Brandt Brass Ensemble
Brandt Brass Ensemble was awarded a Grand Prix and a special prize ‘For keeping and development of the traditions of brass wind instruments playing’ among the nominated wind brass instruments bands at the 2nd International Trumpet Players Competition in honour of V.I. Schiolokov (Ekaterinburg, 2007).
The Ensemble was also granted a thankful note from the Goethe-Institute International for contribution to the international relations in culture and art between Russia and Germany. In 2007 Brandt Brass Ensemble was also awarded a diploma of the Ministry of Culture of Saratov Region ‘For achievements in culture and art’ as a nominee of ‘The Success of the Year’.
The Ensemble also received thankful notes from the Ministers of Culture of Dagestan and Udmurtia, and from the international department of the Moscow State Conservatory named after P.I. Tchaikovsky for effective cooperation in culture and art.
Since March, 2010 Brandt Brass Ensemble has been the first band to officially represent ‘Yamaha’ in the Russian Federation.
Brandt Brass Ensemble took part in the following musical festivals:
- XXI International festival of brass bands and ensembles "Silver Pipes of the Volga Region" (Syzran, 2017)
- International Festival ‘Brass Days’ (Moscow, 2012,2016)
- International festival "Music without Borders" (St. Petersburg, 2016)
- International Festival "Jeju - 2015" (South Korea, 2015)
- International festival "Dagestani fanfare" (Makhachkala, 2014, 2015)
- International Festival ‘Gathering Friends’ ( Moscow, 2009, 2012, 2015)
- International Festival ‘Tchaikovsky’s Homeland’ (Izhevsk, 2010)
- 23rd Sobinov Musical Festival (Saratov, 2010)
- ‘Port-Petrovsk Assembly’ (Dagestan, 2008, 2010)
- International Festival ‘Veranos en Cuenca’ (Spain, 2009)
- All-Russian Trombonists Conference (Moscow, 2009)
- ‘Brass im Frankenwald 2008’(Germany)
- First Russian Trumpet Players Seminar (Moscow, 2008)
- ‘Sauerland-Herbst 2007, 2008’ (Germany)
- ‘Santa Cecilia’ (Spain, 2006)
- Conference of the International Trumpet Players Organization in Thailand (Bangkok, 2005), where Brandt Brass Ensemble represented Russia.
Touring of the Ensemble includes cities of Thailand, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, South Korea and Kazakhstan.
Since 2011 Brandt Brass Ensemble has been holding its own musical festival ‘Brass evenings over the Volga’.
Among the participants of this festival were bands and soloists of the Mariinsky Theatre, of the Russian National Orchestra conducted by M. Pletnev, and of the Russian National Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by V. Spivakov, the trombone quartet of the Moscow State Conservatory named after P.I. Tchaikovsky, the saxophones quartet ‘Sonic art’ (Germany), Matthias Höfs (trumpet, Germany), Øystein Baadsvik (tuba, Norway), Steven Mead (euphonium, England).
Brandt Brass Ensemble was founded at the initiative of the Winner of the International competitions Oleg Abramov in 2003 and named after Willie Brandt, an outstanding German trumpet player and the founder of the trumpet school, the Brass Ensemble and the Symphony Orchestra of the Saratov State Conservatory. The creative activity of the Ensemble widely contributes to the recognition of brass instruments as giving concerts and introduces the general public in Russia and abroad with classical and contemporary chamber music repertoire for these instruments.