FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2/13/04

The all-female quartet features Kelly Biese and Angie Hunter playing Willson euphoniums, and Stacy Baker and Velvet Brown on tuba.  The group has performed a broad selection of original works and arrangements in Austria , Finland , Illinois , Ohio , Pennsylvania , Michigan , and Kentucky .

The Performers

Kelly Biese, of Greenleaf , Wis. , graduated from St. Norbert College with a bachelor of music in education and is pursuing a dual master's degree in music performance and education at Bowling Green State University .  She was a finalist in 2000 and a prizewinner in 2003 at the International Women's Brass Conference solo competitions. 

Last summer, she spent a month in Italy at the Musica Artista 2003.  She has chaired the student advisory committee of the International Tuba and Euphonium Association and served as advertising coordinator for the International Women's Brass Conference 2003.

Angie Hunter, a native of Greenwich , Ohio , received an undergraduate degree in music at Bowling Green State University and a master's degree in music at the University of Illinois .  She also studied at the Conservatory of Music in Trossingen , Germany , where she received an artist's certificate in 1999.  She also served on the music faculty of the German Bible Institute in Koenigsfeld, Black Forest , Germany .

Hunter won the first Leonard Falcone International Euphonium/Baritone Horn Competition in 1986.  She has performed recitals, given workshops at several U.S. universities, and created “Collage,” a euphonium CD.  Her appearance is sponsored in part by Willson Instruments and DEG Music.

Stacy Baker, originally from Harsen's Island , Mich. , and currently an associate professor of music – tuba/euphonium at Morehead State University , earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in music at the University of Michigan where she was a James B. Angell Scholar.  She also received a doctorate in performance and literature from the University of Illinois .

Her career as a soloist includes performances at the 1997 and 2003 International Women's Brass Conferences, the 2002 International Tuba/Euphonium Conference, the 2000 U.S. Army Band “Pershing's Own” Tuba/Euphonium Conference, the 1999 Southeast Regional Tuba/Euphonium Conference, and the 1998 International Tuba/Euphonium Conference.  She has also played as the principal tubist with the Warren Symphony and the Allen Park Symphony, and as a substitute tubist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Illinois Symphony, the Champaign/Urbana Symphony, and the Danville Symphony.

Velvet Brown, a professional soloist, chamber ensemble performer, recording artist, conductor, and orchestral player, has made frequent appearances in Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Finland, France, England, Hungary, Slovenia, Russia, Japan, Canada, and the United States.  She served as principal tubist with the New Hampshire Music Festival Orchestra from 1989 to 1999, and as a substitute or additional tubist with the Detroit Symphony, Saint Louis Symphony, San Francisco Women's Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic.

Brown is currently an associate professor of tuba and euphonium at the Pennsylvania State University .  She received the 1999-2000 William Fulbright Fellowship Vinciguerra Award.

Crystal Records released two of Brown's solo CD's, “Velvet” and “Music for Velvet.”  The Nicolai Music Label issued a CD where she performs music by the award-winning composer Neal Corwell.

Greenville College is a four-year accredited Christian liberal arts school with more than 1,300 traditional undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree completion students.  Founded in 1892 and affiliated with the Free Methodist Church , the college is located in Greenville , Ill. , 45 miles east of St. Louis .

CONTACT:
B.J. Schneck ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it )
Assistant Director of Public Relations
Greenville College
(618) 664-6621