OBITUARY 

Canoe.ca/JamMusic           British musician Philip Jones dies                                LONDON (AP) -- Philip Jones, who held the                               top trumpet position in six London orchestras and                               formed a brass ensemble that played for                               audiences worldwide, has died, British                               newspapers reported Wednesday. He was 71.                                He died Monday, the newspapers said. No cause                               or location of death was given.                                Jones, who came from a family of trumpeters,                               was determined to prove that brass instruments                               could hold center stage and captivate an                               audience. He created the Philip Jones Brass                               Ensemble and led the group on tours of more than                               30 countries. The ensemble made 50 recordings                               and performed 87 world premieres, The                               Guardian reported.                                Born on March 12, 1928, in Bath, England,                               Jones developed his musical skills early. In 1944,                               he won a scholarship to the Royal College of                               Music.                                He played for the Royal Philharmonic from                               1956-60, the Philharmonia from 1960-64, the                               London Philharmonic from 1964-65, the New                               Philharmonia from 1965-67 and the British                               Broadcasting Corp. Symphony Orchestra from                               1960-71.                                Jones formed his brass ensemble in 1951 as a                               quartet. The group added a fifth member in 1961,                               and as the number of engagements grew so did                               the size. By 1970, the band consisted of 10                               players.                                They performed throughout Europe, the United                               States, Asia and Australia. Despite his success,                               Jones remained meticulous about the smallest                               details, The Guardian said. While the other                               musicians enjoyed a pre-concert meal, he would                               be alone on stage, carefully positioning everyone's                               music and lining up the stands, the newspaper                               said.                                Jones retired in 1986, coming to his decision after                               he drove over his own trumpet case and crushed                               it, The Times said.                                In retirement, he devoted his time to teaching and                               charity. Jones accepted a position at Trinity                               College of Music that he held until 1994. He also                               worked on a musicians' charity fund, acting as                               chairman in 1995.                                In 1977, Jones was awarded an OBE, or Order                               of the British Empire. In 1986, he was given the                               higher honor of a CBE, or Commander of the                               Order of British Empire.                                Jones is survived by his wife, Ursula Strebi.                               Funeral arrangements were not immediately                               available.                NY TIMES           Philip Jones, 71, Trumpeter and Music Educator in Britain            By PAUL GRIFFITHS                 Philip Jones, a leading British trumpeter and a music educator, died                 on Jan. 17. He was 71 and lived in London and Switzerland.             Mr. Jones was born in Bath, England, into a family of brass musicians.            He began playing the trumpet as a boy, and in 1944 he won a            scholarship to the Royal College of Music. At 20 he was appointed            fourth trumpet in the Covent Garden orchestra, rising to principal the next            year.             He was then, remarkably, principal trumpet with most of the other major            London orchestras in succession: the Royal Philharmonic (1956-60), the            Philharmonia (1960-64), the Philharmonic (1964-65), the New            Philharmonia (1965-67) and the BBC Symphony (1967-71). During his            career he played under most of the great conductors, from Erich Kleiber            to Pierre Boulez.             During these years he was also performing regularly with a group he had            founded in 1951, the quintet known as the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble,            to which he was able to give his full attention after 1971. The ensemble            played Baroque music, especially pieces by Giovanni Gabrieli and            Johann Pezel, and as the early-music revival grew in the 1960's and 70's            the group was much in demand for performances of choral music by            Monteverdi and others. But the ensemble also commissioned works from            composers like Hans Werner Henze, Richard Rodney Bennett and Toru            Takemitsu.             As a soloist, too, Mr. Jones lent his brilliance and beauty of tone to new            music, like Iain Hamilton's "Circus" for two trumpets and orchestra            (1969), written for him and his colleague, Elgar Howarth.             In 1986 he retired from playing and devoted his energies to what had            been a secondary career, teaching. Two years later he was appointed            principal of Trinity College of Music, London, an institution that was then            in the doldrums. He invigorated it to a point where it could reclaim equal            status with the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal College. He            retired in 1994 and the next year took on the chairmanship of the            Musicians Benevolent Fund, the leading British musical charity.             He is survived by his wife, Ursula.

 

 

BIOGRAPHY

All-Music Guide  Born: March 12, 1928, in Bath, England

 

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