Celebrating the Life of Fred Mills
A video podcast version of Fred's memorial is available in three parts. The latest version of quicktime is required:
W. Fred Mills
Mills was born in Guelph, Canada, and began his brass studies on a cornet purchased from a traveling salesman. He studied at the Juilliard School in New York City and went on to play with the American Symphony Orchestra, the Symphony of the Air, the New York City Ballet Orchestra, Musica Aeterna Orchestra of the Metropolitan Museum, the Marlboro Festival Orchestra, the Casals Festival Orchestra, and the New York City Opera Orchestra.
A founding member of the Canadian Brass, he joined the UGA School of Music brass faculty in September 1996. The Canadian Brass originally began by working for the board of education in Toronto through performing for young people in the schools and establishing a brass chamber music program at the Banff School of Music in the Canadian Rockies. As a professor of trumpet and brass chamber music, Mills continued that long-standing commitment to music education. He remained active in faculty and student brass chamber ensembles at UGA as performer, arranger, and coach.
Mills performed for 25 years in the great concert halls of Europe, North America, and Asia and made more than 40 recordings as a member of the Canadian Brass on the ACA, RCA, Sony, BMG, and Philips labels. He was instrumental in changing the standard repertoire for brass chamber music with more than 50 arrangements and transcriptions for the quintet, including the Toccata and Fugue in D minor by J.S. Bach. During his 25 years with the quintet, the Canadian Brass was recognized as the world’s premier brass ensemble.
At UGA, in addition to teaching and performing, Mills also coached a graduate brass quintet, the Bulldog Brass Society, which is comprised of graduate assistants specifically selected in a national competition.
In 2001, he was named first recipient of the William F. and Pamela P. Prokasy Professorship in the Arts.
Make a Gift to the W. Fred Mills Award
Many talented students came to University of Georgia to study trumpet with the master. This memorial fund to support students will be a fitting tribute. Tax deductible gifts to The W. Fred Mills Award can be made by check or credit card. Make checks payable to the Arch Foundation, and write "W. Fred Mills Award" in the memo line. Send checks to Suzi Wong (gifts officer for the Hugh Hodgson School of Music) c/o HHSOM 250 River Road, Athens 30602. To make donations via credit card, please visit our Make a Gift page and follow all links; at the checkout point, in the box for indicating special designation, write "in memory of Fred Mills."
