Ronald Bishop (1934-2013)

Oral History of Robert LeBlanc

Robert LeBlanc was raised in Port Arthur, Texas, and attended Lamar University in Beaumont, where he studied with trumpeter Richard Burkart. After graduating from Lamar, Mr. LeBlanc attended the Eastman School of Music on an Orchestral Scholarship, studying with trombonist Donald Knaub and earning an M.M. in music education.  Mr. LeBlanc also studied privately with Arnold Jacobs.

Mr. LeBlanc taught in the Dayton, Texas public school system for several years, and then returned to upstate New York where he was Director of Instrumental Music for the Oneonta public schools, performed in, and was assistant conductor of the Oneonta Symphony Orchestra, and taught at Hartwick College.

Hired as Professor of Tuba by The Ohio State University in 1966, Mr. LeBlanc also held conducting and administrative positions at the University.  He served as conductor of the Buckeye Bands from 1966-1975, Associate Conductor of the University Symphony Orchestra from 1968-1970, Associate Conductor of the Concert Band from 1971-1979, Conductor of the Symphonic Band in 1989 and 1993.  He performed in the faculty brass quintet, and substituted for Paul Bierley and James Akins in the Columbus Symphony.

His administrative responsibilities included Chairman of the Faculty Committee from 1973-1975, Head of the Brass Faculty from 1973-1976, and Chairman of Music Performance from 1976-1989.  He also taught as Visiting Professor of Tuba at the University of Michigan from 1995-1996.

Beginning with his introduction to the Sousaphone in 8^th grade in Port Arthur, Texas, LeBlanc describes his educational experiences in Texas, New York, and with Arnold Jacobs in Chicago.  As an undergraduate, LeBlanc was fortunate to locate a 1927 York CC tuba, and it has been the only instrument he used (or needed) for his entire career. 

At Lamar, LeBlanc studied composition with Paul Holmes, who wrote the solo Lento for LeBlanc’s graduation recital.  Holmes also composed a tuba trio with band accompaniment for LeBlanc, and fellow Burkart students J. Lesley Varner, and Toby Hanks, which was performed at a Texas Music Educators Conference and is, as yet, unpublished.  Mr. LeBlanc earned his master’s degree from the Eastman School of Music and discusses his experience there, some of his fellow students,  and Donald Knaub’s teaching. 

While living in Texas, and in later years, LeBlanc would travel to Chicago to study with Arnold Jacobs.  Leblanc comments on Jacobs’ pedagogical techniques, and on some of Jacobs’ Chicago Symphony colleagues.  One trip to Chicago coincided with the Chicago Symphony’s recording Alexander Nevsky with Fritz Reiner, and LeBlanc’s lesson took place in a room behind the stage, during a session where Mr. Jacobs was not required.

Mr. LeBlanc speaks of his own teaching style, and his many students, who include: Fritz Kaenzig, James Akins, Mickey Moore, Jeffrey Rideout, Jan Duga,  Charles Schulz, John Jones, Scott MacMorran, Steven Bryant, and Steven Winteregg, a number of whom returned to O.S.U. to perform at a concert in honor of LeBlanc’s quarter-century of teaching.

In retirement, LeBlanc plays in a Dixie band, is building a very elaborate stereo system, and breeds and shows Border Terriers and Labrador Retrievers.

-Carole Nickowe

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Ron Bishop is currently a faculty member at the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music. He stresses the tuba’s lyrical quality and special sound and feels strongly about changing the misconception that the tuba is an “oom-pah” instrument. To younger students, he has recreated the role of “Tubby the Tuba” and demonstrates the genealogy of the instrument by playing sea shells, animal horns, a cardboard tube, a plastic golf club holder and a vacuum cleaner hose. Ron began studying tuba when he was seven, towing it to lessons in his red wagon. His music teacher, Elizabeth (Betty) Hamilton, greatly influenced his choice of instrument and love of music.

In college, Ron excelled in both music and athletics. A New York state diving champion, he earned a Bachelor of Music degree and a Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, and a Master of Science degree from the University of Illinois. He has studied with Roy Thrall, Donald Knaub, Robert Gray, and the late Chicago Symphony Orchestra tubist Arnold Jacobs.

From 1967 to 2005, Ron served as principal tuba of the Cleveland Orchestra. Prior to Cleveland, he was principal tuba with the Buffalo Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, and the United States Army Field Band. He has also performed with the Cleveland Symphonic Winds and the Severance
Brass Quintet.

Ron has performed as a soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, and the Heights Chamber Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared in numerous recitals and clinics throughout the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Japan, and the United Kingdom. He has written extensively concerning the tuba and the arts in general, published in the tri-lingual "The Brass Bulletin", "Arnold Jacobs: Legacy of a Master", and he was an associate editor for the "T.U.B.A. Journal" among others. He is also an avid supporter of, and performer with, Performers and Artists for Nuclear Disarmament.
From: International Tuba Euphonium Association Honorary Life Members

Ronald Bishop (1934 – 2013), a native of Rochester, New York, was raised in Rochester, New York, and began playing the tuba at the age of seven.    He earned degrees in music education from the Eastman School of Music (bachelor’s) and the University of Illinois (master’s), and he was a member of the United States Army Field Band.    After his time with the Field Band, he won positions with the Buffalo Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, and the San Francisco Opera.    In 1967 he followed Chester Roberts as principal tubist of the Cleveland Orchestra, a position he held until his retirement in 2005.   He performed on the legendary “Brass of Three Great Orchestras” recording that involved brass colleagues from the Cleveland, Philadelphia, and Chicago Symphonies.   (Tuba colleagues on that recording – also Lifetime Achievement Awardees – were Arnold Jacobs and Abe Torchinsky.)  He was an influential educator and held positions at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Oberlin Conservatory, and Baldwin-Wallace College.    His former students hold major positions in orchestras, military bands, and as professors in colleges and universities across the U.S. and around the world.   A champion of new music, Mr. Bishop regularly commissioned new works and sought out new works written for others and brought them to both local and international audiences.    Over the years he wrote informative articles for a variety of media, including the TUBA Journal.   Mr. Bishop received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the International Tuba – Euphonium Conference held at the University of Arizona in 2010.

-Jerry Young

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