Ryan
Berndt
Trumpet
Jean
McCullough
Horn
Bill
Baxtresser
Trumpet
Scott
Tegge
Tuba
Paul
Von Hoff
Trombone
Ryan Berndt
Ryan Berndt is one of the trumpet players of the Gaudete Brass. His talents in business development have helped the quintet expand into new markets and develop exciting new publicity for the group. Ryan brings a strong background in both education and performance to the quintet. He has performed with numerous ensembles including the Silk Road Ensemble, Chicago Civic Orchestra under the direction of Daniel Barenboim and Jay Friedman, and has appeared with the Minnesota Orchestra's "Share A Chair" program under the direction of Eiji Oue. He has performed internationally at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia and at the Isao Satoshi in Kurashiki, Japan. Outside of classical music, he has performed with the National High School cast for the musical Thoroughly Modern Millie and appeared with the Regis Philbin Big Band. Ryan has taught trumpet at the University of Notre Dame and St. Mary’s College in South Bend, Indiana and is currently the Trumpet Faculty Chair at the New Music School in Chicago.
Ryan is a graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts where he earned an Artist Diploma in Orchestral Studies. He also earned degrees of Master of Music in Performance and Literature from the University of Notre Dame and a Bachelor of Music from Saint John's University in Collegeville, MN.
Jean McCullough
Jean McCullough is the horn player for the Gaudete Brass. She also manages many of the financial aspects of the business side of the quintet. Jean holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Performance from Lawrence University. She was the recipient of the Chancellor Fellowship Award while completing a Masters degree in Music Performance at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In addition to her active chamber music career, she has worked with students as a coach and clinician for the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra, the UWM summer chamber camp, and the Band of the Black Watch in Kenosha, WI. Jean has performed with such groups as the Wisconsin Wind Orchestra, the Racine Symphony Orchestra, the Hot Springs Festival Orchestra, and the Festival City Symphony in Milwaukee. She was the 2004 winner of the Fred Schroeder Prize in Wind Performance. Her horn teachers have included Gregory Flint, David Griffin, James DeCorsey, and William Barnewitz.
Bill Baxtresser
Bill is the newest addition to the Gaudete Brass Quintet, joining in January 2009. Bill is on faculty of the New Music School, in Chicago, and plays regularly with the West Michigan Symphony. Bill obtained a Bachelors degree from Western Michigan University where he studied with Dr. Stephen Jones and Professor Scott Thornburg (Brass Band of Battle Creek). In 2001, as a member of the Detroit Civic Orchestra Jazz Ensemble, Bill studied under the direction of the legendary trumpeter, Marcus Belgrave. In 2008, Bill was performing as Principal Solo Cornet with the West Michigan Brass Band when they were awarded the 2008 North American Brass Band Association Open Division Championship in Louisville Kentucky. In keeping with a wide variety of musical experiences, Bill also fills in with the Chicago based Rock Band: Visionaire and the David Rothstein Orchestra.
Scott Tegge
Scott Tegge is the tubist in the Gaudete Brass, and works to create performance opportunities for the group. A Chicago native, Scott received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music in Tuba Performance. He continued his studies and received his Master's degree from University of Miami and Professional Diploma in Orchestral Studies from Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts. While in Miami, he performed with numerous orchestras such as the New World Symphony, Miami Bach Society, Palm Beach Symphony, and he also served as the Principal Tuba with Miami Symphony Orchestra. In Chicago, Scott has performed with Elgin Symphony, Rockford Symphony, and Chicago Sinfonietta. In addition to his performing career, he serves on faculty at Carthage College, where he made his solo debut with the Carthage College Wind Ensemble on their tour to Japan. Scott also teaches at Merit School of Music, and coaches chamber music at Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras.
Paul Von Hoff
Paul Von Hoff has been the trombonist with the Gaudete Brass Quintet since its founding in 2004. Paul is responsible for many of the GBQ’s performance editions of Renaissance music as well as developing the GBQ’s concert and educational programming. Paul is on the music faculty at Carthage College. In addition to the trombone, Paul also performs on euphonium and the Renaissance sackbut, a reproduction of a trombone from 1632. Paul holds a Bachelors degree cum laude from the Northwestern University School of Music and a Masters Degree from the Chicago College of Performing Arts. Paul studied trombone with Frank Crisafulli, Lawrence Borden, Mark Lawrence, Jay Friedman, Michael Mulcahy, and Dean McCarty. Paul lives in Evanston, IL with his wife Carrie, his son Christopher Daniel (2006) and his daughter Chloe Elizabeth (2008).