Wind Symphony - Dancing on the Winds - 5/2/24

The UCO Wind Symphony Dr. Brian Lamb, conductor “Dancing on the Winds” With Kaleidoscope Dance Company Thursday, May 2nd, 2024 7:30 pm Mitchell Hall Theatre Program Danza de los Duendes (1992/1996) | Nancy Galbraith (b. 1951) Illyrian Dances (1986) | Guy Woolfenden (b. 1937-2016) I. Rondo II. Aubade III. Gigue Intermission Wooden Dimes (2023) | James Stephenson (b. 1969) Dancers (in order of appearance): Bartender: Riley Hall Owner: Katy Whitfield Head Waiter: Kira Blessitt Waiters: Elena Manning, Avery Patterson, Kathryn Rosenberg, Claire Ullery Patrons: Gray Blevins, Jeanne Devillier, Zion Dangerfield, Austella Gallagher, Nirvana Gscheidle, KeShaun James, Brynn Ruple, Kyoka Shibaya, Erin Smith Exotic Dancers: Haley Fort, Justina Pagán Showgirls: Kimberly Farrell, Chloe Liaw, Lyric Neel, Dany Pusateri, Caris Vick Keystone Cop: Alaina Gunn Can Dancers: Joy Banks, Haylee Day, Chaylee Estabrook, Delesia Graham, Railyn Irvin, Kenzie Watson Choreographers Sheri Hayden, Kim Loveridge, Amy Nevius, Hui Cha Poos, Robyn Pasternack; choreography concept by Robyn Pasternack Program Notes Nancy Galbraith (b. 27 January 1951, Pittsburgh, Penn.) is an American composer. Born into a musical family in Pittsburgh in 1951, Nancy Galbraith began piano studies at age four. She later earned degrees in composition from Ohio University and West Virginia University, and continued studies in composition, piano, and organ at Carnegie Mellon University. Nancy Galbraith is a professor and chair of composition at Carnegie Mellon University, where she holds the Vira I. Heinz Professorship of Music endowed chair. In a career that spans three decades, her music has earned praise for its rich harmonic texture, rhythmic vitality, emotional and spiritual depth, and wide range of expression. Her works have been directed by some of the world’s finest conductors, including Gennady Rozhdetsvensky, Mariss Jansons, Keith Lockhart, Sidney Harth, Samuel Jones, and Robert Page. Her compositions are featured on numerous recordings, including four anthologies. With major contributions to the repertoires of symphony orchestras, concert choirs, wind orchestras, chamber ensembles, and soloists, Galbraith plays a leading role in defining the sound of contemporary classical music. Nancy Galbraith has achieved international success as a composer of concert band music that is frequently performed by some of the world’s finest ensembles, including the Musashino Academy of Music Wind Ensemble (Japan), the Waspik Symphonic Wind Orchestra (the Netherlands), Bispehaugen Ungdomkorps (Norway), and the highly acclaimed North Texas Wind Symphony. Her most popular works for this genre include with brightness round about it (1993), Danza de los Duendes (1996), Wind Symphony No. 1 (1996), and Elfin Thunderbolt (1998), which have together enjoyed over 100 performances in the past decade. – Composer Biography from WindRep.org. Danza de los Duendes was composed for Argentina’s Orquesta Sinfónica de Tucumán, whose music director, Eduardo Alonso-Crespo, led the world premiere in 1992, a month apart from the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s North American premiere with conductor Kirk Muspratt. The work’s title — an afterthought suggested by the composer’s student — refers to the malicious goblin-like creatures (los duendes) of South American folklore. In 1996 Galbraith revised the work and re-scored it as a wind symphony. The new “Danza” became her most popular piece and is performed frequently by concert bands in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. – Program Note from publisher Guy Anthony Woolfenden (1937, Ipswich, UK – 15 April 2016, Sibford Ferris, Oxfordshire, UK) was a British composer and conductor. He studied at Westminster Abbey Choir School, Whitgift School, and Christ’s College in Cambridge. He was Artistic Director of the Cambridge Festival from 1986 to 1991, and recently retired as Music Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, a position he held from 1962. He was also the founder of the publishing company, Ariel Music. In addition to being a horn player of considerable skill, he conducted all the major British symphony orchestras and gave concerts in Canada, France and Germany. His composition credits include in excess of 150 scores for the RSC, many written for Wind Orchestra instrumentation and textures. Woolfenden’s compositions for winds are performed all over the world, and many are recorded on CD. Woolfenden was also conductor of the Birmingham Conservatory Wind Orchestra. – Composer Biography from WindRep.org. Illyrian Dances: Viola: What country, friends, is this? Captain: This is Illyria, lady. (from Shakespeare: Twelfth Night, Act I, Scene 2) The precise geographical location of Illyria was not important to Shakespeare. What excited him was the resonance of the word itself and the romance of all far away, make-believe places. Illyria is Never-Never Land and the idea of inventing dances for such a place intrigued me. This suite of three dances was commissioned by the British Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles with funds provided by West Midlands Arts. The first performance took place on 26th September 1986 at Warwick University during the fifth annual BASBWE conference. The first movement Rondeau is a seven bar refrain with a memorable rhythmic twist to it, alternating with variants that highlight most sections of the band. The second movement Aubade is a gentle dance in ternary form featuring the flutes, with a hint of the dawn chorus at the close. The third movement Gigue is a rondo in 6/8 time, with the recurring theme also used in counterpoint to the many subsidiary themes. As Head of Music to the Royal Shakespeare Company, I have composed more than one hundred and fifty scores, and as with Gallimaufry, some of the thematic material for the Illyrian Dances is adapted from music originally written for RSC productions. – Program Note by composer Guy Woolfenden, published in the score. James Stephenson (b. 1969, Illinois) is an American composer. Mr. Stephenson came late to his full-time composing career, having performed 17 seasons as a trumpeter in the Naples Philharmonic in Florida, a position he won immediately upon graduating from the New England Conservatory of Music. As such, he is largely self-taught as a composer. Colleagues and friends encouraged his earliest efforts and enthusiasm followed from all directions. His works have been performed by leading American orchestras and hailed by critics as having “straightforward, unabashedly beautiful sounds” and “Stephenson deserves to be heard again and again!” (Boston Herald). His music incorporates a fresh and energizing soundscape that delights the audience while maintaining integrity and worthwhile challenges for the performing musicians. This rare combination has rewarded Stephenson with a host of ongoing commissions and projects. Recent collaborations include a concerto for Branford Marsalis with Rodney Mack; an exuberant fanfare for the Houston Symphony; and a concerto for the Philadelphia Orchestra’s principal trombonist, Nitzan Haroz. In 2010 and 2011, Stephenson premieres included a trumpet concerto in Sydney, Australia, (with repeats in Brazil, Sweden and the UK), as well as concertos for flute and clarinet in Florida and Ohio (Cleveland), respectively. Stephenson is also active in the concert band world, with premieres occurring at major venues such as the 2010 Midwest Clinic, and the 2011 ABA (American Bandmasters Association) convention with the US “President’s Own” Marine Band. His landmark educational work, Compose Yourself!, has now been performed over 300 times since its creation in 2002. Also active as a highly sought-after arranger, Stephenson’s arrangements have been performed/recorded/broadcast by virtually every major orchestra in the country, including the Boston Pops, Cincinnati Pops, New York Pops and more. Stephenson is currently enjoying a position of Composer-in-Residence with the Lake Forest Symphony (Illinois), Alan Heatherington, Music Director. Wooden Dimes is James Stephenson’s first ballet, composed for the San Francisco Ballet. Once the original score was completed, Colonel Jason Fettig and “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band commissioned the composer to create a concert suite for wind ensemble that would capture the most essential musical moments from the ballet, while still preserving the arc of the story. The original ballet was choreographed by Danielle Rowe, based on a period tale of a stage performer and her beloved from the early part of the twentieth century: Wooden Dimes: The Story of Betty Fine and Robert Alder. “Don’t take any wooden dimes” — a saying used a lot in the 1920s, meaning: “Don’t be naïve, or don’t be fooled. Betty and Robert have a love that they think they know and they think will last forever, but situations, circumstance, and their evolution as people inevitably change their relationship and therefore their love, and it ends up being nothing like they predicted. – Program Note from United States Marine Band concert program, 4 March 2022 About the Conductor: Brian Lamb has served as the Director of Bands at the University of Central Oklahoma since 2001. He conducts the Wind Symphony, the Symphonic Band, and the Marching Band, and teaches conducting and instrumental courses; he continues to guide all aspects of the UCO band program. Dr. Lamb made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2005, performing with UCO friend and colleague Tess Remy in the Weill Recital Hall. In 2006, Lamb and the UCO Wind Symphony performed for a full house in the Isaac Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall. The UCO Wind Symphony, with Lamb as conductor, has garnered international attention and acclaim from audiences, composers, and critics alike for outstanding and creative performances and for playing an active role in commissioning projects and consortiums, including work with Carter Pann, David Maslanka, Carolyn Bremer, Richard Danielpour, Michael Daugherty, Michael Colgrass, Samuel Magrill, and others. Lamb received his bachelor’s degree in music education from Baylor University, a master’s degree in trumpet performance and literature from the University of Notre Dame, and the doctor of musical arts degree in conducting from the University of North Texas. He has been fortunate to study with many outstanding musical mentors, including Eugene Corporon, Michael Haithcock, Gary Sousa, Larry Rachleff, Alan McMurray, Jack Stamp, Dennis Fisher, John Haynie, Barry Hopper, and William Scarlett. Prior to his UCO appointment, Dr. Lamb served as Director of Instrumental Studies at Southwest Baptist University and as director of bands and chairman of the fine arts department at James Bowie High School in Arlington, Texas. Still active as a trumpet performer, Dr. Lamb plays in the Redbud Brass Quintet, the UCO Faculty Brass Quintet. Dr. Lamb is active as a clinician and guest conductor all over the world, and his groups have received acclaim for performances at regional, state and national conventions. In his 22-year tenure at UCO, the Wind Symphony has been selected to perform at three College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) Regional Conventions, and they have been the collegiate honor band at six Oklahoma Music Educators Association (OkMEA) conventions. Under Lamb’s baton, the UCO Wind Symphony has released 5 CDs on the prestigious Equilibrium label, which are available on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, CDBaby, and all other relevant streaming services. He has contributed several published works to various journals and textbooks, and he is the author of “Music is Magic,” a children’s radio program that aired on KUCO-90.1 FM. He is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda Music Honor Society, the College Band Directors National Association, Oklahoma Music Educators Association, Music Educators National Conference, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. He was honored as a Friend of the Arts by Sigma Alpha Iota, he is an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi, the national band service fraternity, and he was recently inducted into the Oklahoma chapter of Phi Beta Mu, the international band directors’ fraternity. Wind Symphony Personnel Flutes Bryanna Louch (piccolo) Kayla Factor (piccolo) Abbie Childers Amari Kinyanjui Oboes Braeden Jermain Em Johnston Bassoons Abbie Claussen Micah Adkins Clarinets Cristian Celis Jace Cooper Nathan Teshome Roseanna Medina Fernanda Ceron (Bb soprano, bass) Kylie Nolting (Eb soprano) Jeron Fishburn (bass, contra) Devin Erwin-Acker (bass) Saxophones Nick Cockerill (tenor) Jalon Thomas (soprano, alto) Tony DeLozier (bari) Caleb Boyster (alto) Trumpets Caleb Rollins Laila Martinez Josiah Banter Noah Moey Trevor Chandler Horns Alex Hamm Becca Geitzenauer Cristalynne Burns Melissa DeLeon Iriana Phipps Trombones Naomi Wharry Mason Longey Mateo Rivera (bass) Euphonium Luke McHenry Tuba Zane Radka Riley Crow Percussion Kyle Broadbooks Zach Kimber Katelynn Moore Blake Wylie Trey Brabham Jason Gray Treven Cowherd Piano Yingshi Bu Bass Noah Colson