FACULTY & STAFF
Jay S. Gephart.....................................................................................................Director and AI G. Wright Chair
Matthew R. Conaway......................................Professor, Director of “All-American” Marching Band
Dr. Pamela J. Nave................................................................Associate Professor, Director of Percussion
Adam Bodony..........................................................................Associate Professor, Director of Orchestras
Bethany Robinson...............................................Clinical Assistant Professor, Director of Jazz Bands
Jarrard Harris..............................................................................................................Clinical Assistant Professor
Dr. David M. Blon.......................................................................................................Clinical Assistant Professor
Dr. Lucas H. Petersen.............................................................................................Clinical Assistant Professor
Douglas R. Fletcher.............................................................................................................Director of Operations
Amy Brandfonbrener................................................................................................Chamber Music Instructor
Esther Kirgiss........................................................................................................Director of External Relations
Caitlin Cotten........................................................................Manager of Recruitment & Student Success
Humza Nasir..............................................................................................................................Multimedia Designer
Susan Lipscomb.............................................................................................Senior Administrative Assistant
Kim Delks.........................................................................................................................................Business Assistant
Adisyn Nichols..................................................................................................................Student Office Assistant
Elora Ifeguni............................................................................................................................Graphic Design Intern
Udochukwu Akorah...................................................................................................Social Media Ambassador
PROGRAM
MCCUTCHEON HS BAND
Matthew Skiba, conductor
The Circus Bee March......................................................................................................................................Henry Fillmore (1881-1956) ed. Loras Schissel (b. 1964)
Be Thou My Vision..................................................................................................................................................................................Traditional
arr. David R. Gillingham (b. 1947)
Vigil’s Keep............................................................................................................................................................................Julie Giroux (b. 1961)
CONCERT BAND
Dr. David M. Blon, conductor
A Midnight Dance… through the poison garden (2024).........................................................................Ryan George (b. 1978)
“Stomp” from Spirit of the Dance (2019)...............................................................................................................Rob Wiffin (b. 1954)
Rueff School Stomp Cast Renee Murray, choreographer
A Glimpse of the Eternal (2016)...........................................................................................................................Aaron Perrine (b. 1979)
Aaron Perrine, guest conductor
Strange Humors (2006).............................................................................................................................................John Mackey (b. 1973)
Dr. Pam Nave, djembe
Rueff School Strange Humors Cast Kathleen Hickey, choreographer
Latin Dance Movements (2019)....................................................................................................................Anthony O’Toole (b. 1988)
I. Prelude
II. Samba Despreocupada
III. Beginner’s Rhumba
IV. Bolero
V. Discoteca
WIND ENSEMBLE
Jay S. Gephart, conductor
Dr. David M. Blon, assistant conductor
The Star-Spangled Banner (1814/2004).....................................................................................John Stafford Smith (1750-1836) arr. John Williams
Tweak and Tinker (2026)............................................................................................................................Benjamin R. Barker (b. 1995) World Premiere
Under the Harvest Moon (2025).........................................................................................................................Aaron Perrine (b. 1979)
Aaron Perrine, guest conductor
Wine-Dark Sea: Symphony for Band (2014)...................................................................................................John Mackey (b. 1973)
I. Hubris
II. Immortal thread, so weak
III. The attention of souls
PICCOLO
Henry Joyce
FLUTE
Dakota Carson
Molly Fahy
Wylie Gilbert
Hayden Harpley
Brenna Harris*
Zoe Noznesky
Sofia Weckerlin
OBOE/ENGLISH HORN
Amy Basca*
Elissa Weinrick
BASSOON
Rowan Brown*
Matthew Sinclair
E b SOPRANO CLARINET
Bri Baehl
B b SOPRANO CLARINET
Lauren Gawel
Liana Havanjian
Anna Mathis
Mason Moyle
Grace Park*
Mia Schecter
Addie Smock
Kate Thies
Sebin Yeom
BB BASS CLARINET
Morgan Fisher*
Elizabeth Hoppenrath
CONCERT BAND
ALTO SAXOPHONE
Aaron Hershberger
Ruogu Lei
Gavin Michels*
Maura Smith
TENOR SAXOPHONE
Mark Kim
BARITONE SAXOPHONE
Matthew Lewis
HORN
Edward Culbertson*
Abby Jones
Kayli Kilzer
Sophie Wilcox
Jaret Willis
Audrey Wise
TRUMPET
Ellie Bailey*
Jacob Brink
Dawson Caton
Jacob Levin
Ben Manwell
Vance Reed
Eric Schreiber
Carter Westfall
David Westin
TENOR TROMBONE
Peter Arroyo*
Jamie Cridge
Zachary Knotts
Riley Stuelpe
Kodie Wilhite
BASS TROMBONE
Ella Vachon
EUPHONIUM
Gerald Ahlbrand
Michael Heger*
Jonah Rosner
TUBA
Jacob Della Rocco
Cody Dickin*
Eli Rodriguez
PIANO
Stephanie Kulinski
HARP
Ms. Melissa Gallant
STRING BASS
Mr. Ben Foerster
PERCUSSION
Oliver Bindewald
Miles Carpenter
Neil Gascon*
Joshua Gilbert
Amaan Oliyath
Corbin Richardson
Cadance Rose
Leo Silverman
This ensemble is listed alphabetically to reinforce the importance of each member to the group. * Denotes Section Leader
PICCOLO
Yara Hijaz
FLUTE
Jeana Yeo
Keya Upadhyay
Linda Xu
Natalie Toledo
OBOE
Ava Baker
Isaak Gutierrez
Kyle Siu
BASSOON
Luke Trahin
Seth Cowan
Finn Henderhan
B b CLARINET
Jeremy Moon
Ellen Rath
Keshav Sreekantham
Gabriel Morgenstern
Andrew Campbell
Leanne So
Aiden Taheri
Calder Feit
Isabella Gonzalez
E b CLARINET
Aiden Sussner
BASS CLARINET
Raqib Chowdhury
Ellie Heaney
WIND ENSEMBLE
SAXOPHONE
Chanul Sumanasinghe
Tommy Colton
Cooper Chiappetta
Tarek Osman
Joseph Johnson
TRUMPET
Naje Bedja
Andrew Nguyen
Sathya Devarajan
Edward Hu
Aneesh Pannala
Steven Win
Patton Duvall
Ethan Bowlby
Norah Kopolow
HORN
Ryan Sierra
Jared Hasty
Gabriel Boyd
Mal Palmer
Joseph Weideman
Julia Simmons
TROMBONE
Daniel Henze
Arman Pathan
Henry Tsay
Elaine Lee
Owen Toro
BASS TROMBONE
Ben Wasson
EUPHONIUM
Michael Gardner
Ethan Kim
TUBA
Rhys Bulham
Will Rater
Tobias Sturgell
STRING BASS
Ava Hoskins
HARP
Meitong I Fan
PIANO
Audrey Wise
PERCUSSION
Corbin Richardson
Victoria Knott
Nathan Kinney
Shrey Vedantham
Ollie Kaufhold
Bethany Eppinger
Trinity Forish
Michelle Young
PROGRAM NOTES
A MIDNIGHT DANCE… THROUGH
THE POISON GARDEN - GEORGE
A Midnight Dance Through the Poison Garden presents a stylized nocturnal journey where elegance and danger coexist. It begins with light, tentative textures that suggest cautious movement through an unfamiliar, alluring space. As rhythmic motion intensifies, the “dance” emerges, marked by irregular accents and subtle instability. The effect is playful on the surface yet faintly disorienting underneath.
At its peak, richer textures and sharper dissonances reveal the garden’s underlying toxicity, contrasting beauty with unease. The music then withdraws, returning to a quieter, ambiguous close that suggests reflection rather than resolution.
Balancing atmosphere with understated irony, Ryan George crafts a compact work that juxtaposes charm and tension, leaving a lingering, unsettled impression.
- Program Note by Matt Lewis
“STOMP” FROM SPIRIT OF THE DANCE - WIFFIN
“Stomp” is a high-energy concert work that serves as the opening movement of the Spirit of the Dance. Drawing on the rhythmic vitality of Irish dance traditions, driving percussion and sharply articulated accents form the foundation, evoking the image of percussive and angular movements.
The piece builds through layered ostinatos and bold dynamic contrasts, creating a sense of momentum and physical intensity. Short, punchy melodic figures pass between sections, reinforcing the communal, ensemble-driven character of the music.
Rather than focusing on lyrical development, Rob Wiffin emphasizes rhythm as the primary expressive force. The result is a propulsive work that captures both the precision and exuberance of traditional dance in a modern concert setting.
- Program Note by Matt Lewis
A GLIMPSE OF THE ETERNAL - PERRINE
A Glimpse of the Eternal is a reflective work that explores themes of stillness, transcendence, and perspective beyond the immediate moment. The music unfolds gradually, favoring sustained sonorities and carefully shaped phrases over rhythmic drive.
Perrine builds a sense of space through warm harmonic writing and gentle layering, allowing individual lines to emerge and recede with clarity. Moments of fullness expand into a broader, almost timeless soundscape before returning to more intimate textures.
Rather than arriving at a dramatic climax, the piece maintains a contemplative arc, suggesting quiet awe rather than resolution. Aaron Perrine creates a work that invites listeners to pause, listen inwardly, and consider a sense of the infinite just beyond reach.
- Program Note by Matt Lewis
STRANGE HUMORS - MACKEY
Strange Humors represents another of Mackey’s works (after Redline Tango) that has been transcribed for wind ensemble. The first version of Strange Humors was a student piece for string quartet and djembe that Mackey wrote while pursuing his graduate degree at The Juilliard School. It was later adapted for use by the Parsons Dance Company, with choreography by Robert Battle. Its transcription came at the behest of Richard Floyd on behalf of the American Bandmasters Association. The piece represents a merging of musical cultures -- the modal melodies and syncopated rhythms of Middle Eastern music with the percussive accompaniment of African drumming.
At the heart of the work lies the pulse of the djembe, which remains from the original version. The djembe, an hourglass-shaped drum played with bare hands, is a major part of the customs of west African countries such as Mali and Guinea, where djembe ensembles accompany many functional celebrations of society.
The piece opens with a sultry English horn solo, a line laced with Phrygian influence representing the “typical” melodies of the most northeastern parts of the African continent -- most notably Egypt, but also parts of the Arabian peninsula. Later, the saxophones emulate the snaking lines of the English horn. The addition of brass and auxiliary percussion to the original orchestration makes for particular impact during the shout sections of the piece, and the groove of the djembe combined with the quirky rhythms throughout leave an impression that lingers in the listener’s mind long after its conclusion.
- Program Note by Jacob Wallace
LATIN DANCE MOVEMENTS - O’TOOLE
Latin Dance Movements is a five-part suite that explores a spectrum of Latin-inspired styles, blending traditional dance rhythms with contemporary band writing. Each movement presents a distinct character, unified by rhythmic vitality and colorful textures.
I. Prelude - The opening movement serves as an introduction to the suite’s rhythmic language. Bold statements and syncopated figures establish energy and momentum, while contrasting sections hint at the diverse styles to come. It functions as both a curtain-raiser and a thematic foundation.
II. Samba Despreocupada - Translated as “carefree samba,” this movement captures a relaxed yet buoyant groove. Syncopated rhythms and light articulations create a sense of effortless motion, while layered percussion and flowing lines evoke the fluidity of Brazilian dance.
III. Beginner’s Rhumba - More restrained and deliberate, this movement emphasizes clarity and simplicity. A steady pulse underpins lyrical melodic lines, allowing the characteristic rhythm to emerge without excessive complexity. The mood is intimate and slightly playful, reflecting an introductory approach to the style.
IV. Bolero - The bolero introduces a slower, more expressive character. Long, sustained phrases and warm harmonies create a sense of romantic intensity. The music builds gradually, balancing control with emotional depth.
V. Discoteca - The final movement shifts into a modern, dance-driven style. Strong backbeats, repeating grooves, and bright textures evoke a contemporary club atmosphere. High energy and rhythmic drive propel the suite to a lively and decisive conclusion.
Together, the movements highlight both stylistic contrast and cohesion, offering a broad survey of dance influences, and showcasing O’Toole’s talents for varied composition.
- Program Note by Matt Lewis
THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER - SMITH/WILLIAMS
On January 1, 2004, John Williams served as the Grand Marshall of the 114th Rose Parade, prior to the Rose Bowl football game in Pasadena, California. As part of the pre-game festivities, Williams conducted this exciting new setting for our national anthem. The USC Trojans defeated the Michigan Wolverines in the game, but the lasting impact from the 2004 Tournament of Roses is this John Williams gem.
- Program note by Gigi Sherrell Norwood
TWEAK AND TINKER - BARKER
The Indianapolis 500 has long been the catalyst for innovations in automotive engineering, eventually reaching the world in the form of rearview mirrors, advancements in seatbelt safety, and fuel injection. While modern IndyCars are celebrated for their sleek, aesthetic silhouettes, that design was never intentional. Their beauty is entirely a byproduct of engineering: a result of the relentless pursuit of the highest speeds and the lightest possible weights.
Tweak and Tinker pays tribute to the historic relationship between the Indianapolis 500 and Purdue University by acknowledging this relentless pursuit. Known for its world-class engineering programs, Purdue has long been a premier training ground for the those who work behind the scenes in the garages of the Speedway. Woven into the piece’s landscape are fragments of the speedway’s anthem, Back Home Again in Indiana, performed before the start of every race since 1946. The Purdue “All-American” Marching Band, having been the official band of the race since 1919, has accompanied the singing of this anthem for over 75 years.
This piece mimics the trial-and-error process of innovation, capturing the playfulness of experimentation alongside the mechanical precision required in the garage. Musical ideas are approached from multiple angles; some are refined and held onto, while others are thrown away mid-stream, mirroring the non-linear path of a new invention.
The creation of Tweak and Tinker was made possible thanks to a consortium of more than 13 directors and ensembles led and organized by Dr. David M. Blon on behalf of the Purdue University Bands in recognition of their ongoing partnership with “the Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” the Indianapolis 500.
- Program note by the composer
UNDER THE HARVEST MOON - PERRINE
Under the Harvest Moon was commissioned to honor Robert Meunier’s tremendous forty-year tenure as Director of Bands at Drake University. After considering many possible directions I might take the work, I continued to come back to the idea of “place.” Bob dedicated the vast majority of his career shaping young minds in the Midwest -- specifically Iowa. If I could somehow capture the essence of this experience, how might it feel and sound?
In an attempt to help answer this question, I turned to poet Carl Sandburg’s Under the Harvest Moon (1916). I was immediately drawn to the poem’s stunning imagery. In particular, I became mesmerized by “the soft silver drips shimmering over the garden nights,” and “the flagrant crimson lurks in the dusk of the wild red leaves.”
I was further intrigued by the contrast between the poem’s two stanzas. The first closes with the words, “death, the gray mocker, comes and whispers to you as a beautiful friend who remembers,” which imparts a sense of nostalgia. In the second stanza, however, “love, with little hands, comes and touches you with a thousand memories, and asks you beautiful, unanswerable questions,” is filled with youthful exuberance. This relationship is analogous to that of the time surrounding harvest moon; it’s a period of both inevitable change and undeniable beauty.
I have known Bob for many years, and over that time we have become great friends. There are many things about him I admire. Musically, I appreciate his sensitive approach to balancing and shaping both color and texture. These characteristics are central to many of my works, and Under the Harvest Moon is no exception. Further, while many know Bob is a percussionist while not on the podium, few know he also has a background as a vocalist. While strictly an instrumental composition, I began the writing process by setting the text of Sandburg’s poem as if it were to be sung, adding to the expressive, songlike quality of the work.
- Program note by the composer
WINE-DARK SEA: SYMPHONY FOR BAND - MACKEY
[Since 2004], I’ve written all of my music in collaboration with my wife, Abby. She titles nearly all of my pieces, a process that usually involves my writing the music, then playing it for her, after which she tells me what the piece is about. Without her help, Aurora Awakes would be “Slow Music Then Fast Music #7 in E-flat.” Sometimes she’ll hear a piece halfway through my writing process and tell me what the music evokes to her, and that can take the piece in a different (and better) direction than I had originally intended. I’ve learned that the earlier she is involved in the process, the better the piece turns out. So with Wine-Dark Sea, my symphony for band, I asked for her help months before I ever wrote a note of music.
The commission, from Jerry Junkin and The University of Texas Wind Ensemble, in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Sarah and Ernest Butler School of Music, was for a piece lasting approximately 30 minutes. How could I put together a piece that large? Abby had an idea. Why not write something programmatic, and let the story determine the structure? We had taken a similar approach with Harvest: Concerto for Trombone, my trombone concerto about Dionysus, the Greek god of wine. Why not return to the Greek myths for this symphony? And since this story needed to be big (epic, even), I’d use the original, truly epic tale of Odysseus, as told thousands of years ago by Homer in The Odyssey.
The full Odyssey, it turned out, was too large, so Abby picked some of the “greatest hits” from the epic poem. She wrote a truncated version of the story, and I attempted to set her telling to music. Here is the story the way Abby outlined it (in three movements), and I set it:
After ten years of bloody siege, the Trojan War was won because of Odysseus’s gambit: A horse full of soldiers, disguised as an offering. The people of Troy took it in as a trophy, and were slaughtered.
Odysseus gave the Greeks victory, and they left the alien shores for home. But Odysseus’s journey would take as long as the war itself. Homer called the ocean on which Odysseus sailed a wine-dark sea, and for the Greek king it was as murky and disorienting as its name; he would not find his way across it without first losing himself.
Odysseus filled his ship with the spoils of war, but he carried another, more dangerous, cargo: pride. This movement opens with his triumphal march, and continues as he and his crew maraud through every port of call on their way home.
But the arrogance of a conquering mortal has one sure consequence in this world: a demonstration of that mortal’s insignificance, courtesy of the gods. Odysseus offends; Zeus strikes down his ship. The sailors drown. Odysseus is shipwrecked. The sea takes them all.
II. Immortal thread, so weak
This movement is the song of the beautiful and immortal nymph Kalypso, who finds Odysseus near death, washed up on the shore of the island where she lives all alone. She nurses him back to health, and sings as she moves back and forth with a golden shuttle at her loom. Odysseus shares her bed; seven years pass. The tapestry she began when she nursed him becomes a record of their love.
But one day Odysseus remembers his home. He tells Kalypso he wants to leave her, to return to his wife and son. He scoffs at all she has given him. Kalypso is heartbroken.
And yet, that night, Kalypso again paces at her loom. She unravels her tapestry and weaves it into a sail for Odysseus. In the morning, she shows Odysseus a raft, equipped with the sail she has made and stocked with bread and wine, and calls up a gentle and steady wind to carry him home. Shattered, she watches him go; he does not look back.
III. The attentions of souls
But other immortals are not finished with Odysseus yet. Before he can reach his home, he must sail to the end of the earth, and make a sacrifice to the dead. And so, this movement takes place at the gates of the underworld, where it is always night.
When Odysseus cuts the throats of the sacrificial animals, the spirits of the dead swarm up. They cajole him, begging for blood. They accuse him, indicting him for his sins. They taunt him, mocking his inability to get home. The spirit of his own mother does not recognize him; he tries to touch her, but she is immaterial. He sees the ghosts of the great and the humble, all hungry, all grasping.
Finally, the prophet Teiresias tells Odysseus what he must do to get home. And so Odysseus passes through a gauntlet beyond the edge of the world, beset by the surging, shrieking souls of the dead. But in the darkness he can at last see the light of home ahead.
Wine-Dark Sea is dedicated to Jerry Junkin, without whom the piece would not exist. The second movement, “Immortal thread, so weak,” telling of Kalypso’s broken heart, is dedicated to Abby, without whom none of my music over the past ten years would exist.
- Program note by the composer
DANCE PROGRAM
The mission of the Patti and Rusty Rueff School of Design, Art, & Performance Dance Program is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the art of dance, and in doing so, to give them the opportunity to develop their individual expressive voice within this form. In collaboration with their students, faculty in this program conduct research in choreography, performance, and related interdisciplinary and somatic arts. Students may choose to pursue a minor in dance or may select courses to fulfill University Core Curriculum requirements. In addition to contributing to the diversity of learning for the Purdue community, we enhance cultural life in the Greater Lafayette region.
The Dance Program puts on numerous exhibits, workshops, showings, and performances, including experimental dance concerts featuring our faculty’s research. These concerts highlight special areas of emphasis in dance for the camera, interactive technology, and improvisational performance in choreography and performance.
The next Dance Program performance is the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company Spring Works Dance Concert on May 1 at 7:30pm, and May 2 at 2:30 and 7:30pm. Tickets are available now via the Purdue Ticketmaster website.
“STOMP” from SPIRIT OF THE DANCE CAST:
Hannah Anderson
Cai Clay
Cami Clouser
Danielle Dickinson
Athena Evans
Anna Hardesty
Sasha Prabhu Panemangalore
Zoey Rentzsch
Samantha Scheffler
Tayler Schmidt
Brooklyn Schrage
Alex Edgell
Charlotte Harkins
Aaryel Johnson
Sarah Krick
STRANGE HUMORS CAST:
Shannon McCarthy
Sofia Mendoza
Selena Pattishall
Eliana Roeder
CHOREOGRAPHERS
Renee Murray is a Chicago native, dance artist, and educator. She received her MFA in Dance from California State University, Long Beach. She has presented work at the American Dance Festival’s Movies By Movers, Going Solo Together Festival in Ireland, the Detroit Dance City Festival, Performática in Mexico and throughout Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Murray has been teaching in the Dance Program at Purdue University since 2014. She teaches all levels of Modern Dance, Choreography, Dance for the Camera, and Intermedia Dance Technology courses. In addition to teaching, she is also the Production Manager for the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company and choreographs for the company annually. Murray co-founded Matter of Reaction Movement Project in 2006 and created work with her company until 2014. She choreographs in the movement styles of modern, post-modern and contemporary dance, while often employing improvisation, audience participation, and technology to create works that include an element of spontaneity and indeterminacy. She also enjoys creating screendance works. Murray has also performed works by various artists at the Dora Stratou Theatre in Greece, Sushi in San Diego, San Francisco Art Institute, Highways in Santa Monica, the Orange County Museum of Art, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, and at the Prague Quadrennial.
Kathleen Hickey, a native to the Chicago area, is a choreographer, dancer, and teacher. Currently based in West Lafayette, Indiana, at Purdue University, her work has been seen throughout Chicago (Links Hall, Hamlin Park, South Shore Cultural Center, Ebenezer Lutheran Church, Fasseas Whitebox Theatre), Milwaukee (Mitchell Hall, Kenilworth Studios), New York (Gibney Dance, Dumbo Dance Festival), Minneapolis (Bryant Lake Bowl), New Jersey (The Grounds for Sculpture), Detroit (Detroit Institute of Arts) San Francisco (PushFest at the ODC Theater), Berkely (Shawl Anderson), Santa Cruz (University of Santa Cruz), Rochester (Rochester Institute of Technology), the Indianapolis region (Wabash College, Anderson University, Purdue University, Indy Convergence), as well as Shanghai (Step Up Dance Theater) and Hangzhou (Mofang Theatre) China and Istanbul (Dance Camera Pandemania/Dance Camera Istanbul) Turkey. She has performed in works by director Rebecca Holderness at the New York Drama League, in New York City, choreographer Brandi Coleman at Mitchell Hall in Milwaukee, WI, director Joel Ebarb at the Kampa Museum, in Prague in the Czech Republic, choreographer Molly Shanahan at DoveTail Studios and Studio 5 in Chicago, IL, and choreographer Renee Murray at the KOI Creative Space in White Plains, NY & at the Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI. Her research explores movement rooted in empathetic curiosity, while striving to illustrate how gender informs embodies experiences. In 2024, Kat was awarded the Patti and Rusty Rueff School of Design, Art, and Performance Excellence in Teaching Award for Continuing Lecturers at Purdue University. Hickey is among the first cohort to be certified as an Essential Level teacher of Molly Shanahan’s Spiral Body Techniques and holds a B.A. in Political Science from Purdue University and an M.F.A. in Dance and Performing Arts from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and is faculty in the Division of Dance at Purdue University’s Rueff School of Design, Art, & Performance.
GUEST COMPOSER & CONDUCTOR
Aaron Perrine creates vividly colorful and rhythmically infused layers of music, inspired by the soundscapes and unparalleled allure of the natural world. He is a two-time winner of the American Bandmasters Association Sousa/Ostwald Award for his compositions: Only Light in 2015 and Pale Blue on Deep in 2013. Another one of his compositions—Temperance—won the 2017 CBDNA Young Band Composition Contest. His music for winds has been featured at ABA Conventions, CBDNA National and Regional Conferences, TMEA, The Midwest Clinic, The Western International Band Clinic, and at numerous all-state concerts and state conferences.
Perrine’s works for solo instruments with winds have garnered much attention in recent years. Drifting, for euphonium and wind ensemble, was awarded the 2023 ITEA Harvey Phillips Award for Excellence in Composition. In 2018, Perrine’s saxophone concerto—It Has to Be Beautiful—was premiered by Kenneth Tse with the Symphonic Wind Orchestra of Croatian Armed Forces at the World Saxophone Congress in Zagreb, Croatia. In 2024, Tse performed the concerto at the International Saxophone Symposium with the United States Navy Concert Band, conducted by Captain Kenneth Collins. Later that year, Carolyn Braus and the United States Air Force Concert Band performed It Has to Be Beautiful numerous times on tour.
A native of Minnesota, Perrine’s education includes a doctorate from the University of Iowa, a master’s degree from the University of Minnesota and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota, Morris. He was elected to the membership of the prestigious American Bandmasters Association in 2024. For more information, please visit www.aaronperrine.com.
On April 29th, the Purdue community will rally together as we celebrate the 13th annual Purdue Day of Giving!
Nearly 40% of the Purdue Bands & Orchestras annual budget comes from the generosity of our alumni and friends. Purdue Day of Giving makes your gifts go even further by helping us win additional bonus funds throughout the day. By participating in hourly giving challenges and unique social media contests all day long, you can win thousands of bonus dollars for the department.
Follow along on the Purdue Bands & Orchestras Facebook page for the entire 24-hour event to participate and see the results of hourly challenges in real time.
Every gift of $10+ counts toward the Purdue Bands & Orchestras total number of gifts during various hourly challenges. You can make an even bigger impact by dividing a larger gift into multiple $10 gifts during strategic hourly challenges.
Visit https://dayofgiving.purdue.edu/organizations/purdue-bands-and-orchestras on April 29th to donate to Purdue Bands & Orchestras on Purdue Day of Giving.
UPCOMING CONCERTS
APRIL
19 | Percussion Ensemble | 7:30 PM | Elliott Hall of Music
21 | Chamber Recital I | 7:00 PM | St. John’s Episcopal Church
22 | Chamber Recital II | 7:00 PM | St. John’s Episcopal Church
23 | Chamber Recital III | 7:00 PM | St. John’s Episcopal Church
MAY
1 | Orchestras | 7:00 PM | Long Center for the Performing Arts
Featuring Concert Orchestra and Philharmonic Orchestra with Concerto Competition Winners
2 | Orchestras | 7:00 PM | Long Center for the Performing Arts
Featuring University Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra
3 | Jazz on the Hill | 11:00 AM | Slayter Center of Performing Arts
Featuring Marshall Gilkes and all Purdue Jazz Ensembles
EVENTS CALENDAR
Visit our website - www.purdue.edu/bands/events - for the most up-to-date concert information.
CONCERT SPONSOR
Today’s concert is in part sponsored by Visit LafayetteWest Lafayette, your guide for all things local! Explore the vibrant culture and community that make this region a unique destination! Check out their website to discover the attractions and experiences that Lafayette-West Lafayette has to offer.
SUPPORT PURDUE BANDS & ORCHESTRAS
Scan the code or visit www.purdue.edu/bands/donate to support Purdue Bands & Orchestras today. Your generosity directly contributes to our students’ success through ensemble travel, scholarships, new instruments, and more! We would not be the program we are today without the ongoing support from alumni, family, and friends.
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
Scan the code or visit www.purdue.edu/bands/sponsorship to become a Purdue Bands & Orchestras corporate sponsor today! We offer a variety of sponsorship opportunities and enjoy creating ways to support your organization in return. When you become a corporate sponsor, you become part of the Bands & Orchestras family.