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t’s like an idyllic story right out of a children’s book. A 10-year-
old boy was “told” to play the tuba because he was the tallest
in his class in Methilhill, Scotland. The school’s janitor wanted
to form a band and the boy, along with nine other students,
became the band’s musicians. This experience eventually
propelled him into winning awards, and later he would become
an internationally renowned conductor and tuba soloist.
But this is the real-life story of Dr. James Gourlay, who has
been the artistic and general director of Pittsburgh’s River City
Brass (RCB) since 2010.
“I have just passed the seven-year itch mark at RCB,” laughs
Gourlay, in his charming Scottish brogue. “I haven’t had any
reason to scratch any itches.”
Gourlay holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the
University of Salford, an MMus from the University of Leeds
and is a Fellow of the Royal Northern College of Music and
the London College of Music. He has also been honored by
the Worshipful Company of Musicians, which conferred upon
him the John Henry Iles Medal for services to the brass band
movement.
RCB wrote to Gourlay in 2009 offering him the job as music
director.
“I quickly wrote back, ‘No,’” laughs Gourlay. “At that time,
I was very much a freelance conductor, but I said I would be
interested in doing some concerts with RCB if they needed a
guest conductor. And so they did, and I came to Pittsburgh and
worked for three weeks with the band. They persuaded me that
it was a good idea to stay with them as their musical director, so I
did—and it was a good idea.”
The city of Pittsburgh also sold Gourlay and his wife, Lea, on
his new position.
“We had no idea that Pittsburgh was such a beautiful city,”
says Gourlay, who resides on Mount Washington. “After my wife
came over for a visit from the UK and saw the city, she told me to
reconsider taking the job. We still like living in the city very, very
much.”
Some of the many highlights of Gourlay’s career include
performing with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra,
the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Zurich
Opera. He was a member of the Philip Jones and English Brass
ensembles with which he has toured the world, and he also
continues to perform as a soloist extensively.
With such an impressive resume, many would think Gourlay
might put his artistic pursuits first, and then consider the needs
of the audience. But that isn’t who Gourlay is.
“Without the audience, we are nothing,” he explains. “We play
for them; otherwise we might as well sit in our front rooms and
make a noise with our instruments. All too often, artists and arts
groups forget that people are not there to be educated—they
are there for an evening of entertainment and they want to be
uplifted. We don’t want people to sit there in their suits and just
“What I appreciate most about the
concerts is that they are fun, they offer a
bit of the unexpected, and everyone in the
audience seems to enjoy them so much.”
consume the music—listening to Beethoven again and again. We
want to interact with them and want them to go home happy,
with a spring in their step.”
The mission of RCB, a 28-member band founded in 1981, is
to entertain, educate and engage citizens locally, nationally and
internationally in the American musical culture.
Locally, the band presents 51 regional concerts over seven
months to citizens at seven regional venues, and maintains an
acclaimed youth band and Saturday Music Program.
Nationally, it has routinely conducted concerts at venues
including Pennsylvania’s Musikfest, New York’s Chautauqua
Institution, Michigan’s Interlochen Center for the Arts, Indiana’s
Conner Prairie, and North Carolina’s Thalian Hall. With
appearances on NBC’s “Today Show” and NPR’s “Performance
Today,” RCB also tours internationally every several years.
Gourlay chooses the material the RCB performs based on
audience preferences. He spends the concert intermissions
receiving feedback from them.
“We have an incredibly loyal audience,” he notes. “We have
original audiences who were at the very first concert in 1981—
that is amazing! I don’t think there is another arts group that has
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Some of the upcoming RCB concerts will be held at the following locations. To find out more
information on concerts and purchasing tickets, visit the website at rivercitybrass.org.
Carson Middle School
200 Hillvue Lane, McCandless The Palace Theatre
21 West Otterman Street, Greensburg
Linton Middle School
250 Aster Street, Penn Hills Upper St. Clair High School
1825 McLaughlin Run Road, Upper St. Clair
Upper St. Clair | Winter 2017 | icmags.com 47