There aren’t many all-female professional brass groups out there in the world – and one is coming to Bethel.
Seraph Brass will be doing a two-day residency at the college, working with Chris Miertschin, director of bands, and his students.
Seraph will give a free concert Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. in Krehbiel Auditorium in Luyken Fine Arts Center.
They will have an open rehearsal in Krehbiel Auditorium the evening before, Nov. 17, starting between 6 and 7 p.m., and will work with students during the day Nov. 18.
Trumpet soloist Mary Elizabeth Bowden founded Seraph Brass, now in its 12th season, with a mission to showcase the excellence of women brass players and highlight musicians from marginalized groups, in both personnel and programming.
Core artists are Bowden and Morgen Low on trumpet, Layan Atieh on horn, Lauren Casey-Clyde on trumpet and Robyn Black on tuba, with a dozen additional guest artists joining at various times in various combinations.
Seraph has performed around the world, from China and South Korea to Mexico and Peru, as well as all over the United States.
The group plays a diverse body of repertoire, ranging from original transcriptions to newly commissioned works and core classics. They have commissioned pieces by Grammy® winner Jeff Scott, as well as Jennifer Jolley, Joseph Hallman, Catherine McMichael, Marcus Grant and Rene Orth.
Seraph commissioned and premiered Jolley’s Dust for brass quintet and wind ensemble, and performed it with various ensembles across the United States.
Other concerto performances have included Rick DeJonge’s Prelude and Fantasy, James Stephenson’s Dodecafecta, “Suite” from Mass by Leonard Bernstein, and Anthony DiLorenzo’s Chimera.
Seraph released a new album earlier this year with Tower Grove Records, showcasing new works for brass quintet and featuring compositions by Jeff Scott, Reena Esmail, Kevin Day and Kevin McKee.
Members of Seraph Brass are dedicated music educators who teach at the University of North Texas, Shenandoah Conservatory, Texas State University and Texas Lutheran University.
In each of their tours, the group works to provide educational outreach to local schools. They also offer a variety of entrepreneurship and career development workshops in addition to traditional brass pedagogy and technique classes.
Seraph members have performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Daejeon Philharmonic and many other ensembles – as well as with pop superstar Adele on a recent North American tour.
Bethel is a four-year liberal arts college founded in 1887 and is the oldest Mennonite college in North America. Bethel is ranked #25 in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Regional College Midwest for 2026. Bethel was the only Kansas college or university to be named a Truth, Community Healing and Transformation (TCHT) Campus Center, in 2021. For more information, see www.bethelks.edu
