Wind Orchestra & Symphonic Winds

PRESENTS

WIND ORCHESTRA & SYMPHONIC WINDS MONDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 7 PM UTRGV PAC, EDINBURG TUESDAY OCTOBER 10TH, 7 PM TSC PAC, BROWNSVILLE

PROGRAM SYMPHONIC WINDS Allison Davis, conductor Rocketship!

Kevin Day (b. 1996)

Rusted Moon

Cory Jolley (b. 1981) CONSORTIUM PREMIERE

echo chamber

Will Pitts (b. 1986) Dr. Alexander Sanso, solo trumpet

We Choose to Go to the Moon

Roger Zare (b. 1985)

SYMPHONIC WINDS PERSONNEL FLUTE Jonathan Garcia Felix Rodriguez Mason Perez Nadia Villanueva

OBOE Dr. Mezraq Ramli*

SAXOPHONE

EUPHONIUM

Cullen Douglas Jorge Garcia Roque Martinez Lee Monreal Rodolfo Rodriguez Jordan Saldaña

Joseph Cardona Diego Garcia

Aracely García* Abraham Saldaña*

CLARINET

TRUMPET

Fernando De Leon Samantha Padilla Andrea Perez

BASS CLARINET Dr. Jonathan Guist*

Jesse Alvarez Marty Gutierrez

FRENCH HORN Johan Espinoza David Olguin Juan Romero David Gutierrez*

BASSOON

TUBA

Daniel Vela Ryan Mowers* Aaron Perez*

TROMBONE Jhon Escobar Amelia Gonzalez Daniel Lozano Christoper Treviño Imanol Ruiz*

PERCUSSION Melani Blanco Patricio Martinez Roberto Adam Reyna* Edgar Facundo* Dr. Jason Jones* *denotes guest musician

PROGRAM NOTES Rocketship! (2017), Kevin Day Tonight’s concert features an exciting selection of modern works all within the theme of outer space. Our concert lifts off energetically with Rocketship! by composer Kevin Day. This piece features strong horn and low brass sections, ethereal woodwind phrases accompanied by metallic percussion, interjections of bright trumpet fanfares, and a marching snare solo which elicits excitement and adds energy.

Rocketship! is an out of this world opening piece that sets the tone for the entire set.

An American whose music has been characterized by "propulsive, syncopated rhythms, colorful orchestration, and instrumental virtuosity," (Robert Kirzinger, Boston Symphony) composer Kevin Day has quickly emerged as one of the leading young voices in the world of music composition today, whose music ranges from powerful introspection to joyous exuberance. Kevin Day is an internationally acclaimed composer, conductor, and pianist, whose music often intersects between the worlds of jazz, minimalism, Latin music, fusion, and contemporary classical idioms. Day serves as the Vice President of the Millennium Composers Initiative, a collective of more than 120 composers from several countries around the world.

A winner of the BMI Student Composer Award, a three-time finalist for the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award and considered for the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for his Concerto for Wind Ensemble, Day has composed over 200 works, and has had numerous performances throughout the United States, Russia, Austria, Australia, Taiwan, South Africa, and Japan. His works have been programmed by the symphonies of Boston, San Francisco, Detroit, Indianapolis, Houston, and more, as well as several top professional and collegiate wind ensembles. His works have been performed at Carnegie Hall, Rachmaninov Hall (Russia), The Midwest Clinic, and other major venues, and recently he had his Carnegie Hall Conducting Debut at the 2022 New York International Music Festival.

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.)

Day is currently Assistant Professor of Composition at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. He is pursuing his DMA in Composition from the University of Miami Frost School of Music, where he studies with Charles Norman Mason, Dorothy Hindman, and Lansing McCloskey. He holds a MM in Composition from the University of Georgia, and BM in Performance from Texas Christian University (TCU). He is alumnus of Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America.

Rusted Moon (2023), Cory Brodack Rusted Moon is a brand-new piece by another young composer, Cory Brodack. The UTRGV Symphonic Winds is a consortium member for Rusted Moon and is one of the first ensembles to perform this piece.

This piece is Brodack’s take on a fanfare with a gritty, moody twist. It features several meter changes, including two subdivisions of 7/8 time, and elements of jazz and rock music. Our ensemble was fortunate enough to collaborate with Cory Brodack via Zoom and rehearse this piece with him. He stated that some of his goals as a composer are to write more music for younger ensembles in 7/8 time and with an angry sound, and he achieves both in Rusted Moon.

Often, space is seen as a wonder of human achievement to be explored, it can be eerie to think about what exactly lies in space. What exactly can be present without our knowing. Rusted Moon is a fitting title for this piece since the moon is as old as time itself, it is often argued how the universe is created, but what can’t be argued is what exactly the moon can be hiding. Is there something that we as human beings do not know about? Are there any forms of extraterrestrial life that we do not know about that is on the moon? Or could it just be our imagination running wild, wondering what exactly can be found on the rusted moon?

Cory Brodack is a composer whose music is “at times ethereal, with masterful weaving of timbre and tone; and at times energetic, almost brutal, with unrelenting drive,” (Donovan Seidle, Calgary Philharmonic).

His music ranges from deeply personal and reflective to explosively bombastic, often within the same piece. He has been awarded the

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.)

ASCAP Foundation Rudolf Nissim Prize, East Carolina University's Orchestra Composition Competition, and first prize in the National Federation of Music Clubs Young Composer Competition, among other honors. With a passion for collaboration, Cory has worked with performers and ensembles including JACK Quartet, Hub New Music, Unheard-of//Ensemble, icarus Quartet, Hypercube, and Rhythm Method String Quartet. He has also received commissions from artists and groups such as Andrew Pelletier, Bowling Green State University, the Metropolitan Orchestra of St. Louis, and the Steven Gerber Trust.

His music has been featured at concerts and festivals including the Society of Composers National Conference, Hot Air Music Festival, Bowling Green New Music Festival, UNG’s Research on Contemporary Composition Conference, and New Music on the Bayou.

In addition to composing, he has worked for the Municipal Theatre Association of St. Louis (The Muny) on projects such as the first staging of Jerome Robbins's Broadway since 1989, and a new orchestration of The Wiz during the Muny's historic centennial season.

Brodack received his MM in Composition from Bowling Green State University and his Bachelor of Music from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Composition at the Eastman School of Music. His principal teachers include Robert Morris, Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, Mikel Kuehn, Christopher Dietz, and Kimberly Archer. echo chamber (2015), Will Pitts “When I was asked to join forces with my dear friend Michael Martin to write a piece...the challenge seemed both exciting and daunting at the same time. Two brains, two sets of ideas, two sets of experiences... what could go wrong?! Our focus was to create a showpiece for solo trumpet to be accompanied by any range of scholastic ensemble. The experience of performing with a professional musician is unlike any other in one’s musical development, and we wanted this piece to give more opportunities for these collaborative experiences. Come on, we have all done it...you stand in a cavernous concrete structure and belt out a sound that seems to last forever. Physically experiencing the movement of sound all around us is mesmerizing, to say the least.

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.)

In Echo Chamber, we attempt to capture numerous facets of this sonic effect through various stylistic and conceptual explorations. The first section of the piece explores the highly saturated and allencompassing feeling of reverb and echo in a cavernous place. The principal melodic motif is first stated freely in the vibraphones, then in echo from the soloist and trumpet section. As a motif in itself, the “echo effect” from voice to voice, choir to choir, etc., creates a sense of forward motion throughout. From here, the piece explores a drier echo, most specifically the sense of repetition and dispersal of sound.

Stylistically, the feeling also changes significantly. I mean...when you are writing a piece for and with one of the most accomplished classical trumpet players of our generation, why would you not choose aggressive and highly technical jazz figures?! The feeling of persistence and drive remain, even through a chorale-like statement of the principal motif again. After a cadenza, the chorale returns triumphantly, and the piece gradually makes its way back to the feeling of the opening. One final echo of the melody lead us into contentment.

Echo Chamber is dedicated to our better halves, Cassie Martin and Emily Pitts. Michael and I are lucky to do what we love, and we would not be able to survive without the enduring support, guidance, and patience of our best friends. Thank you both for joining us on this journey” (Program note from score).

William Pitts is a composer, conductor, and arranger from Atlanta. As a music educator, Pitts has served on the faculties of Duncanville High School in Duncanville, Texas, and Pace Academy in Atlanta, Georgia, and currently serves on the faculty of the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, specializing in instrumental music, conducting, and music theory.

Pitts most recently served as the Brass Arranger for the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps of Rockford, Illinois. As a member of the corps, Pitts served as a Conductor for three years (2005, 20072008). He was a finalist for DCI's Jim Jones Leadership Award all three years. In 2008, the Regiment took first place honors as World Champions at the Drum Corps International Finals. Will was also honored as Regiment's 2008 Mark Glasscoe Member of the Year. In

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.) addition to his role as arranger, he has also served on Regiment's management staff, and as the Brass Arranger and Composer for the Spirit of Atlanta Drum and Bugle Corps. Pitts is active as a music designer, adjudicator, and instructor for high school band programs throughout the country. Marching ensembles performing his arrangements have been recognized as State Marching Band Finalists and Champions, along with Bands of America Regional Finalists, Regional Champions, and Grand National Finalists. His concert compositions and arrangements have been commissioned and performed across the world.

We Choose to Go to the Moon (2020), Roger Zare There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet. Its hazards are hostile to us all. Its conquest deserves the best of all mankind, and its opportunity for peaceful cooperation many never come again. But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

- President John F. Kennedy, September 12, 1962 “In the fall of 2019 when I was asked to write a new wind ensemble work to accompany Mare Tranquillitatis, a piece I had written eleven years prior, I was both thrilled to revisit an older work that has meant a lot to me personally, and nervous to try to find a way to bring ideas from that piece into the present and the future. As I write these program notes, we have not sent a person to the moon in 47 years, but our drive to return there and go beyond is as strong as it has been in recent memory. For generations, we dreamed of traveling to the stars, and during the 1960s, competition with the Soviet Union finally pushed us

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.) to achieve manned space flight and travel to our nearest celestial neighbor. As President Kennedy said in his famous 1962 speech, we choose to do difficult things because they are hard, and because the reward is so much greater for achieving them. Putting people on the moon and returning them to earth safely was not without many trials and setbacks, such as the Apollo 1 tragedy; succeeding at this monumental task was a testament to perseverance. This composition is a celebration of the achievements of the intrepid astronauts, scientists, and engineers who made what seemed impossible a reality in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and also a reflection of the excitement surrounding the possibility of returning to the moon and going beyond to Mars in the near future.

We Choose to Go to the Moon opens with the same floating A-flat major chord as Mare Tranquillitatis, but a sudden shift in harmony led by pitch-bending trombones and horns immediately returns us back to the earth. After a few attempts to get going, a continuous flow of notes helps push the music forward while fragmented melodies interject. This music is restless and complex, reflecting the difficulty and dangers of sending people outside the comforts of our planet. A calm middle section features euphonium and bass clarinet solos, with rich harmonies that help the music become warmer and more stable. As the stream of quick notes returns, a contrasting chorale emerges that culminates in a celebratory explosion of sound.

Commissioned by the Rocky Mountain Commissioning Project for the 12th Annual Colorado State University-Pueblo Festival of Winds” (Program note from score).

Roger Zare has been praised for his “enviable grasp of orchestration” (New York Times) and for writing music with “formal clarity and an alluringly mercurial surface.” He was born in Sarasota, FL, and has written for a wide variety of ensembles, from solo instruments to full orchestra. Often inspired by science, mathematics, literature, and mythology, his colorfully descriptive and energetic works have been performed on six continents by such ensembles as the American Composers Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Sarasota Orchestra, the Australian-based Trio Anima Mundi, the Donald Sinta

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.)

Quartet, and the New York Youth Symphony. An award winning composer, Zare has received the ASCAP Nissim Prize, three BMI Student Composer Awards, an ASCAP Morton Gould award, a New York Youth Symphony First Music Commission, the 2008 American Composers Orchestra Underwood Commission, a 2010 Charles Ives Scholarship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a Copland House Residency Award, Grand Prize in the inaugural ChinaUS Emerging Composers Competition, and many other honors.

An active pianist, Zare performed his chamber work, Geometries, with Cho-Liang Lin, Jian Wang, and Burt Hara at the 2014 Hong Kong International Chamber Music Festival. He has been composer in residence at the Chesapeake Chamber Music Festival, the Salt Bay Chamber Music Festival, the Chamber Music Festival of Lexington and the SONAR new music ensemble. Zare's collection of 21 concert etudes for solo clarinet are paired with written masterclasses by clarinetist Andy Hudson in Elements of Contemporary Clarinet Technique, a book published by Conway Publications and distributed around the world.

Zare holds a DMA ('12) from the University of Michigan, where he studied with Michael Daugherty, Paul Schoenfield, Bright Sheng, and Kristin Kuster. He holds degrees from the Peabody Conservatory (MM '09) and the University of Southern California (BM '07), and his previous teachers include Christopher Theofanidis, Derek Bermel, David Smooke, Donald Crockett, Tamar Diesendruck, Fredrick Lesemann, and Morten Lauridsen. Zare currently serves as assistant professor of music at Appalachian State University and previously taught composition at Illinois State University.

Program notes compiled and written by students in the Symphonic Winds.

ABOUT THE CONDUCTOR Dr. Allison Davis serves as Assistant Professor of Music Education at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where she currently teaches music education courses and directs the Symphonic Winds. An Ohio native with roots in Massachusetts, Dr. Davis holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Music Education from the University of Missouri with a Cognate in Wind Conducting and Band Pedagogy, a Master of Music in Music Education with a Specialization in Wind Conducting from Bowling Green State University, and a Bachelor of Music Education from Bowling Green State University. She has worked with top-tier collegiate ensembles and athletic bands in both the Southeastern and MidAmerican Conferences since 2018. Dr. Davis also served as the Woodwind Director for the Rock Bridge High School band program in Columbia, MO and founded the Missouri Youth Symphonic Band. She has had the pleasure of studying with Dr. Brian Silvey, Dr. Wendy Sims, Dr. Amy Knopps, Dr. Ken Thompson, and Dr. Bruce Moss.

Dr. Davis’s primary areas of research focus on instrumental conducting and rehearsal techniques, preservice music education curricula, repertoire selection, and democratic practices in large ensemble settings. Her dissertation, A Multiple Case Study of Preservice Music Educators Experiences in Rehearsal Clinic, investigated the experiences of secondary instrumental music education majors in an advanced conducting and rehearsal skills course. Dr. Davis is active in both state and national research settings, presenting at conferences and publishing in both peer-refereed and practitioner journals.

Prior to her university teaching experience, Dr. Davis taught a combination of secondary band, choir, general music, and marching band in the public schools of Ohio. Due to her time spent with a diverse student populations, she has advocated for the performance of contemporary music by minoritized composers. Ensembles under Dr. Davis’s direction have premiered works by Cory Brodack, Emilio José González, and Yoell Tewolde (student composer), and she has worked closely with other acclaimed composers including Katahj Copley, Kevin Day, Grace Baugher Dunlap, Kelijah Dunton, Roshanne Etezady, and Jennifer Jolley. She actively integrates technology in both lecture-based and ensemble-rehearsal settings, including utilizing ForScore in full ensemble rehearsals and frequently hosting collaborative Zoom sessions with composers, to create a more interactive and enhanced student experience. Dr. Davis regularly works as an adjudicator, clinician, and music arranger for bands of all ability levels and age ranges around the country.

ABOUT THE SOLOIST Dr. Alexander Sanso serves as Lecturer I of Trumpet at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He previously held a position at Bowling Green State University as Adjunct Instructor of Trumpet, a position he has held Fall of 2021 through Spring of 2023. A native of Monroe, NY, He received his Bachelor of Music degree from the State University of New York, College at Potsdam’s Crane School of Music where he double majored in music education and performance, along with minoring in jazz studies. After attending Potsdam, Alexander received his Master of Music degree in trumpet performance from Bowling Green State University and his doctorate from The Ohio State University.

Alexander has had the pleasure of studying with Dr. James Madeja (Crane School of Music), Charles Saenz (Bowling Green State University), Timothy Leasure (The Ohio State University), Byron Stripling (The Ohio State University), and Dr. John Charles Thomas (Assistant Principal trumpet, Hartford Symphony). Sanso has performed with the Lima (Ohio), Columbus (Ohio), Westerville (Ohio), Worthington (Ohio), and Adrian (Michigan) symphony orchestras. Alongside his orchestral work, Sanso also regularly performs as a pit musician with the Columbus Children’s Theatre and South Eastern Summer Theater Institute.

He has served as third trumpet with the Westerville Symphony Orchestra and second trumpet Worthington Chamber Orchestra, and can be heard on the Bowling Green State University Wind Symphony’s 2018 album as a section and principal player. Sanso has also performed with the Tower Brass Quintet, a Toledo based group, with other faculty members from Bowling Green State University, as well as the Utopia Brass Quintet based in Columbus, Ohio. Sanso also has a developing solo career, performing solo recital programs at both Bowling Green State University and Ohio University.

Alexander’s area of research focuses primarily on new works which feature the trumpet as a solo instrument. Additionally, his dissertation document, “An Analysis of Three Compositions for Trumpet by Female Composers,” centers around works for trumpet by underrepresented composers (Female and BIPOC).

As a soloist, Sanso premiered Cooper Wood’s Sonata for Trumpet and Piano in October of 2020, and has joined consortiums of composers Robert Langenfeld and John Hennecken.

PROGRAM WIND ORCHESTRA SAUL TORRES, CONDUCTOR ASHLEY PEREZ, GRADUATE CONDUCTOR OVERTURE TO “CANDIDE“

LEONARD BERNSTEIN (1918-1990)

LINCOLNSHIRE POSY PERCY GRAINGER I. “Libson” (Sailor’s Song) (1882-1961) II. “Horkstow Grange” (The Miser and his Man: a local tragedy) III. “Rufford Park Poachers” (Poaching Song) IV. “The Brisk Young Sailor” (who returned to wed his True Love) V. “Lord Melbourne” (War Song) VI. “The Lost Lady Found” (Dance Song) CUANDO HABLAN LOS VIENTOS (When the Winds Speak)

ARTURO RODRIGUEZ (b. 1976)

Drs. Jonathan Borja & Krista Jobson, solo flutes TRITTICO I. Allegro Maestoso II. Adagio III. Allegro Marcato

VÁCLAV NELHÝBEL (1919-1996)

SPANGLISH

GIOVANNI SANTOS (b. 1980) PREMIERE

“FINALE” FROM SYMPHONY NO. 4

PETER ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893)

PROGRAM NOTES Overture to Candide, Leonard Bernstein Overture to Candide can be deceptive; on the surface it is a jovial, straightforward concert opener, yet the musical challenges it presents reflect compositional sophistication. Bernstein manipulates time to eradicate a sense of regular downbeats. While exciting for audiences, this technique requires an ensemble capable of exceptional metronomic control. High school and collegiate ensembles can have success with this work, although younger ensembles should expect a need for more preparation time than normally expected of a four-and-ahalf minute piece.

- Note from Great Music for Wind Band Lincolnshire Posy, Percy Aldridge Grainger Lincolnshire Posy, as a whole work, was conceived and scored by me direct for wind band early in 1937. Five, out of the six, movements of which it is made up existed in no other finished form, though most of these movements (as is the case with almost all my compositions and settings, for whatever medium) were indebted, more or less, to unfinished sketches for a variety of mediums covering many years (in this case, the sketches date from 1905 to 1937). These indebtednesses are stated in the score. This bunch of "musical wildflowers" (hence the title) is based on folksongs collected in Lincolnshire, England (one notated by Miss Lucy E. Broadwood; the other five noted by me, mainly in the years 1905-1906, and with the help of the phonograph), and the work is dedicated to the old folksingers who sang so sweetly to me. Indeed, each number is intended to be a kind of musical portrait of the singer who sang its underlying melody -- a musical portrait of the singer's personality no less than of his habits of song -- his regular or irregular wonts of rhythm, his preference for gaunt or ornately arabesqued delivery, his contrasts of legato and staccato, his tendency towards breadth or delicacy of tone.

- Program Note by Percy Aldridge Grainger

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.)

When the Winds Speak – Arturo Rodriguez The concert title, “The Winds Speak,” refers to a feature piece on the program, entitled, “When the Winds Speak,” by Mexican composer Arturo Rodriguez. The work is part of an 11-school consortium, spearheaded by flutist Jonathan Borja — associate professor of music at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse — who will be on-site to perform this duo flute piece with Jeiran Hasan, assistant professor of flute at USU. Borja’s residence is sponsored by the Latinx Cultural Center.

- Program Note from Utah State University Trittico - Vaclav Nelhybel Trittico was composed in 1963 for Dr. William D. Revelli who gave the first performance of the work in the spring of 1964, in Ann Arbor, with the Symphonic Band of the University of Michigan. The first and third movements are, in several ways, related to one another: their character is brilliantly forward-moving and energetic; the main theme of the first movement reappears in the culmination point of the third movement, and the instrumentation of the movements is identical (standard), with the individual instruments themselves being used quite similarly. The second movement is a strongly contrasting dramatic scene with turbulent recitatives and expressive woodwind solos, punctuated by low brass and percussion. The emphasis is on the woodwinds and the low brass; cornets and trumpets enter only at the very end with an extremely intense phrase to conclude the movement. The dramatic character is underlined by the strong use of percussion which is extended by a second timpani player, piano and celesta.

- Program Note from score Spanglish – Giovanni Santos Semi-finalist in the “President’s Own” United States Marine Band composition contest. Like the very popular linguistic combination of Spanish and English, this work explores a hybrid of musical styles and genres. Spanglish celebrates the beautiful marrige of styles between Caribbean, African, and the American blues. Spanglish is spoken throughout the world, in baseball fields, university campuses, and

PROGRAM NOTES (cont.) homes like mine. The Spanglish language is beautiful and works as an expression of unity, finding what is best in all of us, community, respect, and diversity.

- Program Note from Giovanni Santos Music Finale from Symphony No.2, Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2 in C minor, Op. 17 was composed in 1872. One of Tchaikovsky's joyful compositions, it was successful right from its premiere, and also won the favor of the group of nationalistic Russian composers known as "The Five", led by Mily Balakirev. Because Tchaikovsky used three Ukrainian folk songs to great effect in this work, it was nicknamed the "Little Russian" by Nikolay Kashkin, a friend of the composer as well as a well-known musical critic of Moscow. Ukraine was at that time frequently called "Little Russia". Despite its initial success, Tchaikovsky was not satisfied with the symphony. He revised the work extensively in 1879–80, substantially rewriting the opening movement and shortening the finale.

- Program Note from Web

WIND ORCHESTRA PERSONNEL FLUTE Laura Barba Ramiro Raya Carlos Hernandez Caden Karr Stephanie Hernandez

OBOE Lorena Coronado Lilizbeth Garza

TENOR SAXOPHONE Jonathan Guzman

BARITONE SAXOPHONE Roman Valenciano

BASS SAXOPHONE

BASSOON

Juan Zamarripa*

Aracely Garcia Jacqueline Davis Ashley Perez

TRUMPET

CLARINET Jose Aguilar Joel Cardenas Alejandro Moreno Ashley Lee Diogo Perales

BASS CLARINET Emily Castillo Julian Martinez

ALTO SAXOPHONE Kristian Corona Abraham Saldaña Rolando Ramon*

Victor Fortuna Isaiah Murillo Benjamin Gonzalez Armando Gomez Alejandro Escamilla Jacob Morales

FRENCH HORN Alonzo Cavazos Maximus Valdez Ashley Navas Rocha Lydia Rodriguez Daniel Garza

BASS TROMBONE Abdiel Garcia Imanol Ruiz

EUPHONIUM Jose Castillo Noah Jaramillo Alejandro Garza

TUBA Victor Cruz Azdruball Montemayor Samuel De Leon

PERCUSSION Oscar Lozano Roberto Adam Reyna Edgar Facundo Angel Ramos Oscar Ivan Mendez Slaton Meador*

STRING BASS Marisol Mejia

PIANO Ryan Mowers*

TENOR TROMBONE Luis Viveros Alejandro Salinas Jesua Tejeda Bernabe Martinez

*denotes guest performer

ABOUT THE CONDUCTOR Dr. Saul Torres, Director of Bands at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), brings to this position nearly 20 years of professional and collegiate experience.

Dr. Torres studied saxophone in his formative years before attending UTPA where he earned his Bachelors of Arts degree.

Upon finishing his undergraduate degree, Saul was a successful band director in South Texas. His bands received numerous superior ratings at the University Interscholastic league (UIL) Marching. Concert, and Sight-Reading contests. His affiliations have included the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA), Texas Band Masters Association (TBA), Texas Music Adjudicators Association (TMAA), The Conducters Guild and The College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA).

Saul earned his Master's Degree from Southern Methodist University in conducting where he studied under Dr. Jack Delaney. During these years, Dr. Torres collaborated with composer Christogher Tucker, in a recording session for his composition Legends. Dr. Saul Torres also assisted Dr. Delaney with the Meadows Wind Ensemble for their performance at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in Austin, Texas.

Dr. Torres received his Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from the University of Utah where he studied under Scott Hagen. During his time in Utah, Saul had the honor of conducting the University of Utah Wind Ensemble at the Utah Music Educators Association Conference in St. George.

Utah, In addition, Or. Torres assisted Professor Hagen with their performance at the College Band Directors National Association Regional Conference in Reno, Nevada.

Aside from overseeing all aspects of the band program, Dr. Saul Torres also teaches in the area of conducting, marching band techniques, and symphonic band literature.

ABOUT THE SOLOISTS Dr. Krista Jobson enjoys a multi-faceted career that has included Principal Flute positions in orchestras, military bands, chamber music ensembles, concerto soloist appearances, and teaching positions. A sought after guest artist and clinician, she has given performances and masterclasses in Australia, Germany, Japan, France, Mexico, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Peru, and Puerto Rico, as well as across the continental United States.

As a soloist, Dr. Jobson has won numerous awards and honors. She has been named a prize winner in competitions sponsored by the National Flute Association and Florida Flute Association and was a finalist in the American Prize National Music Competition in both the Instrumental Soloist-Professional and Chamber Music-Professional divisions. Her concerto performances include solo appearances with the Valley Symphony Orchestra, Taffelmusik, the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley Symphonic Winds, the UTRGV Symphony Orchestra, Brevard Symphony Orchestra, and the Converse College Symphony Orchestra. ​ obson is Co-Principal Flute of the Valley Symphony Orchestra (McAllen, J TX). She is also Principal Flute of The Trade Winds Recording Ensemble for Excelcia Music Publishing. She toured for four years as Co-Principal Flute of the concert band and woodwind quintet of an active-duty U.S. Air Force Band. From 2009-2011, Dr. Jobson served as Principal Flute of the Topeka Symphony Orchestra. She has also given performances with Spoleto USA (Piccolo Spoleto), Brevard Symphony Orchestra, Blue Lake Festival Faculty Orchestra, Blue Lake Faculty Wind Ensemble, and the International Fellowship of Conductors Composers and Collaborators (IFC3).

Her love for collaborative musical settings has led her to serve as flutist with several active professional chamber music groups, including Duo Aldebaran (flute & guitar) who were named finalists in the Chamber Music: Professional division of the American Prize Competition and who released their debut album in 2021: "Colores Latinos" - music of contemporary Latin American composers for flute & guitar; Cherry Street Flute Duo who released their debut album "Music of Women Composers" in 2022, and Crossroads Flute Quartet, who will release their debut album in 2023.

Dr. Jobson earned a Bachelor of Music degree with High Honors from Converse College as a student of Christopher Vaneman, and both a Master of Music degree and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Flute Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, where she studied with Mary Posses and where she held the flute position in the fellowship woodwind quintet. Her other principal flute teachers include Christina Smith, Jean West, and Nancy Clew. She has performed in masterclasses for Jim Walker, Leone Buyse, Peter Lloyd, Charles Wadsworth, Claudia Anderson, Bart Feller, Michael Gordon, Shannon Finney, Inara Zandemane, the Imani Winds, Borealis Wind Quintet, and the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet.

ABOUT THE SOLOISTS With performances described as “the highlight of the evening” (Kansas City Star), Jonathan Borja enjoys a varied career as a performer and educator. Dr. Borja is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse where he teaches flute and music history, and where he was awarded the Excellence in Research Award from the College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities in 2023. As an orchestral musician, he is a member of the La Crosse Symphony Orchestra, and has played with the Topeka Symphony Orchestra (20102015) and the Colorado MahlerFest Orchestra (2009-2018).

Dr. Borja holds three graduate degrees from the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance (Doctor of Musical Arts in Flute Performance, Master of Music in Flute Performance, a Master of Music in Musicology) and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Principia College. Before coming to the United States, he studied at the National Conservatory of Music in his native Mexico City. His teachers and mentors include Marie JureitBeamish, Mary Posses, and María Esther García. He has appeared in master classes in both the United States and Europe with some of the world’s leading flutists, including Jeanne Baxtresser, Jacob Berg, and Peter-Lukas Graf.

Dr. Borja has performed throughout the United States and Mexico and has appeared in festivals devoted to the music of J.S. Bach, George Crumb, Gustav Mahler, Olivier Messiaen, and Elliott Carter. He has performed at Steinway Hall, Helzberg Hall, at the Facultad de Música (UNAM), the National Conservatory in Mexico City, the Sala Manuel M. Ponce, Sala Carlos Chávez, Sala Silvestre Revueltas (CCOY), and the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Singapore. He has appeared as soloist with the La Crosse Symphony Orchestra and with wind ensembles at universities across the United States. His continued advocacy for the music of our time has led him to collaborate with some of today’s finest composers, including Chen Yi and Zhou Long, George Crumb, Libby Larsen, Yehudi Wyner, Narong Prangcharoen, Arturo Rodríguez, and Samuel Zyman.

Dr. Borja’s research includes the music of Mexican composers Mario Lavista, José Pablo Moncayo, Silvestre Revueltas, and Samuel Zyman.

He recorded the complete chamber music for flute by Samuel Zyman (Albany Records, 2020), and can be heard in Samuel Zyman: Un mexicano en Nueva York (Urtext Digital Classics, 2021). He also recorded the complete flute music by Icelandic composer Thorkell Sigurbjörnsson (Smekkleysa, 2015), and is featured in Narong Prangcharoen’s recording Mantras (Albany Records, 2010). He has contributed articles to The 100 Greatest Bands of All Time: A Guide to the Legends Who Rocked the World, and The Flutist Quarterly. Dr. Borja has presented his research at the National Flute Association Convention, College Music Society National Conference (2010 and 2021), The CMS International Conference in Belgium (2019), the Wisconsin Flute Festival, the North Central Council of Latin Americanists, and the Midwest Association for Latin American Studies.

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