Stone Arch Brass
Dan Fretland is an active freelance trumpet player and instructor in the Twin Cities area. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in trumpet performance and music education from the University of Minnesota and a Master of Arts degree in music education along with an administrative degree from the University of St. Thomas. Dan has performed with The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Minnesota Opera, the Minneapolis Pops Orchestra, the San Francisco Ballet, ICE Ensemble, and Music St. Croix, as well as with Garrison Keilor, Doc Severinsen, Ben Folds, Josh Groban, Johnny Mathis, Michael W. Smith, and Amy Grant, as well as at the Los Angeles Contemporary Music Festival, and the London Jazz Festival.
Martin Hodel, trumpet, is Professor of Music at St. Olaf College and principal trumpet of the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico. He made his Carnegie Hall solo debut in 2016. Hodel played full time in the trumpet section of the Minnesota Orchestra and is heard on three commercial recordings with that group. Hodel frequently performs and tours with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and substitutes with the Pittsburgh Symphony. As Principal Trumpet with the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Hodel toured the U.S. and Japan, and he has toured coast to coast with the Dallas Brass, and China with Rodney Marsalis. He holds a doctorate in trumpet performance and a Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. He has worked as a soloist with conductor Helmuth Rilling and has shared the stage as a soloist with jazz artists Joe Henderson, Maria Schneider, Slide Hampton, Claudio Roditi, David Murray, and Jimmy Heath. Hodel’s first solo CD—with organist Bradley Lehman—is titled In Thee is Gladness. A forthcoming solo recording with St. Olaf faculty, First Light, will be released soon.
Mike Alexander is the Principal Horn of the Minnesota Opera Orchestra and a regular performer with the Minnesota Orchestra and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. For the 2024-2025 season, he will be joining the Baltimore Symphony as acting 3rd horn. In addition to his role as principal horn for almost every ballet and operatic production in Minnesota, Mike regularly plays in Broadway productions such as West Side Story and Wicked. He has also performed with a range of notable acts including The Who, Evanescence, Ben Folds, Kristen Chenoweth, and Weird Al Yankovic. Mike holds a Master’s degree in Horn Performance from the New England Conservatory and a Bachelor’s degree with Artist Diploma from the Eastman School of Music. A passionate educator, Alexander currently teaches horn at the College of Saint Benedict & Saint John’s University, Gustavus Adolphus College, and the MacPhail Center for Music.
Trombonist Larry Zimmerman is a member of the Grammy winning Chestnut Brass Company, and is Principal Trombonist of the Duluth-Superior Symphony Orchestra and the Minneapolis Pops Orchestra. He has performed around Minnesota with many ensembles, including the Minnesota Orchestra and St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Larry is also active in the performance of period brass instruments, including Renaissance sackbuts and 19th Century saxhorns. He enjoys working as a soloist & chamber musician including frequent performances with Music St. Croix, his chamber music group based in Stillwater, MN.
Dr. Paul J. Budde, tuba, is Professor of Music at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, where he chairs the school of music, teaches tuba, music education and world music. An active performer and clinician, he has performed in numberous ensembles, including the Minnesota Orchestra, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, National Lutheran Chorale, Lake Wobegon Brass Band, and VocalEssence. Buddes’ tuba quartet, The Pistons, was the first-place winner of the first-ever International Tuba/Euphonium Quartet Competition. Dr. Budde’s current research centers on the use of the National Music Standards by music educators in Wisconsin and Minnesota. He has released an album titled Practice Room Grooves, which is made up of accompaniment tracks that serve as a means to improve fundamentals during independent practice.
