The Concord Band - Fall 1999 Notes from the Concord Band

Since 1959..................P.O. Box 302, Concord MA 01742............Fall 1999

Saturday, October 30, 51 Walden St, Concord, 8:00pm.

The Concord Band, under the direction of Music Director, Dr. William McManus, will kick off its 1999-2000 season with a concert featuring a wide variety of musical styles ranging from classics of the concert band literature to several of the newest works for symphonic band. The Fall Concert will be held at the Band's home at 51 Walden Street in Concord on October 30th beginning at 8:00 PM.

The concert will begin with an exciting composition recently arranged for band especially for the Concord Band by composer William Gordon. This challenging new work, Fanfare and Chorale, "Laudes Domini", was originally composed by Gordon for brass band. Having heard a recording of the piece, Concord Band percussionist and Board Member, Dan Diamond, was so impressed with the work that he suggested that Gordon be commissioned to arrange the work for symphonic band. The Board and Dr. McManus agreed. This premier performance by a concert band of Fanfare and Chorale, "Laudes Domini" is sure to be an exciting opening to the Band's Fall concert.

Laudes Domini will be followed by Ronald Lo Presti's Elegy for a Young American. Lo Presti, a native of Williams town, Massachusetts, is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and has been the recipient of several Ford Foundation grants for American composers. Lo Presti composed this work in 1964 in memory of President John F. Kennedy. The Concord Band will be performing this work in memory of a more recently fallen young American, President Kennedy's son, John F. Kennedy, Jr.

The Concord Band will welcome its new Assistant Conductor, Christopher Morehouse, to the podium to conduct the March of the Belgian Parachutists and First Suite in E♭ by Gustav Holst. Morehouse, Director of Bands at Belmont High School, began his duties as guest conductor of the Concord Band with two concerts at Fruitlands this past summer. He is a graduate of Ithaca College in New York and the New England Conservatory of Music. Morehouse has been Director of Bands at Belmont High School for the past three years.

The March of the Belgian Parachutists is a gem of a piece with a strong European flavor. Composed by Belgian composer Pierre Leemans, the march was rearranged to fit American (and Texas!) band instrumentation by Charles Wiley, director of the Lamar University Band in Texas.

The Holst First Suite in E♭ is considered by many to be the cornerstone of exceptional works for band by British composers. Written in 1909 by one of England's most prominent composers, it is one of the few works originally written for band that have been transcribed for symphony orchestra. This work marked a new epoch in band literature that has been rarely, if ever, equaled by the many composers who were influenced by it.

The first half of the concert will close with Leroy Anderson's arrangement of "The Girl I Left Behind Me" from the Irish Suite, which Anderson composed for the Boston Pops Orchestra in 1947. This suite was commissioned by the Erin Society of Boston for its annual night at the Boston Pops.

Composer James Curnow has a long association with the Concord Band, guest conducting the Band in 1987 in his first Concord Band commission, Five Concord Diversions. Since then he has composed two additional works for the Band: Welsh Variants, and Overture to a Winter Festival, commissioned to honor the retirement of the Band's Music Director Emeritus, Bill Toland. This concert will feature one of Curnow's more recent compositions, Prelude and Celebration, composed by Cur now in 1996 to honor the 100th anniversary of the founding of Eastern Illinois University. The opening section of this work strives to capture musically the stark yet beautiful landscape of the Central Plains of Illinois that have been the home of the University since its founding. The work ends with a very spirited and energetic Celebration.

The Concord Band is proud to feature one of its own, saxophonist David Southard, in a performance of Wilford Holcombe's Rhapsody for Alto Saxophone and Band. David, a member of the Concord Band's saxophone section since 1988, has appeared several times as a soloist with the Band. A computer scientist, David also designed and maintains the Concord Band's website (www.concordband.org). The Rhapsody was commissioned by the U. S. Navy Band and premiered on August 7, 1997 with Tim Roberts as soloist.

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of Duke Ellington's birth, the Concord Band will be performing Floyd E. Werle's An Ellington Portrait. This setting of Ellington originals features such tunes as "It Don't Mean a Thing," "Sophisticated Lady," "Mood Indigo," "Azure," "I Let a Song Go Out Of My Heart," "Solitude," "Caravan," and "In A Sentimental Mood."

The concert will close with Jay Chat taway's exciting concert march Parade of the Tall Ships, written to commemorate Operation Sail, 1976, which was the largest gathering ever of tall sailing ships from all over the world. The event took place in New York Harbor as part of America's bicentennial celebration.

Concord Band Commissions New Arrangement

The Concord Band recently commissioned composer William Gordon to arrange a concert band setting of Fanfare and Chorale, "Laudes Domini", a work, based on a German hymn, he had originally arranged for Brass Band. Gordon, former conductor of the Pasadena Tabernacle Band of the Salvation Army, has degrees in both composition and conducting from California State University at Los Angeles where he had the privilege of studying with Roy Harris. His many arrangements and compositions for brass and concert band are performed throughout the world, and have been frequently recorded. Gordon was recently honored by having his Symphony for Brass chosen for the test piece of the British National Championships prize band organization. He is a resident of Lynden, Washington.

Summer Season 1999

With a performance in Faneuil Hall at the 1999 Boston Festival of Bands, five concerts at Fruitlands Museums in Harvard (a sixth was rained out), an Independence Day Concert in Concord, and concerts in Belmont and Hudson, the Concord Band had a busy and successful Summer concert season. Themes for the Summer series at Fruitlands included "A Night in Bavaria," "A Salute to American Jazz," "Remembering the 1920's," "Music for Independence Day" and a special children's concert titled "Kids and Kats". Vocalist Donna Kearney performed Thomas A. McGah's Sunsets with the Band at Fruitlands. This work was commissioned in memory of Carol Burdine. Concord Band flutist Marianne Leonard was featured soloist at the Band's Boston Festival of Bands performance.

What Your Money Doesn't Pay For

In this column, the one that asks you to send the Band money, we usually tell you

This time we focus on volunteerism. More particularly, we look at work done on a voluntary basis by individuals: work necessary to run the Band, work for which professional (as opposed to community) organizations have to pay top dollar. Their names are listed here.

Judy Allen
Nancy Burdine
Elizabeth Clairmant
Sue Console
Gina DePaoli
Dan Diamond
Elizabeth Gardner
June Grace
Bea Haynes
Bill Haynes

Harold Kasnitz
Reva Kasnitz
Barbara Lasker
Louis Lasker
June Mawn
Paul Mawn
Joanne Miller
Chris Mudgett
Nick Newman
Peter Norton

Gene Parish
Harriet Parish
Genevieve Phelan
Bill Read
Libby Read
Marian Schmuhl
June Sketchley
Dave Southard
Peg Stewart
Iris Tremelling

Jean Turkington
Connor Valiere
Fred Van Bennekom
Barbara Weiblen
Bill Weiblen
John Welch
Dick Wilson
Jane Wilson
Ari Winograd
Micah Winograd

Please note that the Band Board members listed here are undertaking activities beyond those of their assigned portfolios. Not listed, for fear of leaving people out, are the many Band members who help set the stage for rehearsals and concerts and who help move heavy percussion and other equipment to and from 51 Walden for concerts at Fruitlands, Hudson, Belmont, and other locations. Should you wish to become a Concord Band volunteer, there is no shortage of ways in which you can help, please call 978-897-9969.

So as not to disappoint you, here's where we ask for money: While the running of the Band is done almost entirely by volunteers, the Band has substantial expenses for which individual volunteer efforts cannot substitute. To help the Band financially, please write a check for as much as you can afford and send it to the address at the top of this newsletter.

Make Your Holdiay Pops Reservations Now

Be sure to make your reservations early for the Concord Band's annual Holiday Pops concerts, to be held at 51 Walden on December 10th and 11th. There's no better way to celebrate the holi day season than to enjoy an evening of great music and fun in the festive 51 Walden holiday atmosphere! Concord Band Holiday Pops is a tradition in Concord and sells out early. Plan a great evening out with your friends and neigh bors and the Concord Band. Table seating is available at $15 per person ($60 for a table of four) and includes beverages and snacks. Reservations can also be phoned in to 978-897-9969.

A Winter Festival

Just in time for holiday gift giving, the Concord Band CD, A Winter Festival, will be available from the Band and at area retail stores. Among the pieces on the CD are Curnow's Over ture to a Winter Festival (in its premier performance), two Leroy Anderson favorites, A Christmas Festival and Sleigh Ride, three collections of Chanukah melodies, Victor Herbert's March of the Toys, a Christmas sing-along, and the powerful Russian Christmas Music by Alfred Reed. A Winter Festival, priced at $15, will also be available for purchase at the Band's Fall Concert on October 30 and at the Holiday Pops Concerts on December 10th and 11th. Please call 978-897-9969 for information on retail locations.

Notes from the Concord Band

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