November 19, 2008 | JON JOINS ST BONIFACE CHURCH FOR EASTER 2009
I will be traveling to the US in April to celebrate Easter with the wonderful people of St. Boniface Church for my 14th consecutive year. I will be performing at the Easter vigil service as well as at both morning services. Hope to see you there!

October 01, 2008 | SUK SYMPHONY NO. 2 'ASREAL' COMPLETED
We completed our recording of Joseph Suk's Asreal Symphony 2 days ahead of schedule under the baton of new music director, Claus Peter Flor. It was awesome and my first month with the new MD was unquestionably the most profound of my entire musical career. Stay tuned to see what Maestro Flor does with this band... it is guaranteed to be incredible!

September 19, 2008 | JON PERFORMS WITH MACAO ORCHESTRA
i will be in Macao next week performing with the Macao Orchestra. Third trumpet... no pressure!! :)

March 29, 2008 | 24B BACKBORE BY CHARLES BUTLER
I've recently switched to a new symphonic backbore designed by Charles Butler. I believe that this is perhaps the best backbore design for a trumpet mouthpiece ever created; empowering a player to deliver any color of sound at any dynamic level with total security and dramatically improved intonation. Charlie also rebuilds incredible Bach trumpet for very reasonable cash. Give him a buzz for more details at 206-851-3432!

March 04, 2008 | PARAMOUNT BRASS RELEASE PRAISED BY THE AMERICAN RECORD GUIDE
GRAINGER: Shepherd's Hey; Ye Banks and Braes O'Bonnie Doon; English Country Gardens; Over the Hills and Far Away; Lincolnshire Posy; VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Sea Songs; English Folk Song Suite; HOLST: Moorside March; Suite 1; ANON: Irish Tune from County Derry

Paramount Brass--Centaur 2547-54 minutes

When the young members of Paramount Brass made their first recording about four years ago, I was pleased to note that their primary focus seemed to be on making good music, rather than on making themselves sound good (March/April 1998: 244). I was ready to dislike this new offering, though, because it consists of classic wind-band works transcribed for brass quintet (one of my pet peeves is large-ensemble music arranged for a small group).

Well, Paramount has won me over again with tasteful, skilled playing. Their light and compact tone qualities, which remind me of those heard in English brass bands, are quite appropriate for works by Gustav Holst, Ralph Vaughan Williams, and Percy Grainger. And Paramount's spirit and expressiveness carry the day.

The program consists of 19 miniatures, most of them component parts of three big pieces: Grainger's Lincolnshire Posy, Holst's Suite 1, and Vaughan Williams's English Folk Song Suite. I am surprised by how good the pieces sound after so much has been trimmed away. Mutes and percussion help to compensate for the reduced timbral spectrum, and clarity is a positive byproduct--especially in Grainger's complex settings.

In Lincolnshire (arranged by former Paramount member Daniel Harrison), 'Dublin Bay' bubbles breezily and gives a big tutti clarinet melody to low-register second trumpet. The beautiful final chord reminds me that Paramount likes to hold final chords for a long time. The climaxes of the rich and wistful 'Harkstow Grange' are given strong boosts by percussion, while a flugelhorn adds its warm voice to 'Rufford Bay Poachers'. In 'The Brisk Young Sailor', trumpeter Jon Paul Dante dazzles in a fleet solo originally scored for high woodwinds. The weakest moment occurs at 1:30 in 'Lord Melbourne', when there simply are not enough instruments to play the quiet, spooky chord that lingers after a big climax, but the thrilling ending makes up for it. Woodwind voices are missed in 'The Lost Lady Found', too, but Paramount achieves a lovely blend.

Since Holst's Suite 1 and Vaughan Williams's English Folk Song Suite are simpler pieces than Lincolnshire, both sound fine, if a bit lean. Andrew Miller (Paramount's tubist) came up with good substitutions in the Hoist, while Dante had to eliminate many of the sustained pitches that thicken Vaughan Williams's original texture. Thus his setting is spare and relatively transparent. One seemingly natural substitution in both works--giving euphonium lines to the quintet's trombonist--sounds unsatisfying, because they need more weight than a trombone can produce.

The members of this fine quintet are trumpeters Dante and Louis Anderson, horn player Fritz Foss, trombonist Nat Dickey, and tubist Andrew Miller. The percussionists are Karl Seyfurth and Rich Greenblatt.

COPYRIGHT 2003 Record Guide Productions

November 13, 2007 | ARTUNIAN CONCERTO WITH MPO IN NOVEMBER 2008
I have been asked to perform the Artunian Trumpet Concerto with the Malaysian Philharmonic at Dewan Philharmonic Petronas in November of 2008. I've never performed this concerto before and am really looking forward to it. More details to come!

October 13, 2007 | DANTE TEAMS UP WITH CONN-SELMER AND BACH STRADIVARIUS TRUMPETS!
I am honored to be added to the distinctive roster of Conn-Selmer performing artists and clinicians. Conn-Selmer, Inc. is the parent company for Bach Stradivarius trumpets and the leading manufacturer and distributor of band and orchestral instruments for professional, amateur and student use. The Company manufactures and distributes its products under a variety of well-known brand names, including Vincent Bach brass, Selmer USA woodwinds, C.G. Conn brass, King brass, Armstrong woodwinds, Ludwig and Musser percussion and Glaesel string instruments. Other brands include Scherl & Roth and William Lewis & Son string instruments, Emerson flutes, Benge brass and Artley woodwinds. Under its Leblanc, Inc. division, purchased in 2004, the company also manufactures and distributes Leblanc, Holton, Noblet, Vito band instruments. Conn-Selmer is also the exclusive North American distributor for Selmer (Paris) professional brass and woodwinds and U.S. distributor for Yanagisawa saxophones. Click on the link to the right to check out their website!

September 21, 2007 | DANTE JOINS ST.BONIFACE CHURCH IN SARASOTA, FL FOR EASTER 2008!
I will be headed 10,000 miles east to once again join St. Boniface Church on Siesta Key in Sarasota, FL in their Easter celebrations. This will be my eleventh consecutive Easter teaming up with the music ministry of St. Boniface. I will be performing at the vigil service as well as the 9 and 11am services on Easter morning. Hope to see you there!

May 30, 2007 | MUSIC OF DANNY WINN & THE EARTHLINGS IN NEW MICHAEL MOORE FILM "SICKO"
The song "Rejected" from the newest Danny Winn and the Earthlings release was chosen to be used in a significant scene in the new Michael Moore film "Sicko". The movie will be in theaters in June 2007!!!!

May 25, 2007 | MALAYSIAN PHILHARMONIC TO TOUR TAIWAN 2007-2008
Tour program will include Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe. More details to come!!!

April 02, 2007 | DANTE GIVEN PERMANENT CONTRACT AS SECTION PRINCIPAL TRUMPET OF THE MALAYSIAN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
After passing a six month probationary period, I have been offered the permanent contract for the position of section principal trumpet of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra. I have happily accepted and look forward to many years of making great symphonic music with some fantastic colleagues in the most beautiful tropical location in the world.

November 07, 2006 | DANTE SIGNS ON WITH THE MPO
In November of 2006, I was offered the position of Principal Trumpet with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra by Music Director Matthias Bamert. I have accepted a contract lasting through August of 2008 and will be on probation for the next six months. I will take a leave of absence from my two positions as Principal Trumpet of both the New Mexico Symphony and Santa Fe Symphony Orchestras while I determined if Kuala Lumpur Malaysia will become my new home.