Lertkiat Chongjirajitra, Trumpet
“Stunning Trumpet Solo (of Mahler 5th Symphony) played by Lertkiat Chongjirajitra particularly worthy of note” The Nation 2009
“Lertkiat had a light virtuoso touch and played (Haydn Concerto) with much brilliance. He had clearly studied the work” The Nation 2005
“Let the Bright Seraphim was just a knockout. The soprano who sang that was superb, and together with the trumpet, as a duet, they were as virtuosic as the best performance I’ve heard in New York. You really can’t get better.” said Dan Write after performance on June 2008, in Bangkok.
[dropcap size=small]L[/dropcap]ertkiat, an only Thailand Yamaha Trumpet Artist, is currently a Principal Trumpet of Bangkok Symphony Orchestra, Galyani Vadhana Institute Orchestra and Trumpet Professor and Assistant Dean for Activity Affairs at Faculty of Music, Silpakorn University. He performs regularly as a guest Principal Trumpet for National Symphony Orchestras both Thailand and Malaysia, as well as with KL International Festival Orchestra (Malaysia), Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Siam Philharmonic Orchestra (Thailand), Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra (China), Macao Orchestra, National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra and Nusantara Symphony Orchestra (Indonesia). Lertkiat is also a founded member, leader and manager of Bangkok Brass Quintet since 1999, a member of Paramount Brass and Trumpet & Brass Coach for Thai Youth Orchestra for 9 years since 1998, and Trumpet Instructor at The Faculty of Education, Chulalongkorn University since 2003. And the latest, he serves as a Music Director and the Conductor of the Bangkok Silpakorn Wind Orchestra that he has found in 2008.He has appeared as a soloist with The Bangkok Symphony Orchestra as well as Nusantara Symphony Orchestra, Chulalongkorn University Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Galyani Vadhana Institute Orchestra, Siam Philharmonic Orchestra, Catholic High School Band, Bangkok Silpakorn Wind Orchestra, Hong Kong Chamber Wind Philharmonia, Silpakorn University Wind Orchestra, 2005 and 2010 International Trumpet Guild Conference. Lertkiat has also appeared as an artist in The Thailand Brass Festival, The International Trumpet Guild Conference and The Thailand Brass and Percussion Conference. Lertkiat has also appeared as a performer and instructor not only in Thailand, but also in United States, Australia, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia. He has appeared with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra since 2000, as well as Asean-Japan Symphony Orchestra in 2003 and Hong Kong Wind Philharmonia. And the latest with Sydney Symphony and Macao Orchestras. After the solo performance with the Hong Kong Academy Symphony Orchestra, Asian Youth Orchestra’s director Richard Pontzious said:
“He made it very much worth venturing out into the heat and high humidity. He was poised, relaxed and professional. His tone was well-focused, articulation clean and spot on”.
Lertkiat has also appeared as a performer and instructor not only in Thailand, but also in United States, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia. And while Lertkiat was studying in Hong Kong, he has appeared with The City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong and The Hong Kong Soloist as well as the Saturday’s Night Jazz Orchestra. And 2005, not only performed as a soloist but he also served as a judge for the National Band Competition and in the ITG Youth Competition at the 2005 Bangkok Conference.
Born in Bangkok, Thailand, Lertkiat started playing trumpet in 1987 with Wichai Yongvanitjit at Assumption College. Later, he had entered to Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts, Chulalongkorn University and graduated with an honor in Composition major under instruction by Professor Dr. Narongrit Dhamabutra. He had taken lessons and master classes with several world famous trumpeters such as Wynton Marsalis, Stephen Burns, Henry Nowak, Pierre Dutot, Dan Mendelow, Rob Roy McGregor, Dave Monette, James Thompson, Douglas Prosser, Konradin Groth, Mark Gould, Thomas Stevens, Jon Dante, Zdeněk Šedivý and Håkan Hardenberger. In September 2000, he was awarded scholarship to studying at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts under Laurence Gargan, currently is a Principal Trumpet of the Singapore Symphony.
Since 1996, he had been participating with the Asian Youth Orchestra (AYO) for Asian, European, North American and Australian tour with Maestro Sirgiu Comissiona and Maestro Richard Pontzious. Lertkiat studied trumpet with Professor Edmund Cord and Edward Hoffman during his seven summers with AYO. He also was selected to perform in the World Association Symphonic Band Festival with International Youth Winds Orchestra in Japan in 1995 and also taken windband-conducting workshop with Donald Hunsberger and orchestra-conducting workshop with Koji Kawamoto and Hikotaro Yazaki. Latest Conducting workshop was in Singapore with Maestro Douglas Bostock in the 2008 Singapore Band Festival. And in 2005, he has just finished the first trumpet exercises and routines book ever in Thailand. In March 2004, he was a host of the first Bangkok Trumpet and Brass Festival and later the Thailand Brass Festival in 2006, the 2007 Thailand Summer Brass Academy, and latest, the 2009 Thailand Brass Festival. Lertkiat has performed as a principal trumpet in the 2007 Canton International Summer Music Academy (CISMA) in China, with CISMA Orchestra under batons of Charles Dutoit and Yan Pascal Tortelier. In December 2007, Lertkiat has performed in Chamber Recital as part of Eastman School Music Recital in New York, USA. Since 2007, he has been doing a lot of Educational Works with Siam Music Yamaha for young Thai musicians through out the country. To know more or follow Lertkiat, please log on to www.lertkiat.com,www.facebook.com/lertkiatdotcom or @lertkiat on twitter.