Myles Blakemore, a trombone player from Dallas, Texas, and Jason Tanksley, a tuba player from Eastpointe, Michigan, have won positions as the Minnesota Orchestra’s first Rosemary and David Good Fellows. The newly created fellowship is designed to encourage greater diversity in the orchestral field by supporting the career development of outstanding young musicians of African-American, Latino-American, and Native-American descent as they embark on professional orchestral careers. Blakemore and Tanksley will both begin their two-year fellowships in September 2017. They will observe and participate in Minnesota Orchestra rehearsals; perform with the orchestra at selected concerts; study with orchestra musicians; and train and prepare for auditions. The fellows will receive mentoring from Minnesota Orchestra musicians and do education and community engagement work with Minnesota students. Thirty musicians applied for the fellowship position, with eight applicants being invited to audition at Orchestra Hall earlier this month before a committee comprising musicians, staff, and Music Director Osmo Vänskä. Tanksley holds a bachelor’s degree from Detroit’s Wayne State University and a master of music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Blakemore is a graduate of Southern Methodist University and the Manhattan School of Music.
Posted July 6, 2017
