Geneseo presented a fantastic concert in Wadsworth Auditorium entitled “Peace Dances” on Sunday Oct. 20, which featured the Geneseo Wind Quintet and the Eastman Community Music School Music Educators Wind Ensemble.
The concert was something of a tribute to the diversity of musical styles that have been inherited from composers over time. The concert placed a strong emphasis on contemporary works by living composers, which respected the need for the music world to keep encouraging new compositions to be created.
French horn player sophomore Sarah Schmidlin joined the Geneseo Wind Ensemble as a freshman. Preparations for the concert were long in the works.
“We start the first week of classes usually and rehearse twice a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 5:20 p.m.,” Schmidlin said. “I’m not a music major or minor, but it’s fun to still have the opportunity to play in an ensemble.”
The concert’s varied program consisted of works that date from the 18th century all the way to the present day.
“We performed works by all sorts of different people,” Schmidlin said. “Leah McGray, the conductor, likes to try and represent a lot of underrepresented artists.”
Schmidlin’s personal favorite piece on the program to play was a work titled “Diamond Tide.”
The program began with “Forever Free” (1962) by Ulysses Kay, followed by “Rocketship” (2017), a Concerto for Woodwind Quintet and Wind Ensemble (2006) and “Miniatures” (1963) by William Grant Still, all performed by the Geneseo Wind Ensemble under the baton of Geneseo director of instrumental studies Leah McGray.
“Rocketship” was composed by a recent graduate of Texas Christian University Kevin Day. This fresh and modern work pays homage to several of his music inspirations, including the minimalist music of John Adams and the rock genre.
The next pieces on the program were performed by the Eastman Community Music School Music Educators Wind Ensemble, this time conducted by Bill Tiberio. The works performed included “Contrapunctus IX” by Johann Sebastian Bach, and the most recent work on the program titled “My Soul to Keep” which was composed this year by Julie Giroux, one of the most prolific female composers for the wind band community.
“My Soul to Keep” was written at the request of the Lesbian and Gay Band Association to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, and during the concert it featured soprano Katelyn Brooks ‘19, a Geneseo alum.
The concert’s final two pieces were performed by both of the talented ensembles combined together; “Peacedancer” by Jodie Blackshaw and the aforementioned “Diamond Tide” by Viet Cuong. Blackshaw’s “Peacedancer” is based on a tale from the Squamish Tribe in the Canadian North, and she focuses on one line from the tale: “We have really lost our way, we have not taught our children love and respect.”
Social progress and commentary were running themes of the event. McGray spoke earnestly both about her excitement about the program and the societal changes that have occurred over the years.
“I am a female conductor taught by all female conductors,” McGray said. “I have a glimpse of what some people go through when it comes to preconceived notions of who belongs in the classical music world.”
McGray stressed the importance of giving marginalized groups a voice, whether it be female composers or people of color trying to break the barriers and working together to create harmony instead of creating dissension.