Our conductor, Michael Gesme, has programmed a wide range of repertoire for wind ensemble. The fall concert, which falls on Veteran’s Day weekend, has a decidedly Americana theme. Numerous marches and patriotic tunes will pepper the concert, including the “Armed Forces Salute,” during which we will recognize the men and women who have served in the military. Also on this concert are works by several standout contemporary composers, including Brian Balmages, Frank Ticheli and David Maslanka.
Highlights of the winter concert include a major work by Boris Kozhevnikov, a Soviet Era composer whose works came to be known in the west only after the fall of the Berlin Wall and soprano, Trish Sewell, singing jazz standards such as “Moon River”, “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “Star Dust.”
For the season finale, the percussion section will take center stage with a piece all of their own titled “Scuttlebutt” by Jim Casella. Our principal euphonium player, Nathan Bastuscheck will dazzle your ears with the impossibly fast “Melody Shop March” by Karl King, and we’ll conclude with Steven Reineke’s monumental “Symphony No. 1, New Day Rising,” which evokes the spirit of San Francisco before, during and after the great earthquake of 1906.