Sunday, May 25, 2014

The first concert of the summer season

As usual, the first concert I hear of for the summer season will be performed by the Shorewood Concert Band on Saturday June 14 at Atwater Park at noon, as a part of the Shorewood Men's Club Chicken Bar-B-Que fundraiser.  Not only should you stop by and enjoy the concert, you should also enjoy the chicken.  I can tell you from experience that it is wonderful!

The Shorewood Concert Band also has news.  It is now being led by new Music Director Clay Wachholz.  Mr. Wachholz is the Director of Bands at Cedarburg High School and an accomplished musician in his own right.  He will continue the history of fun performances by the Shorewood Concert Band.

It will be a fun concert and a delicious afternoon.  Stop by for the music and fun and enjoy the chicken!

Sunday, May 18, 2014

You can help in a couple of ways

First way:

You can support the Concord Chamber Orchestra on Sunday May 25 by enjoying a nice dinner and maybe a craft beer or soda.  On that day, the Horny Goat Hideaway at 2011 S. First Street (just north of Beecher Street on First) will donate a portion of their proceeds between 11 and 5 to the Concord Chamber Orchestra.  And if you print out the official flyer found at the CCO web site, the Orchestra will receive an increased donation.  So, you can enjoy an early dinner and a beverage and support the CCO at the same time.  Sounds like a good way to spend an afternoon.  I hope to see you there!

Second way:

There are many community bands that perform during the summer season that I have trouble putting together a calendar of all the performances.  If you have information about a band or two, especially if you have their performance schedule, please email me with that information.  I'll be sure to include it in the summer calendar.

The spring concert season is just about completed and the summer season will begin soon.  Send me your concert dates.  Thanks for the help.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Memorial Day is coming up

There will be many concerts observing Memorial Day.  One you should know about will be in Memorial Hall at the Milwaukee County War Memorial downtown.  The Milwaukee Metropolitan Community Concert Band will perform Sounds of our Memories at 4 PM.  As is customary for the MMCCB, there is no admission charge.  Enjoy the concert and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we have our freedom!

And don't forget the Milwaukee Festival Brass concert on May 18.  Check their web site for all the details.

Sunday, May 4, 2014

Concert Preview - Milwaukee Festival Brass

Don't forget the Concord Chamber Orchestra and the Menomonee Falls Symphony both perform Saturday evening May 10.

Now onto the concert preview.  The Milwaukee Festival Brass performs Impressions of Cornwall on Sunday May 18 at St. John's Lutheran Church at 20275 Davidson Road in Brookfield at 3 PM.  Music Director Mark Taylor passed me his thoughts on the concert and I decided to post them directly for you to enjoy.


Fresh off its second place finish at the 2014 North American Brass Band Championships, the award-winning Milwaukee Festival Brass will present “Impressions of Cornwall,” the final concert of its 2013-2014 season.   This program is designed to take listeners on a musical journey, visiting the sights and sounds, the people and places of England’s southwest corner.

“The Cornish people have a rich history, full of proud traditions and a fiercely independent spirit, sprinkled with the stuff of legend.”  Some historians believe the fabled King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table ruled in Cornwall.  Another royal couple, Wagner’s ill-fated Tristan and Isolde, sang their final love duets in Cornwall.  Once a separate kingdom independent of England, the region is home to an ancient language (Cornish) still spoken by a few residents but gradually making a comeback in schools there. 

The concert will include Malcolm Arnold’s Four Cornish Dances, an evocative look at the Cornish landscape, complete with peasant dancing, abandoned tin mines, church hymns, and village parades.  From the band’s tenor horn section, new member Courtney Balk, a recent music graduate from Illinois Wesleyan University, will perform the third movement “Rondo” from Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 3.  Other selections will include two Cornish marches, a beautiful prelude on the hymn tune “St. Agnes,” and works by Cornish composer and arranger Goff Richards, one of the most prolific writers for brass band in the 20th century.

This concert also provides the band an opportunity to celebrate its High School Apprentice Program.  This year’s apprentice, tenor hornist and University High School sophomore Robert Mason, will be joined by his entire section in a transcription of Scott Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag.

The Milwaukee Festival Brass will present “Impressions of Cornwall” on Sunday, May 18, 2014 at 3:00 p.m. at St. John’s Lutheran Church, 20275 Davidson Road in Brookfield, WI.  Tickets are $12, or $9 for seniors and students.  Group rates are available.  For more information, please visit the band’s website.

Hope to see you at the concert!