For Gilroy native Chelsea Lumley, it was love at first
sound.
Lumley was 13, in band class at Brownell Middle School, when
fellow Gilroy native and classmate Greg Chambers first caught her
eye.
”
I admired his sound,
”
Lumley said.
”
When I first heard him play, I was hooked.
”
For Gilroy native Chelsea Lumley, it was love at first sound.
Lumley was 13, in band class at Brownell Middle School, when fellow Gilroy native and classmate Greg Chambers first caught her eye.
“I admired his sound,” Lumley said. “When I first heard him play, I was hooked.”
He played the saxophone in a jazzy style along with Charlie Parker recordings, while she was more classically inclined on the clarinet. Yet, they became each others’ cheering section. Chambers’ father, who plays in the South Valley Swing Band, gave Lumley clarinet lessons every Thursday after school for five years.
When Chambers went ahead of Lumley to attend UCLA while she was still in school in Gilroy, she would fly down to attend his concerts.
After she auditioned for UCLA, finding out she had not been accepted to the music program was heartbreaking. But what could she do? She went ahead and made other plans and had already paid a deposit to attend another college when she got word at the last possible minute that there had been a mistake – her name had been placed on the wrong list. She had been accepted to UCLA after all.
They feel as if fate has been behind them every step of the way, smiling on their dream and determination to pursue music hand in hand.
Lumley and Chambers’ shared passion for music has led to lifelong plans to duet together. When they marry in Gilory in May, their first dance will be to music recorded by Chambers on the sax. He has worked hard to play all the parts and perfect the piece, called “Now and Forever.” He also arranged the wedding march which will accompany them down the aisle.
After both earning their Master of Music degrees, these two Gilroy High School alumni have returned to Gilroy and want to give back to the community.
“Now that we’re home, we just wanted to get the word out that Gilroy is a great place where the arts can thrive and we hope to encourage young students to pursue goals in music and other creative endeavors,” said Lumley, a petite 24-year-old with radiant blue eyes.
Chambers has been featured in national magazines alongside musicians such as Lenny Picket – of Saturday Night Live fame – and other world-class saxophonists. When Phil Robb’s chamber choir goes to Carnegie Hall next month, Chambers accompany them on the soprano sax, playing “When God Decided to Invent.”
The appearance is made all the more meaningful because Chambers and Lumley owe so much to their Gilroy schooling.
“We were taught by Gilroy’s best,” Lumley said. “Creighton Yip, Tom Brozene, and Joey Fortino.”
“A lot of times kids are lacking for something to dedicate themselves to. Music teaches the value of discipline and practice,” Chambers said. “When I perform with Phil Robb’s students, it is really inspiring to see the maturity in their eyes. They really understand the meaning of the songs, and they are able to convey it with their performance.”
“Music gave me that experience of working closely in a group effort,” Lumley said. “It helps you define who you are, and you become close – you’re like family.”
Lumley had the great experience of being chosen to play for Yo-Yo Ma when he led a class at UCLA. Chambers has had the privilege of sharing the stage with such renowned performers and conductors as Steven Mackey and Kathleen Battle. He has worked with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, recorded at Capital Records, and studied with renowned saxophonist Eric Marienthal.
He and Lumley have had individual and collaborative opportunities to play in various venues all over the world, including England, where he joined her in a work abroad program while she finished her Master’s Degree at the Royal College of Music in London. They played in pubs, cathedrals and abbeys, including the Canterbury Cathedral, made famous by Geoffrey Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales.”
“I don’t want to think of kids not having the same opportunities we had. Music really can enrich your life. You are never too young or too old. Music changed how we experience the world,” Lumley said.
“We want to bring our experience back here to help encourage kids to be really active in the Gilroy community and to open their minds to know there is so much out there for them,” Chambers added.
In September, Chambers and Lumley joined elementary school music educators Howard Miyata and Tom Brozene, Tom Brozene Jr. – Brozene’s son – and local musician Lisa Barratta to introduce fifth graders to various musical instruments and encourage them to choose one to learn to play. They gave demonstrations at all the Gilroy Unified School District elementary schools, getting 60 kids to sign up for band at Luigi Aprea Elementary School alone.
“We wouldn’t be who we are today if not for music. It’d be nice if other people could experience it too,” Lumley said. “Music is like another language. We speak music, and it’s a language that connects everyone.”
Upcoming concerts
-Chambers and Lumley: 3 p.m. Saturday; Sue’s Coffee Roasting Company, 7501 Monterey St.; free
-Chambers and other local musicians in jam sessions: Sunday afternoons; D’Vine Jazz & Wine Bar. 775 Cochrane Rd., Morgan Hill; 779-7755
-Chambers’ jazz trio: next month; Hecker Pass Winery; 930-6777
-Chambers and Lumley: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Feb. 14 and 2 p.m. Feb. 8; South Valley Civic Theatre’s “Bye Bye Birdie”; http://www.svct.org
To Learn More
To learn more about the clarinet or saxophone, or to improve your playing, contact Chambers at
gr**@gr***************.com
, www.gregchambersmusic.com or (408) 710-3561 or reach Lumley at
ch***********@go********.com
or (408) 710-9440.
