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The musical repertoire was dedicated to emerging and significant living composers for wind band, and the Scarsdale ensemble was fortunate to have all four composers at the event.
During the learning process, each composer worked with the ensemble via Skype and eventually at in-person rehearsals to maximize the emotional impact of the music.
“They emerged making music rather than worrying about notes, rhythms, dynamics,” said Jason Noble, the school's director of bands. “They emerged with understanding rather than knowledge and art rather than technique. As with a great dramatic production or literary work, the repertoire provided moments to reflect, laugh, cry and triumph.”
Among the numbers performed were Michael Markowski's "Embers," a difficult upper-level wind band work written primarily for college wind ensembles with music majors. They also performed 20-year-old prodigy composer Tyler Grant’s "Panoramic Landscapes," which won the Dallas Wind Symphony Brass Fanfare Competition in 2015.
The students received a standing ovation from the approximately 1,500 patrons in attendance.
Noble noted that the students juggle many highly demanding academic requirements with sports, their social lives, and the inevitable need for eventual sleep. “They've done everything I asked and more,” he said. “And nearly every parent (and most grandparents) of a Scarsdale Wind Ensemble student attended the event. The support and encouragement is palpable.”
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