Harold Washington Library Concert Report

Exposition IV: An Appalachian Spring, is a performance of various musicians within Virginia Tech’s School of Performing Arts. The event took place at Moss Arts Center in the Anne and Ellen Fife theater, with musicians stationed on stage and on the side balconies. A different instrument section played each segment of the performance, including: horn ensemble, string ensemble, bassoonists, percussion ensemble, jazz ensemble, the Linux Laptop Orchestra, Kinect sensor and computer, and male and female choirs. This exposition was held in order to benefit the performing arts scholarship program at Virginia Tech, but it seemed that the performance had the goal of showing off the individual ensemble’s talents, and, in the end, combining those talents.

The date of the concert was October 5, 2016 and the title of the concert is “Experimental Improvisation with: Kjell Nordeson & Peter Kuhn”. The concert was performed in Mesa College Music building. Peter Kuhn had three instruments with him a bass clarinet, saxophone, and a Bb Clarinet. He used the bass clarinet and the saxophone during his first piece, and the clarinet on the second piece. Kjell Nordeson was on the drum but had a lot of instruments with him. Sometimes he would play the drums as a drums set but sometimes he would put some sort of objects on top of the drum to create different sound effects. He also had a small glockenspiel and a flexatone. The concert hall was very simple, had a

On April 11th, 2017 in the Louis Armstrong Theatre, I attended the GVSU “University Band”. This up-beat ensemble lasted about 90 minutes; the talented students of GVSU’s university band joined together to perform multiple different songs ranging from a Waltz to a Dixieland Jamboree. All of the songs that the band played for the audience were all well-known, popular songs that they all enjoyed. Having the opportunity to attend this concert has opened new musical paths for myself and has allowed me to enjoy and kindly critique something that I perhaps would have never had the chance to otherwise.

On November 18, 2015, I attended a UAB concert involving jazz combos and a guitar ensemble. This concert was filled with amazing musicians, intricate solos, and thick harmonies. There were three jazz combos and one guitar ensemble; the first set was the guitar ensemble, which contained four guitarists and one bass player. The ensemble consisted of four songs: “Swing It,” a swing-style song; “Samba #1”; “A Child is Born,” a waltz; and “Bill’s Bay.” The main theme of “Bill’s Bay” was very catchy and memorable, and the ensemble’s most impressive player to me was Michael Galanti on the bass guitar. His solos involved precise pizzicato and quick movement that I have never witnessed in a bass player.

On Friday, May 18, I attended the Burrell High School Jazz Band Concert. Over the concert, a band played for the first half, there were then chamber groups that played in between, the second band next, and then a combined band with alumni. I felt that the structure of the concert flowed nicely, as the chamber music in between was refreshing from the jazz. My favorite chamber piece was an African piece involving bongos and soprano saxophone.

This was a great piece to start the concert with. Finding out later from Conductor Dr. Chuck (what he likes to be called) that the concert was Americana themed, the orchestra did a fantastic job bringing in the crowd with a song everyone would know. I caught myself dancing along with the music and counting the beats along with the orchestra. Played with great fortissimo is exactly how I pictured American bands and orchestras playing during the Revolutionary War. I loved it when all of a sudden they went very pianissimo and then crescendo into my all-time favorite patriotic song, Yankee Doodle!

On Friday, February 12th, I visited the Wimberley Theatre located in Wimberley, TX to watch Lend me your tenor. This play is known to fill the theatre with laughter and that’s exactly what the actors did. You would have never known this small little playhouse in such a small town would give an amazing showing of such a magnificent play. The actors were perfect and had the audience on a rollercoaster of laughter. In this play the famous tenor Tito Merelli, has agreed to play Otello for one night only at the opera company. a hilarious series of mishaps, he passes out after an accidental overdose of tranquilizers. Believing the famous tenor star is dead, the opera manager has his assistant, Max, an aspiring singer, to replace Merelli. Things go

I went to Palmetto Middle Schools band concert. It was conducted and directed by Avery Davis. There were around 50 students that performed. It was held luxurious Palmetto Middle School auditorium. They played: Rough Riders by Karl L. King, Afton Variations by Carl Strommen, and Blue Ridge by Brian Balamages. Before I went to the concert I did not expect much, but then I completely was blown away. I enjoyed the whole concert but, I loved Afton Variations the most. I know this song pretty well, and I know that it requires a lot of “woodwind power”, which they had.

On April 21, 2014 I watched the online performance of Sleeping Beauty performed by the Jacobs School of Music at the Musical Arts Center in Indianapolis. I have never personally been to the Musical Arts Center, but from the online streamed video, the place looks magnificently huge and phenomenal. The stage was absolutely stunning. It was big, vibrant, and breathtaking. It made it look as if you actually went back in time and were a part of the performance. The stage was enhanced with beautiful cool, calming purples, pinks, and blues that matched the performers’ outfits to a tee. It reminded me of royalty. Each performer had gorgeous outfits for every act, and I must say, the designer did a fabulous job.

Gerry Genuario was an influential drum player in Reno until he died. The concert held by the percussion ensemble, which was a tribute to his life and art of music. The percussion ensemble was held in a big concert hall venue that is for bigger bands and conductors, consisted of sheet music and songs that are highly arranged but also implemented complex measures, virtuosic solos, and use of unique instruments. The performance was intended for bigger audiences that are listeners instead of dancers.

On Wednesday, March 26, 2014 at eight o’clock in the evening in Longmire Recital Hall, The Florida State University presented the Faculty/Guest Artist Recital which included David Kalhous and Jihye Chang both pianists, the two collectively performed 20 pieces during the concert. I have never been to a recital of this sort, I assumed the venue would be large and there would be people singing and playing different instruments. The venue was actually small and there was only a piano. I was surprised that the crowd was so small being that the concert was at Florida State University, I assumed there would be a great number of people. The Longmire Recital Hall was small and the seating was arranged like movie theater seating. The lighting was very low; there was only enough lighting to see the pianist. Since this was my first time attending a recital of this sort I was confused as to why the pianist had to bow before each piece, or how long the audience applauded after each performance. Performers for this event were David Kalhous and Jihye Chang. David is a brilliant pianist, who is now gaining recognition in Europe and the United Stated for his elegant musicianship. Jihye Chang is also a pianist, who serves as an adjunct professor of music theory at Florida State University.

I cannot believe what my eyes have witnessed. On February 24, 2017, I had the opportunity to volunteer and to witness a Stax Music Academy concert. Every year in February, the Stax Music Academy pays tribute to legendary music artist by performing some of the most iconic songs that were sung during the late 50’s - early 90’s. This year, the Stax Music Academy did an R&B concert based on the Stax Volt tour, which included people like, Otis Redding, The Barkays, The Staple singers, and more. This concert was sold out, and the crowd really enjoyed themselves.

On November 5, 2016 at 7:30 pm the Civic Orchestra played in the Stocker Center at Lorain County Community College. They played three pieces all by different composers. They also had Janine Porter singing one of the pieces.

Having some experience with playing the clarinet, this concert was just amazing. Música Viva took place on March 25, 2018 with the musicians being Rich Moore, Jackie Moore, Philip Spencer, David Nuccio, John Lauler and Adam Cowger. Rich Moore, being the lead performer thought all seven compositions, showed the amount of skills he has with the clarinet by playing pieces with a range of melodies, tempos, pitches, rhythms and forms. Each composition had their own distinctive sound making them unique and pleasant to hear with the instruments assigned to that particular composition. Some of the other instruments used in the concert were the viola, piano, bass, percussion, and drum set. Each composition displayed its own kind of mood and element

On Sunday, May10 2015, a concert was held in The Broad Stage. The concert was played by Santa Monica College Symphony Orchestra, whose conductor is Dr. James Martin. For this concert, I would identify myself as a referential listener at this concert. I say this because I am not an expert in music, therefore it would be hard for me to be a critical listener. I wouldn’t be able to tell what went wrong with a performance even if some incorrect notes were played. I was more of a referential listener because the music was soothing and brought my mind to peaceful thoughts. This essay will tells my experience of the concert in order to persuade my friend to  attend a classical music concert with you in the future.