Top trumpet honors

Not one, but two trumpet students at Grand Valley State University have received international honors that place them among the top young trumpet players in the world.

Steven Marx and Matthew Laird, both senior music majors at Grand Valley this year, traveled to Manchester, England this summer to compete as finalists in the International Trumpet Guild's Mock Orchestra Competition, an arduous contest for trumpeters under the age of 25. Their results are an 'incredible feat' that put Grand Valley on the map in the trumpet world, said GVSU trumpet professor Richard Stoelzel.

Marx, 21, was one of two trumpeters to win first place honors. Laird, 23, was the co-recipient of the second place award.

'This is one of the top trumpet competitions in the world for up-and-coming professional trumpeters,' Stoelzel said. 'They're on their way to making it to the top; entering contests -- and then winning them -- is one of the first steps.'

That two students from one university would win top honors is considered amazing. This marks the second year that two of Stoelzel's students have been finalists in the competition.

'When asked where we were from, there was a lot of expectation to say Eastman (School of Music) or Juilliard (School) or Northwestern (University),' said Laird said, who is from Atlanta, Ga.

'People hadn't ever heard of Grand Valley in the sense of international competition,' noted Marx, from Highland. 'Out of the blue, now we have two people winning awards. It's definitely a foreshadowing of what's to come with how fast our music studio (at GVSU) is growing.'

The students each spent upwards of 50 hours perfecting the qualifying tapes they sent to the Trumpet Guild in February. They traveled to Manchester in July to compete at the Royal Northern Conservatory of Music. Both can be seen in various photos on the Trumpet Guild's Web site, at http://www.trumpetguild.org/2002conference/fri/401.html.

Marx and Laird also credit the commitment shown by trumpet professor Stoelzel -- himself a first prize winner of the competition 16 years ago. Stoelzel praised the students' hard work, dedication, and musicianship.

For Marx, it is his second time as a finalist: he was awarded third place in the 2001 competition. This year he also earned second place in the 2002 National Trumpet Competition College Division, held at George Mason University in Virginia. As a high school student in Highland, he was a member of the Detroit Civic Symphony Orchestra, considered a training orchestra operated under the wing of the Detroit Symphony.

Now in their senior year at Grand Valley, Marx and Laird perform every week, often with the Honors Brass Quintet (also known as Rapid Brass) and for special university functions. Both plan to go on to graduate school for music performance.