The President's Corner
June 2002
Presidential Musing
TWENTY FIVE QUEENS
We are just celebrating the Golden Jubilee of our dear Queen, Queen Elizabeth, and we all (mostly) in England are feeling very patriotic and British. Maybe you republicans are right though; I am only half-way through my stint as President of the World of Wind Bands, and beginning to feel my age. Wow, if UK had followed a two-year presidential pattern, we would have had twenty five queens since the death of George VI.
GOLDEN JUBILEE OF EASTMAN WIND ENSEMBLE
It is of course also 50 years since the founding of the Eastman Wind Ensemble and since the last big celebration of West Point Military Academy, strands pulled together wonderfully in Don Hunsberger's exciting celebration last February.
SHARE THAT EXPERTISE
What for me is incredibly exciting this week is that the sleeping giant WASBE is beginning to stir. What amazing expertise there is in our membership, over fifty countries pursuing wind music in all its various guises, conductors and administrators spending all of their time planning concerts, commissioning and learning new scores, fund-raising by selling cookies or oranges. Please everyone take a little time to share that expertise with the rest of the world. CONGRATULATIONS & HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, FRED AND YOUR MAJESTY.
Three of you have in this last week of May; there have been three WASBE emails in the last two days, from Belgium taking me to task for ignoring Spain and Spanish repertoire, from Scotland with enthusiasm for "Notegrouping", and Norway, part 2 of a Norwegian repertoire survey. This indicates that there is a growing awareness of the potential, for composers, conductors and publishers, of seeking out new repertoire and new ideas. Please contact these three members if you have queries, and please send Leon Bly or John Stanley your own ideas on repertoire and research. Wow, what a way to celebrate the Queen's and Fred Fennell's Golden Jubilee. Raise a glass of Dr. Pepper!
SPANISH REPERTOIRE
Frank de Vuyst
Cullera,
Spain
frankdevuyst•yahoo.com
Dear President,
Before all I want to congratulate you for the different articles I read from you at the Wasbe newsletter or at Bandchat, and specially for the journal of WASBE 8 - 2001, that I received last month. I read the papers, and all panel discussions are really exciting, but I hope you permit me one remark.
In the first panel Discussion ("A Global Perspective: Wind Music without Borders") you were passing different countries, speaking about their music tradition. You spoke about Belgium and a lot of countries (by the way, I think it can be interesting for you to know that all the music of the Synthesists is available at the Belgian Music Information Centre "Cebedem". Their Web site is www.cebedem.be but you didn't speak about Spain. I'm not Spanish myself, but I'm working as a conductor there, with the band "Ateneo Musical" from Cullera, one of Valencia's top bands.
Working now already six years with them, and with other bands, I'm still amazed about the quality of some of their composers. I don't understand why composers like Eduardo Montesinos or Francisco Tamarit (fabulous!!!) are not in the international repertoire. I suppose that the reason is that nobody knows their music. Last winter I made an agreement with Piles, Spanish Music Publisher, to incorporate in their company, only to promote the quality works of a few Spanish composers. One of my most important projects till now was a re-edition of Joaquín Rodrigo's "Per la Flor del Lliri Blau", for the first time with a full score, including harp, something that never has been available. Within a month it will be finished.
The reason I write you this e-mail is the following: I'm going to send you a score and a recording from a work that will be published probably in spring of 2003, "Visiones" by Francisco Tamarit Fayos.
It is a new work that was premiered on April 22, 2002. I would like you will have the time to look this score, because it would be an interesting work to be played at the WASBE conference 2003 in Sweden. I would like to send a score and a recording to each conductor who's going to perform on the conference. I hope you give me your opinion about this. Next week I will have the score, and I send it to you immediately; I'm curious to hear your opinion.
Sincerely yours,
Frank De Vuyst.
NOTEGROUPING
Russell Cowieson
West Livingston EH54
Scotland
russell•ecosse.net
Dear Tim
Hope you are well. Has the American experience ended yet?
After reading your message on the WASBWE web site, I got hold of a copy of the Thurmond book. It has really struck a chord with me. I have started 'piloting' the method with several pupils and a school wind band. Already the pupils have achieved results and I am discovering implications for my conducting and rehearsing. I have mentioned the method and my enthusiasm for it to my boss, and offered to give a presentation to the rest of the staff in West Lothian. Would this be useful for presentation at BASBWE? I am aware that WASBE intends to look into the method more deeply, and as a result you may already have people in mind to present the method. Let me know if I can be of help
Russell
NORWEGIAN REPERTOIRE
Jan Magnus Dahle
Hundvåg
Norway
jmdahle•hotmail.com
Dear Tim
Here's my second article (attachment) for our Newsletter. Hope it's not too long. I'd like to follow it up with a review of CDs with Norwegian band music recorded by Norwegian bands.
The Norwegian Band Federation numbers 1700 bands with 68,000 members (44,000 under the age of 26). This is in fact a big market for new pieces and arrangements, which means good opportunities for composers and arrangers to hear their music performed. Last summer I did a tour of Australia and Singapore conducting Norwegian music with various local bands - amateurs, students and professionals, and it was a great pleasure to notice how well our band music was received - fresh and colourful were frequently used adjectives, so I'm quite confident that WASBE members will find much of interest once they start exploring this rich ore.
All the best,
Jan