Sidney Mear

Sidney Mear (June 23, 1918 – March 13, 2016) was an American trumpet player and professor at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York.^[1] He studied with cornet legends such as Herbert L. Clarke and Bohumir Kryl as a child and later with Pattee Evenson at the Eastman School.^[2] He was a member of the Rochester Philharmonic from 1940 - 1968, serving as principal trumpet from 1949-1968. During his career, he performed under some of the world's most prominent conductors/composers, including Igor Stravinsky, Erich Leinsdorf, Eugene Ormandy, Carlos Chavez, Jose Iturbi, Sir Thomas Beecham, Fritz Reiner, Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, and Dmitri Mitropoulos.

In 1936, at the age of 18, he joined the famous Horace Heidt and his Brigadiers big band as lead trumpet, upon the recommendation of Herbert L. Clarke. His solo performances were featured on many national radio broadcasts, including the hit number "Hot Lips", which was recorded in one take, without rehearsal. ^[3] He performed with Frank Holton (founder of the Holton Instrument Company) and was a soloist with the Karl King Band at an American Bandmasters Association Convention. He also performed with Edwin Franko Goldman's 60-piece band during the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition in San Francisco.^[3]

When he turned 19, Mear accepted a scholarship to attend the Rochester, New York based Eastman School of Music and pursued his ambition to play in a symphony orchestra. ^[4] He joined the Rochester Philharmonic three years later, in 1940.^[2] His music is featured on recordings with the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra on the Mercury Living Presence record label. The CDs include classic solo performances in Samuel Barber’s Capricorn Concerto, Copland’s Quiet City, and Leroy Anderson’s Trumpeter’s Lullaby, which was also recorded in a single take, without rehearsal.^[2] From 1940 through 1942, Mear was also a member of and recorded with the Orquesta Sinfonica de Mexico under Carlos Chavez and in 1946 toured the United States and Canada with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy.^[3] During World War II Mear served with the 184th Army Ground Forces Band and later was transferred to the First Combat Infantry Band (FCIB) in Washington, D.C., under Chester E. Whiting. FCIB evolved into the United States Army Field Band.

Sidney Mear was married to Elizabeth Irvine Fetter and had five children, Linda (deceased), Karen, Robert, David and Peter. His father, Samuel Edgar Mear, was a cornetist and composer, and one of the earliest members of the American Bandmasters Association. ^[3]

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