Rochester, N.Y. — The Eastman Wind Ensemble continues its tradition of adventuresome programming with a concert of new “classics” for wind ensemble on Friday, September 29 at 8 PM in the Eastman Theatre. The ensemble, led by Mark Davis Scatterday, will perform three significant works of the repertoire, each of which look to the future of the wind ensemble genre in their own unique way.
The concert begins with the New York State premiere of a work by award-winning Eastman alum Christopher Theofanidis. The piece, I wander the world in a dream of my own making, was born out of a unique effort between Eastman and several other music schools. Through the Howard Hanson Institute for American Music (the School’s major commissioning initiative), Eastman was able to secure funds to participate in a collaborative commissioning project in conjunction with Columbus State University, the University of Michigan, the University of Miami (FL), Western Kentucky University, Georgia State University, the University of Tennessee, the University of North Carolina and Florida State University. Each school covered a portion of the composer’s commissioning fee, and as a result, each school will get a chance to give a “premiere” of the work.
The program continues with A Child’s Garden of Dreams by David Maslanka. This hauntingly beautiful piece recalls scenes from the dream-journal of a 10-year-old girl, which was studied and written about by the famous early-20 th century psychologist Carl Jung. According to Jung, “These dreams open up a new and rather terrifying aspect of life and death. … Their atmosphere recalls the old Roman saying, ‘Life is a short dream.'” Maslanka, who was inspired by the strangely dark fantasy world created by this little girl, composed five short pieces, each of which correspond to one of the girl’s dreams. In the 25 years since this work has been written, it has become one of the most popular pieces for serious wind ensembles.
On the second half of the program, Pulitzer Prize winner Karel Husa will be in attendance for the performance of his emotionally charged Concerto for Wind Ensemble. The performance of this work (written in 1982) celebrates the 85 th birthday of Husa, one of the most prominent composers working in America today. It is especially fitting that this work will be conducted by Scatterday, who is considered one of the leading authorities on Husa’s music.
The Eastman Wind Ensemble is America’s leading wind ensemble. Its core of about 50 performers includes undergraduate and graduate students of the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester. The ensemble was founded more than 50 years ago under the leadership of Frederick Fennell. Since then, the ensemble has maintained its place as a trailblazer in the wind ensemble world. The ensemble’s most recent release Danzante, recorded prior to their last tour of Asia, was recently released on the Summit record label this year. To learn more about the Eastman Wind Ensemble, visit www.esm.rochester.edu/ewe.
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Note to editors: Photos of Mark Scatterday and the Eastman Wind Ensemble are available upon request.