Brett Stemple
Dr Brett Stemple, Yong Siew Toh’s Vice Dean of Ensembles, Research & Professional Awareness was Appointed Associate Professor of Music at the Conservatory in 2017, where he also serves as the Head of the Brass & Percussion area. In his ensembles role at YST, Brett is particularly proud of steering the evolution of the YST Orchestral Institute, a creative musicians’ laboratory, designed as an innovative forum for conservatory-level orchestral training. As part of his research portfolio, he has convened three international artistic research symposia hosted by the Conservatory, Performer’s Voice, Horizons Crossing Boundaries in 2012, and Performers(‘) Present in 2016 and 2019, as well as coordinating research activity more generally within YST. Brett also oversees Year 1 and 2 undergraduate curricular activity, including core music modules and professional awareness.
Brett Stemple has served as a pioneering force in a number of key Southeast Asian musical institutions: in addition to first joining YST as Artist Faculty, Tuba, in 2004 (only the second year of the Conservatory’s existence), Brett was a founding member of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO). Appointed by MPO’s founding Music Director, Maestro Kees Bakels, Brett served the Orchestra as the Section Principal Tuba for nineteen seasons (1998 – 2017). With the MPO, Brett appears on over 20 recordings on the BIS, Vox, and EMI labels, and was recognised as one of the tonal foundations of the Orchestra’s sound: “amongst the outstanding brass players, the tubist is particularly worth mentioning” (Klassik.com). Brett was also a leading member of MPO’s Education and Outreach program, an active MPO Chamber Player, and in addition to regular solo responsibilities as the principal tubist was twice featured as a concerto soloist with the Orchestra.
Brett received conservatory training at the Eastman School of Music, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in tuba performance (with a minor in philosophy), summa cum laude in 1990. After receiving a Music Fellowship from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music – where he obtained his Master’s degree with renowned tuba pedagogue Provost Professor Daniel Perantoni – Brett continued advanced study with Perantoni, graduating with a Doctor of Music degree in Tuba Performance and Pedagogy. His research focus includes investigating the intersection of “Flow” psychology with traditional brass pedagogy, particularly in the areas of brass study within a 21st-century conservatory context.
Dr Brett is a Buffet Crampon Artist, performing on the excellent Melton Meinl Weston and B&S tubas.
