James Box, the principal trombone player of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, played an amazing recital on Thursday, Sept. 16, in the Harriet Fulton Theatre at UTM.

Box, a native of Ripley, at one time took private lessons at UTM. But what brings him here now? UTM was his last stop on a tour of six colleges in the Southeast, including Memphis, Austin Peay, MTSU, Ole Miss and Tennessee Tech.

Box was accompanied on piano by Olivier Godin, a graduate of the Montreal Conservatory of Music. Together they transported the audience inside the Fulton Theatre into a world of musical bliss with a performance of the Sonata (Vox Gabrieli) by Stjepan Sulek, a standard in the world of trombone.

He also showed how truly technically and musically advanced he is with pieces such as Ballade by Eugene Bozza and the Eric Ewazen sonata.

As an encore, Box performed Thoughts of Love by Arthur Pryor in which he incorporated Tennessee Waltz into his final cadenza.

Earlier that day, Box held a master class in the theatre where more than 60 students, faculty and guests watched him play and instruct two of UTM’s low-brass students. All in all, UTM has truly received a musical gift from James Box and Olivier Godin that will not be forgotten any time soon.