International
Chamber Artists
TROMBONE
CHELSEA FRENCH
The William Godon & Michael Kelley Memorial Chair
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Chicago-area freelance musician and brass instructor, Chelsea French, received her Master of Music degree in Trombone Performance from Northwestern University in June of 2005. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from DePaul University, and has studied primarily with Michael Mulcahy, Mark Fisher, Charles Vernon, Randall Hawes and Vance Shoemaker. Chelsea has played with Chicago's Music of the Baroque, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the South Dakota Symphony, the Brevard Music Center Orchestra, and many regional orchestras in the Chicago area. |
TROMBONE
Tom Stark
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Thomas Stark is Principal Trombonist with the Northwest Indiana Symphony, New Philharmonic, Camerata di Chicago, Elmhurst Symphony, and trombonist with the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, received the Bachelor of Music degree from Northern Illinois University, and continued his studies at DePaul University in Chicago, and Northeastern Illinois University.
Tom is a member of the Chicago Trombone Quartet, Chicago Trombone Consort, Lincoln Park Brass, the Windy City Brass and has performed with prominent US orchestras such as Lyric Opera of Chicago, Chicago Philharmonic, Milwaukee Symphony, Chicago Philharmonic, Chicago Opera Theater, Kansas City Symphony and Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Elgin Symphony, Lake Forest Symphony, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, Boulder Philharmonic, Colorado Symphony (Denver), and the symphonies of Kalamazoo, Madison (WI), Rockford, and Peoria. He was the featured soloist with the Festival Orchestra at the Birch Creek Music Performance Center, Fox Valley Symphony in Appleton, WI, and the Northwest Indiana Symphony.
Tom has also toured the US as bass trombonist with the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and trombonist with the Alliance Brass Quintet. He can be heard on recordings with The Alliance Brass Quintet, The Chicago Trombone Consort, The Chicago Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra, The John Burnett Swing Orchestra, and The Bill O’Connell Skyliners Big Band. He also performed as lead trombonist at the 1996 Montreux Jazz Festival under the direction of Quincy Jones for the “Quincy Jones – 50 Years in Music” Celebration.
Tom has also performed with artists such as Laufey at Lollapalooza, The Violent Femmes, Irish tenor Ronan Tynan, country music singer Vince Gill, Marie Osmond, Josh Groban, Lorna Luft, Carl Topilow, Quincy Jones, ABBA, Tito Puente, “Blue” Lou Marini, Carl Fontana, Louis Bellson, Clark Terry, Chris Brubeck, Joe Williams, Jack Jones, Marilyn McCoo, Diane Shuur, Diane Reeves, Maureen McGovern, and many more.
In addition to being in demand as a clinician, recitalist, chamber musician, and freelancer in the Chicagoland area, Tom is the Adjunct Professor of Trombone at Elmhurst University, Concordia University Chicago, Valparaiso University, Harper College and was previously Lecturer of Trombone at Illinois State University, Guest Lecturer at Wheaton College, and at St. Xavier University.
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"Chamber music holds a unique place in my life as it fosters deep musical collaboration, where each voice is both independent and essential to the whole. Through its intimate setting, musicians must listen more closely, communicate more clearly, and connect more meaningfully with other musicians and the audience. Through chamber music, musicianship and true artistry often emerge not from solo brilliance, but from shared expression and mutual trust."
Tom Stark, trombone
