpet, played it, and sounded amazing. From that little lesson, the big lesson I took away was that my voice on the trumpet is going to be my voice. So many trumpet players sing like they play. I always think of Chet Baker and Louis Armstrong, who were the per- fect examples. When I hear them play or sing, it’s always their voices. It doesn’t technically matter what instrument you play; you’re still going to sound like yourself. This is what Mr. Crisara was real- ly good at doing. He would help you bring out your voice. In fact, my later teacher at Juilliard, Mark Gould, was the same way. He had many different students who became very successful. You know, they became principal trumpet players in Philly, Cleveland, The Met, San Francisco, and many others. I asked him, “What do you do? What do you tell them when you’re teaching?” He said, “Nothing. I tell them absolutely nothing.” I laughed, confused, and asked, “What?” It was dif- ferent from Mr. Crisara, but Mark Gould was approaching the same thing from a different angle; they both would teach you to bring out your own voice. He would say, “Don’t try to sound like someone else. You need to try to sound like yourself.” Mr. Crisara was just so personable. He would teach you so many mini life lessons within your regular lesson. This man, for me, became how I approached the trum - pet, how I approached music, how I app - roached dealing with colleagues, and many other things like that. It was percent professional. I really respect that. And as you know, he was very well respected in the trumpet world in New York, in Texas, and throughout the country, really. Bergman: What fantastic stories and lessons. How fortunate for you to study with such influential mentors. Hunter: Yes, I am very fortunate, very blessed. This is what I tell my students. The opportunities are there. It’s the teacher’s job to open the door, but it’s your job to walk through and take advantage. Bergman: I’d like to follow up with something you referred to earlier about finding your own voice. You are fortunate to perform with the world’s best voices in the Metro- politan Opera. How has that experience influenced your musical voice and trumpet playing? Hunter: For many years I performed with the Grant Park Orchestra in Chica- go. Many players in that orchestra also perform with the Chicago Lyric Opera. Performing with that orchestra had a different feel than when I would perform with other orchestras, because they really had a sense for how to play “operatically.” What I mean by that is that when you per- form with singers, you have to be very loose with your time. In The Met, for example, which I believe is the world’s best col- laboration orchestra, we always have to follow the singers. We try to enhance what they do, but we have to be flexible and lis- ten carefully. We also have to gauge when a singer is possibly a “Now, Bill, I don’t care if you’re playing a trumpet from Sears and Roebuck; you should still be able to play ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ and sound beautiful on it.” “Don’t try to sound like someone else. You need to try to sound like yourself.” “It’s the teacher’s job to open the door, but it’s your job to walk through and take advantage.”82 ITG Journal / October 2020© 2020 International Trumpet Guild little out of their element, and we might have to take control a little. So, everything is very fluid. This is a big difference between playing in an orchestra and playing in an opera. In an orchestra, you have a conductor, and he or she establishes the tempo. [He conducts, “One, two, three, four,” strictly.] In the opera, you might have to go, “One; a long, stretched two; resumed-tempo three; and four.” The time is a little different. You have to have excellent rhythm with flexible time. Hearing how the best singers phrase, turn a phrase, and really add drama to their music is amazing. This is how you play and avoid sounding boring. Many years ago, when I was in New World, an amazing orchestra came to town, and I was so excited to hear them. They performed, and it was note-perfect, and yet absolutely bor- ing. I don’t care if it’s note-perfect; I want it to be exciting and draw the audience in. This is a lot easier to do in opera. There is a storyline, the stage is involved, and the drama aspect adds a lot. Even still, the great singers have the ability to do this drama, but also have clear musicality. Placido Domingo is incredible. He was in his seventies, and when he would open his mouth, the tone quality, pitch, sound, phrasing with feeling, and rhythm was all there. I would look back and think to myself, “How do I not try to emulate that?” So, you have someone singing Rigoletto, for example, and Rigoletto sings the melody that the trumpet has later. You play that rhythm on the trumpet, and if you’re aware of how the singer is phrasing it, you play it like that. Another example is Donizetti’s Don Pasquale. There is a famous trumpet solo that sounds like The Godfather. Or, rather, The Godfather sounds like Don Pasquale! Donizetti came first. Anyway, this solo is what Ernesto, the main character, sings right after the trumpet plays. The first time I performed it, I was privileged to play it with Matthew Polenzani, who is this fan- tastic tenor. He came to my practice room when I was playing it and said it was sounding great. We had this discussion about how he was sing - ing certain phrases, and then I incor p orated that into how I played the solo. Similarly, many years ago we were doing Rusalka with Renée Fleming. She is very personable, and I approached her to talk about the phras- ing in a muted trumpet solo that matches a phrase she sings. We talked about how she was phrasing and where she was tak- ing a breath. It’s interesting to see how singers interpret music as opposed to instrumentalists. Even their notation is different. Ironically, it is written more vertically. Each sixteenth-note is written individually with a double flag on it, but they sing more linearly. As trumpet players, I would say, we tend to play more vertically, more square. This is the biggest lesson I have learned from playing in opera—how to play more like a singer would sing—more horizontally. You want to go from point A to point B, connecting all the notes—not going from A to B playing like blocks. Sometimes you need to play that way, but in general, the big difference between orchestra and opera is the fluidity of the rhythm and phrasing. There is freedom in it. Bergman: Speaking of the Met, can you discuss what the audi- tion experience is like and how it is different from other groups? Hunter: First and foremost, there aren’t many differences between Met auditions and those of regular symphony orches- tras. You play behind a screen and follow union rules. You get a warm-up room, you send in your check to reserve your spot, etc. But, there is one major difference, and it is that all rounds of the audition are screened. The screen stays up through the very end, and you have to pick a winner. So, when they announce the winner, the personnel manager brings the person back to the committee and says, “Here’s the winner,” without people having an idea who it was. For me, being a Black musician in the classical world, this way seems to be the closest way to being fair in the whole process. Unfortunately, when there isn’t a screen, it seems that a lot of people listen more with their eyes than they do with their ears. Conse- quently, because The Met does it this way, that orchestra has more women, and it’s very diverse. There are more Korean, Chinese, Costa Rican, and Puerta Rican members of the orch - estra; it’s very diverse. I believe it’s that way because each per- son is starting off on the same playing field. So, when you look at it, that’s a huge difference between our process and that of other organizations. A lot of orchestras screen until the final rounds, when you might play with the section. Naturally, you would want to know how someone would fit in your section. This is one of the things we’re always trying to tweak—how to make the process more fair. Bergman: The traditional student doesn’t usually have the opportunity to prepare opera excerpts the way they do traditional orchestral excerpts. Similarly, the opportunities to gain perform- ing experience in opera are generally less than symphony orchestra. What advice would you give those who aspire to audition for an opera orchestra? Hunter: Because there is so much rep to know in opera, the lists usual- ly consist of very specific excerpts; whereas, if you were auditioning for the Philharmonic, they would sim- ply give you symphonies like Bruckner 9, Bruckner 7, Mahler 5. They don’t give you specific excerpts; rather, they want you to know the entire part. If you did that with an opera list, you would have days of music to know. So, again, what they usually do is give you specific excerpts to learn. The hard part is figuring out what’s happening within an excerpt and how you play it. With opera, you have different styles—you have French, Italian, German—and how you play certain rhythms is different. For example, a Rossini dotted rhythm (sings the rhythm) in Italian bel canto style is different than if you saw the same rhythm in a German style, which is usually more square. And once again, the whole singing thing I was talking about earlier, especially if you are playing the first trumpet part, is important. If you are playing with the chorus or accompanying a singer’s solo, you have to know how to interpret dynamics. Is it loud-loud, or medium-loud? So, you definitely have to know the context of the music. There are also traditional pauses, give and take, and rubato in the music that are not written a lot of the time, but yet they are all still done. “In general, the big difference between orchestra and opera is the fluidity of the rhythm and phrasing. There is freedom in it.” “Unfortunately, when there isn’t a screen, it seems that a lot of people listen more with their eyes than they do with their ears.”© 2020 International Trumpet GuildOctober 2020 / ITG Journal 83 For example, in Mozart, you often play five-one, five-one, five-one. And then you might have a two-measure passage where you need to come out of the texture and play this beau- tiful melody with the singer. You have to know those inherent details in the music. You might see this music that doesn’t seem like anything special, but then you play it for the committee, and everyone knows if it’s right or wrong. So, if you listen to it, you get it almost immediately. The hard part is doing the back end of the homework and figuring out how things fit. So, luckily, what The Met does with their excerpts is list it as “Act 1, Scene .” For example, there is an important cornet duet at the end of Don Carlo. They give you the specifics of what act and scene, basically right where it is. That makes it easy to find the part when you’re listening to it. So, that’s what I did. I would find the excerpt and listen to it. Then I would listen to the part before and after the excerpt, too. That’s how I studied the excerpts when I took the audition. It’s similar to a symphony orchestra, but you need to know what it is you’re playing. For example, if you’re playing Die Walküre, you need to understand that the sword theme is you . This is a leitmotif. Leitmotifs are really important to be aware of, especially if you’re playing Wagner, Berg, and Strauss. They often represent characters, emotion, love, fate, among other things. You can almost tell the story of the opera through leitmotifs. Quite often, they’ll be marked “soft,” but they are thematically important, so it must be heard. So, soft in character. Bergman: I wonder if we can go back to something you men- tioned earlier, and that was about being an African American musician in classical music. Could you share some advice to other musicians who might be from an underrepresented group? What are important things to be aware of, and what are some ideas for success in combating some of those challenges? Hunter: Of course. For me, this is usually a two- or three- fold response. One response is as a player. When I was growing up, my mother would tell me, “Because you’re Black, you’re going to have to do things two or three times better to be accepted on the same level.” I didn’t really think of that much when I was younger, but now, as I’m older, I can understand it. My advice to someone who is underrepre- sented is to make sure all your bases are covered—and then some. I practiced con- stantly. When I took these auditions, I knew every excerpt, and I even knew the text from the operas; and I’m no language buff. I knew my work better than everyone else at the audition who was not an opera musician. I really did my homework on style, sound, and basic trumpet playing. I always do my fundamentals and am always listening. I am always trying to learn from my past mistakes, my shortcomings, and being open to having to change. Ulti- mately, I am always trying to improve. I am looking to make things more efficient and better. Now, the other side of this is for the administration. I would like to see a more diverse orchestra board and administration. I would like to see that side evolve. The change has to happen on every level—not just the players. It needs to be from little kids to the top. You have many situations in which you have the same caliber of player, but as I mentioned before, you have people in an audition who will listen with their eyes and not their ears. This is why I liked the Met process—because it puts everyone on the same playing field. The entire music business needs to adjust to have everyone on the same playing field so there is a more equal representation— not just zero representation. If you have zero representation, you don’t have lead- ers who can help others to work up the ladder, so to speak. It’s a slow process. There are definitely organizations out there that are trying to make a difference and improve this aspect. The admin - istrative side, the donor side—that’s the one area that I feel hasn’t been broken yet. Bergman: As a teacher and just a person who wants to be inclusive, I think about this a lot. I have many students who come from all backgrounds, and many are underrepresented. I encour- age them to find additional mentors who can help them in ways I can’t. For example, when I have a female student, I try to offer her as much help as I can, but there are some things I don’t completely understand because I am male. So, I encourage them to find female mentors who can guide them. I try to connect them with female leaders in the field I really look up to. It is the same with students who are Black, Asian, Hispanic, LGBTQI+, or any other group. You are an important leader in our field simply as a great artist, but you also happen to be a successful musician who is African American. I imagine you would have a lot of contact with young, Black musicians who look up to you. How do you approach this topic? Hunter: Yeah, I think you answered the question. I can’t tell you how many African American trumpeters I have met who have sought me out and feel it’s great to have someone like me in this position. We feel represented. We can go to the opera and not feel excluded. It’s an inclusion thing. We feel like we are part of the family. I always wanted to go, but I never saw anyone like me. As a kid, I would look in the audience for people like me. When I saw them, that person would give me inspiration and hope that I could do this, too. Wynton Marsalis was that person for me. He is an inspiration to many people, but for me, to see Wynton as a Black, classical musician was inspir- ing. I remember reading his bio, lis- tening to his albums, and learning that he went to Tanglewood. So, I felt I needed to go to Tanglewood be - cause Wynton went there. He was such an inspiration. For me, I want to try to inspire young orchestral musicians. Don’t be afraid. It doesn’t matter your background, where you come from, your religion, your race; it doesn’t matter. That is my message to whoever is out there looking. If I can inspire one person, I’ve done my job. Bergman: I think that’s fantastic. Thank you for sharing that, and thank you for addressing this topic. “When I was growing up, my mother would tell me, ‘Be - cause you’re Black, you’re going to have to do things two or three times better to be accepted on the same level.’” “I always do my fundamentals and am always listening. I am always trying to learn from my past mistakes, my shortcomings, and being open to having to change.” Continued on Page 85 © 2020 International Trumpet GuildOctober 2020 / ITG Journal 85 Hunter: Thank you for asking. You know, if you didn’t ask, I would have brought it up. (laughs) Bergman: I have been doing these interviews in this section for some time, but have felt that while there has been some diversity in those interviewed, there hasn’t been enough. Just as it is impor- tant to see diversity in an orchestra or opera, it is equally impor- tant that within the ITG Journal and ITG leadership, we have a diverse representation for all of our members. So, thank you for your leadership, artistry, and inspiration. Hunter: You’re welcome, and you’re right. About the author: Jason Bergman is currently associate pro- fessor of trumpet at his alma mater, Brigham Young University. He serves as a vice president/president-elect of the Internation- al Trumpet Guild and will host the Ellsworth Smith Competition at byu. He previously taught trumpet at the Uni- versity of North Texas and The University of Southern Missis- sippi. “If I can inspire one person, I’ve done my job.” Orchestra Section Profilecontinued from page 83Next >