Grand Valley places third at National Trumpet Competition

The Grand Valley State University Trumpet Ensemble, under the direction of associate professor of music Richard Stoelzel, continued its long-standing tradition as a top competitor in the 2010 National Trumpet Competition.

Grand Valley's Trumpet Ensemble "A" was awarded third prize behind the Juilliard School and Indiana University respectively. Grand Valley's trumpet ensemble is entirely made up of undergraduate students, compared to the heavily dominated graduate students of other ensembles from Juilliard and IU.

Members of Grand Valley's Trumpet Ensemble "A" include Alex Wilson, Adam Cuthbert, Sam Swanson, Mark Petersen, and Kim Savage. Senior Alex Wilson was also awarded second prize in the College Solo Competition. First and third prizes were awarded to students from the Juilliard School.

All three of Grand Valley's trumpet ensembles, and four undergraduate soloists, were selected to participate in the semi-finals round of the competition, which was held March 11-14, at George Mason University in Fairfax. Grand Valley was once again the most represented school selected to participate.