We started our 2024 holiday season with small ensembles playing for the Lost Pines Wassail Fest in downtown Bastrop, Tx. This the first time the band has played in Bastrop and we had tons of fun playing carols for the wassail revelers. Here are a few photos from our time wassailing!
To finish out the holiday fun, we returned to the Central Austin Public Library on December 11 and had a huge audience. The space at the library is just amazing and we are so thankful to be able to partner with them to share our love of brass banding with the Austin community!
We are starting rehearsals back up on January 13th. The new year is very exciting with preparations for a spring concert on March 3rd along with the 3rd Annual Texas Brass Festival on March 22nd. Happy New Year, y’all and may 2025 be rich with music and brass banding!
The Austin Public Library Central Library Concerts in partnership with the Austin Brass Band Presents: Good Tidings To You!
This December, the Austin Brass Band invites you to experience the magic of the season through the vibrant, rich sound of a British-style brass band. They’ll be performing a delightful mix of traditional holiday classics and beloved Christmas favorites, all presented with a brass band twist!
“Christmas Festival” by Leroy Anderson Arr. James Wood
“The Christmas Song” by Mel Tormé Arr. Phillip Sparke
“Medieval Christmas” by Philip Sparke
“Fantasia on Christmas Carols” by Ralph Vaughan Williams Arr. Seth Butler
“Fantasia on the Sussex Carol” by Norman Bearcroft
“Shining Star March” by Peter Graham
“Fantasia on I Saw Three Ships” by Norman Bearcroft
“Sleigh Ride” by Leroy Anderson Arr. Ernest Tomlinson
Whether you’re enjoying these festive tunes for the first time or revisiting old favorites, this concert promises to be a heartwarming celebration of the season. We can’t wait to see you there for a joyful evening of music and holiday magic.
We, at the Austin Brass Band, are beyond excited to announce that composer Joe Jaxson will be our first ever ‘Composer in Residence’! For the next three seasons, Joe will be writing three new works for the Austin Brass Band. We are looking forward to working with Joe in this capacity, and it will be a tremendous benefit not only to us but to brass band literature!
Joe started brass banding with the JMU Brass Band directed by Professor Kevin Stees. The ensemble competed at the North American Brass Band Championships as well as the 2022 World Music Championships in Kerkrade, Netherlands, where Joe had his first brass band work premiered overseas, Fanfare for the 21st Century.
Joe Jaxson is enjoying the whirlwind of a burgeoning professional career that is coinciding with his academic pursuits as he begins his doctoral studies.
Joe obtained his master’s in composition at the University of Texas at Austin, where he graduated this past May. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in composition at the same institution. The young composer’s conspicuous rise includes an array of recent commissions, performances, and appearances including the “First Time Composers program | Paramount x 5 Alarm Songwriting Camp” (2024), Joy of the Soul with the Allentown Symphony Orchestra (2024), Through the Bay with the James Madison University Symphony Orchestra and a consortium of ten orchestras across the United States (2023-2024), Within the Flux (2023) for Saxophone Quartet and Percussion, and Treeflowers (2023) performed by the Sandbox Percussion Quartet.
Composer comments:
I’m thankful to the Austin Brass Band for the opportunity to create new pieces and stories for the brass band medium. When I joined the JMU Brass Band, I was enthralled by the demand of the repertoire which inherently made me a better musician. After I graduated JMU, I felt that I had to keep playing in brass band—I didn’t want to leave it. When I got to Austin, I was immediately welcomed into the Austin Brass Band family! It’s great to be playing and making music. I’m looking forward to the experiences we, as a team, can create for our audiences!
Thank you to the Salvation Army Austin Citadel Corps for hosting and to everyone who came out! It is always a pleasure to share our passion for brass banding with y’all. If you missed the Oct 7th concert, we have a recording of the livestream on Facebook as well as audio recordings. Check it out!
