Memorial Day Concerts

There are three concerts on Memorial Day that you might want to attend, one by the Knightwind Ensemble, one by the Wauwatosa Community Band, and one by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Community Concert Band.

First up is the Wauwatosa Community Band. They are a part of the Memorial Day observance for the City of Wauwatosa. It will be held at Longfellow Middle School on the corner of 76th and North Avenue beginning at 10 AM. The band will provide patriotic music to accompany the ceremonies. See the Tosa Band site for more information.

In the afternoon, the Knightwind Ensemble will present its 21st Annual Memorial Day Pops Concert in the Peck Welcome Center at the Zoo at 1 PM. Besides some light classics, the Ensemble will perform music of Broadway, including selections from Les Miserables and the Overture to Candide by Leonard Bernstein. Of course, there will be a march or two. And the concert will conclude with the annual Salute To The Armed Forces. The concert is free with your Zoo admission. Click here for Zoo information.

Later in the afternoon at 5 PM, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Community Concert Band will perform a concert observing Memorial Day at the War Memorial Center downtown. The program will include light classics, show tunes and marches. If your day is busy early on, this might be a nice way to end the weekend. Here is more information on the concert.

And be sure, however you spend your weekend, to spend some time on Monday May 31 honoring our veterans, especially those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. It is because of their sacrifice that we have our freedom.

For the neighbors in/near Pewaukee

I don't have a lot of information about this concert, but I found out that the Hartland Community Band will be performing at a special Holiday event on Saturday May 29th at the Veterans Bell Tower Memorial, highway 164 and Capitol Drive.

The Hartland Community Band performs during the summer, so this is a bit early in the season for those folks. They'll be providing patriotic music for the ceremonies. If you are going to be in the area, be sure to take in the program, and enjoy the music of the Hartland Community Band. For more information, see the web site: www.veteransbelltower.com.

For those of you to the South

I received word that the Racine Concert Band will be performing at Case High School in Racine, with the Case High School Band, on May 20th. I do not yet have information about the program, but I will post an update as soon as I have that information.

Just a word about the Racine Concert Band...the group is best known for their Summer Concert Series at the Racine Zoo on Sunday evenings. That series has been going for a very long time. The Racine Concert Band (RCB) was recognized by none other than the John Phillip Sousa Foundation as one of the best Community Bands in North America, when it awarded the band its Sudler Silver Scroll. That is a true honor as only the very best community bands receive that award.

So, be sure to see the Racine Concert Band with the Case High School Band on the 20th at 7:00 PM. And be sure to mark your Sunday evenings for Summer Concerts by RCB beginning on Sunday July 4th. What a way to kick off the concert season!

Concert Preview: Menomonee Falls Symphony Orchestra

First, don't forget the Waukesha Area Symphonic Band concert this Friday April 30 at Carroll University. See their web site for all the details: http://www.wasband.org/

The Menomonee Falls Symphony Orchestra presents National Treasures on Saturday May 8 at 7:30 PM in the Hamilton Fine Arts Center in Sussex. Featured on the program are the First and Second Place winners of the MFSO Young Artist Competition, harpist Christina Brier and violinist Ari Lipchik.

The program begins with the Sebelius masterpiece Finlandia, a treasure of Finland. The first half concludes with the performances of the soloists. Unfortunately, I do not know the works that will be performed by the soloists (not much help, I know). The concert concludes with the Dvorak Symphony #9, From The New World, one of our national treasures.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for Seniors, and $6 for Students and can be purchased at the door. For more information, you can visit their web site: http://my.execpc.com/~regent/mfso.htm.

The MFSO just recently moved their rehearsals and concerts to the Hamilton Fine Arts Center in Sussex. The hall is wonderful for concerts, and the MFSO sounds very full and balanced there. When the MFSO played at the middle school in Menomonee Falls, the sound was not nearly as clear and full. They have found a new home for their concerts and we are the benefactors: better sounding concerts by a quality group. See you there!

Concert Preview - Wauwatosa Community Band

First, don't forget about the Dallas Brass coming to Wisconsin Lutheran High School on Sunday April 25th. You can order your tickets online at: http://www.wisconsin-lutheran-high-school.ticketleap.com/. Advance tickets are $15, at the door the price is $18. The Milwaukee Metropolitan Community Concert Band is expecting a sellout, so you better get your tickets early.

Also, if you are in the Fox Valley, the Oshkosh Horn Choir performs on Tuesday April 20 at 7 PM in the concert hall of the Music Building. The program includes classical favorites arranged for Horn Choir including Procession of the Nobles, and some movie music from Titanic. The best part is that the concert is free.

Now on to the concert preview. The Wauwatosa Community Band presents an evening of Patriotic Music on Tuesday May 4th at 7:30 PM in the auditorium of Longfellow Middle School, corner of 76th and North Avenue. Music Director Donna Kummer has chosen some favorites just in time for Memorial Day.

The feature piece on the program is an evergreen band classic: Gustav Holst's Second Suite in F. This suite is based on English folk songs, and is one of the cornerstone pieces of modern band music. For those of you who are not familiar, I suggest you attend the concert just to hear the last movement of this suite. Holst wanted to have two tunes played on top of each other, and he got that wish in the fourth movement when he juxtaposed the Fantasy on the Dargason and Greensleeves. The effect is wonderful.

Also on the program is Their Finest Hour by John Cacavas, George M. Cohan's Star Spangled Salute!, God Bless America, and The Ultimate Patriotic Sing-Along. Better warm up those vocal chords!

Tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the door. Students and Seniors are $3. The concerts are always a lot of fun, so if you haven't heard Tosa Band yet, this would be a great concert to attend. And if you have heard Tosa Band, then you know that this will be a fun evening.

Concert Preview: Waukesha Area Symphonic Band

The Waukesha Area Symphonic Band (WASB) will present Luminescence, their spring concert, on Friday April 30th at 7:30 PM in Shattuck Auditorium on the Carroll University campus. The concert is a part of the Waukesha Works For People series, and will benefit the Adaptive Community Approach Program (ACAP).

Featured on the program is clarinetist Sabrina Pruszka, the winner of the WASB 2010 Concerto Competition earlier this year. Sabrina is a Senior at Franklin High School and is studying with Linda Jones at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. She is also a member of both the UW-Milwaukee Youth Wind Ensemble, and the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra. She will perform the final movement (Rondo) from Carl Maria von Weber's Concerto Number 1.

Also on the program is Luminescence by David Biedenbender, the Adagio of Samuel Barber, and a Roger Cichy piece that I am not familiar with: Bugs. (Looks like a fun piece with movements entitled Dragonfly and Army Ants!)

The Waukesha Works For People is an annual concert event produced by WASB to help support other charities in and around Waukesha. Enjoy a wonderful concert and help support ACAP. (And besides, you don't want to miss music from the Star Wars Trilogy also on the program...)

Here's something different

There is an upcoming concert that is unique in community music. It is happening on the campus of UW-Oshkosh. On Tuesday April 20th, the Oshkosh Horn Choir under the direction of Dr. Bruce Atwell will perform in the Music Hall on Campus (800 Algoma Blvd.) at 7 PM. Admission is free.

The Choir is made up of french horn students studying with Dr. Atwell as well as volunteers from the community. The quality of the group is very good and Dr. Atwell attracts a lot of very good community players from all over eastern Wisconsin, coming from both the Milwaukee and Green Bay areas, as well as the Fox Valley.

If you've never heard a choir of french horns playing classical and popular music, I suggest you attend this concert. You will enjoy it immensely!