Nutmeg Brass Ensemble Performs at the Westport Library Dec. 8

Enjoy holiday music, from Renaissance to contemporary pieces performed by the Nutmeg Brass Ensemble on Sunday, Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. in the Westport Library's McManus Room. This program is free and open to the public.

Led by Jim Marbury, bass trombone, the members come from varied musical backgrounds. The current group boasts members who regularly perform with the Norwalk, Ridgefield, and Bridgeport symphonies. Some members have also played in pit orchestras for Barnum & Bailey's Circus and for shows on and off-Broadway. They have backed up such artists as Engelbert Humperdinck, Johnny Mathis, and Sherri Lewis & Lamb Chop.

The group includes: Pete Roe, trumpet, who performs frequently as a pit musician at the Goodspeed Opera House as lead trumpet with the Berkshire Big Band and with his own group, The Eastside Ramblers Dixieland Band. Pete is a 20-year veteran of U.S. Army Bands and has served as the trumpet section leader of the 42nd Infantry Division Band and as the Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge of the 42nd ID Jazz Combo and Dixieland Bands while deployed to Iraq in 2005.

Steve Perrett, trumpet, is a versatile performer, equally comfortable in an orchestral trumpet section, a Broadway-style pit or a jazz club. His performance credits include work with the New Haven and Bridgeport Symphony Orchestras, Goodspeed Opera House, Bridgeport Downtown Cabaret, and as a backup musician for nationally known performers like Dionne Warwick, Franki Valli and The Temptations.

Barbara Reineke, French horn, is a member of the Ridgefield Symphony since 2001 and a principal horn in Yonkers Philharmonic since 1997. She has also played with Chappaqua Symphony, Waterbury Symphony, and the Norwalk Symphony.

Rob Stattel, trombone, performs and teaches throughout the tri-state area. His experience includes a stint with the 81st US Army Band and a national tour with "In The Mood," a 1940s musical review. He now plays trombone and euphonium with the Lehman College Concert Band and the Yonkers Philharmonic.

Jim Marbury, bass trombone, is currently a member of the Ridgefield and Norwalk symphonies and also performs regularly with the Wallingford, New Britain, and Waterbury symphonies. He is also a member of the Oakdale Music Theater orchestra, where he has played with many different performers, including The Temptations, Johnny Mathis, and Joan Rivers. Jim has also played with Morton Gould, Paul Lavalle, Skitch Henderson, and Mitch Miller. He currently teaches students from Fairfield County public schools.

For more information, phone (203) 291-4800, or visit the Library online at westportlibrary.org.

Photo via westportlibrary.org