By Victoria Harris —
A steady stream of students and adults filed into Comstock Hall Sept. 10, each one ready and waiting for Reese Land, an associate professor of trumpet at the University of Louisville to step on stage.
Land, who also directs the trumpet ensemble and has performed with artists such as Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Mannheim Steamroller and Joshua Bell, performed in Carnegie Hall with the Eastern High School Band in 2015.
The concert began not on the stage, but on the upper level by the organ. Land opened his recital with “Sonata in D for Trumpet,” accompanied by Jim McFarland, a former director of music ministries at St. Paul United Methodist Church.
“Sonata in D for Trumpet” is a rousing three-movement piece, the third of which, “Vivace,” certainly lives up to its title. Land’s fingers were a whirl of motion, as he kept beat-for-beat with exact precision.
The concert may have only lasted about an hour, but time seemed to have stood still. Post-intermission, Land was accompanied by pianist Krista Wallace-Boaz.
Wallace-Boaz is an associate dean and professor of pedagogy and piano and assistant dean for student programs. She has performed in Belgium as a guest of the Belgian Grand Consulate.
It was in the second half of the performance that Land displayed his dexterity and breath control as he spouted runs that would make another trumpeter sweat bullets, courtesy of “Andante and Capriccio for Trumpet and Piano.”
The program closed with “The Debutante,” a piece with so many adagio to allegro tempo changes, it was like watching a tennis match. Adagio means to slow down, and allegro means to speed up in a piece.
As the evening ended, Land received, not one, but two standing ovations, prompting him to give a second bow.
The crowd was buzzing with energy after the performance, once again breaking out into cheers when Land exited Comstock Hall to its atrium.
Graphic by Shayla Kerr / The Louisville Cardinal
