Wind Symphony - With Heart and Soul and Voice! - 12/5/24

With Heart and Soul and Voice! Presented by The UCO Wind Symphony Dr. Brian Lamb, conductor Ryan Holcomb and Zane Radka, guest conductors Dr. Sam Magrill, composer and piano Dr. Sallie Pollack, organ With The UCO Trumpet Choir Dr. Ryan Sharp, director 7:30 PM, December 5, 2024 UCO Mitchell Hall Theatre Concert Program The UCO Trumpet Choir Dr. Ryan Sharp, director Fanfare for Peace (2000) / Samuel Magrill (b. 1952) Fanfare for Peace (2001) Fanfare for Peace (2002) Presented as part of the Fall 2024 Magrill Festival Honoring UCO Composer-in-Residence, Dr. Sam Magrill The UCO Wind Symphony Dr. Brian Lamb, conductor With Heart and Voice (2001) / David Gillingham (b. 1947) Heart Songs (1997) / David Maslanka (1943-2017) I. Quiet Song: Zane Radka, guest conductor II. Song with Variations: Ryan Holcomb, guest conductor III. Heart Song: Brian Lamb, conductor The Power of Rome and the Christian Heart / Percy Grainger (1882-1961) Dr. Sallie Pollack, Organ Dr. Sam Magrill, Piano Playalisticstagemusik (2024) / Marie A. Douglas (b. 1987) I. Gospel Roots Intro II. On My Alternative R&B Tip (“Sad girl vibes”) III. Trippy/Futuristic Gospel Vibe (Steal Away) IV. Issa Jook Joint V. Finale – It’s Lit! Recap Program Notes Samuel Magrill, D.M.A., coordinator of graduate studies, professor of music and composer-in-residence in the School of Music at the University of Central Oklahoma, where he has taught music theory and composition since 1988. Previously, he taught at the University of Wyoming and California State University, Long Beach. He obtained his Bachelor of Music in composition from Oberlin Conservatory and his Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in composition from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. Magrill has written more than one hundred compositions for a variety of instruments, from solo piano and chamber music to choir, wind ensemble and symphony orchestra. His works have been performed throughout the United States and abroad and at many regional and national conferences including the Society of Composers, Inc., the National Flute Association, the North American Saxophone Alliance and the College Music Society. His CDs include electro-acoustic music (“The Electric Collection”), his four operas (“Gorgon’s Head,” “Paradise of Children,” “Showdown on Two Street,” and “Circe’s Palace”), wind symphony compositions (“Oklahoma Bandscapes”), and collections of music for cello and other instruments, many of which he wrote specifically for his colleague Dr. Tess Remy-Schumacher and the UCO Cello Ensemble. He has received numerous awards and commissions, including ones from the National Endowment for the Arts, the American Music Center, the Mid-America Arts Alliance, the Illinois Arts Council, ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers), the Oklahoma Music Teachers’ Association, the American Composers’ Forum’s Continental Harmony Program and faculty research grants and merit credit awards from the University of Central Oklahoma. In the spring of 2000, he was inducted into SAI as an Arts Associate and won the AAUP-UCO Distinguished Creativity Award. Other memberships include ASCAP, Phi Kappa Phi and Pi Kappa Lambda. Fanfare for Peace is a piece in three fanfares conceived with a strong desire for peace in which thesis and antithesis create synthesis. The treatment of material alternates between contrapuntal/canonic and chordal/simultaneous. In Fanfares I and III, the chordal material, initially a fragment, evolves into an extended statement. Fanfare II alternates between syncopated arpeggio material and scale material in a regular pulse with hockets. Fanfare III is a synthesis of Fanfares I and II, blending the structure of Fanfare I with the rhythmic impetus of Fanfare II. The fanfares, written over a period of three years, were composed, especially for James Klages and his University of Central Oklahoma trumpet choir. His invitation to write for an ensemble of six trumpets was one too good to pass up. I am honored that his former student, Dr. Ryan Sharp, who is now Professor of Trumpet at UCO, has assembled the current UCO trumpet ensemble to play these fanfares once again. ********* David Gillingham is an American composer. Dr. Gillingham earned Bachelor and Master Degrees in Instrumental Music Education from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and the Ph.D. in Music Theory/Composition from Michigan State University. Many of his works for winds are now considered standards in the repertoire. His numerous awards include the 1981 DeMoulin Award for Concerto for Bass Trombone and Wind Ensemble and the 1990 International Barlow Competition (Brigham Young University) for Heroes, Lost and Fallen. His works are regularly performed by nationally recognized ensembles including the Prague Radio Orchestra, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music Wind Ensemble, The University of Georgia Bands, North Texas University Wind Ensemble, Michigan State University Wind Ensemble, Oklahoma State Wind Ensemble, University of Oklahoma Wind Ensemble, Florida State Wind Orchestra, University of Florida Wind Symphony, University of Illinois Symphonic Band, Illinois State Wind Symphony, University of Minnesota Wind Ensemble, Indiana University Wind Ensemble and the University of Wisconsin Wind Ensemble. Dr. Gillingham recently retired as professor of music at Central Michigan University where he had been the recipient of an Excellence in Teaching Award (1990), a Summer Fellowship (1991), a Research Professorship (1995), and most recently, the President’s Research Investment Fund grant for his co-authorship of a proposal to establish an International Center for New Music at Central Michigan University. He is a member of ASCAP and has been receiving the ASCAP Standard Award for Composers of Concert Music since 1996. (Composer Bio found on WindRep.org) With Heart and Voice was written to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the opening of Apple Valley High School in Apple Valley, Minnesota. With Heart and Voice is based on the high school’s Alma Mater, which clearly samples the hymn “Come, Christians, Join to Sing.”The piece alternates between smooth, pleasant melodies, and rhythmic, dissonant figures that demonstrate not only the hardships of keeping the school alive, but also the wonderful memories created as the institutional reputation was formed. Using tension, the intro represents the uncertainty in starting a new school with nothing but a blueprint. With the construction finished, Gillingham writes a section filled with consonant harmonies to show the excitement and motivation for making a school characterized by academic success and artistic diversity. Suddenly, the tempo increases, the chords become dissonant and strike the ear forcefully, and a polyrhythmic figure is heard throughout the whole band. Indicative of the struggle of filling the facility with students and life, the consonance has vanished. Then the motif, the Alma Mater, is heard with a very low, powerful sound as the upper voices play complimentary ascending lines. Students had filled the school and given it a soul. Moving into a very energetic and percussive section of the piece, the composition imitates the persistence needed to keep the school alive; after working so intently, the faculty should not settle, or progress will be lost. With the return of the motif played in the low brass, With Heart and Voice reaches its crown, and ends with a perfect cadence to celebrate the school’s success. (program note by UCO Wind Symphony member, Casey Bond) ********* David Maslanka was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1943. He attended the Oberlin College Conservatory where he studied composition with Joseph Wood. He spent a year at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, and did masters and doctoral study in composition at Michigan State University where his principal teacher was H. Owen Reed. Maslanka’s music for winds has become especially well known. Among his more than 150 works are over 50 pieces for wind ensemble, including eight symphonies, seventeen concertos, a Mass, and many concert pieces. His chamber music includes four wind quintets, five saxophone quartets, and many works for solo instrument and piano. In addition, he has written a variety of orchestral and choral pieces. David Maslanka’s compositions are published by Maslanka Press, Carl Fischer, Kjos Music, Marimba Productions, and OU Percussion Press. They have been recorded on Albany, Reference Recordings, BIS (Sweden), Naxos, Cambria, CRI, Mark, Novisse, AUR, Cafua (Japan), Brain Music (Japan), Barking Dog, and Klavier labels. He served on the faculties of the State University of New York at Geneseo, Sarah Lawrence College, New York University, and Kingsborough Community College of the City University of New York, and was a freelance composer in Missoula, Montana from 1990 until his death in 2017. Heart Songs comes from the image of watering the tree of life with the blood of the heart. It is my hope with this music to provide a substantial and deeply-felt piece for young players. The second and third songs are based on melodies from the 371 Chorales by J.S. Bach. (notes by the composer) ********* George Percy Grainger was an Australian-born composer, pianist and champion of the saxophone and the concert band, who worked under the stage name of Percy Aldridge Grainger. Grainger was an innovative musician who anticipated many forms of twentieth century music well before they became established by other composers. As early as 1899 he was working with “beatless music”, using metric successions (including such sequences as 2/4, 2½/4, 3/4, 2½/4). In December 1929, Grainger developed a style of orchestration that he called “Elastic Scoring”. He outlined this concept in an essay that he called, “To Conductors, and those forming, or in charge of, Amateur Orchestras, High School, College and Music School Orchestras and Chamber-Music Bodies”. In 1932, he became Dean of Music at New York University, and underscored his reputation as an experimenter by putting jazz on the syllabus and inviting Duke Ellington as a guest lecturer. Twice he was offered honorary doctorates of music, but turned them down, explaining, “I feel that my music must be regarded as a product of non-education.” (Composer Bio found on WindRep.org) The Power of Rome and the Christian Heart was commissioned in 1947 for two reasons: to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the League of Composers, and for the 70th birthday of Edwin Franko Goldman. It is Grainger’s largest work for winds and percussion and calls for an organ to supplement the orchestra. The Power of Rome and the Christian Heart first began in 1918, and completed in 1943 for full symphony orchestra and organ. Faced with the commission and nothing yet on paper, Grainger decided to rescore it for the occasion. Openly admitting what he had done, he explained: “As it takes me about 20 years to finish a tone-work, the best thing I could do was to fix up my Power of Rome so it could be played without strings.” The Power of Rome and the Christian Heart is Percy Grainger’s last original work for band. The chronological span of the composition includes the end of one world war and the onset of a second. Grainger, a conscientious objector, repeatedly referred to The Power of Rome in these terms. The following two quotes support Grainger’s viewpoints: “Just as the Early Christians found themselves in conflict with the Power of Ancient Rome so, at all times and places, the Individual Conscience is apt to feel itself threatened or coerced by the Forces of Authority. The sight of young recruits doing bayonet practice, in the First World War, gave the first impulse to this composition, which, however, is not in any sense programme-music and does not portray the drama of actual events. It is merely the unfoldment of musical feelings that were started by thoughts of the eternal agony of the Individual Soul in conflict with The-Powers-That-Be.” “I think that young men in their teens respond (at least to the foreword of) my Conscientious- Objector piece The Power of Rome and the Christian Heart. But on the whole I think the entire musical world is entirely oblivious of the whole world of bitterness, resentment, iconoclasm and denunciation that lies behind my music. If they were aware of it I am not sure it would make any difference … And the worth of my music will never be guessed, or its value to mankind felt, until the approach to my music is consciously undertaken as a ‘a pilgrimage of sorrows’.” (Program Note from the West Texas A&M Wind Ensemble concert program, 11 February 2016, accessed on WindRep.org) ********* Marie A. Douglas mixes and layers genres and textures as a means to inject unprecedented relate-ability and excitement into pieces intended for concert stages. Her compositional choices portray her varied experiences creating a product that is highly artistic, gorgeous yet gritty, robust with innovation and familiarity. Marie’s compositions and arrangements have been performed throughout the United States and Canada, she has been noted for the memorable melodies, multi-faceted rhythms, compelling textures, and the complimentary orchestrations present within her works. Marie got her start in the artistic and culturally rich streets in the inner city of Atlanta. Her style reflects that relationship and proximity to “The Culture” and the unique perspective that it affords her. After high school she attended the Historically Black institution Florida A&M University and participated in the famed Marching “100” band. This period further inspired Marie to infuse attributes of her favorite musical genres and cultural staples into her creations intended for concert ensembles. Douglas’ compositions have included spirituals, body percussion, spoken word, electronic samples and tons of other elements of sound often comprising the sonic phenomena of the African Diaspora in conjunction with winds and or strings and percussion. Lately she has explored the fusion of Hip-Hop and its sub-genre “Trap Music”, a genre that has its roots in Atlanta, with western art music idioms. A variety of well-known ensembles have worked with Marie and performed her music; The Albany Symphony-Dogs of Desire, University of Central Florida Symphonic Band, University of Alabama-Birmingham Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band, California All-State Wind Symphony, University of the Pacific Conservatory, and many others. In addition to symphonic and chamber works, her catalogue also includes music for film, as well as hip-hop and r&b instrumentals. Recent projects include: serving as arranger, composer, conductor and musical director of the Live Nation/Big Femme Energy Live Experience tour featuring Ambre, Baby Rose, SayGrace and Teyana Taylor; premieres for her new flute concerto in collaboration with conductor, Erin Bodnar, and flautist Sarah Jane Young, which was selected to be included on a compilation CD released by the University of North Florida Wind Symphony in 2022. Her work for symphonic band centering on teen mental health entitled I am Enough was premiered by the California All – State Wind Ensemble in Fresno, California. Additionally, Marie completed the 2023 Jemison Visiting Scholar in the Humanities and Composer in Residence at the University of Alabama-Birmingham and arranged on 2022 Grammy Award-Nominated album “Full Circle”. Among her recent performances of her works for the 23’-24′ season were world premieres with the University of Georgia Wind Ensemble and the United States Navy Band in Washington D.C. for “SOUL Suite No. 1”, a new piece for wind ensemble as well as a collaboration with the United States Army Soldiers’ Chorus of Washington, DC on a work tilted “Umoja in America”. Marie serves as an adjunct professor within the Master of Music Technology Program at Southern Utah University where she was awarded the 2022 Influencer Award by the Division of Student Affairs and Professional Development Center. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts in composition and conducting from the University of Memphis, where she studied with Kamran Ince, Mahir Cetiz, and Albert Nguyen. Playalisticstagemuzik occurs in five short movements where two spirituals are featured and manipulated stylistically, reflective of some historical and direct influences via a playlist compiled by lead commissioner and friend, Sean Murray. The two spirituals are: Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho and Steal Away. The piece travels through some of the historical American musical phenomena that encompass hip-hop and r & b. The idea is to celebrate many of the encompassing styles in as many ways as possible, while aiming for continuity of some sort, with plenty of artistic value. Movement one, entitled Gospel Roots Intro, focuses on many aspects of Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho’s original compositional makeup (via R. Nathaniel Dett’s written adaptations compiled during his time at the Hampton Institute) and creates variation therein. This movement also establishes some of the stylistic approaches to be explored throughout the piece. Movement one occurs in five major sections: – Adagio teneramente – Lento agitato – Allegro – Issa Vibe – It’s Lit! You’ll hear the first three notes of the main theme of the hymn passed around the ensemble as if whispers to one another, sort of like neighborhood gossip. Everyone is asking: “Have you heard about Joshua?” Once the main theme is fully expressed there is a sonic celebration of sorts. This aims to be a modern depiction of the timeless hymn. Movement two, entitled On My Alternative R&B Tip, features the spiritual Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho. The movement is marked “Sad girl vibes (Lento pesante).” There is a fusion aesthetic in this movement. There’s grunge, mixed with r&b, plus the symphonic idioms. There’s heartbreak and betrayal being depicted in this bluesy movement. Movement three, entitled Trippy/Futuristic Gospel Vibe (Steal Away) focuses on the spiritual (you guessed it) Steal Away. This movement explores the gospel/jazz roots of r&b/hip-hop. Largo con moto is the major marking here. In this eight-minute movement, there is a reflective ambiance. Stillness and motion occur simultaneously. The movement progresses slowly and excitedly, progressing via delicate textures towards stirring tenor saxophone solos. Finishing in a gentle but inspiring tutti. Movement four, entitled Issa Jook Joint is a jazz/funk/90’s hip-hop inspired movement in five. It’s straight, but the hemiolas and moving bar lines give it an off balanced/dirty sort of feel. Marked Moderato con moto, the section is an eighth note-based variation of Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho. Dancing is encouraged/required. Movement five, entitled Finale – It’s Lit! Recap, contains a recapitulation of the previous sections in movement one with a proud and endearing finale section that adds more variation to the Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho hymn setting before closing with a recap on the same theme. There are three sections within the movement, marked as follows: – Lento agitato – Cantabile con moto – It’s Lit! About the Performers 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, Mark Lomax, Susan Botti, 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 23-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. Ryan Holcomb is in his first semester as the Graduate Assistant Band Director at UCO, pursuing a Master of Music in Conducting. He is a 2024 graduate of the UCO School of Music with a Bachelor of Music Education. He is currently teaching bassoon lessons and conducting the UCO Sound Machine Basketball Band. He has served on the staff of the UCO Stampede of Sound for the past three years, and this year was the first year that he served as Graduate Assistant Director. Zane Radka is a second semester graduate student pursuing a Master of Music in Conducting. He received his undergraduate degree in tuba performance from Southwest Oklahoma State University in Weatherford. He is originally from Enid, Oklahoma, and he is a proud graduate of Pioneer-Pleasant Vale High School. Ryan Sharp, D.M.A., is currently a professor of trumpet at the University of Central Oklahoma, artistic director of the Frontier Brass Band, and soprano cornetist of the Fountain City Brass Band. Sharp enjoys an active performing schedule spanning many genres such as solo, chamber, orchestral, jazz, salsa and pop. He has enjoyed performances with the Kansas City Symphony, Mahlerfest Symphony Orchestra, Count Basie Orchestra, Brass Band of Battle Creek, Temptations and Four Tops, as well as extensive national and international conference performances such as the Midwest Conference, International Trumpet Guild Regional Conference, International Tuba Euphonium Conference, Jazz Educators Network and the William Adam International Trumpet Seminar. In addition to live music, Sharp has recorded with many gospel artists including on Marvin Sapp’s Grammy-nominated album Be Exalted. From January 2003 to July 2005, Ryan was the lead trumpeter of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus performing across the United States and Mexico for more than 15 million people. He has performed in concerts, festivals and master classes in Greece, Canada, Mexico, England, Scotland, France, Belgium, Holland and Japan.