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Mead Witter School of Music Guest Artist Series

Brett Copeland, tuba and composer
Alexander W. Ravitz, bass clarinet

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Program 

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Dr. Brett Copeland is a tuba player, educator, composer, and music technologist that holds the position of Associate Adjunct Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at the University of Northern Iowa where he teaches Applied Lessons, Low Brass Techniques, directs the UNITUBA ensemble, and teaches a course on Electronic Composition. He previously held the position of Adjunct Lecturer of Tuba and Euphonium at the University of Texas at Tyler while living in Dallas and teaching a private studio of low brass students. He’s maintained an active performance career playing with groups such as: NewStream Brass, the Dallas Brass Band, Flower City Brass, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra, Symphoria (Syracuse, NY), the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra (Buffalo, NY), and has held the position of Principal Tuba with the Venice Symphony (FL), Ash Lawn Opera (VA), and the South Shore Symphony Orchestra (FL).

Brett earned a DMA in Tuba Performance and Literature with a Certificate in Arts Leadership from the Eastman School of Music (’20) where he was a Teaching Assistant for both the Tuba Studio and the Eastman Audio Research Studio. His primary teachers have been Don Harry, Jay Hunsberger, and Dr. Jeff Funderburk.

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​​Alexander W. Ravitz is an Undergraduate Academic Counselor at the University of North Texas College of Music. In addition to his appointment at UNT he is a clarinetist based out of Denton, TX. Alexander is currently principal bass clarinetist with the Fort Smith Symphony.  As an active freelance musician, Alexander has performed with ensembles including Naples Philharmonic, The Florida Orchestra, Venice Symphony, and Sarasota Opera. Alexander is also an avid free improviser working with groups such as The Jamison Williams Trio and CRUX in performances and cd recordings of fully improvised music.

Alexander is currently an all but dissertation candidate at the University of North Texas in pursuit of a doctorate of musical arts degree in clarinet performance. He holds a bachelor of music degree in clarinet performance from the University of Louisville and a master of music degree in clarinet performance and instrumental conducting from the University of South Florida. Alexander taught a private studio of collegiate, high school, and middle school students from Hillsborough and Pinellas counties in Florida and Denton ISD in Texas before his appointment at UNT. Alexander’s students are regularly accepted to All-state and All-county/region bands, and have received scholarships to study at prestigious music schools across the country.

As a soloist, Alexander has been a guest recitalist at festivals around the country, most recently at the International Clarinet Association’s New Music Weekend. As a contemporary collaborator, he has worked on many projects with visual artists, and dance companies including Rouge Dance and COBY Dance. As an advocate for new music, Alexander regularly appears in performances ranging from solo clarinet and chamber recitals performing in new-music concerts featuring the music of such composers as Vera Ivanova, Tyler Kline, Rachel Yoder, David Liptak, Wendy Wan-ki Lee, Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon and Joseph Halmann. Alexander’s most recent commissioning project, liveoak for solo clarinet by Tyler Kline, was a consortium he led of over 50 clarinetists and supporters of new music.

Alexander’s primary teachers have been Kimberly C. Luevano, Phillip O. Paglialonga, Calvin Falwell, Dallas Tidwell, and Scott Ellington.