'Tips from the Top' - Interview with Joe Broom

On this weeks 'Tips from the Top' we welcome the incredible Joe Broom. Besson artist, innovator and winner of the Euphonium Artist 2016 gold medalist of the Leonard Falcone International Euphonium and Tuba Festival to discuss all things Euphonium. 

1.      When did you start to play the euphonium?

In my school district, band started at 5th grade. I was 10 or 11 years old.

2.      What is a typical day/week like for you?

Now that I’m at the University of Michigan, each week I have classes and rehearsals and a lot of reading, homework, and practice. I also founded an organization when I was in high school called Chamber Unique. Chamber Unique is a network of artists who share our love of the arts to provide education and to work collaboratively to strengthen communities. We connect using workshops and performances that allow the arts to remain accessible and relevant in communities. So, I devote a part of each week to managing the business aspects and the performance projects produced by Chamber Unique. And, I have solo work scheduled off campus every month.

With this interesting balance of responsibilities, each week is different depending on what areas demand the most attention. I also balance the work with the social/entertainment part of my life. I’m a roller coaster enthusiast, fan of international cinema, and music lover of many genres which I both listen to and deconstruct. This semester, I’m taking a course on the Alexander technique. My recreation time is part of EVERY week.

3.      What has been your most interesting/unusual concert performance?

Duets with Steven Mead have been unforgettable. Imagine being 12 years old listening to CDs of your idol and then being 17 and performing on stages where that idol is now your mentor. I know how fortunate I am to have this unusual life experience.

I’ve also enjoyed collaborations with several dancers in very different venues — the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC; a community church in Detroit, Michigan; and several stages on the University of Michigan campus, including the Historic Hill Auditorium. In these collaborations, I’ve been fortunate to work with emerging choreographers and with the Emmy award-winning choreographer, Debbie Allen. I’m grateful when I consider I’ve had the chance to be part of one choreographer’s growing portfolio and also worked with a person who’s choreographed multiple Academy Award productions.

4.      What skills/personal attributes are most important to being a successful Euphonium Player?

This journey is just beginning for me. Any advice would have to come from a combination my experiences so far and the advice I’ve received from more experienced artists. An actor and mentor said to me, “Joe, your music is just a focal point that has greater ramifications.” For me, the greater ramifications have been the ability to broaden access and exposure to the arts by collaborating with the larger community of artists (dancers, writers, visual artists, and actors).

So, my advice about being a successful euphonium player might focus on pairing the fun of performances with whatever you view as the “greater ramifications” of your practice and performances.

5.      What personal advice would you offer to the average Euphonium player?         

Talent is not a synonym for magic. The work requirements are significant to maintain and improve whether or not that work seems difficult. Music is a discipline that requires us all to build skill over time. As musicians, we sometimes transform from playing to reach goals pre-defined for young musicians like “principal” or “first place” to the abstraction of achieving our personal best. This abstraction can be challenging to navigate, but I believe it gives us a freedom that is worthwhile to explore.

6.      Joe, you have played many solos, what would rank amongst your favorites?

Symphonic Variants by James Curnow, Euphonium Concerto by Jan Bach, Pantomime by Philip Sparke, and Euphonium Concerto by Vladimir Cosma.

7.      Tell me about your personal practice schedule/routine?

I practice/rehearse for hours every day because my preparation includes everything required for my university auditions and performances, ensembles, and studio class in addition to what’s necessary for solo performances off campus and community engagement work.

My warm up routines are primarily the routines I’ve learned from Steven Mead during lessons. I used to record every lesson and I made short videos of several different warm up routines. So, Mr. Mead is often still with me in the practice room when I warm up, and I’m never bored. I also use Brass Gym during warm ups. Then, I work on repertoire based on my performance calendar and level of difficulty.

8.      You have been a Besson Artist for a few years now, Can you tell me a little about your work  and what life is like as a Euphonium Artist?

I always appreciate the opportunity to make appearances and do performances as a Besson Performing Artist. In a sense, any performance I do, even if not specifically sponsored by Buffet is, a Buffet performance because I perform exclusively on Besson euphoniums. Recently, Buffet  became one of the sponsors who helped my organization, Chamber Unique, to provide community engagement events in Michigan. Over several months, Chamber Unique was able to deliver STEAM (Science Technology Engineering, ARTS & Mathematics) education curriculum, do instrument demonstrations, and provide a multidisciplinary performance in Detroit, Michigan — all with the euphonium as a primary component of the work involved. The design and execution of the program involved months of collaboration on funding, work with local arts leaders, and rehearsals with artists in multiple disciplines. All of this added a new dimension to being a Besson Performing Artist.  Working with Buffet as a Besson Performing Artist is more than promoting the brand, it’s also promoting the value of the art.

I believe collaboration is it’s own type of artistic discipline and when artistic goals involve community engagement, the audience is an important voice in that collaboration. I’m proud to be a Besson Performing Artist for many reasons - the quality of the instrument, the reputation of the parent company, and especially for their commitment to both the artist and the audience. It is a unique experience which I appreciate a great deal.

9.     You have had great successes as a Euphonium soloist both on the concert platform and the solo competition stage, can you tell me about a few of your highlights and tell me a little about how you prepare for these competitions?

I think what helped me prepare for many competitions was my original motivation to enter. When I was in high school, there were few solo performance opportunities for euphonium players. So, if I wanted to perform with a band or perform solos outside of my basement and with an actual audience, I HAD to win a competition where the prize was a performance.  So, that  motivation set my level of determination to win.

Performance and competition highlights: solo performances with the U.S. Marine Band, the U.S. Air Force Band, earning the Gold Medal at Falcone this year, and every performance at the Kennedy Center. In my freshman year of high school I won a competition that had both a cash prize and an entire season of performances. That was fantastic. The radio performances through NPR’s From the Top have also been exciting because they’re recorded in front of live audiences.

I also enjoyed competitions that included all instruments. One of my favorite competitions included piano, strings, brass, woodwinds, and vocalists. The euphonium is competitive in any field of competition. So, I think it’s important for euphonium players interested in competing to enter a variety of competition types.

10.   How do you approach a technically difficult Euphonium Solo or Test piece? Do you have a specific process?

I start very slowly to ensure not only accuracy, but consistency of tone quality and a sense of line (movement of some form, including contour, dynamics, etc.). Once I can play a passage several times at my starting tempo, I gradually work up the tempo.

11.   Who would you say is the one euphonium player who has influenced you the most?

I appreciate and respect many euphonium players. If I have to choose only one euphonium player who has influenced me the most, that would be Steven Mead. He was one of my first teachers and he’s uncompromising in his expectations. That’s a great place to start as a student. He believes I can do anything if I worked hard enough and use an intelligent approach to reaching my goals. At the same time, he provided advice on the value of time. Time is a limited resource. Doing things quickly is never a focus. He emphasizes doing things well and making good choices about where, with whom, and to what I devote time.

12.   What advice would you give to a musician recently graduated from college?

I have two years left in college, so I think I need your advice Micah!

13.   What are your future ambitions?

Being a student provides the luxury of spending time figuring out how to give voice to a growing list of artistic ambitions. It also inspires new ambitions. There are places I want to perform and there is impact I feel responsible to make. Performing globally is a goal, particularly in Asia, Africa, and Australia.  If I do have this opportunity, I’d like to perform in concert halls and in non-traditional venues.

Ultimately, it would be ideal to have the type of career that allows me to perform, educate, and create opportunities for other artists. This year, I was awarded the first Wynton Marsalis Fellowship for summer brass study.  His career, especially the number of opportunities he’s able to provide for other artists to study and perform, is a fantastic model for any performer.

Thank you Joe for such an informative insight into your life as a Euphonium player. I highlight that I will always have is our time playing quartets with Steve and Misa Mead during your trip to the UK in January 2016. I  look forward to seeing you very soon and wish you the very best.