I
t’s like an idyllic story right out of a children’s book. A 10-year-old
boy was “told” to play the tuba because he was the tallest in his class
in Methilhill, Scotland. The school’s janitor wanted to form a band
and the boy, along with nine other students, became the band’s
musicians. This experience eventually propelled him into winning
awards, and later he would become an internationally renowned
conductor and tuba soloist.
But this is the real-life story of Dr. James Gourlay, who has been the
artistic and general director of Pittsburgh’s River City Brass (RCB)
since 2010.
“I have just passed the seven-year itch mark at RCB,” laughs Gourlay,
in his charming Scottish brogue. “I haven’t had any reason to scratch
any itches.”
Gourlay holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University
of Salford, an MMus from the University of Leeds and is a Fellow of the
Royal Northern College of Music and the London College of Music. He
has also been honored by the Worshipful Company of Musicians, which
conferred upon him the John Henry Iles Medal for services to the brass
band movement.
RCB wrote to Gourlay in 2009 offering him the job as music director.
“I quickly wrote back, ‘No,’” laughs Gourlay. “At that time, I was very
much a freelance conductor, but I said I would be interested in doing
some concerts with RCB if they needed a guest conductor. And so they
did, and I came to Pittsburgh and worked for three weeks with the band.
They persuaded me that it was a good idea to stay with them as their
musical director, so I did—and it was a good idea.”
The city of Pittsburgh also sold Gourlay and his wife, Lea, on his
new position.
“We had no idea that Pittsburgh was such a beautiful city,” says
Gourlay, who resides on Mount Washington. “After my wife came over
for a visit from the UK and saw the city, she told me to reconsider taking
the job. We still like living in the city very, very much.”
Some of the many highlights of Gourlay’s career include performing
with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony
Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Zurich Opera. He was a member of
the Philip Jones and English Brass ensembles with which he has toured
the world, and he also continues to perform as a soloist extensively.
With such an impressive resume, many would think Gourlay
might put his artistic pursuits first, and then consider the needs of the
audience. But that isn’t who Gourlay is.
“Without the audience, we are nothing,” he explains. “We play for
them; otherwise we might as well sit in our front rooms and make a
noise with our instruments. All too often, artists and arts groups forget
that people are not there to be educated—they are there for an evening
of entertainment and they want to be uplifted. We don’t want people
to sit there in their suits and just consume the music—listening to
Beethoven again and again. We want to interact with them and want
them to go home happy, with a spring in their step.”
The mission of RCB, a 28-member band founded in 1981, is
to entertain, educate and engage citizens locally, nationally and
internationally in the American musical culture.
Some of the upcoming RCB
concerts will be held at the
following locations. To find out
more information on concerts and
purchasing tickets, visit the website
at rivercitybrass.org.
Locally, the band presents 51 regional concerts over seven months
to citizens at seven regional venues, and maintains an acclaimed youth
band and Saturday Music Program.
Nationally, it has routinely conducted concerts at venues including
Pennsylvania’s Musikfest, New York’s Chautauqua Institution,
Michigan’s Interlochen Center for the Arts, Indiana’s Conner Prairie,
and North Carolina’s Thalian Hall. With appearances on NBC’s “Today
Show” and NPR’s “Performance Today,” RCB also tours internationally
every several years.
Gourlay chooses the material the RCB performs based on audience
preferences. He spends the concert intermissions receiving feedback
from them.
“We have an incredibly loyal audience,” he notes. “We have original
audiences who were at the very first concert in 1981—that is amazing! I
don’t think there is another arts group that has that loyalty. What I know
about my audience is that they know what they like, and they like what
they know.
“For example, we are preparing a ‘Blockbuster Film’ evening and I
know there are going to be some younger people in the audience who
would like to hear songs from ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Star Trek,’ but at the same
time I know there will be audience members who want to hear ‘Tara’s
Theme’ from ‘Gone with the Wind.’”
“What I personally appreciate the most about the concerts is that they
are fun, they offer a bit of the unexpected, and everyone in the audience
seems to enjoy them so much,” says Dolores Nypaver, RCB Board
Chair. “The band performs a wide variety of music, from Irish to rock;
big bands, movies and musicals; marches and patriotic tunes; and our
wonderful Christmas music in December. James includes all age groups
in our music repertory and our concert attendees always leave smiling.”
Bringing the professional arts to people in the ’burbs is part of
RCB’s mission.
“We used to have a concert series downtown at the Byham Theater
and at Heinz Hall,” says Gourlay. “But I keep telling people we are
not the symphony and we are not trying to compare ourselves to the
symphony, or do anything that they do. There is nothing wrong with
what they do, of course—it’s wonderful. But as soon as we start to try to
copy something like that, then we lose our own identity and our identity
is based on the people. We don’t just perform in our concert halls—we
go into senior centers, schools, supermarkets—we go wherever we can
play our music and bring joy to the people.” ■
Carson Middle School
200 Hillvue Lane, McCandless The Palace Theatre
21 West Otterman Street, Greensburg
Linton Middle School
250 Aster Street, Penn Hills Upper St. Clair High School
1825 McLaughlin Run Road, Upper St. Clair
GREENSBURG SALEM
❘
S PRI NG 2018 15