John's lecture today about professional brass ensembles, in addition to opening the door for a new collection of Rolf anecdotes, reminded me of an excellent candidate for my blog: Proteus 7.
Proteus 7 is a septet consisting of two trumpets, two trombones, tuba, a woodwind multi-instrumentalist, and a percussionist. To understand just what sort of band Proteus 7 is, we should examine their name. Proteus, for those unfamiliar with Greek mythology, is the sea - not the god of the sea (Poseidon) but an incarnation of the sea itself (the counterpart to Gaia, the earth). Just as the sea is constantly churning and re-ordering itself, Proteus was a tremendous shape-shifter. The ensemble that now bears his name is similarly a shape-shifter. Proteus 7 play a great deal of custom arrangements from a variety of musical styles. Their recorded oeuvre includes spy themes, Latin standards, the greatest works of Bernstein, and established classical works.
I can't find any of their live performances to include here, but feel free to peruse their website.
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