Cardinal Brass Quintet releases debut album
The Cardinal Brass Quintet, Â鶹ӳ»Ó°Òô’s faculty brass ensemble, released its debut album, “Hope Over Troubled Waters,” Friday through Centaur Records. 
The 10-track album features works by Madeline A. Lee, Joel Love, David F. Wilborn, Nick Rissman, Cait Nishimura and Marcus S. Grant. The collection explores “resilience, community, environment, remembrance, and renewal” while reflecting “the culture, landscape, and enduring spirit of the Gulf Coast,” according to a release.
A centerpiece of the album is “Third Coast Stories,” a five-movement work commissioned for the quintet by Â鶹ӳ»Ó°Òô alumnus Joel Love. The piece tells “a distinctly Lamar and Southeast Texas story,” moving from an homage to the university through jazz- and bayou-inspired sounds, hurricanes and recovery before concluding with “a forward-looking celebration of Lamar’s next century.” Trombonist Timothy Dueppen is featured in “Caston St. Blues.”
Gulf Coast themes continue in Wilborn’s “Gulf Coast Troubled Waters,” which captures “gathering winds and storm-tossed energy” before settling into calm.
The album also explores themes beyond the region. Nishimura’s “With Sorrow,” from “Valley Views,” reflects on wildfire-scarred landscapes and disappearing waters, while Grant’s “Ascension” pays tribute to community service and provides what the release calls a “powerful and uplifting conclusion.”
Together, the works create “a musical journey through storm and solace, memory and momentum, loss and renewal,” while offering “a broader message about the ability of communities to endure, rebuild, and look toward the future.”
Recorded in July 2025 at Legacy Hall in Columbus, Georgia, the album marks the quintet’s first full-length recording.
The Cardinal Brass Quintet consists of Jared Broussard and Lance Witty, trumpet; Maxwell Paulus, horn; Timothy Dueppen, trombone; and Victor Gomez, tuba.
“Hope Over Troubled Waters” is available on Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Naxos Music Library and other major streaming platforms.
should we list a date here?