Themes and Meditations – Mark Hetzler & Martha Fischer

“…Hetzler is so good…one of the world’s great trombone players…” -American Record Guide

As a member of the Empire Brass Quintet from 1996-2012, Mark performed in recital and as a soloist with symphony orchestras across the world.

Themes and Meditations is Mark’s 11th CD release on the Summit Records label. His 8th recording They Said… came out in March 2015 and features his experimental jazz/rock quartet Sinister Resonance, with rock, modern classical and improv-based musical styles. Mark’s recording Blues, Ballads and Beyond: Influences Outside the Concert Hall features jazz and commercially influenced music by contemporary classical composers, and was released in November of 2015. His 10th Summit recording, titled Dig., features contemporary chamber music in classical and rock styles, and was released in November of 2016.

Active in the creation of new music, Mark has worked with composers in some of the leading new music research studios around the world. In 2004 he commissioned NYU Professor Dr. Robert Rowe to write a composition that utilizes a computer program that Dr. Rowe created, in which the computer listens and responds to the live performer. In another collaborative effort, University of Oregon composer Chester Udell composed Brass Alchemist for Mr. Hetzler, a work that incorporates a variety of technological applications, including MAX software. After a successful premiere at the New York Electro-Acoustic Music Festival, the work went on to win the First Prize in Composition at the 2010 Society for Electro-Acoustic Music’s yearly festival in St. Cloud, MN. Recent commissions include new works from composers David Vayo, Ben Davis and Mark Engebretson. In addition, Mark is active as a composer and arranger, fusing classical styles with many non-classical influences.