About The Lyric Brass

Formed in 1998, The Lyric Brass Quintet (Bob Couto & Kevin Dines, Trumpets; Larry Williams, Horn; Brandon Rivera, Trombone; and Andrew Spang, Tuba) quickly distinguished itself as one of the premier brass chamber groups in the region. As winners of the 2000 Baltimore Chamber Music Competition they performed at ARTSCAPE (Baltimore's Festival of the Arts), and their debut CD, Daydreams, Desires and Diversions was released the same year to critical acclaim. They have been featured artists on the Baltimore Composer's Forum, the Peggy and Yale Gordon Trust Concert Series, and at the Foxboro Orpheum in Boston. They have appeared as soloists in Eric Ewazen's concerto grosso, Shadowcatcher, with the Peabody Wind Ensemble and were featured artists on Virginia's Catch a Rising Star Concert Series. LBQ is sponsored, in part, by Stu's Music Shop in Westminster, Maryland and have served as artists in residence at the Goucher Summer Arts Institute. They are now in residence in at Carroll Community College. LBQ's second recording, Christmas Around the World, was released in December 2002, and their third CD, Ancient Noëls, will be released this fall.

The members of The Lyric Brass are strongly committed to education. They have given clinics and masterclasses at festivals and schools throughout the U.S., and have been featured performers and clinicians for the Maryland Music Educators Association State Conference, and the Music Educators National Conference All Eastern Conference.

About The Musicians

Bob Couto, trumpet, is much in demand as a chamber musician and trumpet artist in the Baltimore/Washington area. Bob is Assistant Solo Cornet and Section Leader United States Navy Band; member, United States Navy Band Brass Quintet; former member, Fairfax Symphony Orchestra; former member, George Washington University Faculty Brass Quintet. Performances with Hartford (CT), New Haven (CT), Franz Shubert (NY), Harrisburg (PA), Annapolis (MD) and Maryland Symphony Orchestras and Berkshire (MA) Opera Company. He graduated with a M.M. from the Juilliard School and a B.M. from the Hartt School of Music.

Lyric Brass trumpet artist Kevin Dines, a native of Washington DC, began studying trumpet at the age of 9. Early on, during his first year of playing, he enrolled at the DC Youth Orchestra Program and while there, also learned to play the baritone horn, euphonium, trombone and bassoon. By the time he entered high school he had settled on the trumpet as his instrument of choice. His strong musical influences during this time were his high school band director Gilbert Costa, DC Youth Wind Ensemble director John Buchanon and Dr. David Flowers of the National Symphony Orchestra. Kevin went on to earn a Bachelor of Music degree in performance from The Ohio State University in 1986, studying trumpet with Dr. Richard Burkart. While at Ohio State, he won 2nd prize in the International Trumpet Guild's Mock Orchestra competition and 3rd prize in the I.T.G. Solo competition. Currently, Kevin holds the title of Master Chief Musician with the United States Navy Band in Washington DC. He has also performed professionally with the Columbus, Harrisburg and Jacksonville Symphony Orchestras and the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra of Great Falls, Virginia.

Larry Williams, horn, has distinguished himself as a multifaceted musician, whose artistry led the late Philip Farkas, former Principal Horn of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and master teacher, to describe him as "an outstanding artist-soloist, who possesses fine tone, excellent intonation, superb accuracy, and superior musicianship." Mr. Williams has two solo recordings, Paradigms and Black Forest. A very active recitalist and soloist, Mr. Williams has soloed with many bands orchestras including the Columbia Orchestra, Peabody Sinfonia, the Goucher Chamber Symphony, and the Morgan State University Symphonic Band. He has served as Principal Horn in the New World Symphony under the direction of Sir Michael Tilson Thomas, and has performed with the symphony orchestras of Baltimore, San Francisco, and Pittsburgh. His wide range of musical styles include solo/chamber literature for horn, jazz, popular, and contemporary. He has toured and performed with jazz and popular musicians Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Arturo Sandoval, and Gloria Estefan. In addition to his active performance career, Mr. Williams serves as Chair of the Brass and Wind Department of the Peabody Preparatory. Among his awards and citations are Who's Who of Teachers in the United States, Who's Who Among African Americans, and winner of 2nd Prize in the Yale Gordon Concerto Competition. Mr. Williams is a graduate of the Peabody Conservatory.

Brandon Rivera, trombone, originally from New York, is an active performer in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area. He has performed with such diverse artists as Patti LaBelle, Jessica Simpson, Wynton Marsalis, Nathan Lane, Charlotte Church, Johnny Mathis, and Donnie McKlurkin. He has also appeared with the Maryland Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera Orchestra, Soulful Symphony and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. He has studied trombone with Jim Olin, Stan Wilkerson, and Gary Thomas, earning a Bachelors of Music from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University.

Andrew Spang, tuba, is an active performer, teacher, and clinician in the Baltimore area. He has performed, toured, and recorded with the Eastman Wind Ensemble under the direction of Donald Hunsberger and the Eastman Trombone Choir under John Marcellus. Mr. Spang has also performed with the Maryland Philharmonic, Gettysburg Symphony and Eastman Philharmonia. Currently, Mr. Spang is the Director of Bands at Folly Quarter Middle School and Director of Music at Westminster United Methodist Church. He has been recognized as the Maryland Music Education Association "Outstanding Music Teacher of the Year" and a Who's Who in Education in America. He has served on the applied faculties of Western Maryland College and the University of Rochester. Mr. Spang is a graduate of The Eastman School of Music and The Boston Conservatory, and holds a Master of Science of Education from McDaniel College.