Stuart Laughton
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Stuart John Laughton (born August 19, 1951, St. Catharines, Ontario
St. Catharines, Ontario
St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in Ontario, Canada, with 97.11 square kilometres of land...
) is a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
musician, record company owner and new music advocate.
In his youth, Laughton studied trumpet with Joseph Umbrico in Toronto and became one of the original members of the Canadian Brass
Canadian Brass
The Canadian Brass is a brass quintet founded by Dr. Charles Daellenbach and Gene Watts in 1970. In addition to maintaining a heavy international touring schedule, the Canadian Brass have recorded over 80 CDs and DVDs...
in 1970 at the age of 19. Laughton left the group to continue his studies with Gilbert Johnson at the Curtis Institute of Music
Curtis Institute of Music
The Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in Opera, and Professional Studies Certificate in Opera. According to statistics compiled by U.S...
in Philadelphia. In 1973, while still a student at Curtis, Laughton was appointed principal trumpet of La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
Opera, by Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , is an Italian conductor. He has served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Vienna State Opera,...
.
Returning to Canada, Laughton established a reputation as a trumpet concerto soloist (with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Toronto Symphony Orchestra
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario.-History:The TSO was founded in 1922 as the New Symphony Orchestra, and gave its first concert at Massey Hall in April 1923. The orchestra changed its name to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in 1927. The TSO...
, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Its primary concert venue is the Centennial Concert Hall, and the orchestra also performs throughout the province of Manitoba.-History:...
, Les Violons du Roy
Les Violons du Roy
Les Violons du Roy is a French-Canadian chamber orchestra based in Québec City, Québec. The orchestra's principal venue is the Palais Montcalm in Québec City. The orchestra also performs concerts in Montréal at the Place des Arts, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and St...
, Esprit Orchestra
Esprit Orchestra
The Esprit Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto dedicated to the performance of new classical works. It was established in 1983 by director Alex Pauk and is Canada's only full-sized orchestra devoted exclusively to new music. Currently, there are 45 full time members...
) and chamber musician (Laughton & O'Meara, True North Brass). He founded Opening Day Recordings in 1993 as a means of promoting Canadian music and musicians. Six of the twenty-five discs he released were nominated for Canadian Juno Award
Juno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
s.
After a 32-year absence, Laughton rejoined the Canadian Brass in 2003, performing with the ensemble over a 2 year period. He recorded three CDs with the Brass and, during this time, also released a solo recording entitled "Remembrance" on the Marquis Classics label.
R. Murray Schafer
R. Murray Schafer
Raymond Murray Schafer is a Canadian composer, writer, music educator and environmentalist perhaps best known for his World Soundscape Project, concern for acoustic ecology, and his book The Tuning of the World...
dedicated his composition The Falcon's Trumpet (Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra) to Laughton and in 2007 Laughton became president of Schafer's Patria Music/Theatre Projects.
Laughton is also a member of Toronto roots, country, folk, R&B band Porkbelly Futures
Porkbelly Futures
Porkbelly Futures is a Canadian musical group. Although originally formed as a Chicago blues band in homage to Paul Butterfield, they soon opened themselves to other influences and began creating original work in a roots/country/folk/r'n'b mode...
, in which he plays guitar, harmonica, mandolin and pedal steel guitar.
Laughton currently lives in Burlington, Ontario and, along with his other pursuits, performs with the Canadian Brass as part of the Brass' "Trumpet Dream Team," a rotation of players which also includes Ronald Romm, Ryan Anthony
Ryan Anthony
Ryan Anthony is a trumpet player, most notable for his performances as a member of Canadian Brass, has had his performances used in many broadcasts of major U.S. television networks.-History:...
, Jeroen Berwaerts, Manon Lafrance and Brandon Ridenour.