Robert Nagel (September 29, 1924 – June 5, 2016) was an American trumpet player, composer, and teacher. He was an early advocate for brass chamber music, especially the

brass quintet A brass quintet is a five-piece musical ensemble composed of brass instruments. The instrumentation for a brass quintet typically includes two trumpets or cornets, one French horn, one trombone or euphonium/baritone horn, and one tuba or bass tro ...

. Nagel was the founder and director of the New York Brass Quintet, as well as a founding member of the

International Trumpet Guild The International Trumpet Guild (ITG) is an international organization of trumpet players. Members include professional and amateur performers, teachers, students, manufacturers, publishers, and others interested in the trumpet. ITG is a nonprof ...

. He served as a faculty member of the

Yale School of Music The Yale School of Music (often abbreviated to YSM) is one of the 12 professional schools at Yale University. It offers three graduate degrees: Master of Music (MM), Master of Musical Arts (MMA), and Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), as well as a joi ...

from 1957 - 1988. As a composer and arranger, Nagel wrote solo and small ensemble music, trumpet method books, and orchestral works.

Biography

Nagel was born in

Freeland, Pennsylvania Freeland is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was originally called Birbeckville, South Heberton, and Freehold. Freeland is south of Wilkes-Barre and northeast of Hazleton. It was incorporated as a borough on Septem ...

. At the age of 8, he began playing the trumpet as part of a school band program.In memoriam: Robert E. Nagel Jr., trumpet.
Yale School of Music: June 9, 2016. Retrieved December 16, 2017. At the age of 13, Nagel performed a

cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. There is also a soprano cor ...

solo on a national radio broadcast with the Armco Band.*Updated--In memoriam: Robert Nagel (1924 -2016)
International Trumpet Guild. Retrieved December 16, 2017. Nagel studied composition at

Juilliard The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became the Juilliard School, named aft ...

with

Peter Mennin Peter Mennin (born Mennini; May 17, 1923 – June 17, 1983) was a prominent American composer, teacher and administrator. In 1958, he was named Director of the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, and in 1962 became President of the Juilliard Sch ...

and

Vincent Persichetti Vincent Ludwig Persichetti (June 6, 1915 – August 14, 1987) was an American composer, teacher, and pianist. An important musical educator and writer, he was known for his integration of various new ideas in musical composition into his own work ...

, while also receiving instruction during the summer at

Tanglewood Tanglewood is a music venue and Music festival, festival in the towns of Lenox, Massachusetts, Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts, Stockbridge in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony ...

with

Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) was an American composer, critic, writer, teacher, pianist, and conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the "Dean of American Compos ...

. After graduation, Nagel worked as a freelance trumpet player in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, performing with

radio orchestra A radio orchestra (or broadcast orchestra) is an orchestra employed by a radio network (and sometimes television networks) in order to provide programming as well as sometimes perform incidental or theme music for various shows on the network. In ...

s such as the

NBC Symphony Orchestra The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a radio orchestra conceived by David Sarnoff, the president of the Radio Corporation of America, the parent corporation of the National Broadcasting Company especially for the conductor Arturo Toscanini. The NBC ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Nagel became interested in smaller ensemble music, performing with the New York Brass Ensemble. After the group disbanded in the early 1950s, Nagel reorganized the group as the New York Brass Quintet in 1954. As a founding member of the

, Nagel promoted the composition and arrangement of new music for brass instruments, especially the brass quintet.Hershenson, Roberta
Let the Trumpets Sound.

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

: June 4, 2000. Retrieved December 16, 2017. Nagel also composed music and formed his own publishing company, Mentor Music, in 1959. From 1957 until 1988, Nagel was a faculty member of the

as a trumpet instructor. He also taught at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

, Juilliard, the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music a ...

, the

Hartt School The Hartt School is the performing arts conservatory of the University of Hartford, a private university in West Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1920 by Julius Hartt and Moshe Paranov, Hartt has been part of the University of Hartford since it ...

, the

University of North Carolina School of the Arts The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is a public art school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It grants a high school diploma, in addition to both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Founded in 1963 as the North Carolina Sc ...

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

, and the

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

List of works

Original works

*''Divertimento for winds'' (1951) *''Concerto for Trumpet'' (1958) *''Trumpets of Spain'' (1958) *''This Old Man: March for brass quintet'' (1960) *''Trumpet processional'' (1963) *''Brass Trio No. 1'' (1953) *''Brass Trio No. 2'' (1966) *''Suite for Brass and Piano'' (1971) *''Concertino for brass quintet'' (1999)

Arrangements

*''Baroque music for trumpet'' (1969) *''The regal trumpet: music of the baroque'' (1971) *''Great mountain, brilliant land: from Central Province folk songs'' (1983)

Brass Method Books

*''Speed studies for trumpet (horn or clarinet)'' (1965) *''Rhythmic studies for trumpet'' (1968) *''Trumpet studies in contemporary music'' (1975) *''Trombone studies in contemporary music'' (1977) *''Trumpet Skills'' (1982)

References

External links

June 2010 interview of Robert Nagel.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nagel, Robert American male classical composers 20th-century American classical composers 20th-century American male musicians