OXFORD,
Miss. – The University of Mississippi Faculty Woodwind Quintet is
slated to perform a fall concert at 8 p.m. Tuesday (Oct. 28) in Nutt
Auditorium. The program is free and open to the public.
The
ensemble is composed of music faculty Linda Pereksta on flute, Katy
Piecuch on oboe, Michael Rowlett on clarinet, Wade Irvin on bassoon and
Bob Gilbert on horn. The performance includes a wide range of pieces
written for this combination of instruments.
Listen to Faculty Woodwind Quintet
{audio}http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/music/sounds/quintet.mp3{/audio}
“There’s a variety of styles of music for woodwind quintet,” Irvin said. “We have music from the Renaissance, as well as the Classical period and the 20th century.”
“I think it’s going to be a real entertaining variety,” Rowlett said. “We have a balance of the standard and unusual.”
The concert will include two masterworks of the woodwind quintet genre: a composition by Ludwig van Beethoven, which has been arranged for this group of instruments, and a quintet by the American composer Irving Fine. Fine was an associate of Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland and Igor Stravinsky, and his work bears many resemblances to the works of those composers.
The concert also includes a little-played but charming quintet by the French composer Adolphe Deslandres and two dance numbers: a suite of Renaissance dances arranged by Ronald Roseman and a 20th century tango by Astor Piazzolla. The Piazzolla promises to be a particularly lively conclusion to the concert.
“The closer for our show is a really exciting piece called ‘Libertango,'” Irvin said. “It’s a very fun piece to play with improvised solos, and it’s fun to listen to as well. I love all of the pieces we are playing, but I think this is the one that the crowd will love the most.”
Rehearsing for the concert has been enjoyable, Irvin said. “In addition to our teaching, one of the real treats of our job is to get to perform chamber music with other musicians that have a love for the music written and transcribed for the woodwind quintet.”
The quintet was organized some 15 years ago. The current group of performers has been playing together for two years. The ensemble performs a concert each semester.
“It’s certainly part of our educational mission – it’s a chance for our students to hear us play, but it’s also something that we like to offer to the community,” Rowlett said. “One of the great things about living in Oxford is having some great educational resources and cultural resources here, and we try to be a part of that.”
Both Rowlett and Irvin expect the audience to be entertained.
“The performance will be very enjoyable to hear,” Irvin said. “The variety of the programming will enhance the performance of the great chamber music included.”
“I think we give a really engaging program,” Rowlett said. “We really try to make it fun for the audience. We often talk about the pieces in the performance, and we try to establish a relationship with the audience in that way. I think it’s going to be a really entertaining program.”
For more information or to request assistance related to a disability, call 662-915-7268. To learn more about the Department of Music, visit https://web20.olemiss.edu/news/wordpress/.
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