Spring 2025 University of Texas at San Antonio Wind Symphony
Fl ute / Piccolo
Jazmine Dearlove
Lauren Garcia
Ana Jaud (G)
Amy Leonard
Brianna Martinez
Raven Taylay
Oboe
Samuel Coleman (M)
Logan Odom
Bassoon
Jaime Viejo
Jared Worman (also Contra Bassoon)
Cl ari net
Orlando Barron
Connor Boyson
Kali Crist
Sarah Hamm
Kenedy Lerma
Ethan Mendiola
Isabella Miranda
Bass Cl ari net
Ethan Aguilar
Al to Saxophone
1 Gabriel Campa
2 Quinn Tidwell
Tenor Saxophone
Ethan Williams
Bari tone Saxophone
Nicholas Zars
Horn
Brandon Bayer
Joel Chi
Caleb Jones
Francis Maille (M)
Band Staff
Jarred Worman, Eva Ayala - Music Librarians
Trumpet
Xavier Contreras
Ivan Lorduy Camargo (GA)
Gustavo Medrano
Anthony Mitcham
Caleb Perry
Raymon Saldana (M)
Karim Vazquez
Trombone
Eva Ayala (M)
Bradley Bolton
Caroline Foster (M)
Jayden Zunker-Trevino
Bass Trombone
Javier Lopez
Euphoni um
Finley Farrar
Michael Hernandez
Tuba
Matthew Bruns
Jayson Sumner
Percussion
Nathan Brady
Felix Esquivel (G)
Nathan Gallegos
Lio Palacios
Mark Sawyer
Judge Sigle
Ivan Ventura
Doubl e Bass
Heriberto Ayma
Piano
Nicholas Ricchio
Guest Musi ci ans
Nathan Sharplin - Harp
Makayla Aguilar – Oboe/English Horn
Jose’ Gomez – Bass Clarinet
Elias Calvillo, Richard Myers, Tony Rios - Percussion
Graduate Assi stants/Band Managers
Graduate students are listed with (G) above Graduate Assistants are listed with (GA) above Band Managers are listed with (M) above Personnel roster is listed alphabetically to emphasize the important contribution made by each musician.
R o n E l l i s serves as Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Music at The University of Texas at San Antonio. Prof Ellis conducts the UTSA Wind Ensemble, the UTSA Symphonic Band, The UTSA University Band, and the UTSA Athletic Bands. His responsibilities also include teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in conducting, wind literature, and music education. A nationally recognized guest conductor, adjudicator, and composer/arranger, his works for concert band, orchestra and choir are performed by university, community, high school and professional wind bands as well as in Carnegie Hall. He also currently serves as a music director for Walt Disney Attractions Entertainment in Orlando where he has directed the Toy Soldiers and the Student Musician Program since 1993.
He is a member of the College Band Directors National Association, Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, Florida Music Educators Association, Florida Bandmasters Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Music Fraternity. He is also an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma, and Pi Kappa Lambda. Prof. Ellis received his Bachelor of Arts in Trombone Performance from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Music in Wind and Orchestral Conducting from the University of South Florida where he was a conducting student of William Wiedrich.
T h e U T S A W i n d S y m p h o n y
The UTSA Wind Symphony is comprised of UTSA Students who have achieved an extreme high level of musicianship and who perform some of the most challenging music composed for wind band. Membership in this ensemble is open to all UTSA Students, regardless of major, who audition at the beginning of each semester. The UTSA Wind Symphony maintains a vigorous performance schedule of three demanding concerts each semester as well as an ensemble tour when schedule and budget permits.
Compiled and Edited by Ron Ellis
Kaze No Uta – Music on the Wind
Welcome to tonight’s Wind Symphony concert, “ K
The music you’ll hear tonight comes from composers whose work reflects both the beauty and the spirit of Japan and East Asia their sense of movement, space, and reflection.
I’ve always been moved by the beauty of Japanese melodies not just for their lyricism or power, but for the h u m i l i t y that lives inside them. These pieces soar, they dance, and they express passion, but there’s always a quiet sense of a w e and r e s p e c t for nature, for sound, and for the listener.
It’s also fascinating how deeply these composers absorbed and transformed elements of jazz harmony and phrasing ideas that American composers were only beginning to explore in the same period. The result is a sound world that feels familiar yet distinctly their own.
Each work tonight celebrates that duality motion and stillness, simplicity and sophistication, tradition and innovation.
From Tomohiro Tatebe’s bright Dance Celebrations to Yo Goto’s rhythmic crossroads of culture, from Chang Su Koh’s complex Korean Chirche rhythms to Julie Giroux’s breathtaking Bookmarks from Japan, tonight’s program invites us to experience how music travels, transforms, and transcends.
It’s been an incredible experience watching our students bring this program to life the care they’ve taken with every color, phrase, and texture has been inspiring. I hope you find the same joy, wonder, and quiet beauty in hearing this music that we’ve found in rehearsing and performing it. V i v a m u s i c , a n d v i v a U T S A
Ron Ellis
Tomohiro Tatebe is a Japanese conductor, composer and arranger.
While studying at Komazawa University, Mr. Tatebe studied saxophone with Kazuo Tomita and composition and arranging with Naohiro Iwai and Takashi Ueno.
Tatebe has arranged many works for wind instruments, and also has written original music for the Tokyo Trumpet Corps and the Tokyo Trombone Band. Currently, Tatebe is the chief conductor of the Itoigawa Wind Band, an instructor at Komazawa University, and an honorary instructor at Ryukoku University.
Composed in the fall of 2000 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Itoigawa Symphonic Band, D a n c e C e l e b r a t i o n premiered at the band's 22nd regular concert that October 14th, conducted by the composer. It was performed at Kyo-En IV the following year.
The work opens with a showy introduction announcing a celebration and maintains that tempo throughout. Tatebe had studied American composers such as Charles Carter; such interests influenced the uncomplicated pace of the piece. The word "dance" in the title reflects the fact that the majority of the piece is in three-quarter time and also that Tatebe envisioned a dance when he wrote the music.
- Program Note from publisher
Yo Goto is a Japanese composer.
Goto received his B.M.E. degree from Yamagata University, Japan, and studied composition with Shin-ichiro Ikebe at the Tokyo College of Music, completing a performance diploma course. Having been active as a composer, arranger, and clinician in Japan since 2001, he moved to Texas to study with Cindy McTee at the University of North Texas. He holds a M.M. in composition and a M.M.E. from UNT. Mr. Yo Goto is recognized as one of the leading composers and arrangers in the United States and Japan. Recently, his works have been performed at the conventions of CBDNA, TBA, FMEA, and at The Midwest Clinic.
Goto is also considered a distinguished educator and researcher in the field of wind music. He frequently writes and lectures on the topics of selecting music for school band programs and the educational goals of band teaching. He has discussed new American and European wind literature with Japanese band directors at every level for over ten years, and his information is recognized as an educational standard in Japan. For excellence in clinics and wind literature research, Goto received the Academy Award from the Academic Society of Japan for Winds and Band in 2000. He also won the second place of the solo harp composition of the 2006 USA International Harp Competition.
The title C r o s s r o a d reflects the notions of “gathering place” and “socially active location”.
Mr. Goto states that “just as Roads connect many places and people, it is my desire that many gather, interact, and understand one another through this medium. I hope that the long and valuable 50-year band history in this region will foster a bright future in the band world as a “Road to the future”. The grand fanfare and its setting depict the idea of assorted people gathering from various locations. Contrasting melodies and rhythms are frequently played simultaneously. Differing meters and tonalities intersect one another just as a Road changes its character as it winds, crosses, and separates into different routes. These characteristics sum up the challenging details of this composition. While it may seem that the contrasting melodies are not connected in any way. ”
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h i r c h e – C h a n g S u K o h
Chang Su Koh a Japanese composer and arranger.
Koh graduated from the Osaka College of Music with a degree in composition and entered the Musik Akademie der Stadt Basel. He studied composition with Kunihiko Tanaka and Rudolf Kelterborn, and conducting with Jost Meier. He has been awarded the Asahi Composition prize, the Master Yves Leleu prize from the 1st Comines-Warneton International Composition Contest, second prize from the Suita Music Contest Composition Section, and honorable mentions from the Nagoya City Cultural Promotion Contest and the Zoltán Kodaly Memorial International Composers Competition.
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Presently, Koh teaches at Osaka College of Music and ESA Conservatory of Music and Wind Repair Academy, and is a member of the Kansai Modern Music Association.
C h i r c h e is a rhythm pattern found in traditional Korean music. Of the myriad rhythmic styles called "Jangdan”, Chirche is the most complicated and challenging. The time concept is similar to 5/8+5/8+6/8 (or 3/8 twice) +5/8+5/8+5/4. As rhythm is the theme of this piece, the percussion scoring becomes very important. Chirche is an exciting introduction to Korean Jangdan.
- Program Note from publisher
Julie Ann Giroux (pronounced Ji-ROO (as in "Google," not Ji-ROW, as in "row your boat") is an American composer of orchestral, choral, chamber, and numerous concert band works.
Ms. Giroux has an extensive list of published works for concert band and wind ensemble. She began writing music for concert band in 1983, publishing her first band work Mystery on Mena Mountain with Southern Music Company. Giroux left Los Angeles in 1997 to compose for concert bands and orchestras full time, publishing exclusively with Musica Propria. In 2004 Gia Publications, Inc. published the book entitled Composers on Composing for Band, Volume Two which features a chapter written by Julie Giroux.
Her insightful chapter gives a down-to-earth description which is often humorous of her personal methods and techniques for composing for bands. In 2009 Giroux, an accomplished pianist, performed her latest work, Cordoba for Solo Piano and Concert Band, in five U.S. cities and attended the premier of Arcus IX, a work for solo F tuba and concert band, at Blinn College in Brenham, Texas.
Her 2009 film and documentary orchestrations and compositions include the ongoing project "Call for Green China" which, primarily funded by the World Bank, was recorded, performed and broadcast live in china in 2007. In 2009 the project was extended with new musical material, recorded and set to tour seven cities in China where the show was performed live.
The composer’s inspiration for this symphony was a gift of six bookmarks featuring famous works by Japanese artists.
Ms. Giroux says, “My imagination was whirling with each scene painted on each bookmark. I knew right then and there that those little bookmarks would be the subject of my next symphony.”
Two of the six movements are based on selections from Hokusai’s series of woodcut prints, 36 Views of Mt. Fuji. Four movements are based on prints by Hiroshige; three of them are from 53 Stations of the Tokaido Highway which depict the picturesque resting stations along the famous road between Kyoto and Tokyo, and the other is from an additional work.
- Program Note by Edward C. Harris
I. Mount Fuji - "Fuji-san"
Based on the bookmark "Fine Wind, Clear Morning" by Hokusai Katsushika which is a woodblock sketch from Hokusai's collection The 35 Views of Mt. Fuji.
The sketch Fine Wind, Clear Morning (Gaifu kaisei), also known as South Wind, Clear Sky or Red Fuji, by Hokusai Katsushika is the inspiration for this work which is subtitled Fuji-san. In early autumn when, as the original sketch title specifies, the wind is southerly and the sky is clear, the rising sun can turn Mount Fuji red. Fuji-san has many different looks depending on the viewer's vantage point, time of year, weather and even time of day. Big, bold and easily recognized yet shrouded in mystery and lore, Mount Fuji offers a multitude of inspirational facets.
This piece is based on one view of Mt. Fuji covered in mist and low clouds which slowly burn off as the day progresses. Orchestration and composition techniques follow this scenario, starting off with mysterious, unfocused scoring. As the piece progresses, the scoring gets more focused and bold with the final statement representing Fuji-san in a totally clear view.
II. Nihonbashi - "Market Bridge"
Based on the bookmark Nihonbashi by Hiroshige Ando, which is from the print series The 53 Stations of the Tokaido Highway Hiroshige Ando (1797-1858) traveled the Tokaido from Edo to Kyoto in 1832.
The official party he was traveling with were transporting horses which were gifts to be offered to the imperial court. The journey greatly inspired Hiroshige, for he sketched many of its scenes during his round -trip travels. In all, Hiroshige produced 55 prints for the series The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido. Fifty three of the prints represent each of the 53 post stations along the way. The two additional prints are of the starting and ending points. The post stations offered food, lodging and stables for travelers of the Tokaido Highway.
The Nihonbashi bridge was the central point of development, which is now a business district of Chuo, Tokyo, Japan, aptly named the Nihonbashi District. For centuries it thrived as a mercantile district. The first department store ever developed in Japan was by the Mitsui family named Mitsukoshi. From its early days as a fish market to the current financial district of Tokyo (and Japan), this bridge spanning the Nihonbashi River is a true landmark in Tokyo. In fact, highway signs that state the distance to Tokyo actually state the distance to the Nihonbashi bridge. Up until shortly before 1964, you could see Mount Fuji from the bridge; however, the 1964 Summer Olympics put in a raised expressway over the Nihonbashi bridge, obscuring its view entirely. Petitions to relocate the expressway underground in order to regain view of Mount Fuji are continuous but so far have been futile due to the costs for such a project.
This movement is a melody of my own crafting. It is folk sounding in nature as I was trying to capture the spirit of the bridge going all the way back to 1603 when the first wooden bridge was built over Nihonbashi River. It started out as a fish market but quickly became a place for other merchants to gather. In this piece, the melody gets tossed from instrument to instrument representing the continuous street hoking and haggling that was...
III. "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa" (Kanagawa-oki nami-ura, lit. "Under a Wave Off Kanagawa").
The artwork of Hokusai is well known. and this particular woodblock print which was published between 1830 and 1833 is well known throughout the world. His series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji is Hokusai's most famous work.
Looking at this stunning print, you can see Mount Fuji in the background, but the central focus is an enormous wave called an okinami (wave of the open sea) peaked and curling with several Japanese boats in different stages entering the perilous wave.
In this work, a single wave is depicted from its beginnings far out in the sparkling sun-drenched seas all the way through its final throes onto a rocky beach. The piece starts in the open sea, fairly calm with sunlight refracting into thousands of tiny points of light. Depicting this are the woodwinds rippling up and down with sixteenth triplet variations. The trombones and french horns enter the mix with a solid melodic statement. The trumpets add in near the end of the phrase all of which depicts the first shaping of the great wave.
IV. Kinryuzan Temple in Asakusa: "Thunder Gate"
The name of the print on the bookmark says Kaminari-mon Gate of Asakusa Kannon Temple, but the true name of the print is Kinryuzan Temple in Asakusa by the artist Hiroshige Ando.
Originally built in 941 A.D., Kaminarimon is the outer gate leading to the Senso -ji Temple which was constructed around 628 A.D. near Kamagata and later relocated to its present location in Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan, in 1635. This large gate features four statues. The Shinto gods Fujin and Raijin are located on the front of the gate, and the Buddhist god Tenryu and goddess Kinryu stand on the reverse side. Fujin displayed on the front east side of the gate is the god of wind and Raijin on the west side is the god of thunder. giving the gate its nickname of “Thunder Gate.” Displayed in the middle of the gate is a giant red chochin (lantern) which weighs approximately 1,500 pounds. Despite its huge size, it is very fragile. The front of the lantern bears the painting of the gate’s name, Kaminarimon, and the painting on the back reads Furaijinmon, the official name of the gate. The bottom or base of the chochin displays a beautiful wooden carving of a dragon. Over the centuries the gate has been destroyed and rebuilt many times. The current gate dates to 1960 and the new lantern was donated in 2003. As a tourist, you cannot get close to the statues as they are protected by fences and wire and you certainly cannot touch them. Despite all of that, the magnificence of the gate still shines through, bearing testament to centuries of humans that have passed through its structure and the centuries yet to come.
V. "Evening Snow at Kambara": "Light is the Touch"
Based on the bookmark "Evening Snow at Kambara" by Hiroshige Ando which is from the series The 53 Stations of the Tokaido Highway.
Hiroshige Ando (1797-1858) traveled the Tokaido from Edo to Kyoto in 1832. The official party he was traveling with were transporting horses which were gifts to be offered to the imperial court. The journey greatly inspired Hiroshige, for he sketched many of its scenes during his journey's round trip. In all, Hiroshige produced 55 prints for the series The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido. Fifty three of the prints represent the 53 post stations along the way. The additional two prints are of the starting and ending points. The post stations offered food, lodging and stables for travelers of the Tokaido Highway. "Evening Snow at Kambara" was the 15th station Hiroshige visited. The subtitle Light is the Touch refers to snow softly falling on the skin. In this piece, the falling snow symbolizes spiritual healing. The piece starts with solo piano, harp and alto flute. The melody is simple yet haunting and grows with the slow addition of players. The piece ends with the same three soloists it began with. It is a song in structure, a song representing the soft touch of healing.
VI. Hakone:
"Drifting"
Based on the bookmark entitled "Hakone Pass" which is based on the actual print by Hiroshige Ando called "Hakone" which is from the print series The 53 Stations of the Tokaido Highway.
Hiroshige Ando (1797-1858) traveled the Tokaido from Edo to Kyoto in 1832. The official party he was traveling with were transporting horses which were gifts to be offered to the Imperial court. The journey greatly inspired Hiroshige for he sketched many of its scenes during his journey's round trip. In all, Hiroshige produced 55 prints for the series The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido. Fifty three of the prints represent the 53 post stations along the way. The additional 2 prints are of the starting and ending points. The post stations offered food, lodging and stables for travelers of the Tokaido Highway. Hakone-juku was the tenth of the fifty-three stations of the Tokaido. At an elevation of 725 meters, it is the highest post station on the entire Tokaido Highway, offering spectacular views. Hakone-juku was established in 1618 and over the years has proven to be a hard road to maintain due to its elevation.
When I started researching Hakone there wasn't much of anything striking a chord within my creative self, just a city that had a long road with lots of curves, switchbacks and other hazards passing through it. It wasn't until I looked at the actual highway on a map that it rang a bell. I had seen this road before. I truly recognized the shape of the entire highway. Having never been on that actual highway in real life, I knew I had to unravel the mystery. A few more searches on the Internet and there it was. I am an avid "gamer", and though I tend to play all types of games both on the computer and on consoles, I have always played racing games, and that is where I had "driven" it before, in a video game. The drifting I did on that highway in the game mostly sent me sailing off the road, flying through air and ultimately landing in a fiery, end -over endwipeout. And as with any search on the Internet, YouTube offered up a seemingly endless supply of videos featuring not one but long parades of cars in single file drifting on the Tokaido Highway as it runs through Hakone.
Subtitled Drifting, this piece reflects my love of fast cars doing crazy fun things. In this instance that would be drifting. Drifting is the art of manipulating the brakes, the gas and precise steering wheel positioning to keep the car in a controlled skid/slide while traveling around curves. The music depicts the adrenaline -racing, heart-pumping action of drifting cars on the Tokaido Highway through Hakone and beyond. It is fast, furious, full of odd meters and features nearly every instrument in the band at least once: my version of musical drifting. Let's just hope there are no wipeouts or fiery crashes.
- Program Note by composer
ALL UTSA STUDENTS can make music with us!
The 350-member “Spirit of San Antonio” Marching Band is open to all UTSA students, regardless of major. Like all college bands, the group is comprised of students of various performance backgrounds. The “Spirit of San Antonio” will perform a standard pre-game show, 4-5 different halftime shows, stand tunes, and maintain UTSA traditions, while at the same time promoting a positive learning and social environment for its members. College bands strive towards being fun and spirited organizations while still achieving a quality of performance representative of the image of the university.
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The UTSA Wind Ensemble is comprised of UTSA Students who have achieved an extreme high level of musicianship and who perform some of the most challenging music composed for wind band. Membership in this ensemble is open to all UTSA Students, regardless of major, who audition at the beginning of each semester. The UTSA Wind Ensemble maintains a vigorous performance schedule of three demanding concerts each semester as well as an ensemble tour when schedule and budget permits. U T S A S y
The UTSA Symphonic Band is made up of 45-55 outstanding wind players who perform a repertoire chosen from a variety of historical periods and for ensembles of various sizes. While the group occasionally presents pieces composed for smaller groups, much of its time is spent in the study and performance of works from the standard symphonic band repertoire. Membership is open to all students at the university who audition at the beginning of each semester. U T S A
The UTSA University Band performs a wide variety of works from different composers and arrangers, in addition to maintaining an active three-concert schedule each semester. There is no formal audition required to participate; students must be able to read music and play a concert band instrument. Membership in the ensemble includes students from almost every discipline on campus. We invite all students interested in performing in this ensemble to come out and join us at the beginning of each semester!
Special thanks to the following for their ongoing support and dedication to the UTSA Bands:
Dr. Tracy Cowden, Director, School of Music
Dr. Stacey Davis, Associate Director, School of Music
Dr. Kasandra Keeling, Associate Director, School of Music
Naomy Ybarra, Administrative Services Officer 1
Steven Hill, Administrative Associate
Jared Davis, Senior Events Manager
Jose Berrios, Marketing Coordinator
Dr. John Zarco, Director of Instrumental Ensembles
Prof. Hector Garcia – Assistant Director of Athletic Bands
Rico Gomez, Music Program Specialist, UTSA Bands
Emilio De Leon, Ivan Lorduy Camargo, UTSA Bands Graduate Assistants
Prof. Sherry Rubins and Prof. Paul Millette, Percussion Area Faculty
Dr. Rachel Woolf and Dr. Oswaldo Zapata, Woodwind and Brass Area Coordinators
Dr. Kasandra Keeling and Prof. Christine Debus, Keyboard Area Coordinators
Prof. Asieh Mahyar, Director of Orchestras
Dr. Yoojin Muhn, Director of Choral Activities
UTSA School of Music Faculty
Eva Ayala and Jared Worman, School of Music Librarians
UTSA Bands Managers
Mu Tau Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi
Iota Tau Chapter of Tau Beta Sigma
UTSA Spirit of San Antonio Student Association (SOSASA)
