By Mike Devine
Northeastern’s Concert Band presented works ranging from Handel to Gershwin at its 2008 spring concert Saturday afternoon.
The concert, which was held at the Fenway Center, featured world-renowned euphonium player Adam Frey and two divisions of the Concert Band, the wind ensemble and the symphonic band.
The concert began promptly at 3 p.m. with Northeastern professor and music director Allen Feinstein taking the stage and guiding the wind ensemble through its opening piece, G.F. Handel’s “The Rejoicing.” The three-minute piece had a joyous and royal sound.
Following the resounding opening, Feinstein welcomed everyone to the concert and introduced Frey.
“We are fortunate to have Adam Frey playing with us today,” he said. “His visit with us has been fantastic.”
Frey first accompanied the ensemble on “Concerto for Euphonium and Symphonic Band,” which Feinstein wrote.
While introducing the concerto, which tells the story of Greek god Zeus and a solar eclipse, Feinstein said his son, Daniel, gave him inspiration for the piece. The then-three-year-old was swinging on a hammock and repeatedly saying “swimming in the mountain,” which Feinstein later found out was actually the opening line from a Greek poem by Archilochus, he said.
“The first movement is about Zeus, the second is about the eclipse and the third is where we see what’s possible and impossible for our soloists,” he said.
The near 20-minute piece concluded with a grand finale and incorporated call and response between Frey’s euphonium and different sections of the ensemble.
The ensemble also performed a medley of dance music from the musical “West Side Story,” which incorporated more percussion than the previous pieces.
Following a brief intermission, the symphonic band took the stage and immediately began playing “On the Double,” a rousing, carnival-like piece. After, Feinstein introduced band president Dayna Bradstreet, who he called a “phenomenal president.”
Bradstreet thanked a few people who were left out of the program, and handed out two awards, the President’s Choice Award, which went to Jennifer Spavins, and the Alumni Award, which went to Adam Skelskie.
Spavins was also given a bottle of buffalo sauce, since she was not able to visit the Anchor Bar – home of the buffalo wing – with the band on its trip to Niagara Falls this year.
Later, Bradstreet handed out bouquets to the band’s graduating seniors and graduate students, who Feinstein thanked for their contributions to the band.
Most of the pieces the band performed were conducted by students, including the calm and stoic “O Magnum Mysterium,” which was conducted by middler Jessica Stone, and “Slava!,” which was conducted by senior Chris Forrest.
Frey accompanied the band on “The Yellow Rose of Texas,” donning a cowboy hat during his solos.
The performance also included a surprise in the form of a member of the brass section standing up mid-performance and shouting “yeehaw!,” which generated laughter from the audience. He wore a cowboy hat throughout the roughly eight-minute piece.
The band also performed Gustav Holst’s “Suite No. 1 in E-flat,” which was divided into three movements and was conducted by junior Jason Silverberg.
Sophomore Jonathan Lawitts guided the band through selections from George Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess,” which included the famous “Summertime” and was played in a slow, flowing manner.
Frey’s final performance came in the form of a solo version of The Beatles classic, “Blackbird.” He admitted it was “not quite as exciting as The Beatles,” but received much applause at the conclusion of the performance.
Frey thanked the band for putting on the show.
“It’s been very enjoyable for me to perform at this concert,” he said.
The concert concluded with a performance of the university fight-song “All Hail Northeastern,” complete with vocals provided by the band members.
Alexa Ross, a freshman information science and business major in the audience, said she liked the piece from “West Side Story” the best.
“I liked the sound and it was a little more current so I could recognize it,” she said.
“The Yellow Rose of Texas” seemed to be the most popular piece for the audience.
Joe Marcella, a senior chemical engineering major whose girlfriend is in the band, said “Yellow Rose of Texas” was his favorite.
“There was a lot of excitement in it and I liked the solos,” he said.
Ben Cooper, a freshman music technology major with friends in the band, also said he liked “Yellow Rose of Texas.”
“I liked how everything blended together,” he said.
Cooper said he had Feinstein as a professor, which was another reason for his attendance.
Christine Bernhardt, a senior information science and business major and euphonium player in both the ensemble and the band, said her favorite piece to play was the medley from “Porgy and Bess.”
“I liked ‘Porgy and Bess’ the best because it was a little more jazzy, and we usually only play marches,” she said. “Marches can get boring after a while.”
