VSU Wind Ensemble Performs April 30

VALDOSTA — Valdosta State University’s 45-member Wind Ensemble will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 30, in Whitehead Auditorium. Admission is free of charge and open to the public.

The VSU Wind Ensemble will kick off the evening with quintessential American composer Ron Nelson’s Rocky Point Holiday, an imaginative orchestration full of color and energy, before diving into Aaron Perrine’s powerful and serene Pale Blue on Deep.

“I arrived at the title Pale Blue on Deep while sitting on the shore of Lake Superior,” said the composer. “Though I’ve visited this lake countless times, I’m always mesmerized by its power and serene beauty. You don’t just see this Great Lake; it’s a feeling you experience with all of your senses.

“While there are certainly melodic and harmonic motifs used throughout the work, the larger unifying themes present are a bit more abstract. One main theme is the idea of colors blurring into each other. This was inspired by the place on the horizon where the water appears to blend right into the sky. Moments of tension and release can be attributed to a number of things, such as waves crashing to the shore or the imagery of what might lie beneath the water’s surface. Above all, I believe the most prevalent theme of the piece is its pensive, introspective feeling, which is exactly the same feeling that comes over me upon each visit to Lake Superior.”

Following a brief intermission, the Wind Ensemble will return to the stage to perform Anna’s Gift: The Way of Passion by Andres Martin. Featuring special guest artist Barry Green, principal bassist of the Cincinnati Symphony, California Symphony Orchestra, and Sun Valley Summer Symphony, and narration by Dr. Mark McQuade, assistant professor of music at VSU, this piece tells the emotional journey of a gifted concert bassist who is longing for love and fire in her music and her life.      

Whitehead Auditorium is located on the first floor of VSU’s Fine Arts Building, at the intersection of Oak Street and Brookwood Drive.

Contact Dr. Benjamin Harper, director of athletic bands at VSU, at bgharper@valdosta.edu or (229) 249-4965 to learn more.