Opening Night - A Breath of Fresh Air

Alec Blazek, Trumpet

Federico Montes, Trumpet

Anna Spina, French Horn

Anthony Cosio-Marron, Trombone

Chance Gompert, Bass Trombone

Danielle Maeng, Flute

Emily Bowland, Clarinet

Asha Kline, Bassoon

Gil Perel, Bassoon

About the Program:

Tonight’s program invites you into a colorful journey through the worlds of brass and winds—music that sparkles with wit, sings with lyricism, and dances with rhythmic vitality. From French elegance to Broadway romance, from playful miniatures to modernist brilliance, each work offers its own snapshot of character and style, brought vividly to life by the unique voices of the ensemble.

The evening opens with Eugene Bozza’s Sonatine for Brass Quintet, a bright and buoyant work that sparkles with French elegance and wit. Its lively rhythms and warm harmonies showcase the brass in playful conversation, inviting listeners into a world of charm and precision.

Bernstein’s West Side Story, arranged for brass quintet by Jack Gale, bursts with the energy and romance of the Broadway classic. Familiar melodies—tender, fiery, and irresistibly rhythmic—are reimagined through the bold, golden sonorities of the ensemble.

— Intermission —

Jacques Ibert’s Cinq pièces en trio (arranged here for flute, clarinet, and bassoon) offers five miniature gems, each a vignette of character and color. From lighthearted dances to lyrical whispers, the music delights in its clarity and humor.

The program concludes with Stravinsky’s Octet for Wind Instruments, a neoclassical masterpiece that blends crisp counterpoint with modernist sparkle. With its inventive forms, rhythmic vitality, and kaleidoscope of timbres, the work closes the evening in a spirit both playful and sophisticated.