Symphonic Band & North Coast Wind Ensemble
Godzilla destroys Vegas and The Lord of the Rings is evoked in the first combined concert by the HSU Symphonic Band and North Coast Wind Ensemble, both conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, on Friday April 30 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Produced by HSU Department of Music.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Godzilla Vs. Lord of the Rings!
Musical evocations of Gandalf from Lord of the Rings and Godzilla on the loose in Las Vegas highlight the first combined concert of the HSU Symphonic Band and the independent North Coast Wind Ensemble, both conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, on Friday, April 30 in Fulkerson Recital Hall.
The Symphonic Band plays Godzilla Eats Las Vegas, the score for a yet-to-exist movie by Los Angeles composer and conductor Eric Whitacre. The music follows Godzilla as he smashes the Vegas strip, laying waste to—among other icons—Wayne Newton. The city is saved by an army of marching Elvi (or “Elvises”), though the king of the monsters escapes to rampage another day.
Other selections on the Band’s program are Bali, an exotic percussion and wind instrument piece by contemporary Canadian composer Michael Colgrass, and Angels in the Architecture, a new piece by Frank Ticheli, another Los Angeles composer. “It portrays elements of light and darkness, good and evil,” said conductor Kenneth Ayoob. “It blends elements of pre-existing and new music into a powerful and thoughtful work of art.”
The Symphonic Band completes its part of the evening with the finale from Symphony #5 by 20th century Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich, one of his most popular compositions.
The North Coast Wind Ensemble plays marches by Paul Hindemith and Charles Ives before combining with the Symphonic Band for two pieces: the Chant Funeraire by Gabriel Faure (composed to honor the 100th anniversary of the death of Napoleon Bonaparte) and a section from Symphony #1 by 20th century Dutch composer Johan De Meij, known as the Lord of the Rings Symphony. Each of the five parts of this symphony corresponds to a character or event in the classic J.R.R. Tolkien novel. The combined Band and Ensemble will play the first section, “Gandalf,” which uses percussion and wind instruments to evoke the wizard who becomes the leader of the Fellowship of the Ring.
The HSU Symphonic Band and North Coast Wind Ensemble perform together on Friday April 30 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Produced by HSU Department of Music.
Media: Arcata Eye, Humboldt State Now, Humboldt Beacon
Musical evocations of Gandalf from Lord of the Rings and Godzilla on the loose in Las Vegas highlight the first combined concert of the HSU Symphonic Band and the independent North Coast Wind Ensemble, both conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, on Friday, April 30 in Fulkerson Recital Hall.
The Symphonic Band plays Godzilla Eats Las Vegas, the score for a yet-to-exist movie by Los Angeles composer and conductor Eric Whitacre. The music follows Godzilla as he smashes the Vegas strip, laying waste to—among other icons—Wayne Newton. The city is saved by an army of marching Elvi (or “Elvises”), though the king of the monsters escapes to rampage another day.
Other selections on the Band’s program are Bali, an exotic percussion and wind instrument piece by contemporary Canadian composer Michael Colgrass, and Angels in the Architecture, a new piece by Frank Ticheli, another Los Angeles composer. “It portrays elements of light and darkness, good and evil,” said conductor Kenneth Ayoob. “It blends elements of pre-existing and new music into a powerful and thoughtful work of art.”
The Symphonic Band completes its part of the evening with the finale from Symphony #5 by 20th century Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich, one of his most popular compositions.
The North Coast Wind Ensemble plays marches by Paul Hindemith and Charles Ives before combining with the Symphonic Band for two pieces: the Chant Funeraire by Gabriel Faure (composed to honor the 100th anniversary of the death of Napoleon Bonaparte) and a section from Symphony #1 by 20th century Dutch composer Johan De Meij, known as the Lord of the Rings Symphony. Each of the five parts of this symphony corresponds to a character or event in the classic J.R.R. Tolkien novel. The combined Band and Ensemble will play the first section, “Gandalf,” which uses percussion and wind instruments to evoke the wizard who becomes the leader of the Fellowship of the Ring.
The HSU Symphonic Band and North Coast Wind Ensemble perform together on Friday April 30 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Produced by HSU Department of Music.
Media: Arcata Eye, Humboldt State Now, Humboldt Beacon
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Opera Workshop
HSU Opera Workshop applies musical wit to contemporary relationships, soap operas and video dating on Friday April 23 and Saturday April 24 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Elisabeth Harrington, artistic director; produced by HSU Department of Music.
HSU Opera Workshop applies musical wit to contemporary relationships, soap operas and video dating on Friday April 23 and Saturday April 24 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Elisabeth Harrington, artistic director; produced by HSU Department of Music.
Love is Strange with the HSU Opera Workshop
It’s not your grandfather’s opera. No exaggerated emotions in foreign languages by heavily costumed figures standing around until the fat lady sings. On Friday and Saturday, April 23 and 24, the HSU Opera Workshop explores contemporary relationships with selected musical scenes and two short comic operas, including the story of a young man searching for true love at a video dating service.
Test Tube by Milton Granger is a fast-paced comedy about a man and four women of roughly college age. In the guise of “who gets the guy?” they confront real relationship issues, in clever cadences of dialogue as well as song. Kevin (played by James Murphy) sees his fantasies as well as reality acted out by Cassandra Lindop, Chelsea Snyder and Brandy Rose, under the increasingly interested eye of the young woman who runs the video dating service (Jamie Banister.) The comedy is acted as well as sung, with characters on stage at times singing with video images on the screen.
“I think audience members will be pleasantly surprised at what opera can be,” said Opera Workshop artistic director and HSU Music professor Elisabeth Harrington.
Another short opera takes a comic look at where some dubious images of relationships come from: the aptly named soap operas. The melodrama of a love triangle in a hospital operating room is interspersed with manically cheerful singing-and-dancing commercials, in Gallantry: A Soap Opera by Douglass Moore.
This year’s Opera Workshop includes seventeen singers, and most of them combine for “The Little Things You Do Together” from Steven Sonheim’s Company. This song introduces a series of duets from various musicals, all portraying relationships: lovers, friends, business partners, and the unique relationship of Siamese twins.
Some of the musicals sampled are: The Boyfriend, Mame, Hairspray, 110 in the Shade, Sideshow and The Fantasticks.
John Chernoff provides piano accompaniment, and is musical co-directed with Elisabeth Harrington. Cynthia McCloud and Danielle van de Wetering contribute choreography, with costumes by Kevin Sharkey and lighting by Emily Ruebl.
The HSU Opera Workshop performs for two nights: Friday April 23 and Saturday April 24 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Elisabeth Harrington, artistic director; produced by HSU Department of Music.
Media: Humboldt State Now, Arcata Eye.
It’s not your grandfather’s opera. No exaggerated emotions in foreign languages by heavily costumed figures standing around until the fat lady sings. On Friday and Saturday, April 23 and 24, the HSU Opera Workshop explores contemporary relationships with selected musical scenes and two short comic operas, including the story of a young man searching for true love at a video dating service.
Test Tube by Milton Granger is a fast-paced comedy about a man and four women of roughly college age. In the guise of “who gets the guy?” they confront real relationship issues, in clever cadences of dialogue as well as song. Kevin (played by James Murphy) sees his fantasies as well as reality acted out by Cassandra Lindop, Chelsea Snyder and Brandy Rose, under the increasingly interested eye of the young woman who runs the video dating service (Jamie Banister.) The comedy is acted as well as sung, with characters on stage at times singing with video images on the screen.
“I think audience members will be pleasantly surprised at what opera can be,” said Opera Workshop artistic director and HSU Music professor Elisabeth Harrington.
Another short opera takes a comic look at where some dubious images of relationships come from: the aptly named soap operas. The melodrama of a love triangle in a hospital operating room is interspersed with manically cheerful singing-and-dancing commercials, in Gallantry: A Soap Opera by Douglass Moore.
This year’s Opera Workshop includes seventeen singers, and most of them combine for “The Little Things You Do Together” from Steven Sonheim’s Company. This song introduces a series of duets from various musicals, all portraying relationships: lovers, friends, business partners, and the unique relationship of Siamese twins.
Some of the musicals sampled are: The Boyfriend, Mame, Hairspray, 110 in the Shade, Sideshow and The Fantasticks.
John Chernoff provides piano accompaniment, and is musical co-directed with Elisabeth Harrington. Cynthia McCloud and Danielle van de Wetering contribute choreography, with costumes by Kevin Sharkey and lighting by Emily Ruebl.
The HSU Opera Workshop performs for two nights: Friday April 23 and Saturday April 24 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Elisabeth Harrington, artistic director; produced by HSU Department of Music.
Media: Humboldt State Now, Arcata Eye.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Jazz Combos
Six HSU student combos over two nights play blues, funk and original jazz, on Saturday April 17 and Sunday, April 18 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Directed by Dan Aldag, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Six HSU student combos over two nights play blues, funk and original jazz, on Saturday April 17 and Sunday, April 18 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Directed by Dan Aldag, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Quick Trip, Long Jaunt: Double the Jazz with HSU Jazz Combos Weekend
It’s double the music in two evenings of HSU Jazz Combos: instead of the usual three groups playing for a single night, this time there are six student combos playing completely different shows over two nights.
A quartet, a trio and a New Orleans-style band perform on Saturday, April 17, and on Sunday night a quintet, another quartet and trio, all in Fulkerson Recital Hall. "We had too much talent for just three combos this year," said director Dan Aldag. "So we've got six."
The largest ensemble is featured Saturday night: Slippery Society plays traditional tunes (with vocals) in old school New Orleans style, including Bessie Smith’s “Me and My Gin,” “Tin Roof Blues,” “Buddy Bolden’s Blues” and “Just A Closer Walk With Thee.” They break the pattern a little with a tune by the 70s funk band War, paying tribute to the legendary comic book and 1950s TV hero, the Cisco Kid.
Slippery Society consists of Ari Davie on trumpet, Stephanie Douglas on clarinet, Talon Nansel on trombone, Amanda Lake on banjo and vocals, Elizabeth Cruz on tuba and Brett Huska on drums and vocals.
Freshly Picked Cake, a quartet of piano (Aber Miller), tenor sax (Isaac Williams), bass (Sam Roberts) and drums (Jonathan Kipp), performs Saturday. Their set includes a Joe Henderson tune and two originals by Miller, “Meth Bed” and “Asparagus in Rain.”
Also playing Saturday, a trio comprised of Joel Bettencourt on piano, Danny Gaon on bass and Yanaki Lopez on drums, performs “Dusty McNugget” by contemporary pianist and composer Brad Mehldau, as well as other tunes including an original by pianist Bettencourt, called “Quick Trip, Long Jaunt.”
Sunday night, the Old Spice quartet plays “Gdansk” by multiple Grammy winner Paquito D’Rivera, the Cuban-born reed player and composer, as well as the ever-popular “(It Don’t Mean A Thing) If It Ain’t Got That Swing” by Duke Ellington. Old Spice is Clayton Bennett on guitar, Bryce Pierce on bass, Dylan Williams on drums and Avetis Chalaganyan on percussion.
Also Sunday, a trio comprised of Colin Gaddie on guitar, Byron Richards on bass and Sam Kaplan-Good on drums plays a set that includes two funky tunes: “Boozer” by jazz guitarist and composer John Scofield, and “Tune 88” by pianist and composer Jeff Lorber.
A quintet of tenor sax (Leo Echazábal), guitar (Charlie Sleep), piano (Rachel Hrdina), bass (Tyler Machado) and drums (Gabriel Ben-Shalom) performs an original group composition called “Exiguous.” Their set also includes “Road Song” by the classic jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery.
HSU Jazz Combos perform on Saturday April 17 and Sunday, April 18 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Directed by Dan Aldag, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
It’s double the music in two evenings of HSU Jazz Combos: instead of the usual three groups playing for a single night, this time there are six student combos playing completely different shows over two nights.
A quartet, a trio and a New Orleans-style band perform on Saturday, April 17, and on Sunday night a quintet, another quartet and trio, all in Fulkerson Recital Hall. "We had too much talent for just three combos this year," said director Dan Aldag. "So we've got six."
The largest ensemble is featured Saturday night: Slippery Society plays traditional tunes (with vocals) in old school New Orleans style, including Bessie Smith’s “Me and My Gin,” “Tin Roof Blues,” “Buddy Bolden’s Blues” and “Just A Closer Walk With Thee.” They break the pattern a little with a tune by the 70s funk band War, paying tribute to the legendary comic book and 1950s TV hero, the Cisco Kid.
Slippery Society consists of Ari Davie on trumpet, Stephanie Douglas on clarinet, Talon Nansel on trombone, Amanda Lake on banjo and vocals, Elizabeth Cruz on tuba and Brett Huska on drums and vocals.
Freshly Picked Cake, a quartet of piano (Aber Miller), tenor sax (Isaac Williams), bass (Sam Roberts) and drums (Jonathan Kipp), performs Saturday. Their set includes a Joe Henderson tune and two originals by Miller, “Meth Bed” and “Asparagus in Rain.”
Also playing Saturday, a trio comprised of Joel Bettencourt on piano, Danny Gaon on bass and Yanaki Lopez on drums, performs “Dusty McNugget” by contemporary pianist and composer Brad Mehldau, as well as other tunes including an original by pianist Bettencourt, called “Quick Trip, Long Jaunt.”
Sunday night, the Old Spice quartet plays “Gdansk” by multiple Grammy winner Paquito D’Rivera, the Cuban-born reed player and composer, as well as the ever-popular “(It Don’t Mean A Thing) If It Ain’t Got That Swing” by Duke Ellington. Old Spice is Clayton Bennett on guitar, Bryce Pierce on bass, Dylan Williams on drums and Avetis Chalaganyan on percussion.
Also Sunday, a trio comprised of Colin Gaddie on guitar, Byron Richards on bass and Sam Kaplan-Good on drums plays a set that includes two funky tunes: “Boozer” by jazz guitarist and composer John Scofield, and “Tune 88” by pianist and composer Jeff Lorber.
A quintet of tenor sax (Leo Echazábal), guitar (Charlie Sleep), piano (Rachel Hrdina), bass (Tyler Machado) and drums (Gabriel Ben-Shalom) performs an original group composition called “Exiguous.” Their set also includes “Road Song” by the classic jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery.
HSU Jazz Combos perform on Saturday April 17 and Sunday, April 18 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Directed by Dan Aldag, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Humboldt Bay Brass Band
The Humboldt Bay Brass Band, featuring the new HB Brass Quintet, performs a Renaissance-to-contemporary program on Saturday, April 10 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Conducted by Gil Cline; produced by the HSU Department of Music.
The Humboldt Bay Brass Band, featuring the new HB Brass Quintet, performs a Renaissance-to-contemporary program on Saturday, April 10 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Conducted by Gil Cline; produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Humboldt Bay Brass Band: Renaissance Fanfare to Contemporary Promenade With the New Band Within the Band
The Humboldt Bay Brass Band has established itself as Humboldt County’s only all-brass ensemble in the traditional configuration of 27 brass and three percussion players. But the concert on Saturday, April 10 in Fulkerson Recital Hall marks the premiere of the new band within the band: the Humboldt Bay Brass Quintet.
Comprising the Quintet are Gil Cline and Frederic Belanger (trumpets and cornets), Matthew Morgan on horn, Toshi Noquchi on trombone and Kearney VanderSal on bass trombone.
The Quintet starts out displaying its range, from Renaissance to contemporary. Beginning with several rousing Renaissance fanfares, the Quintet plays a madrigal by English composer Thomas Weelkes and a canzona by Giovanni Gabrieli (both Weelkes and Gabrieli were organists as well as composers.)
The Quintet continues with several selections from the following Baroque era, beginning with a dance suite by Johann Hermann Schein, a German composer who was the first to absorb elements of the Italian Baroque in his music.
Moving to the modern, the Quintet plays “Morning Music” by 20th century German composer Paul Hindemith. The Quintet concludes with a very contemporary piece—“Rhododendron Promenade,” composed by leader Gilbert Cline, which was first performed at the 2008 Rhododendron Festival Concert at the Arkley Center for the Performing Arts.
The full Humboldt Bay Brass Band concludes the concert with three works selected from among audience favorites from the past several years.
The Humboldt Bay Brass Band, featuring the new HB Brass Quintet performs on Saturday, April 10 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Conducted by Gil Cline; produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Media: TriCity Weekly, Humboldt State Now, Humboldt Beacon, Arcata Eye, North Coast Journal.
The Humboldt Bay Brass Band has established itself as Humboldt County’s only all-brass ensemble in the traditional configuration of 27 brass and three percussion players. But the concert on Saturday, April 10 in Fulkerson Recital Hall marks the premiere of the new band within the band: the Humboldt Bay Brass Quintet.
Comprising the Quintet are Gil Cline and Frederic Belanger (trumpets and cornets), Matthew Morgan on horn, Toshi Noquchi on trombone and Kearney VanderSal on bass trombone.
The Quintet starts out displaying its range, from Renaissance to contemporary. Beginning with several rousing Renaissance fanfares, the Quintet plays a madrigal by English composer Thomas Weelkes and a canzona by Giovanni Gabrieli (both Weelkes and Gabrieli were organists as well as composers.)
The Quintet continues with several selections from the following Baroque era, beginning with a dance suite by Johann Hermann Schein, a German composer who was the first to absorb elements of the Italian Baroque in his music.
Moving to the modern, the Quintet plays “Morning Music” by 20th century German composer Paul Hindemith. The Quintet concludes with a very contemporary piece—“Rhododendron Promenade,” composed by leader Gilbert Cline, which was first performed at the 2008 Rhododendron Festival Concert at the Arkley Center for the Performing Arts.
The full Humboldt Bay Brass Band concludes the concert with three works selected from among audience favorites from the past several years.
The Humboldt Bay Brass Band, featuring the new HB Brass Quintet performs on Saturday, April 10 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Conducted by Gil Cline; produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Media: TriCity Weekly, Humboldt State Now, Humboldt Beacon, Arcata Eye, North Coast Journal.
Saturday, April 03, 2010
North Coast Wind Ensemble
North Coast Wind Ensemble plays Elgar, Hindemith, Giannini and Ives on Saturday April 3 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $5/ $2 students and seniors from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
North Coast Wind Ensemble plays Elgar, Hindemith, Giannini and Ives on Saturday April 3 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $5/ $2 students and seniors from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Enigma Variations, Marching Metamorphosis and A Lot of Bands at Once
The North Coast Wind Ensemble welcomes spring with a symphony, a song, a couple of marches and some famous variations, in its Fulkerson Recital Hall concert on Saturday, April 3.
The Enigma Variations by English composer Edward Elgar may be “a staple of the orchestral literature,” according to Ensemble conductor Kenneth Ayoob, but this version of the landmark work has been re-scored for wind instruments in a “wonderful arrangement” by Earl Slocum. Each variation is a tribute to one of Elgar’s friends, and the “enigma” of the title refers to a hidden theme. Music historians still debate what that theme is—some guess it is as simple as Auld Lang Syne.
Symphony #3 for Band by 20th century American composer Vittorio Giannini may not be so enigmatic, but it does have variety: a heroic theme, a lyrical second movement, “shifting rhythmic playfulness” in the third movement, and a final movement of “pure excitement.”
The two marches on the April 3 program “could not be more different,” said Ayoob, “as they contrast the composers’ unique styles.” Twentieth century German composer Paul Hindemith wrote his Symphonic Metamorphosis after emigrating to the U.S. during World War II. The Ensemble plays the March section of this larger work, as arranged by Yale University band director Keith Wilson at Hindemith’s request.
Contrasting with this serious work is the Country Band March by 20th century U.S. composer Charles Ives who “draws from his own experience with amateur bands,” Ayoob said. “It’s a parody of what those bands might sound like if several of them played at once. It includes quotations from no fewer than twelve well-known tunes.”
Colonial Song by composer Percy Grainger is a “lyric work written for and about the people of his native Australia.” Grainger was the subject of “Passion,” the 1999 movie by Australian director Peter Duncan.
The North Coast Wind Ensemble performs on Saturday April 3 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $5/ $2 students and seniors from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Media: Arcata Eye, Humboldt State Now, Humboldt Beacon
The North Coast Wind Ensemble welcomes spring with a symphony, a song, a couple of marches and some famous variations, in its Fulkerson Recital Hall concert on Saturday, April 3.
The Enigma Variations by English composer Edward Elgar may be “a staple of the orchestral literature,” according to Ensemble conductor Kenneth Ayoob, but this version of the landmark work has been re-scored for wind instruments in a “wonderful arrangement” by Earl Slocum. Each variation is a tribute to one of Elgar’s friends, and the “enigma” of the title refers to a hidden theme. Music historians still debate what that theme is—some guess it is as simple as Auld Lang Syne.
Symphony #3 for Band by 20th century American composer Vittorio Giannini may not be so enigmatic, but it does have variety: a heroic theme, a lyrical second movement, “shifting rhythmic playfulness” in the third movement, and a final movement of “pure excitement.”
The two marches on the April 3 program “could not be more different,” said Ayoob, “as they contrast the composers’ unique styles.” Twentieth century German composer Paul Hindemith wrote his Symphonic Metamorphosis after emigrating to the U.S. during World War II. The Ensemble plays the March section of this larger work, as arranged by Yale University band director Keith Wilson at Hindemith’s request.
Contrasting with this serious work is the Country Band March by 20th century U.S. composer Charles Ives who “draws from his own experience with amateur bands,” Ayoob said. “It’s a parody of what those bands might sound like if several of them played at once. It includes quotations from no fewer than twelve well-known tunes.”
Colonial Song by composer Percy Grainger is a “lyric work written for and about the people of his native Australia.” Grainger was the subject of “Passion,” the 1999 movie by Australian director Peter Duncan.
The North Coast Wind Ensemble performs on Saturday April 3 at 8 pm in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $5/ $2 students and seniors from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Conducted by Kenneth Ayoob, produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Media: Arcata Eye, Humboldt State Now, Humboldt Beacon
Director's Notes
Two sets of works contrasting American and European traditions make up the bulk of the upcoming North Coast Wind Ensemble concert.
Elgar’s Enigma Variations are a staple of the orchestral literature and the work has been re-scored for winds in a wonderful arrangement by Earl Slocum. This long form work is contrasted with a classic of the wind literature, Symphony #3 by Vittorio Giannini. The symphony, in four movements begins with a heroic theme that is based on the interval of a fourth and is transformed into a fugue, with a contrasting lyric middle section. The second movement takes advantage of the lyric sounds of the woodwinds, while the third is marked by a shifting rhythmic playfulness. The final movement is pure excitement.
The second set of contrasts include the March from Symphonic Metamorphosis of Hindemith and the Country Band March of Ives. They could not be more different as each work showcases its composers unique style. The Symphonic Metamorphosis was composed by Hindemith while he was at Yale and he asked Yale’s band director, Keith Wilson to make a wind arrangement. The march is based on a theme by Carl Maria von Weber which is stated in a two bar fragment at the beginning and later transformed and developed throughout the work. The Country Band March of Ives draws from his own experiences with amateur bands and is a parody of what those bands might sound like if several of them played at once. It includes quotations from no fewer than 12 well known tunes.
The wind ensemble will also perform Colonial Song by Percy Grainger. This lyric work was written for and about the people his native Australia and expressed his wish to “voice a certain kind of emotion that seems to me not untypical of native-born colonials in general.
Two sets of works contrasting American and European traditions make up the bulk of the upcoming North Coast Wind Ensemble concert.
Elgar’s Enigma Variations are a staple of the orchestral literature and the work has been re-scored for winds in a wonderful arrangement by Earl Slocum. This long form work is contrasted with a classic of the wind literature, Symphony #3 by Vittorio Giannini. The symphony, in four movements begins with a heroic theme that is based on the interval of a fourth and is transformed into a fugue, with a contrasting lyric middle section. The second movement takes advantage of the lyric sounds of the woodwinds, while the third is marked by a shifting rhythmic playfulness. The final movement is pure excitement.
The second set of contrasts include the March from Symphonic Metamorphosis of Hindemith and the Country Band March of Ives. They could not be more different as each work showcases its composers unique style. The Symphonic Metamorphosis was composed by Hindemith while he was at Yale and he asked Yale’s band director, Keith Wilson to make a wind arrangement. The march is based on a theme by Carl Maria von Weber which is stated in a two bar fragment at the beginning and later transformed and developed throughout the work. The Country Band March of Ives draws from his own experiences with amateur bands and is a parody of what those bands might sound like if several of them played at once. It includes quotations from no fewer than 12 well known tunes.
The wind ensemble will also perform Colonial Song by Percy Grainger. This lyric work was written for and about the people his native Australia and expressed his wish to “voice a certain kind of emotion that seems to me not untypical of native-born colonials in general.
Friday, April 02, 2010
Composers Concert
Latest new work composed by HSU students and performed by students, faculty and staff on Friday, April 2 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. J. Brian Post, director; produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Latest new work composed by HSU students and performed by students, faculty and staff on Friday, April 2 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. J. Brian Post, director; produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Composers Face the Music at HSU
Students pursuing a degree in Composition at HSU face the music of a live audience on Friday, April 2 in Fulkerson Recital Hall.
The audience in turn gets to hear music no one has heard before. “These works contain influences from American folk music, jazz, rock & roll, film scores and European art music from Vivaldi’s time to the present,” said composition teacher, composer and HSU Music professor Brian Post.
The compositions include experimental approaches as well as new takes on older musical styles. Among the student composers are Mark Jensen, Davina Warner, John Garritano and Adolpho Acuna. Performers include HSU faculty and staff as well as students.
The spring Composers Concert is performed on Friday, April 2 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Media: Arcata Eye, Humboldt State Now.
Students pursuing a degree in Composition at HSU face the music of a live audience on Friday, April 2 in Fulkerson Recital Hall.
The audience in turn gets to hear music no one has heard before. “These works contain influences from American folk music, jazz, rock & roll, film scores and European art music from Vivaldi’s time to the present,” said composition teacher, composer and HSU Music professor Brian Post.
The compositions include experimental approaches as well as new takes on older musical styles. Among the student composers are Mark Jensen, Davina Warner, John Garritano and Adolpho Acuna. Performers include HSU faculty and staff as well as students.
The spring Composers Concert is performed on Friday, April 2 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Produced by the HSU Department of Music.
Media: Arcata Eye, Humboldt State Now.
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