By Wednesday April 10, 2013
BRATTLEBORO -- Declan Nerney had never met the man before. But the 7-year-old loved how cool the stranger's musical instrument looked.
Renowned trombonist Dick Nash was eating his continental breakfast at the Hampton Inn on Putney Road Tuesday and got his instrument from his room to play a few notes for anyone within earshot. After enjoying the free music, the four members of the Nerney family started to head back to their room when Nash's friend Shelly Balloon noticed something adorable -- little Declan mimicking Nash's hand motions as if playing an air trombone.
Nash and Balloon invited the Nerneys over to their table, where Nash offered for Declan to give the instrument a try. Declan took a few attempts before successfully producing a solid sound, putting a smile on the face of his mother Natalie, father Matthew and 4-year-old sister Finn.
It was as though Nash, 85, had for a moment stepped back in time more than seven decades to the day when he was a starry-eyed youngster admiring the contorted beauty of a brass instrument. He later started playing seriously when he was a 10-year-old boy at Kurn Hattin Homes for Children in Westminster and he was back this week for his alma mater's annual jazz invitational set for today at 7 p.m.
The event will boast performances by the Bellows Falls Union High School Jazz Ensemble, Kurn Hattin Jazz Ensemble, Northfield Mount Hermon Jazz Ensemble, Vermont Academy Jazz Ensemble, and Vermont Jazz Center Youth Jazz Ensemble. It will be hosted by Eugene Uman, director of the Vermont Jazz Center, and will conclude with a performance by the Keene Jazz Orchestra under the direction of Scott Mullett.
Read more: http://www.reformer.com/ci_22991540/jazz-invitational-kurn-hattin-alumnus-dick-nash-hits?source=rss_viewed
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