Jacobs School of Music’s Concert Band, Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble took the stage in succession Thursday night at the Musical Arts Center as part of the band program’s Spring Showcase.
The concert featured former director of bands Ray Cramer as a guest conductor, along with graduate student conductors — Ally Capone, Rebecca Mulligan and Nick Hinman — and two student soloists — trombonist Nathan Chambers and alto saxophonist Tyree Nesbitt.
Tiffany Galus, director of the Marching Hundred, also conducted one song for the Concert Band at the beginning of the program.
The night began at 8 p.m. as the fluorescent lighting of the MAC dimmed, and the audience began to quiet. The Concert Band was the first to perform, with Cramer conducting Richard Strauss’s “Königsmarsch” (1905), a lively piece.
Then, Cramer switched places with Galus, who then went on to conduct Viet Cuong’s “Shared Spaces” (2024).
The song featured slow and lyrical movements, filling the MAC with quiet serenity. Kayla Pleasant, a freshman studying musical education, said “Shared Spaces” was a special piece of repertoire for her to perform.
“It’s very, really nice, lyrical, very flowy, that I think was my favorite,” Pleasant said.
Hinman conducted the next piece, John Mackey’s “Sacred Spaces” (2019), before the Symphonic Band came onstage to perform.
Like the Concert Band, Cramer took to the stage for the first piece with the Symphonic Band, which was Ryan George’s “Full Circle” (2019). Eric Smedley, the director of the Symphonic Band, said it was special having Cramer conduct “Full Circle” because one of his former students wrote and composed it specifically for him.
“A lot of people have played under his own time anyway,” Smedley said. “So, Ryan wrote this piece for him, I think called ‘Full Circle,’ because when he was a student, he played under him, and now he has a piece, you know, that he wrote for the conductor, kind of thing.”
Cramer traded spots with Mulligan after the band finished “Full Circle.” Mulligan then began to flick her wrists, keeping time for the Symphonic Band as they performed Scott McAllister’s “Gone” (2013).
The last piece the Symphonic Band performed was Launy Grøndahl’s “Trombone Concerto” (1924), which featured Smedley onstage as the conductor and a trombone solo from Chambers.
Chambers was awarded the performance after winning a brass concerto competition last fall.
The last band took the stage, switching from the Symphonic Band to the Wind Ensemble, capping off the night with four more songs. The Wind Ensemble began their performance with Arnold Schoenberg’s “Theme and Variations, Op. 43a” (1943) conducted by Hinman.
As “Theme and Variations, Op. 43a” came to a close, Cramer took to the forefront of the stage with a microphone, explaining the significance of the next song, Julie Giroux’s “One Life Beautiful” (2010).
“One Life Beautiful” was commissioned by Cramer after the death of his daughter, Heather Cramer Reu. He said the song served as a way to celebrate his daughter, exploring the meaning of living a beautiful life through loud and expressive moments, then transitioning to a softer tone.
Once the somber sound of “One Life Beautiful” quietly ended, director of bands Donald McKinney conducted the last two songs, Claude Thomas Smith’s “Fantasia for Alto Saxophone and Band” (1983) and Aaron Copland’s “Emblems” (1964).
“Fantasia for Alto Saxophone and Band” featured an alto saxophone solo from Nesbitt throughout the entire piece.
McKinney said concerts similar to Thursday’s teach students many different musical skills, like adaptability and approaching the music through the eyes of different conductors.
“I think they learn to be adaptable and flexible and change their approach to music making regardless, depending on who’s staying in front of them,” McKinney said. “I think that flexibility piece is really critical for musicians to have.”
The next performance in the band program will be at 8 p.m. April 14 in Auer Hall, featuring the Concert Band being conducted by Galus and graduate student conductor Jacob Kessler.
