I’ve just re-ordered the rehearsal plan for tomorrow night, so the double reeds (who don’t play in the Daugherty) may leave at the break. Please take a look.

Please leave plenty of time to park, greet friends, and warm up so we can start squarely on time at 7:30 pm

See you tomorrow evening!

As Labor Day looms, and the evenings and early mornings get cooler, we all know autumn is approaching. And it’s time to start to get ready for our first rehearsal on September 11!

Please remember that you can always check rehearsal dates from this site. From the home page (wsw.ebernet.biz), click the Rehearsals menu tab. From there you can see the grid-style rehearsal schedule and the monthly (Google Calendar) version as well.

If you did not respond to our survey concerning future “perk” performances, please do so before the first rehearsal. Click here to visit that form. The Board values everyone’s opinion, so please do respond.

Enjoy the last days of summer, and we’ll see you on September 11 at TMH to read through the entire Fall program.

Happy August! I’ve got lots of exciting news to share about our upcoming 30th Season, including guest artists and focus works, and more. Here’s a summary of what you’ll see below:

• Last call for 29th Season Recordings
• Do you shop on Amazon? AmazonSmile Foundation benefits WSW!
• Breathing exercises for brass (or anyone!)
• Perk performances survey
• Auditions for 2017-2018
• Repertoire and guest artists for the 30th Season

So here we go:

• Our 29th Season Recordings orders doubled after my last post. Here’s your last chance to order, by clicking here. I’ll send in the order to Candlewood by the end of the week.
• Did you know that you can help raise funds for WSW by shopping on Amazon? The AmazonSmile Foundation donates 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to our organization every time you shop through the AmazonSmile link. Chris Larsen registered our group and we’ve already received foundation funds! To set this up:
  1. Go to smile.amazon.com and sign in with your credentials
  2. Go to Accounts & Lists > Your Account > Your AmazonSmile
  3. Select Choose Charity (or Change Charity if you want to switch)
  4. “WSW” is actually a DBA; legally, we are still the Hudson Valley Wind Symphony. So, under “Or pick your own charitable organization,” type HUDSON VALLEY WIND SYMPHONY, then select HUDSON VALLEY WIND SYMPHONY. Please DO NOT PICK Hudson Valley Symphonic Wind Ensemble Inc — that’s a completely different organization! (If you need an explanation, ask any Board member.)

When you shop, start at smile.amazon.com. The site will provide a bookmark link you can drag to your bookmark bar. Everything on this site will still look like your regular Amazon shopping experience, but “Supporting Hudson Valley Wind Symphony” will appear just below the search bar (see screenshot below). If you don’t start from smile.amazon.com, we won’t earn the donations! So please bookmark the site and make your purchases there.

Lastly, and most importantly, share this information with family and friends. It costs nothing and it’s free money for our ensemble!

• Breathing exercises for brass (and woodwind!) players: Jim Savage shared this YouTube video. This simple exercise improves circulation and strengthens your breathing.
• Perk performance opportunities – The Board is already planning for our 30th Anniversary Gala next May, but is also looking farther ahead. We’d like your input regarding possible perk performance opportunities that we might consider for the future. This includes performances at Carnegie Hall (along the lines of our 2010 appearance at Avery Fisher Hall), convention performances (like Midwest), exchange programs (including local and long-distance collaborating ensembles), and international performance trips. There’s also an opportunity to volunteer for a committee (such as our 30th Anniversary Gala Committee) and the WSW Board. Please follow this link, or continue reading to find the form at the bottom of this post.
• Auditions – We will be holding season auditions for full-time and substitute players on Tuesday evening, September 5, at Irvington Presbyterian Church. If you know of qualified players on any instrument, please have them contact David Church for details and an audition time.
• 30th Season Repertoire – Our new season is filled with exciting new compositions, traditional favorites, magnificent focus works, great marches, young aspiring composers, and amazing guests:
  • Brooklyn Bridge, by Michael Daugherty, with internationally acclaimed clarinet soloist, Steve Cohen
  • Music for Prague, by Karel Husa (50th anniversary of the invasion and the composition itself)
  • Jack Stamp, guest conductor/composer, who will conduct his latest commission,  Prayer, written in honor of WSW favorite, Dr. Emily Threinen
  • And much, much more! Click here to see the entire listing. (This link has been corrected.)

That’s all the news for now. More to come in September! Dion’t forget to complete the Perk Performances form via the link above, or the form below.

I’m in the process of writing a newsy post about the upcoming 30th season, which I hope to send out tomorrow, but I need to share this right away.

It’s with great personal sadness that I share the news that David Maslanka passed late on Sunday night. He had a short two-month battle with colon cancer.

We performed David’s Give Us This Day in both Tarrytown and Evanston in 2015, and his On This Bright Morning in Tarrytown (2016) and Syracuse (2017). I was a member of the Northwestern SWE in 1981 when we premiered his Piano Concerto No. 1, and Mr. Paynter subsequently premiered his A Child’s Garden of Dreams the following year at NU. The first field trip I took at NVOT was with my Concert Band to hear the Northwestern SWE perform A Child’s Garden of Dreams at Symphony Space in 1982. In the mid-80’s, while visiting the Lincoln Center Performing Arts Library, I literally bumped into David while browsing the stacks. The happenstance conversation that followed, about his compositions and his work with Mr. Paynter, is still fresh in my mind. His Symphony No. 4 is one of the most powerful works I’ve ever experienced, and I hope to program it with WSW someday. But he was also able to write for developing bands; I performed his Rollo Takes a Walk with my 9th grade Concert Band at NVOT in 2008 and 2012, a delightful and accessible piece for young players.

I wrote to David in 2015 when I programmed Give Us This Day, and his son, Matt, replied on his behalf. I’ve written to Matt to convey condolences on behalf of our ensemble.

There will undoubtedly be scores of tributes and memorials in the coming months. I will keep you posted.

I’m including an iconic recording of his Symphony No. 4, below. If you have 28 minutes to spare, I urge you to find some headphones and a corner to sit alone with this amazing music. The work defines cathartic.