By Sarah McMillin, Staff Writer
The Susquehanna University Symphonic Band performed its first concert of the year on Oct. 7 in Stretansky Concert Hall.
The 56 members of the band, conducted by director of bands Eric L. Hinton, performed five pieces of music.
While there was no specific overarching theme, Hinton said, “We wanted to feature pieces that help us celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation.”
Two of the pieces in the program, “Rejouissance (Fantasie on Ein Feste Burg),” by American composer James Curnow and “this is most certainly true,” by James M. Stephenson, showcased this celebration of the Protestant Reformation.
“Rejouissance” is based on the Martin Luther chorale “Ein’ feste Burg,” or “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.”
“this is most certainly true” is based on Martin Luther’s journey to writing his 95 theses.
According to the program, this piece was commissioned by 27 Lutheran university bands, including Susquehanna University. The piece is a slower work that begins to build up as the music continues. This buildup was meant to symbolize Mar- tin Luther’s growing frustration over the then-current religious practices.
This buildup leads to a powerful part of the piece, symbolizing Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to the church door. The piece then builds again to symbolize people joining Luther’s movement over the past 500 years. The piece is complete with 95 chimes to represent the 95 theses.
The other three pieces performed were “Ritmo Jondo (“Bulerias,” “Saeta,” “Garrotin,”)” by Spanish composer Carlos Surinach, “Crown Imperial March” by English composer William Walton and “Ride” by American composer Samuel Hazo.
“Ritmo Jondo” is broken down into three separate movements: “Bulerias,” “Saeta” and “Garrotin.”
“Bulerias” is a fast, flamenco dance with a lot of shifting rhythms in the piece. This type of music is an example of typical Spanish party dances.
The second movement, “Saeta,” is a slower ritual song of Seville. According to the program, it is typically “sung in the streets as a prayer during the Good Friday procession.”
The third movement, “Garrotin,” is another Spanish party dance that was also unique in that, besides normal percussion, it featured hand clapping.
“Crown Imperial March” was chosen specifically for this concert because of Susquehanna’s current history in the making. According to Hinton, the piece was chosen in part for the upcoming inauguration of President-elect Jonathan Green.
The song was first performed during King George VI’s inauguration in 1937. It has been performed at many coronations since then, such as Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 and other events, such as the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011.
Sophomore Stacie Savoca, who plays clarinet, said, “It’s a coronation march, so it’s very powerful and majestic and has a lot of room for dynamic interpretation.”
The band concluded its performance with “Ride.”
“It’s a fast, exciting work,” Hinton said.
Attendees found excitement in the pieces that the band chose. “I thought all the musicians did a really great job,” sophomore Linda Hanson said. “The pieces were fabulous.” Sophomore Ali Hordeski agreed and said, “I never got bored the entire time.”
Generally, the band performs only one concert in the fall semester. This year, they will be performing two.
“This performance is happening earlier than we typically perform in the first semester,” Hinton said. “We’ve had seven weeks to prepare the concert, which has meant that the band has had to work hard to learn a difficult program in a shorter span of time.”
“I’ve been very proud of how much progress the Symphonic Band has made and how hard they’ve worked,” Hinton continued.
