Duff Masterclass
June 11-15, 2007
In June 1982, Cloyd Duff presented his first Timpani Masterclass. In the years since, the class has become an annual event, attracting timpanists from across the country and around the world. Students and teachers, amateur and professionals alike have come to the class to learn about the Duff school of playing... an approach to the instrument that earned the late Cloyd Duff a reputation as one of the finest timpanists of the twentieth century, known the world over for his beautiful, singing sound and his flawless musicianship.
The class covers every aspect of the Cloyd Duff school, from the fundamentals of technique, to the most advanced orchestral repertoire. The traditions of this great class have been preserved and several new sessions added: the specifics of instrument maintenance, stick making, calf head tucking, changing and clearing heads, and a new, week long audition program.
In 1999, Cloyd Duff asked Jim Atwood, his assistant at these classes for many years, to take over the direction of the masterclass program, saying: “Under Jim’s direction, I expect that this class will continue to flourish for another two decades!” Joining Jim once again this summer are two renowned guest artists, both former students of Cloyd Duff: Tim Adams from the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Tom Freer of the Cleveland Orchestra.
For class schedule and application form, please download the Duff_brochure_2007.pdf (This form was created in Adobe Acrobat 5.0. If you have problems opening it, please update your Acrobat Reader to the current version. http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html ) .