Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble Presents “Around the World in 60 Minutes” March 15

March 5, 2020 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

The Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble continues its 2019-2020 season on Sunday, March 15, with a concert entitled “Around the World in 60 Minutes.” Music Director Charles Thai will conduct this free band concert at 4 p.m. in Emmanuel Episcopal Church at Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building.

The program begins with “Serengeti” by John Higgins that is based on folk themes of central Africa, followed by “Tribal Journeys” by Justin Harden that draws upon melodies from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean region.

The “Second Suite in F” by Gustav Holst uses folk songs from England and Ireland: “March” (“Morris Dance,” “Swansea Town,” “Claudy Banks”), “Song Without Words” (“I’ll Love My Love”), and “Fantasia on the Dargason.”

Next, “Scenes of Wonder” by Mark Williams paints musical pictures of several sites in Europe: Stonehenge in England, the Louvre in Paris, and Pamplona, Spain, during the annual festival featuring the running of the bulls.

“Land of the Thunder Dragon” arranged by Michael Story uses a song from the Asian country of Bhutan, “Chumo La Dingshoin.” Rob Grice’s “Mountain of the Sun” expresses the passion of the Omani people who have inhabited their country on the shores of the Arabian Sea for thousands of years.

“Fantasy on a Japanese Folk Song” by Samuel R. Hazo tells the story of a Japanese immigrant married to an American who periodically longs for the culture of her childhood. Lastly, “Prairie Dance” by Gary D. Ziek is a lively musical portrait of the high plains of the western United States.

Rehearsals start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. in the Washington College band room (no. 116) in Gibson Center for the Arts. For further information, call 410-778-2829, send a message to [email protected], or go to facebook.com/EasternShoreWindEnsemble. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent Cultural Alliance.

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“A Winter’s Eve” the Theme of the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble’s Holiday Concert December 16

December 5, 2018 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

“A Winter’s Eve” is the theme of the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble’s 2018 holiday concert. Music Director Charles Thai will conduct this free band concert, beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday, December 16, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church at Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building. All are invited for refreshments in the church hall after the concert.

The concert opens with “Winterwinds” by Larry Neeck, a celebration of the power and majesty of this time of year.

The program continues with several traditional settings of carols: “On A Cold Winter’s Night (The First Noel and Away in a Manger),” “Joyeux Noel! (Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella, He Is Born, The Divine Child, What Is This Star? and Ding Dong! Merrily on High),” “Christmas Fantasia (O Come All Ye Faithful, Jingle Bells, Up on the Housetop, and Joy to the World),” and “O Holy Night.”

“A Hanukkah Festival” features music for the eight-day Jewish Festival of Lights, which this year began December 3.

Several traditional carols are given new interpretations: “African Holy Night” features percussive African rhythms, and “Fantasia on Silent Night” and “The Holly And The Ivy” are jazz renderings of Christmas classics. The concert concludes with a hip, swing version of Mariah Carey’s up-tempo Christmas love song “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”

Rehearsals for the next concert, on March 17, will begin on Monday, January 7. They start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 in the Washington College band room in Gibson Center for the Arts.

For more information, call 410-778-2829, email to [email protected], or go to facebook.com/EasternShoreWindEnsemble. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

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Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble Presents “Mythical Creatures October 28

October 19, 2018 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

The Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble begins its 2018-2019 season with a program entitled “Mythical Creatures.” Music Director Charles Thai will conduct this free, hour-long concert, beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday, October 28, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church at Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building.

“Flight of the Phoenix” by Carl Strommen, “Cry of the Last Unicorn” and “The Winged Stallion,” both by Rossano Galante, are musical pictures of majestic and beautiful mythical creatures. “Monster of Myth” by Travis J. Weller, “Vampires in the Attic,” “Hour of the Wolf” both by Joseph Eidson and “Awaken the Giant” by Joel Spineti capture the fearful aspects of darker creatures. “The Dark Waters” by Matt Conaway is a journey down the River Styx, the eerie mythological river of the underworld. “Whispering Pines” by Mike Forbes adds an elegantly winsome note to the concert.

Based in Chestertown, the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble is an all-ages community concert band. It was formed in 2001 to offer area wind and percussion musicians the opportunity to continue or return to the pleasures of playing quality music in a large ensemble. New members are always welcome, without audition or fee.

Rehearsals start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. on Monday evenings in the Washington College band room in Gibson Center for the Arts. For further information, call 410-778-2829, send a message to [email protected], or go to facebook.com/EasternShoreWindEnsemble. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

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Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble to Present “Splendor of the Season”

December 6, 2017 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

“Splendor of the Season” is the theme of the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble’s 2017 holiday concert.

Music Director Dr. Keith A. Wharton will conduct this free concert, beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday, December 17, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church at Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building. All are invited for refreshments in the church hall after the concert.

The concert features “March of the Toys” by Victor Herbert from his 1903 operetta “Babes in Toyland,” “Nativity Carol” by John Rutter, and “A Hanukkah Festival,” an arrangement of Festival of Lights music. Traditional Christmas carols are the basis for several pieces: “All Through the Night,” “All is Calm,” “On a Catalonian Carol,” “And All the Bells Shall Ring,” and “Gesu Bambino.” “Carols from the British Isles” offers another medley of favorites, and “A Christmas Festival” is a musical summation of the season by Leroy Anderson. “The Ultimate Christmas Sing-along” is the audience’s opportunity to join with the band in celebrating the music of the season.

Rehearsals for the next concert on March 18th will begin on Monday, January 8th. They start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. in the Washington College band room in Gibson Center for the Arts.

For more information, call 410-778-2829, send a message to [email protected], or go to facebook.com/EasternShoreWindEnsemble. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

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Wind Ensemble Concert Celebrates Fall

October 18, 2017 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble in rehearsal

The Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble celebrates autumn in its first concert of the season, “Festive Fall.” Music Director Keith Wharton will conduct this free concert, beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday, October 29, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church at Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building.

Two works on the program were written in memoriam. “Almost Autumn,” by Gary P. Gilroy, is a loving tribute and celebration in memory of a well-loved, respected, and successful colleague. “In These Last Days of Autumn,” by Randall D. Standridge, was written in memory of a young, aspiring rock musician.

On a lighter note, “Dance of the Trolls,” by Mike Forbes, is a fun and colorful work that depicts the mysterious trolls of Mount Horeb, upon which Moses received the Ten Commandments. “Cut to the Chase” has melodic fragments that dart around the band as if every instrument is being chased or is chasing something.

Beautiful melodies are represented by an arrangement of the jazz standard “Autumn Leaves,” by Joseph Kosma, and by “Highlights from Wicked,” the blockbuster Broadway hit with songs “No One Mourns the Wicked,” “I’m Not That Girl,” “Defying Gravity,” “No Good Deed,” and “For Good.”

“Celebration Overture,” by Darren W. Jenkins, is a musical celebration of life and the wonderful, positive events we experience. At the other end of the spectrum, “Echoes in the Woods” is a piece that reflects the quiet beauty of Wisconsin forest and lakes after the passing of logging camps. In a more dramatic vein, “Music from Carmina Burana,” by Carl Orff, denotes primal forces and the whims of Fortuna, the goddess of luck.

Rehearsals start promptly at 7 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. in the Washington College band room (no. 116) in Gibson Center for the Arts. For further information, call 410-778-2829, send a message to [email protected], or go to facebook.com/EasternShoreWindEnsemble. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

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Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble in Concert May 21

May 11, 2017 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

The Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble celebrates American music in its final concert of the season, “Red, White, and Blue.” Music Director Dr. Keith A. Wharton will conduct this free band concert, beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 21, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church at Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building.

The concert features two works that celebrate the American spirit. “Freedom Quest” by Tracy O. Behrman conveys the essence of American freedom with drive, brilliance, tenderness, and beauty. “Celebrate America” by Robert E. Foster is unabashedly patriotic; its bold fanfare reflects the strength and courage demonstrated by Americans and follows with a musical journey through several patriotic pieces, which include “America, the Beautiful”; “You’re a Grand Old Flag”; and “America” (“My Country, ’Tis of Thee”).

Several works acknowledge the struggle and sacrifice of America’s armed forces. “Civil War Reflections” by Larry MacTaggart uses popular songs from the Civil War era to paint a musical portrait of that turbulent time in our history. “Reflections from the Wall” by David Shaffer was inspired by the Vietnam War Memorial and commemorates the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. “We Stand On Guard” by Vince Gassi and “For Our Heroes” by Alan Lee Silva pay homage to all American service personnel in times of war and peace.

No concert of American music would be complete without marches, and this concert offers two. “Our Own Red, White, and Blue” by Henry Fillmore was written as a contribution to the World War I war effort and was often played at Red Cross fundraisers. “National Emblem March” by E. E. Bagley is one of the all-time great marches and is known for its brief quote of “The Star-Spangled Banner” and its rousing low-brass trio.

The audience can participate in “The Ultimate Patriotic Sing-Along,” an arrangement by Jerry Brubaker of American music classics: “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” “America the Beautiful,” “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” and “God Bless the U.S.A.”

Rehearsals for next season will begin in September. The Monday-night rehearsals start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. in the Washington College band room (No. 116) in Gibson Center for the Arts.

For further information, call 410-778-2829, send a message to [email protected], or look at facebook.com/EasternShoreWindEnsemble. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

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“Glad Tidings to All” the Theme for Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble’s December Concert

November 18, 2016 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

“Glad Tidings to All” is the title of the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble’s 2016 December concert. Music Director Dr. Keith A. Wharton will conduct a selection of holiday music as well as a new work by Kent County High School senior Glaeden Boyd. The free concert will begin at 4 p.m. Sunday, December 4, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church at the corner of Cross and High streets in Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible, via the ramp and automatic doors on the courthouse-green side of the building.

The audience is invited to have refreshments with the band in the parish hall following the concert.

The concert will begin with “Herald the Holidays,” a fanfare and flourish for concert band using familiar carols and holiday melodies. It will be followed by “A Cambridge Carol,” a work based on the joyful, rhythmic Christmas carol that evolved from a 16th-century secular French dance tune.

Next will be the instantly recognizable “The Skaters’ Waltz” that captures the graceful movements of Belle Epoque skaters on an outdoor ice rink in Paris. The more serious work that follows, “Symphonic Prelude on Adeste Fidelis,” begins with an unaccompanied trumpet solo, progresses to a trumpet duet, then full brass choir, woodwind choir and finally the complete band.

Next will be “Joyeux Noel!,” an arrangement of holiday music from France, followed by a recent adaptation of the English carol “Greensleeves” as arranged for the contemporary group Mannheim Steamroller.

The band will then play “Hark to the Fanfare Sounding,” an original work for brass composed by band member Glaeden Boyd.

The next work in the concert will be “A Mad Russian’s Christmas,” an arrangement of a piece composed for the American progressive rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra that uses Ukrainian folk melodies made famous by Tchaikovsky in “The Nutcracker” ballet.

After “Good Tidings to All,” another medley of familiar carols, the concert will conclude with “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” an arrangement of the 1963 Christmas song made famous by Andy Williams.

The Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble is an all-ages community concert band. It was formed in 2001 to offer area wind and percussion musicians the opportunity to continue or return to the pleasures of playing quality music in a large ensemble. New members are always welcome, without audition or fee.
Rehearsals for the next concert, on March 19, will begin on January 9. They start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. in the Washington College band room in Gibson Center for the Arts. For further information, call 410-810-1834 or 410-778-2829. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

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Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble Seeks New Members

September 5, 2016 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

As the start of its 2016-2017 season nears, the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble (the all-ages community concert band based in Chestertown) invites new members to join the group for its 16th season. The first rehearsal will be on Monday, Sept. 12, starting promptly at 7:00 p.m. and ending by 8:30, in Washington College’s band room (No. 116 in the classroom wing of the Gibson Center for the Arts). Prospective members who can’t attend the first rehearsal should come to a subsequent Monday-evening rehearsal.

Wind and percussion instrumentalists with experience on their instruments, whether resuming playing after even a long period away from them or having played continually, are eligible for membership, without fee or audition. There are no limits on section sizes so that all who wish to play may do so. At present the band especially seeks players of these instruments: oboe, bassoon, clarinet (including bass), saxophone (especially tenor), horn, and baritone/euphonium.

Students from advanced middle-schoolers on up, are especially encouraged to join. They generally will find that their skills and musicianship improve faster and farther with the additional playing time and different repertoire from that of their school bands.The band also welcomes students who are experienced on their instruments but do not participate in a school band, either because their class schedules won’t allow it or because their schools have no band or other suitable ensemble.

Community-band membership offers students other benefits also. By the time they graduate from high school, student members seem to value the intergenerational interactions they have had through membership; in some seasons members have ranged from young middle-schoolers to retirees in their 80s even older.Students also realize that participating in ensembles can be a lifetime pursuit, not one that ends after graduation from high school or college. And a significant number of students who participated in the band have gone on to major in music in college and pursue music-related careers.

Dr. Keith A. Wharton, a veteran of more than 30 years as a music teacher in the Kent County Public Schools and also on the music staffs of Washington College and the Upper Chesapeake Summer Center for the Arts, has been the band’s music director from the band’s founding. He has programmed more than 65 concerts for the wind ensemble. Dr. Wharton and the ensemble still maintain their original philosophy of “providing a music group in which the members can expand their skills, play quality music, and enjoy themselves in a supportive, collegial atmosphere as well as entertain audiences.”

The season’s first free concert, one of the musical events of Sultana’s Downrigging Weekend, will be at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 30, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in downtown Chestertown. The program will consist at least partially of pieces appropriate for the Halloween season (such as “Creepy Classics for Band” and highlights from the Broadway musical “Wicked”).

The next concert will be a Christmas/winter-holiday concert on December 4. After a break, rehearsals will resume in January, with concerts scheduled for March 19 and May 21. All will be at Emmanuel Church, with free admission.

For more information, prospective members may call 410-778-2829 or 410-810-1834. The ensemble is supported by the Kent County Arts Council and community donations.

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“Made In America” the Theme for Final Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble May 22

May 13, 2016 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

“Made In America” will be the theme for the final Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble concert of the 2015-2016 season. The band concert will present works by American composers of classical, popular, and stage, film and TV music. Washington College student Emma Hoey will be featured as trumpet soloist. The free concert will begin at 4 p.m., Sunday, May 22, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Cross and High streets, Chestertown. The church is handicapped-accessible at the entrance from the old courthouse green.

The program will open with “Fanfare for the Common Man.” Aaron Copland wrote the piece in 1942 for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under conductor Eugene Goossens. It was inspired in part by a famous speech made earlier in the same year where vice president Henry A. Wallace proclaimed the dawning of the “Century of the Common Man.”

“American Riversongs” by Wisconsin composer Pierre La Plante is a moving tribute to an earlier time when waterways were the lifeline of our growing nation. It features “Down The River,” “Shenandoah” (aka “Across The Wide Missouri”), “The Glendy Burk,” and a delightful Creole dance tune based on the music for the bamboula, a drum made from a section of giant bamboo with skin stretched over the ends.

“Love’s Old Sweet Song,” words by G. Clifton Bingham and music by James Lyman Molloy, was an immensely popular Victorian-era parlor song. Melodic and sentimental, it was often played and sung in homes around the increasingly common upright piano or parlor organ of that period. During the great American concert band era of a century ago, virtuoso brass soloists often played it as an encore, and in that spirit this arrangement by Andrew Glover is programmed as a trumpet solo with band accompaniment.

“A Gershwin Tribute to Love” is an arrangement by Brent Heisinger of lovely melodies that George Gershwin wrote for stage and screen. “’S Wonderful” is from the 1927 Broadway musical “Funny Face,” “Love is Here to Stay” from the 1938 film “The Goldwyn Follies,” “They Can’t Take That Away from Me” from the 1937 Fred Astaire movie “Shall We Dance,” and “Embraceable You” from the 1930 Broadway musical “Girl Crazy.”

“The Golden Age of Broadway” is arranger John Moss’s nod to the fabulous show music of Richard Rodgers from the 1940s and 1950s. It features “Bali Ha’i” from the 1949 show “South Pacific,” “The Carousel Waltz” from 1945’s “Carousel,” “Getting To Know You” from the 1951 show “The King and I,” “Oklahoma” from the 1943 show of the same name, and “Climb Every Mountain” from the 1959 show “The Sound of Music.”

“Mancini!” is an arrangement by Stephen Bulla of some of Henry Mancini’s most memorable television and film music. It includes the “Pink Panther” theme from the 1964 film of the same name, the “Baby Elephant Theme” from the 1962 John Wayne film “Hatari!,” “Moon River” from the 1961 Audrey Hepburn film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” and two selections from the 1958-1961 “Peter Gunn” private eye TV show: “Dreamsville” and the “Peter Gunn Theme.”

The program will conclude with “American Barndance,” Richard L. Saucedo’s lively work that contains elements of an early American character. It features a calm and poignant section of light texture with interlaced lyric themes, builds to a dramatic peak, and becomes even more frenzied as it races to an exciting conclusion.

Directed by Dr. Keith Wharton, the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble is an all-ages community concert band. It was formed in 2001 to offer area wind and percussion musicians the opportunity to continue or return to the pleasures of playing quality music in a large ensemble. New members are always welcome, without audition or fee.

Rehearsals for the next concert, on October 30, will begin in early September. They start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m. in the Washington College band room in Gibson Center for the Arts. For further information, call 410-778-2829 or 410-810-1834. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

European Tour: Free Concert by the Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble March 20

March 11, 2016 by Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble

The Eastern Shore Wind Ensemble’s “European Tour” concert features charming works that paint musical pictures of parts of Europe (and Egypt, across the Mediterranean). This free band concert is at Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Cross and High streets, on Sunday, March 20, 2016, at 4 p.m.

The program will open with Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi’s “Grand March” from his 1877 opera “Aida.” Sometimes played today at graduations and weddings, it evokes the grandeur of Egypt.
Next, Italy will be visited, in the light and festive “Italian Polka,” written by Sergei Rachmaninoff after a family trip to Italy in 1906, a contrast to the dark and heavy works for which he is better known. Then the band will play “Capriccio Espagnol,” an 1877 piece by another Russian composer, Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov. His fiery and energetic piece, based on Spanish dance and folk tunes, captures the flavors and rhythms of Spain.

The English countryside and its rural small towns and villages will be evoked by “Covington Square,” by James Swearingen, a contemporary American composer.

Eastern Europe and the characteristic rhythms of Slavic folk music will be represented by “Slavonic Dance No. 8,” written by Czech composer Antonin Dvorak in 1878. It is based on a furiant, a fast and fiery Bohemian dance.

Vienna, Austria, will be visited via Franz von Suppé’s 1844 overture “Morning, Noon and Night in Vienna.” In “One Night in Athens,” contemporary American composer David Bobrowitz captures the joy and excitement of the dance music he heard during a memorable evening at an Athens restaurant.

The program will conclude with a return to Italy via “Italian Holiday,” a medley of well-known and beloved songs and arias from Italy’s popular and operatic traditions. Some inclusions will be “Funiculi, Funicula,” “La Donna è Mobile,” and “O Sole Mio.”

Rehearsals for the next concert, on May 22, will begin on Monday, March 21. They start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 8:30 p.m in the Washington College band room in Gibson Center for the Arts.

For further information, call 410-778-2829. The ensemble is partially supported by a grant from the Kent County Arts Council.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

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