Photo courtesy Navesink Brass Quintet
By Eileen Moon
When the holiday season arrives, members of the Navesink Brass Quintet set aside room in their calendars to bring their unique blend of traditional and contemporary music to audiences around New Jersey.
Members of the group are all professional musicians and music teachers who have been performing together since 1992.
Last Sunday, Dec. 1, they performed at the Eastern Branch of the Monmouth County Library – one of 10 concerts state-wide scheduled for the next few weeks.
“It’s a multicultural concert,” said Paul Eschelbach, who plays tuba in the Navesink Brass Quintet (NBQ). Their 2019 holiday repertoire embraces the music of many traditions, including music for Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanza.
The selections range from traditional hymns like “Silent Night” and J.S. Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” to their own arrangements of contemporary tunes that include Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You,” Jose Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad” and “Umoja: The First Night of Kwanza,” composed by Valerie Coleman. During their appearances, Eschelbach said, members like sharing some of the history of the works they perform with their listeners.
Their selections reflect months of planning and practice designed to make each season’s offerings fresh and inclusive of the many holiday traditions Americans enjoy.
Formed in Red Bank in 1992 and named in tribute to the Navesink River, the group includes Thomas Bender and Donald Swinchoski on trumpet, Nancy Tipnis on horn, Daniel Carver on trombone and Paul Eschelbach on tuba. Members of NBQ are virtuoso musicians whose backgrounds include teaching, composition conducting and performance.
Photo courtesy Navesink Brass Quintet
Dan Carver, who is currently the seventh- and eighth-grade band director at Memorial Middle School in Point Pleasant, holds a bachelor’s degree in music education from King’s College. He has been directing bands in public schools for more than three decades. He’s also performed with the Lakewood Jazz Ensemble, the Brookdale Jazz Ensemble and the Georgian Court Wind Ensemble. He is a member of the Shore Intermediate Band, as performer and guest conductor.
Like Carver, trumpet player Don Swinchoski has been a music educator for more than 40 years and is currently teaching middle and high school music at Central Jersey College Prep in Somerset. He’s a graduate of Johnson State College and earned a master’s degree in conducting from the New England Conservatory in Boston. He has served as conductor of the Band of the Two Rivers for 20 years and is also co-conductor of the Colts Neck Community Band. Twice nominated as a Teacher of the Year, Swinchoski is also the recipient of a Count Basie award for Outstanding Orchestra and Outstanding Music Direction.
NBQ trumpet player Thomas Bender holds a bachelor’s degree in classics from the University of Scranton, a bachelor’s in music education from Glassboro State (now Rowan University) and a certification in special education from Jersey City State University. Retired as a music teacher after 35 years, Bender is presently band director for Mater Dei Prep in Middletown.
His professional background includes performance, arrangement and composition, as well as extensive experience as a touring professional performing around the globe.
Horn player Nancy Tipnis is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music where she studied with some of the finest horn players in New York City. Her credits include performing with the Monmouth Symphony Orchestra, the Garden State Philharmonic, the Central Jersey Concert Band, the Livingston Symphony and the Orchestra of St. Peter by the Sea.
Tuba player Eschelbach holds bachelor’s and master’s degree in music education from Glassboro State (now Rowan University). A Red Bank native who graduated from Red Bank Catholic High School, Eschelbach established the instrumental music program in the Commercial Township School District in Cumberland County and was honored with a Master Teacher of Music Award from the New Jersey Education Association. He later moved back to Monmouth County where he taught instrumental and vocal music in area public schools for more than four decades, retiring from the Long Branch public school system in 2017 after 31 years.
In addition to Navesink Brass, Eschelbach has performed with the Orchestra Amadeus, the Band of the Two Rivers, the Pinelands Symphonic Band and the OCC Band.
While the holiday season is a busy one for NBQ members, they look forward to the fun of sharing some musical magic that reflects their own passion for celebrating the holidays with sounds both old and new.
In addition to their Sunday, Dec. 1 performance at the Eastern Branch, Navesink Brass has scheduled nine additional concerts at various locations throughout New Jersey during the holidays. Upcoming Monmouth County events include the Ocean Township tree lighting at the Ocean Township Historical Museum at 4:30 p.m. Dec. 8 and the Point Pleasant Boro tree lighting at Community Park at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 13. Check their Facebook page for info on other upcoming performances.
