Bruce Briney received his musical education from the University of Illinois and Northwestern
University where he earned a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts in
Performance. His primary teachers (trumpet) include David Hickman and Vincent Cichowicz with
additional studies from Arnold Jacobs, Ray Mase, George Vosburgh, Ray Sasaki and Luther
Didrickson. At Northwestern, he studied wind conducting with John Paynter and orchestral
conducting with Victor Yampolsky.
As the Music Director of the Millar Brass Ensemble (resident brass ensemble at Alice Millar
Chapel, Northwestern University), Briney recorded and released five compact discs on the Crystal,
Koss, Premiere and RMC record labels. During his tenure, the ensemble commissioned over twenty new
works for large brass ensemble and performed clinic/concerts at the International Trumpet
Guild Convention (1994, 1987), the International Trombone Workshop (1988), the New York Brass
Conference (1989), the Mid-West International Band and Orchestra Convention (1986), and the
Texas Music Educators Convention (1993). In 1990, he became the conductor of the Illinois Brass
Band, a community ensemble founded in the English brass band tradition and sponsored by the Boosey
and Hawkes Corporation. With his relocation to Macomb and WIU, he co-founded and directed the
Macomb Brass Band for five years.
Briney received WIU's Outstanding Teaching Award from the College of Fine Arts and Communication
in 2001. Amazon.com distributes his new solo trumpet CD, Time Passages. The Journal of the
International Trumpet Guild describes the recording as ". . . beautifully performed in
every aspect from tone color to technique."
His articles on the historical development of the trumpet are published in the Journal of the
International Trumpet Guild. As a trumpeter, Briney is a member of the Quad Cities Symphony,
the Knox-Galesburg Symphony and has performed with the Savannah Symphony Orchestra, the
Peninsula Music Festival (Door County, WI), the Illinois Philharmonic, Symphony of the Shores,
the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and the Spoleto Festival Brass Quintet. Previous teaching
positions include Roosevelt University and
Bradley University. WIU appointment 1993
