Baylor Trumpets win first (again!) in the National Trumpet Competition

For what is now the fifth time in eight years, Baylor trumpeters have won first place at the National Trumpet Competition!

Every year, the NTC brings in the top young trumpet players from around the country. This year, the Baylor Gold team took first in the small ensemble division at the competition in Kentucky, upholding Baylor’s name as the best in the nation. A special shoutout to the ensemble members: now-junior Joseph Tkach, now-senior Abby Barto, and now-graduates Clare Hogan, Nathan Little, Stephen Spink and Sally Tepper. (As winners of the Semper Pro Musica Competition, too, this ensemble will also be performing May 24 at Carnegie Hall.)

In total, 17 Bears competed at the NTC this year and 14 of them walked away with prizes from the final rounds. The Baylor Bernstein ensemble won second in the large ensemble division, competing against more than 50 other groups. Two Baylor students — Tkach and now-sophomore Cordelia DeDecker — advanced to the final round of soloists, winning second and third in their divisions.

“These results are astounding and have made Baylor Trumpets the most successful studio in NTC history,” says Wiff Rudd, BMED ’77, professor of trumpet and chair of the brass area. “We have 17 students in the trumpet studio. All of them advanced to this competition — 14 of them won prizes in the final rounds. We are so pleased for these students as they truly concentrate more on building relationships and performing, rather than competing.”

Sic ’em, Baylor trumpeters!