On Feb. 17, the Mercyhurst University Wind Ensemble concert performed under the direction of Scott Meier, Ph.D., associate professor of Music Education and Saxophone.
The Wind Ensemble consists of flute, oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, saxophone, French horn, trumpet, trombone, euphonium, tuba and percussion.
There were five songs total on the concert, and the performance lasted about an hour.
A lot of the music was light and smooth to the ear.
First they played “the Liberty Bell” by J.P. Sousa.
Next they performed Robert Jager’s Third Suite, a piece in three parts, March, Waltz and Rondo.
Their third song was “Echos of Egypt” by Nicholas Baratta.
The fourth song was “Vesuvius” by Frank Ticheli.
Their final song was “Albanian Dance” by Shelley Hanson.
After each song, Meier would mention how the song came to be or how the title came to be.
For example, he said that Sousa had a hard time naming “The Liberty Bell.”
Meier explained that Sousa’s band manager George Hinton suggested “The Liberty Bell,” but Sousa turned the idea down at first. However, Sousa heard that his son had marched in a parade in honor of the Liberty Bell, so he agreed that is what the title should be.
The songs were cheerful and upbeat, and I even found myself tapping my shoes to the music.
Everyone had a good time.
Meier also gave recognition to some of his students and mentioned how no one is the center of attention. It’s just a happy place.
Toward the end of the performance, he always thanks the audience for coming to support live music and thanks all of the staff for helping put the concert together.
Overall, it was a great show, so next time come on out to the concert and support live music. It deserves to be heard.