Along with the California State University Wind Symphony, the Madisonville North Hopkins High School Symphonic Band has been selected as the Feature Showcase Ensemble at the New York Wind Band Festival held in Carnegie Hall. Six select high school bands (including the Madisonville North Hopkins High School Concert Band) will perform in an adjudicated Festival on Sunday afternoon, February 26, 2012. On Sunday evening all performing high school groups will return to the Isaac Stern Auditorium in Carnegie hall to hear the two featured Showcase ensembles after which an awards presentation will occur. Only six bands are admitted to the festival each year and are selected based on a nomination to apply from the World Projects Board of Directors. The Board then reviews each application and audition tape and invites 6 groups to participate. In years past, the Feature Showcase Ensembles have been college or university wind ensembles or symphonic bands. The Madisonville North Hopkins Symphonic Band is the first high school ensemble to be selected to perform as a Feature Showcase Ensemble.
MADISONVILLE NORTH HOPKINS HIGH SCHOOL SYMPHONIC BAND AND CONCERT BAND TO WORLD PREMIERE TWO NEW WORKS FOR BAND IN CARNEGIE HALL
The Madisonville North Hopkins Symphonic Band has commissioned for its World Premiere with the New York Wind Band Festival in Carnegie Hall:
Pasodobles para Santa Cecilia y los Heroes de Espana by world renowned composer Stephen Melillo
Mr. Melillo is also slated to conduct the piece at the festival. From his website: “Music by Stephen Melillo has been played and recorded by some of the World’s finest ensembles and conductors including the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, The US Army, Navy, and Air Force Bands, The Sinfonischen Blasorchesters Ried (Linz, Austria), The Rundfunk Blasorchester Leipzig, The Marine Band of the Royal Netherlands Navy, The Central Band of Japan Self Defense Force, The Toyko Kosei Wind Orchestra, The Dutch Royal Military Band in Rotterdam, and The North Carolina Symphony Orchestra. In addition to works for orchestra and choral ensembles, Mr. Mellillo has 139 works published for band. His Documentary in Music “Kakehashi: That We Might Live” was nominated for the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in Music. Mr. Melillo has scored 14 feature films and 28 network television programs and holds degrees from the University of Connecticut, The Manhattan School of Music and Columbia University.”
The Madisonville North Hopkins Concert Band and University of Alabama Trombone Professor Jon Whitaker will perform also as a part of the NY Wind Band Festival in Carnegie Hall the World Premiere of:
Here We Rest
by Anthony Barfield.
Written for Wind Band and Trombone Soloist
This piece was written in commemoration of the tornado victims in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Mr. Barfield is an active chamber and orchestral musician and has quickly emerged as a composer. Recognized for his lyrical writing style, his compositions have been performed throughout the United States and Europe. Mr. Barfield holds degrees in Trombone Performance from the Julliard School of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Trombone Performance at the State University of New York Stonybrook where he studies with Joseph Alessi, Principal Trombonist of the New York Philharmonic and Steven Lange of the Boston Symphony.
Dr. Jonathan Whitaker is Professor of Trombone at the University of Alabama. As a soloist, Dr. Whitaker can be heard on the 2011 release of “Glass Bead” on Albany Records, which includes David Maslanka’s Concerto for Trombone and Wind Ensemble, Dee Stewart’s CD entitled “D+” and the Stentorian Consort Trombone Quartet. In 2011 he performed with the New York Philharmonic on concerts featuring Bartok’s Bluebeard’s Castle with Esa Pekka Solonen conducting. Whitaker also serves on the faculty of the Alessi Seminar. Dr. Whitaker holds degrees in trombone performance from Murray State University, University of Minnesota and Indiana University. He’s studied with Ray Conklin, Tom Ashworth, M. Dee Stewart, Peter Ellefson, and Joseph Alessi. He is an S.E. Shires Performing Artist and plays Greg Black Mouthpieces exclusively.
The Madisonville North Hopkins Symphonic band is an auditioned ensemble consisting of the top musicians from the Madisonville North Hopkins High School Band. The Concert Band is comprised of all the student musicians in the band program. The symphonic band will contain approximately 40 musicians and the Concert Band will perform with 122 musicians. The bands are under the direction of Rob Bryant, Alan Emerson, and Randy Adams.
