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James Darling is one of those performers who is instantly known and regarded among "people in the know." Ask a young conductor who they admire and Carlos Kleiber's name will come up. Ask a pianist what they think of Leon Fleischer's playing and you have an instant conversation starter. Ask a trumpet player if they've heard of James Darling and they'll have a smile on their face. With only one solo recording that was just recently made available on CD, James Darling could only be heard by the most diligent connoisseurs of 20th Century brass music. It's pretty safe to say that every trumpet player in every major American Symphony has respect for James Darling. His solid musicianship and instruction is legendary. There are plenty of recordings that show Mr. Darling's power and skill within the orchestra. Check out Telarc's Beethoven 6 and Leonore 3 to hear his offstage trumpet call, for example or London's rare Ring Cycle recording with Cleveland and Dohnanyi for some powerful trumpet section contributions. There is only one recording exhibiting his artistry and sensitivity in a solo setting however. This recording of 20th Century music for trumpet was first released under the Advent Records label in 1973 and re-released under Telarc in 1978. For too long I've had to confine my listening of Mr. Darling's solo playing to a recording on a cassette tape I pirated off of a library copy of the vinyl almost 20 years ago. Now it is finally available in CD form from CDbaby. Beyond the technical mastery of the horn, the thing that will probably strike you is the musicality that drips from each note. While there is often a temptation among brass players to play in a style "just because they can," Darling prefers to let the music guide the style. He shows incredible maturity of expression with a rich and fluid tone. To be sure, there are few trumpet players worldwide who play with this depth and artistry.