J o s é F r a n c o R i b a t e ( 1 8 7 8 - 1 9 5 1 )
S i m p l e G i f t s : F o u r S h a k e r S o n g s ( 2 0 0 2 ) F r a n k T i c h e l i
I n Y o n d e r V a l l e y ( b 1 9 5 8 )
D a n c e
H e r e T a k e T h i s L o v e l y F l o w e r
S i m p l e G i f t s
S o n g s o f O l d K e n t u c k y ( 2 0 0 7 )
B r a n t K a r r i c k
J o h n R i l e y ( w i t h W a y f a r i n g S t a n g e r ) ( b . 1 9 6 0 )
B a r n D a n c e
D r C h a r l e s G r e g g e r s o n , g u e s t c o n d u c t o r
G r e e k F o l k S o n g S u i t e ( 2 0 0 2 )
F r a n c o C e s a r i n i
O C h a r a l a m b i s ( b . 1 9 6 1 )
S t u P s i l o r i t i
V a s i l i k o s t h a j i n o
S e c o n d S u i t e i n F ( 1 9 1 1 / 1 9 8 4 )
G u s t a v H o l s t
M a r c h ( 1 8 7 4 - 1 9 3 4 )
S o n g w i t h o u t W o r d s
S o n g o f t h e B l a c k s m i t h
F a n t a s i a o n t h e “ D a r g a s o n ”
P R O G R A M N O T E S
José Franco Ribate (1878-1951) was a Spanish composer and conductor who studied harmony and composition in Zaragoza with Ramón Borobia He was director or the municipal bands of Bermeo, Irun, and Bilbao and founded the Vizcaino Conservatory of Music in 1920.
One of Ribate’s most legendary paso dobles, Agüero (1925) was dedicated to Martin Agúero Ereño, a bullfighter who in turn would dedicate a bull to Ribate, while he was the conductor of Bilbao Municipal Band.
Frank Ticheli (b 1958) is one of America’s preeminent contemporary composers for wind band, orchestra and choir. Having earned degrees from Southern Methodist University as well as the University of Michigan, Ticheli has joined the ranks of his teachers such as William Bolcom, as one of the defining voices in the ever-evolving canon of wind band literature. Ticheli has won countless awards for his diverse compositional output, and recently retired from teaching at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. He continues to write for ensembles of various types and skill from his home in the Los Angeles area.
The Shakers were a religious sect who splintered from the Quaker community in the mid-1700s in Manchester, England. Known then derisively as “Shaking Quakers” because of the passionate shaking that would occur during their religious services, they were viewed as radicals, and their members were sometimes harassed and even imprisoned by the English. The Shakers were pacifists who kept a very low profile, and their membership increased only modestly during the decades following their arrival. At their peak in the 1830s, there were some 6,000 members in nineteen communities interspersed between Maine and Kentucky. Soon after the Civil War their membership declined dramatically. Their practice of intense simplicity and celibacy accounts for much of their decline.
The Shakers were known for their architecture, crafts, furniture, and perhaps most notably, their songs. Shaker songs were traditionally sung in unison without instrumental accompaniment. Singing and dancing were vital components of Shaker worship and everyday life. Over 8,000 songs in some 800 songbooks were created, most of them during the 1830s to 1860s in Shaker communities throughout New England.
PROGRAM NOTES
The composer provides the following program notes on SimpleGifts:Four ShakerSongs (2002):
My work is built from four Shaker melodies - a sensuous nature song, a lively dance tune, a tender lullaby, and most famously, “Simple Gifts,” the hymn that celebrates the Shaker’s love of simplicity and humility. In setting these songs, I sought subtle ways to preserve their simple, straightforward beauty.
The first movement is a setting of “In Yonder Valley”, generally regarded to be the oldest surviving Shaker song with text This simple hymn in praise of nature is attributed to Father James Whittaker (1751-1787), a member of the small group of Shakers who emigrated to American in 1774
The second movement, “Dance”, makes use of a tune from an 1830s Shaker manuscript. Dancing was an important part of Shaker worship and tunes such as this were often sung by a small group of singers while the rest of the congregation danced.
The third movement is based on a Shaker lullaby “Here Take This Lovely Flower”, found in Dorothy Berliner Commin’s extraordinary collection, Lullabies of the World and in Daniel W. Patterson’s monumental collection, The Shaker Spiritual. This song is an example of the phenomenon of the gift song, music received from spirits by Shaker mediums while in trance Although the Shakers practiced celibacy, there were many children in their communities, including the children of recent converts as well as orphans whom they took in. Like many Shaker songs, this lullaby embodies the Shakers’ ideal of childlike simplicity.
The finale is a setting of the Shaker’s most famous song, “Simple Gifts”, sometimes attributed to Elder Joseph Bracket (1797-1882) of the Alfred, Maine, community, and said to have been received from a spirit at Canterbury, New Hampshire, making “Simple Gift” possibly a visionary gift song It has been used in hundreds of settings, most notably by Aaron Copland in the brilliant set of variations which conclude his Appalachian Spring.
P R O G R A M N O T E S
Brant Karrick (b. 1960) is an American composer, arranger, and educator hailing from Kentucky Karrick obtained degrees from Louisiana State University (Ph.D), Western Kentucky University (MA), and University of Louisville (BME). His teaching career began in the Kentucky school system and continued in the state as he joined the faculty at Bowling Green (KY) High School and later at Northern Kentucky University as the Director of Bands
Written for the Kentucky Music Educators Association, the score for Songs of Old Kentucky (2007) contains the following notes:
Kentucky has a rich and unique history that dates from the 1670s, when English settlers sent explorers from Virginia to survey the frontier. As Eastern Kentucky became the starting point for many westward migrations, pioneers settled into the Appalachian and Cumberland Mountains, creating a wonderful array of culture including languages, crafts, and music. The Kentucky mountaineer helped to propagate a proud heritage of traditional ballads and other old Scottish and English folk songs that had been brought to American by their ancestors
During the early part of the 20th century, Josephine McGill and Loraine Wyman each traveled through the Cumberland Mountains and transcribed words and melodies for over 200 songs. It is in their collections that the five tunes used in this setting - “John Riley”, “The Lonesome Scenes of Winter,” “Sourwood Mountain,” “Frog Went-A-Courting,” and “Loving Hannah” - are found
The typical instruments of Greek folk music are the clarinet, the mandolin, the violin, various types of tambourines, and the characteristic “buzuki.” Greek folk music consists of a repertoire of three main groups of songs: traditional folksongs (dimotiko), folksongs from the immigrants (rebetiko), and songs from contemporary composers. The best-known author of Greek folk music is Mikis Theodorakis who, in addition to his political engagement against the fascist regime, has spread, through his melodies, the texts of the main Greek poets
P R O G R A M N O T E S
Swiss composer, Franco Cesarini (b 1961) is a versatile composer who started his musical education at the Conservatory of Milan in Italy, where he studies flute and piano. Since 1989, Cesarini has been a professor at the “Musikhochschule” in Zurich. Since 1998, he has been the conductor of the “Civica filarmonica di Lugano” and heads the music school in the same city In 2001, Cesarini began teaching composition at the European Institute for Symphonic Band Studies in Trento, Italy and concert band conducting at the “Conserbatorio della Svizzera Italiana” in Lugano.
In Greek Folk Song Suite (2002), Cesarini has elaborated three songs belonging to the most ancient tradition. The first, “O Haralambis,” is in 7/8 time, typical of a popular folk dance called kalamatianos. Originally, the song, “O Haralambis,” was sung in jest during weddings, since the text of the song refers to a young man who refuses to marry The central part of the piece includes another folk song called “I Voskopula.” The second movement, “Stu Psiloriti,” refers to an ancient song from the Island of Crete. The Psiloritis is the highest peak of the Ida Mountains. The third movement of the suite is based on the song “Vasilikos tha gino,” a very ancient song of the Ipeiros region Some characteristics of this movement are a reminder of the sirtaki, the most popular Greek dance abroad.
Gustav Holst (1874-1934) was born into a musical family in Cheltenham, England. His father conducted the town’s chamber orchestra and the young Holst’s experience with orchestration came from writing in cues for the orchestra. During the 1890s, he studied composition with Robert Brides and Charles Villiers Standford at the Royal College of Music where he met fellow student Ralph Vaughan Williams, who would remain a close friend for life. One of England’s most prominent composers, Holst was a teacher of composition and organ, as well as a professional trombonist. It was his experience as a trombonist that made him aware of the expressive qualities of the brass choir and potential of the military band as a serious artistic medium. His music includes operas, ballets, symphonies, chamber music, and songs. His most popular work is the orchestral suite, The Planets (1916), which musically portrays the planets as astrological symbols. His band works, Suite No. 1 in E-flat, (1909) and Suite No 2 in F, (1911) are universally acknowledged as the foundation of the serious British band repertoire.
P R O G R A M N O T E S
The Second Suite in F (1911) consists of four movements, all based on specific English folk songs Imogen Holst provides the following insight into her husband’s work:
Movement I: March: “Morris Dance,” “Swansea Town,” “Claudy Banks”. The march of the suite begins with a simple-five note motif between the low and high instruments of the band The first folk tune is heard in the form of a traditional British brass band march using the Morris-dance tune “Glorishears”. After a brief climax, the second strain begins with a euphonium solo playing the second folk tune in the suite, “Swansea Town ” The theme is repeated by the full band before the trio. For the trio, Holst modulates to the unconventional sub-dominant minor or B-flat minor and changes the time signature to 6/8, thereby changing the meter. (Usually, one would modulate to subdominant major in traditional march form While Sousa, reputably the “king of marches”, would sometimes change time signatures for the trio, it was not commonplace.) The third theme, called “Claudy Banks,” is heard in a low woodwind soli, as is standard march orchestration Then the first strain is repeated da capo.
Movement II: Song Without Words, ‘I’ll Love my Love’. Holst places the fourth folk song, “I’ll Love my Love,” in stark contrast to the first movement. The movement begins with a chord from horns and moves into a solo of clarinet with oboe over a flowering accompaniment in F Dorian. The solo is then repeated by the trumpet, forming an arc of intensity
P R O G R A M N O T E S
Movement III: Song of the Blacksmith. Again, Holst contrasts the slow second movement to the rather upbeat third movement which features the folk song “A Blacksmith Courted Me.” The brass section plays in a pointillistic style depicting a later Holst style. There are many time signature changes (4/4 to 3/4) making the movement increasingly difficult because the brass section has all of their accompaniment on the up-beats of each measure The upper-woodwinds with the sound of a blacksmith tempering metal with an anvil called for in the score. The final D major chord has a glorious, heavenly sound, which opens the way to the final movement. This chord works so effectively perhaps because it is unexpected: the entire movement is in F major when the music suddenly moves to the major of the relative minor.
Movement IV: Fantasia on the “Dargason ” This movement is not based on any folk songs, but rather has two tunes from Playford’s The Dancing Master of 1651. The finale of the suite opens with an alto saxophone solo based on the folk tune “Dargason,” a 16th century English dance tune included in the first edition of The Dancing Monster. The fantasia continues through several variations encompassing the full capabilities of the band. The final folk tune, “Greensleeves,” is cleverly woven into the fantasia by the use of hemiolas, with “Dargason” being in 6/8 and “Greensleeves” being in 3/4. At the climax of the movement, the two competing themes are places in competing sections. As the movement dies down, a tuba and piccolo duet forms a call back to the beginning of the suite with the competition of low and high registers
The name ‘dargason’ may perhaps come from an Irish legend that tells of a monster resembling a large bear (although much of the description of the creature has been lost over time) The dargason tormented the Irish coutryside. During the Irish uprising of the late 18th century, the ‘dargason’ is supposed to have attacked a British camp, killing many soldiers. This tale aside, ‘dargason’ is more likely dervived from an Anglo-Saxon word for dwarf or fairy, and the tune has been considered English (or Welsh) since at least the 16th century. It is also known as ‘Sedony’ (or Sedany) or ‘Welsh Sedony’.
S Y M P H O N I C W I N D S
P E R S O N N E L
F L U T E
A s h l e y N e g r e t e
D r . N i c a l i s A l l i e y - E s c a l o n a
( A s s t . P r o f . : F l u t e )
O B O E
C l a u d i a Q u i n t a n a M e d i n a
B A S S O O N
D r . M e z r a q R a m l i
( A s s t P r o f : D o u b l e R e e d s )
C L A R I N E T
K a r e n G a l a n
H u n t e r S h e a r s
D r . J o n a t h a n G u i s t
( P r o f . : C l a r i n e t )
P r o f . J e r i a n n e L a r s o n
( D i r e c t o r o f B a n d s )
D r . C h a r l e s G r e g g e r s o n
( D i r e c t o r o f B a n d s )
D r . A l l i s o n D a v i s
( A s s t . P r o f . : M u s i c E d u c a t i o n )
S A X O P H O N E
N i c o l a s T o r r e s - G u z m a n
L e o n a r d o D u e n e s
J o r g e G a r c i a
C u l l e n D o u g l a s
H O R N
R o b e r t B a u t i s t a
R o b e r t o S a l a z a r
T R U M P E T
H a n n y k a A v i l e s
C e s a r P a e z
V i c e n t e F l o r e s
J e s u s F l o r e s
E m m a n u e l J u a r e z
A n g e l T r u j i l l o
J u a n P e r e z
T E N O R T R O M B O N E
F a b i o O c e g u e r a
J o r g e S e q u r a
R y a n V o g e l
B A S S T R O M B O N E
V e r o n i c a W i l l i a m s
N a t h a n i e l R a m o s
E U P H O N I U M
D i e g o G r a c i a
T U B A
J e s s e A l v a r e z
A l e s s a n d r o P e n a
P E R C U S S I O N
M e l a n i B l a n c o
A n g e l R a m o s A r a m b u l
E r i c S a l a z a r
M a r c o G u e r r a
D o m i n i c k B u s h
D a n i e l S o t o s e r v e s a s
L e c t u r e r I – A s s i s t a n t D i r e c t o r
o f A t h l e t i c B a n d s a t t h e
U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s
R i o G r a n d e V a l l e y . I n h i s d u t i e s
a t U T R G V , M r . S o t o i s
r e s p o n s i b l e f o r a s s i s t i n g w i t h
d i r e c t i n g a n d a d m i n i s t r a t i n g
a l l U T R G V A t h l e t i c B a n d s ,
i n c l u d i n g t h e V a q u e r o M a r c h i n g
B a n d , v o l l e y b a l l a n d b a s k e t b a l l
p e p b a n d s , a n d m a i n t a i n s c l o s e
c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h U T R G V A t h l e t i c s A l o n g w i t h
a t h l e t i c b a n d r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s , P r o f e s s o r S o t o t e a c h e s a
M a r c h i n g B a n d M e t h o d s c o u r s e , A p p l i e d S a x o p h o n e a n d
d i r e c t s t h e C o n c e r t B a n d a t t h e B r o w n s v i l l e c a m p u s .
P r i o r t o h i s a p p o i n t m e n t a t U T R G V , h e s e r v e d a s a
G r a d u a t e T e a c h i n g A s s i s t a n t a t t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s
a t E l P a s o a n d a t O k l a h o m a S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y , w h e r e h e
e a r n e d h i s M a s t e r o f M u s i c i n W i n d C o n d u c t i n g d e g r e e
u n d e r t h e t u t e l a g e o f D r . B r a d G e n e v r o .
D a n i e l S o t o i s a n a t i v e o f E l P a s o , T e x a s , w h e r e h e
c o m p l e t e d a b a c h e l o r ' s d e g r e e i n m u s i c e d u c a t i o n f r o m
t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s a t E l P a s o . D u r i n g h i s t i m e i n E l
P a s o , S o t o t a u g h t s a x o p h o n e l e s s o n s t o s t u d e n t s o f a l l
l e v e l s , w o r k e d w i t h v a r i o u s m a r c h i n g b a n d p r o g r a m s ,
a d j u d i c a t e d f o r T M E A ’ s r e g i o n 2 2 , a n d p e r f o r m e d w i t h
t h e l o c a l c i v i c w i n d b a n d – T h e E l P a s o W i n d s . W h i l e a t
U T E P , M r . S o t o w o r k e d w i t h t h e M a r c h i n g M i n e r s a n d
U T E P P e p B a n d s a r r a n g i n g m u s i c , a n d t e a c h i n g d r i l l . H e
a l s o w o r k e d w i t h t h e U T E P W i n d E n s e m b l e , S y m p h o n i c
B a n d , a n d C o n c e r t B a n d . W h i l e a t O k l a h o m a S t a t e , S o t o
s e r v e d a s a G r a d u a t e T e a c h i n g A s s i s t a n t f o r t h e
C o w b o y M a r c h i n g B a n d , O S U S p i r i t B a n d , a l l u n i v e r s i t y
c o n c e r t b a n d s , a n d t h e A d v a n c e d C o n d u c t i n g C l a s s .
O N D U C T O R
I n h i s m u l t i - f a c e t e d r o l e a t O S U , S o t o s e r v e d a s a
G r a d u a t e C o n d u c t i n g A s s o c i a t e f o r t h e O S U W i n d
E n s e m b l e , S y m p h o n i c B a n d , C o n c e r t B a n d , C o - D i r e c t o r
o f t h e U n i v e r s i t y B a n d a n d t h e O S U S a x o p h o n e
E n s e m b l e – w h e r e h e c o m m i s s i o n e d , a r r a n g e d a n d
p r e m i e r e d n e w w o r k s f o r s a x o p h o n e e n s e m b l e a t t h e
2 0 2 4 N o r t h A m e r i c a n S a x o p h o n
c o n f e r e n c e . A t b o t h U T E P a n d O S U , S o t o w a s a n a c t i v e
p e r f o r m e r w i t h a l l u n i v e r s i t y e n s e m b l e s a n d h a s t a k e n
p a r t i n a v a r i e t y o f r
b e i n g r e l e a s e d o n t h e M a r k R e c o r d s a n d K l a v i e r R e c o r d s
l a b e l s .
M r . S o t o h o l d s p r o f e s s i o n a l a n d h o n o r a r y m e m b e r s h i p s
w i t h T e x a s M u s i c E d u c a t o r s A s s o c i a t i o n , T e x a s
B a n d m a s t e r s A s s o c i a t i o n , N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n f o r
M u s i c E d u c a t i o n , N a t i o n a l B a n d A s s o c i a t i o n , C o l l e g e
B a n d D i r e c t o r s N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n , N o r t h A m e r i c a n
S a x o p h o n e A l l i a n c e , a n d K a p p a K a p p a P s i H o n o r a r y
B a n d F r a t e r n i t y .
D r . C h a r l e s G r e g g e r s o n i s t h e
D i r e c t o r o f A t h l e t i c B a n d s a t t h e
U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s R i o G r a n d e
V a l l e y , i n w h i c h h e d i r e c t s t h e
V a q u e r o M a r c h i n g B a n d a n d t h e
V a q u e r o P e p B a n d . H e e a r n e d a
D o c t r a t e o f M u s i c a l A r t s i n W i n d
B a n d C o n d u c t i n g a t t h e U n i v e r s i t y
o f N e v a d a , L a s V e g a s i n M a y 2 0 2 4 .
H e w a s a g r a d u a t e t e a c h i n g
a s s i s t a n t w i t h t h e D i v i s i o n o f W i n d
B a n d S t u d i e s , i n w h i c h h e a s s i s t e d
R e b e l s B a s k e t b a l l P e p B a n d , t a u g h t u n d e r g r a d u a t e
c o n d u c t i n g l e s s o n s , a n d s e r v e d a s c o - c o n d u c t o r o f
t h e U N L V S y m p h o n i c W i n d s a n d C o m m u n i t y C o n c e r t
B a n d .
w i t h t h e U N L V S t a r o f N e v a d a M a r c h i n g B a n d t h e R u n n i n
H e i s a n a t i v e o f O h i o , w h e r e h e g r a d u a t e d f r o m t h e
O h i o S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y w i t h a B a c h e l o r o f M u s i c
E d u c a t i o n d e g r e e . A s a g r a d u a t e a s s i s t a n t a t B a l l S t a t e
U n i v e r s i t y , h e c o n c u r r e n t l y p u r s u e d a M a s t e r o f M u s i c
d e g r e e i n I n s t r u m e n t a l W i n d C o n d u c t i n g . G r e g g e r s o n
p o s s e s s e s e l e v e n y e a r s o f K - 1 2 i n s t r u m e n t a l a n d g e n e r a l
m u s i c t e a c h i n g e x p e r i e n c e i n t h e u r b a n , r u r a l , a n d T i t l e 1 s c h o o l s o f O h i o , O r e g o n , a n d W a s h i n g t o n . I n a d d i t i o n ,
h e s e r v e d a s a p r i v a t e s a x o p h o n e i n s t r u c t o r , i n t e r i m
B a l l S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y B a n d s a d m i n i s t r a t i v e a s s i s t a n t , a n d
w a s a m e m b e r o f n u m e r o u s t e a c h u n i o n c o m m i t t e e s .
G r e g g e r s o n i s a n a l u m n i o f t h e O h i o S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y
M a r c h i n g B a n d a n d h a s p e r f o r m e d i n n u m e r o u s
c o m m u n i t y b a n d s t h r o u g h o u t h i s t e a c h i n g c a r e e r . H e i s
a m e m b e r o f P h i M u A l p h a , N a t i o n a l B a n d A s s o c i a t i o n , a n d t h e N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n f o r M u s i c E d u c a t i o n .
P R O G R A M
W I N D O R C H E S T R A
P r o f . J e r i a n n e L a r s o n , c o n d u c t o r
R u n t o t h e L i g h t ( 2 0 2 2 )
I v a n T r e v i n o ( b . 1 9 8 3 )
D r . M a r k R a m i r e z a n d D r . F r a n c i s F a v i s , s o l o p e r c u s s i o n
C e n t e r p i e c e ( 2 0 2 4 )
W o r l d P r e m i e r e
M a t h e w C a m p b e l l ( b . 1 9 9 2 )
D r . A l l i s o n D a v i s , g u e s t c o n d u c t o r
L e o n a r d o D r e a m s ( 2 0 1 7 ) S a ü l G ó m e z S o l e r ( b . 1 9 8 2 )
I n t r o d u c t i o n
F l o r e n c i a
L e o n a r d o ’ s N o t e b o o k s
T h e V i t r u v i a n M a n
F l y i n g M a c h i n e s
T h e V i r g i n o n t h e R o c k s
W a r M a c h i n e s
L e o n a r d o ’ s B i c y c l e
T h e D e a t h o f L e o n a r d o
T h e G e n u i s
P R O G R A M N O T E S
Ivan Trevino (b.1983) is a Mexican-American composer, percussionist, writer, and arts advocate. He is well-known for his work as a drummer with Break of Reality, an international touring cello and percussion quartet. As a composer, his music is regularly performed worldwide and has become standard repertoire for percussionists He has composed over 70 works for percussion idiom and has won numerous Percussive Arts Society’s International Composition Contest awards. Trevino currently serves as Lecturer in Percussion at University of Texas at Austin and is the co-director of the Eastman Percussion Festival, a biennial summer festival hosted by the Eastman School of Music. He is an artist and clinician for Innovative Percussion, Black Swamp Percussion, Zildjian Cymbals, Evans Drumheads, Pearl/Adams, Meinl, and Beetle Percussion.
Commissioned by The Eastman Wind Ensemble for Eastman School of Music’s centennial celebrations, Run to the Light (2022) is an exciting work dedicated to “ a thousand or so very special people in Victoria, Texas.”
Trevino writes:
A newly hired band director at my high school had a diploma hanging up in his office
“What’s that?” I asked.
“It’s from Eastman,” he said.
“What’s Eastman?” I asked again.
“It’s a music conservatory,” he said I left his office thinking to myself, “What’s a music conservatory?”
That was my junior year of high school, and that’s how foreign the whole classical music thing was to me. Fast forward one year later. I auditioned at Eastman and got in. This was due in large part to this teacher, his guidance, and my own luck that he took a job teaching music in small-town Victoria, Texas, where I lived. Thank you again, Mr. Mikula.
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When I told my mom I got accepted, she didn’t congratulate me. Well, of course she did, but not right away. The first thing she said was “how are we going to pay for it?” My parents didn’t go to college, but are hard-working, smart people who still make their living cutting hair They did everything they could to make music part of my life. Paying for college though, especially at a school like Eastman, was far beyond anything they had saved or planned for.
My parents put together whatever funds they could and did what everyone does in Texas during a time of need: they organize a BBQ benefit. It’s a go-fund me of sorts, but an inperson one with BBQ, beans, rice, and all the fixings One of my dada’s regulars was a writer for the local paper and wrote a charming story about my parents, my opportunity to attend Eastman, and about the upcoming BBQ benefit. Local restaurants donated food, and my parents and an assembly line of volunteers served plates to friends, family, and members of our community who showed up to give their support and enjoy a hot meal. There was even an auction with one of those fasttalking auctioneers helping the crowd bid on donated items
My parents hosted this benefit for four summers, and each time, they raised $10,000 for my college tuition, with over 1,000 people attending each year. This is still incomprehensible to me Meanwhile, Eastman provided me with a generous yearly scholarship to ease the cost of tuition, which helped greatly. My journey to Eastman was looking more and more possible, thanks in part to this scholarship, and of all things BBQ. But we still weren’t quite there
One day, Mary Lou Urban, an unassuming family friend of ours, walked into the barber shop to see my mom for her regularly scheduled perm This time Mrs Urban came in holding a small envelope with my mom ’ s name on it. Inside was a gift: a personal check for $10,000. My mom cried, Mrs. Urban cried. But that’s not all. Each summer for four years, she gave my
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mom a check for this same amount. Mrs. Urban is no longer with us, but what she did for me and my family is unforgettable. My mom refers to her as my angel. I do too. Between the community’s support, Eastman’s scholarship, Mrs. Urban’s gifts, and my parents’ own hard work and sacrifice, I got to Eastman.
Twenty years later, I find myself at Eastman again, this time having acted as visiting teacher to step in for the one and only, Michael Burrit, my former Eastman professor, who was on a sabbatical leave. What an honor. This music is dedicated to all of the supports in my hometown community, Mr. Mikula, Mrs. Urban, my parents, and all of the people who helped me run to my light. I carry them with me, in my teaching, composing, and performing, and I hope this spirit of joy and gratitude shines through in this music.
A native of the Rio Grande Valley in Deep South Texas, Mathew “Mat” Aaron Campbell (b.1992) graduated with a BM-Education from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and received High Honors upon completion of a double MM-Composition and Conducting from Oklahoma City University As an award-winning composer, his works have been performed at national conventions and across the United States and the world. As a conductor, he has conducted orchestras, wind ensembles, choirs, and chamber ensembles in world premieres of his and his colleagues’ music at regional, state, and international events As an educator and arranger/sound designer for the marching arts, Mat has served students of all ages in their journey as musicians. Lastly, he is a media composer that specializes in writing music for video games and films for varying length.
Campbell provides the following program notes for Centerpiece (2024): I grew up without having a traditional “family dinner” with my parents. We would usually sit in front of the television to collectively enjoy our dinners during our favorite time slot or with a movie. Most of the time, we would eat dinner in our respective rooms either watching TV or in my case, usually working on a new piece. I’m an only child, so many of my
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adolescent evenings found me eating alone or with my parents - just the three of us. While I had qualms about this (and still don’t), my parents and I hardly are with anyone expect for holiday dinners with extended family. Similarly, my piece, titled Forerunner, serves to pay homage to my family tree, and Centerpiece serves to pay tribute to the family tree of my wife Iris.
Story time In 2015, I joined Iris’s extended family for the first time for Thanksgiving Dinner. I was incredibly nervous because this was my first time joining a significant other for a family dinner. When we showed up at Iris’s grandmother’s house, I was greeted with a plethora of food and the lovely people who made it. On the table was the finest of china, silverware glasses, and an elaborate centerpiece, all arranged beautifully by Iris’s grandmother. As far as I can remember, this was the first time I had a true holiday dinner like this one I was immediately hooked.
Centerpiece seeks to work on two musical levels. First, this piece can serve as the “ grace ” before diffing into the main entree(s). On the other level, this piece aims to capture my experience that day. Every C major chord represents the centerpiece on the table, which grounded me throughout the dinner. I felt nervous anticipation, represented by trills in the woodwinds and swells in the brass The gravy-like harmonic language represents the blissful decadence of the dinner itself. I remember having wonderful conversations across the table, which is served by the ascending fourth motive heard throughout the entire piece
On the other hand, Centerpiece pays homage to Iris’s grandmother who welcomes me into her home that year and for the next four years until her passing The climax captures the feeling of being happy about the memories but sad that you can never return to that moment exactly as you remember them. These longing feelings during this section of their piece
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are soon overtaken by nostalgia and later, resolution, which gives an arrival of nuanced acceptance. The trills of “ nervous anticipation” from the beginning return as a sigh of relief after having a successful first dinner with Iris’s family. In the same light, however, they represent a shivering of sadness when losing someone. The chord at the end is meant to leave the listener with the memory of a particular Centerpiece they’ve seen, made, or shared over a life-changing dinner.
Saül Goméz Soler (b.1982) is a composer and conductor. He has earned a degree in percussion and composition at the Joaquin Rodrigo Conservatory in Valencia and has studied conducting and composition at the Liceo Conservatory with Jan Cober, respectively Currently, he is the director of the Unió Musical d’Aielo in Malfrit and the Cercle Musical Primitva in Albaida. Soler is a member of the Valencia Academy of Music and most recently, received two nominations for the Hollywood Music in Media Awards.
Commissioned by the band, Santa Ceilia of Cuellera Symphony, Leonardo Dreams (2017) explores the fantastic imagination of the genius of Da Vinci that led him to design numerous ingenious machines ranging from a bicycle or scientific instruments to flying machines
The following notes are provided:
The first descriptive section of the piece, “Florencia”, gives us an audio portrait of the city of Florence, where Leonardo spent his first important years. This section is full of hustle and bustle. There was no more international, cosmopolitan city in the 15th century than Florence. Ruled over by the Medici, the city-state was renowned for its lavish balls and support of the arts, commissioning some of the finest Renaissance artists in sculpture, architecture, and painting. In Walter Isaacson’s excellent biography of Da Vinci, he states, “In 1472, there were eighty-four wood carvers, eighty-three silk workers, thirty master painters, and forty-four goldsmiths and jewelry craftsmen...” A city-state renowned for its art, as well as its military power.
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The next section, “Leonardo’s Notebooks,” portrays Da Vinci’s amazing brain and his insatiable curiosity. He left behind more than 7200 notebook pages, and paper being the very valuable commodity it was in the 15th century, not a bit of space is wasted on the paper There are drawings in the margins, little scribbles about something completely unrelated to the other things on the page written sideways - every centimeter of the paper is used. The notebooks show us how closely Da Vinci observed nature, and his obsession in understanding all things He was an inventor, studied medicine, dissected human cadavers, and yet also painted some of the greatest paintings of all time. To note just one example of his curiosity, on a to-do list for a certain day Da Vinci once wrote, “Describe the tongue of the woodpecker.”
Most of the following sections, save one, are on drawings, ideas and concepts found in the notebooks, including “Vitruvian Man,” “Flying Machines,” “War Machines,” and “Leonardo’s Bicycle.” Most of his sketches for machines of any kind never materialized in the real world, but it is clear from the writings that Da Vinci was making the first attempt to understand flight for man, and the bicycle, along with many contraptions of war, which he would show to noblemen when hoped to be employed by them. He never actually built most of the war machines pictured, which is probably for the best.
Regarding “The Virgin on the Rocks,” in 1479 Da Vinci was commissioned by the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception to paint the altarpiece in the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception in Milan The details of the painting and gilding were set out explicitly in the contract. The central panel was to be a painting showing the Virgin Mary and Christ child, with two prophets, probably David and Isaiah, surrounded by angels Above them was to be a lunette containing a relief panel of God and the Virgin Mary, beneath which was a panel showing the crib. The relief figures were to be brightly painted and gilded. As the biographer Isaacson says, “Ignoring these instructions, he decided to paint the Virgin Mary, the baby Jesus, a young John the Baptist, one angel, and no prophets.
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The scene he chose came from Apocrypha and medieval stories of the Holy Family meeting John on the road to Egypt as they fled Bethlehem.” Two versions of this painting exist. The first one, completed around 1480, led to a price dispute with the confraternity and was not accepted. This version now hands in the Louvre in Paris. The second, replacement altarpiece was completed with the assistance of some other artists around 1508, and it now hands in the National Gallery of London
Finally, we get the “Death of Leonardo, followed by the return of earlier music and the motifs that have come to symbolize “The Genius” in this wonderful piece of music.
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Flute
Laura Barba
Stephanie Hernandez
Victoria Mendez
Mason Perez
Ramiero Raya
Oboe
Lorena Coronado
Vanessa Martinez
Bassoon
Aracely Garcia
Ying Ching Jeter
Clarinet
Alex Aguilar
Angel Aldana
Joel Cardenas
Yohvanna Guerrero
Ashley Lee
Jurgen Arellano Martienz
Julian Martienz
Allejandro Moreno
Diogo Perales
Karl Schmidt
Saxophone
Jonathan Guzman
Lee Monrreal
Roman Valeniano
David White
Juan Zamarripa
Horn
Alonzo Cavazos
Johan Espinoza
Luis Flores
Bobby Salazar
Isaac Salinas
Trumpet
Fabiola Ahuja
Victora Fortuna
Daniel Granados
Jacob Morales
Christian Ramirez
Daniel Vela
Tenor Trombone
Bernabe Martinez
Alejandro Salinas
Christopher Treviño
Ryan Vogel
Bass Trombone
Miguel Cortez
Imonol Ruiz
Euphonium
Jose Castillo
Noah Jaramillo
Tuba
Jose Coronado
Victor Cruz
Sam de Leon
Percussion
Edgar Facundo
Paul Gutierrez
Ramsay Ramirez
Roberto Reyna
Jorge Ruiz
Eric Salazar
Jose Tijerina
Rene Zamora
Piano
Trey Tamez
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U E S T S O L O I S T S
D r . M a r k J o s e p h R a m í r e z i s a
P r o f e s s o r o f P e r c u s s i o n a n d A r e a
C o o r d i n a t o r a t T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f
T e x a s R i o G r a n d e V a l l e y , A s s o c i a t e
D e a n f o r R e s e r a c h a n d O u t r e a c h
f o r t h e C o l l e g e o f F i n e A r t s , i s t h e
F o u n d e r a n d E x e c u t i v e D i r e c t o r o f
t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l P e r c u s s i o n
I n s t i t u t e , a n d F o u n d e r o f t h e
T I E R R A S S o u t h T e x a s P e r c u s s i o n
C o m p e t i t i o n ( a c o n s o r t i u m
c o l l a b o r a t i o n b e t w e e n t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s R i o
G r a n d e V a l l e y , S o u t h T e x a s C o l l e g e , T e x a s A & M C o r p u s
C h r i s t i , T e x a s A & M I n t e r n a t i o n a l U n i v e r s i t y - L a r e d o , a n d
T e x a s A & M K i n g s v i l l e . A s a n a r t i s t , M a r k h a s p e r f o r m e d
a n d c o l l a b o r a t e d u n d e r t h e d i r e c t i o n o f s o m e o f t h e
l e a d i n g m u s i c a l a u t h o r i t i e s i n t h e f i e l d o f c o m p o s i t i o n ,
i n c l u d i n g P u l i t z e r P r i z e - w i n n i n g c o m p o s e r s J o h n
C o r i g l i a n o , D a v i d D e l T r e d i c i a n d W i l l i a m B o l c o m a n d
P r i x d e R o m e r e c i p i e n t K e v i n P u t s . H e h a s p e r f o r m e d
w i t h i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y a c c l a i m e d j a z z a n d c l a s s i c a l a r t i s t s
W a t t s , E d d i e D a n i e l s , G r e g A b a t e , J e f f J a r v i s , D i c k
O a t s , S t e v e W i e s t , G o r d o n S t o u t , P h i l S m i t h , a n d
p e r f o r m e d a s a g u e s t S o l o i s t w i t h t h e R i o G r a n d e V a l l e y
S y m p h o n y O r c h e s t r a .
A s a s c h o l a r , M a r k h a s r e c e i v e d i n v i t a t i o n s t o p r e s e n t
a n d p e r f o r m a t t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e o n
C a r i b b e a n S t u d i e s , t h e S o u t h w e s t e r n C o n f e r e n c e o n
L a t i n A m e r i c a n S t u d i e s , t h e P e r c u s s i v e A r t s S o c i e t y
I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n v e n t i o n , a n d t h e A m e r i c a n A s s o c i a t i o n o f H i s p a n i c s i n H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n . I n a d d i t i o n , M a r k
p r e s e n t e d a l e c t u r e - r e c i t a l t o u r o f t h e P a c i f i c
N o r t h w e s t w h i c h i n c l u d e d p e r f o r m a n c e s a t P o r t l a n d
S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y , U n i v e r s i t y o f O r e g o n , a n d W e s t e r n
W a s h i n g t o n U n i v e r s i t y ; s e r v e d a s a R e s i d e n t F a c u l t y a t
G U E S T S O L O
I S T
S
t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l P e r c u s s i o n I n s t i t u t e i n A b e r d e e n ,
S c o t l a n d ; a n d g i v e n p e r f o r m a n c e s a t t h e I P I F a c u l t y
C o n c e r t a t K i n g ' s C o l l e g e C h a p e l i n A b e r d e e n , S c o t l a n d .
M a r k h a s b e e n a m e m b e r o f t h e I P I M a r i m b a
C o m p e t i t i o n r e v i e w p a n e l a n d a p a n e l m e m b e r f o r t h e
I P I C a l l f o r S c o r e s . T h e s e c o m p e t i t i o n s h a v e d e v e l o p e d o u t r e a c h i n c o m p o s i t i o n a n d p e r f o r m a n c e t h a t i n c l u d e d
p a r t i c i p a n t s f r o m S w e d e n , A u s t r i a , C o p e n h a g e n ,
B e l g i u m , R u s s i a n , P o r t u g a l , I t a l y , E n g l a n d , S c o t l a n d ,
I s r a e l , T a i w a n , A r g e n t i n a a n d t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s .
M a r k h a s a l s o b e e n t h e r e c i p i e n t o f a n E m e r g i n g L e a d e r
F e l l o w s h i p f r o m t h e A m e r i c a n A s s o c i a t i o n o f S t a t e
C o l l e g e s a n d U n i v e r s i t y , a f a c u l t y f e l l o w s h i p A m e r i c a n
A s s o c i a t i o n o f H i s p a n i c s i n H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n , a f a c u l t y
f e l l o w s h i p f o r S t u d e n t A c a d e m i c S u c c e s s f r o m
U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s R i o G r a n d e V a l l e y , a n d t h e K e r s p i t
G e n t ( X , Y ) - h o n o r A r t i s t i n R e s i d e n c y F e l l o w s h i p
a w a r d e d b y t h e K e r s p i t F o u n d a t i o n . M a r k ’ s K e r s p i t G e n t
( X , Y ) - h o n o r A r t i s t i n R e s i d e n c y i n c l u d e d a t h r e e m o n t h
s t a y i n G e n t , B e l g i u m w h e r e h e c o l l a b o r a t e d w i t h o t h e r
K e r s p i t A r t i s t s i n R e s i d e n c e , f a c u l t y o f T h e R o y a l
C o n s e r v a t o r y o f M u s i c , t h e K u n s t e n c e n t r u m V o o r u i t ,
a n d t h e A c a d e m i e d e K u n s t b r u g G e n t . D u r i n g t h a t t i m e , h e c o m p o s e d a n d g a v e i n t e r n a t i o n a l p r e m i e r e
p e r f o r m a n c e s o f f i v e n e w c o m p o s i t i o n s e n t i t l e d : G a n d a , T a b u l a R a s a , V e r s p l i n t e r e n V e r h a l e n , B i n n e n d u T u i n , a n d K l o k k e n v a n B e g i j n h o f . D r . M a r k J o s e p h R a m í r e z i s a
n a t i v e o f B r o w n s v i l l e , T e x a s .
G
U E S T S O L O I S T S
A c h a m p i o n o f c o n t e m p o r a r y m u s i c ,
p e r c u s s i o n i s t D r . F r a n c i s F a v i s e n j o y s
a m u l t i - f a c e t e d a n d m u l t i - n a t i o n a l
m u s i c a l c a r e e r . H e h a s p e r f o r m e d o n
p r e s t i g i o u s s t a g e s s u c h a s t h e
P e r c u s s i v e A r t s S o c i e t y I n t e r n a t i o n a l
C o n v e n t i o n ( P A S I C ) , S X S W , t h e
C o l l e g e M u s i c S o c i e t y I n t e r n a t i o n a l
C o n f e r e n c e , t h e C a n a d i a n M u s i c
C e n t r e , t h e R e d N o t e N e w M u s i c
F e s t i v a l , t h e S o c i e t y f o r
E l e c t r o - A c o u s t i c M u s i c i n t h e U n i t e d
S t a t e s ( S E A M U S ) , a n d t h e T o r o n t o
C r e a t i v e M u s i c L a b . W i t h o v e r 3 0
c o m m i s s i o n a n d p r e m i e r e c r e d i t s t o h i s n a m e , F r a n c i s
c o n t i n u e s t o b e i n v o l v e d w i t h t h e c r e a t i o n a n d
p e r f o r m a n c e o f n e w w o r k s b y l i v i n g c o m p o s e r s . H e h a s
h a d t h e p r i v i l e g e o f w o r k i n g c l o s e l y w i t h a n u m b e r o f
a c c l a i m e d c o m p o s e r s i n c l u d i n g K e l l e y S h e e h a n
( G a u d e a m u s P r i z e w i n n e r ) , J a m e s T a b a t a ( M o r t o n
G o u l d A w a r d w i n n e r ) , a n d S o p h i e M a t h i e u ( M o r t o n
G o u l d A w a r d w i n n e r ) . F r a n c i s i s a f o u n d i n g m e m b e r o f
L e s s T h a n 1 0 M u s i c a n d S o u n d M a p E n s e m b l e , b o t h o f
w h i c h s p e c i a l i z e i n c o n t e m p o r a r y c h a m b e r m u s i c .
R e c e n t p e r f o r m a n c e h i g h l i g h t s i n c l u d e t h e T e x a s
p r e m i e r e o f M a y k e N a s ’ s e l d o m p e r f o r m e d I D e l a y e d
P e o p l e ’ s F l i g h t s b y W a l k i n g S l o w l y i n N a r r o w H a l l w a y s
f o r a m p l i f i e d c h a l k b o a r d q u a r t e t a n d t h e w o r l d p r e m i e r e
o f S o p h i e M a t h i e u ’ s V O I D f o r v i b r a p h o n e a n d
e l e c t r o n i c s .
E q u a l l y a t h o m e w i t h a l a r g e e n s e m b l e , F r a n c i s h a s
e x p e r i e n c e b o t h i n t h e f r o n t a n d a t t h e b a c k o f t h e
s t a g e . H e h a s b e e n f e a t u r e d a s a s o l o i s t o n s e v e r a l p e r c u s s i o n c o n c e r t i , i n c l u d i n g M i c h a e l D a u g h e r t y ’ s
t i m p a n i c o n c e r t o , R a i s e t h e R o o f , a n d D a v i d T L i t t l e ’ s
u n i q u e p e r c u s s i o n q u a r t e t c o n c e r t o , R a d i a n t C h i l d . A s a
G U E S T S O L O I S T S
s e c t i o n p e r c u s s i o n i s t , h e h a s p e r f o r m e d w i t h s e v e r a l
o r g a n i z a t i o n s s u c h a s t h e H e a r t l a n d F e s t i v a l O r c h e s t r a ,
R e d R i v e r E n s e m b l e , a n d t h e A m e r i c a n F e s t i v a l P o p s O r c h e s t r a .
A n i n - d e m a n d e d u c a t o r , D r . F a v i s i s t h e n e w l y a p p o i n t e d A s s i s t a n t P r o f e s s o r o f P e r c u s s i o n a t T h e
U n i v e r s i t y o f T e x a s R i o G r a n d e V a l l e y , o v e r s e e i n g t h e
B r o w n s v i l l e c a m p u s , w h e r e h e t e a c h e s a p p l i e d l e s s o n s a n d p e r c u s s i o n m e t h o d s , c o a c h e s p e r c u s s i o n e n s e m b l e ,
a n d o v e r s e e s t h e b r a n d - n e w V a q u e r o M a r c h i n g B a n d
D r u m l i n e . H e h a s p r e s e n t e d c l i n i c s a n d m a s t e r c l a s s e s a l l
o v e r t h e w o r l d w i t h a p p e a r a n c e s a t F a r E a s t e r n
U n i v e r s i t y ( M a n i l a , P h i l i p p i n e s ) , T h e M u s i c f o r A l l
S u m m e r S y m p o s i u m , T e x a s W o m a n ’ s U n i v e r s i t y , t h e
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h e a v i l y i n v o l v e d i n t h e m a r c h i n g a r t s . A s a p a r t i c i p a n t ,
h e p e r f o r m e d w i t h t h e P i o n e e r D r u m & B u g l e C o r p s , a n d
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e d u c a t o r a n d a r r a n g e r . A t t h e c o l l e g i a t e l e v e l , F r a n c i s
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p r i m a r y t e a c h e r s i n c l u d e T h o m a s B u r r i t t , I v a n T r e v i n o , D a v i d C o l l i e r , J o h n K i l k e n n y , a n d J o h n S p i r t a s . F r a n c i s
i s a p r o u d a r t i s t - e n d o r s e r o f I n n o v a t i v e P e r c u s s i o n
s t i c k s a n d m a l l e t s , a n d S a b i a n C y m b a l s .
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o f t h e w i n d b a n d .
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a s t h e g r a d u a t e c o n d u c t i n g s t u d i o c o o r d i n a t o r a n d W i n d
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a s s i s t a n t a n d g u e s t c o n d u c t o r .
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a n d i n t e r n a t i o n a l l e v e l s i n c l u d i n g T M E A , C B D N A , P M E A , N A f M E , T B A , N B A , W A S B E , W B D I , P i K a p p a L a m b d a , a n d
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s e v e r a l c o n f e r e n c e s i n c l u d i n g t h e 2 0 2 2 P M E A
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d o c t o r o f m u s i c a l a r t s d e g r e e i n w i n d c o n d u c t i n g f r o m
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T r a c h s e l . S h e r e c e i v e d a m a s t e r o f m u s i c d e g r e e i n w i n d
c o n d u c t i n g f r o m M e s s i a h U n i v e r s i t y , s t u d y i n g u n d e r D r .
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s t u d i e d w i t h D r . R . T a d . G r e i g . L a r s o n s e r v e d f o r n i n e
y e a r s a s a p u b l i c h i g h s c h o o l b a n d d i r e c t o r i n w e s t e r n
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i n v i t a t i o n t o p e r f o r m a t t h e s t a t e c a p i t o l .
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f r o m B o w l i n g G r e e n S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y .
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S i m s , D r . A m y K n o p p s , D r . K e n T h o m p s o n , a n d D r . B r u c e
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