About this Event
Pre-Concert Lecture by Conductor Gabe Southard at 2:30 pm
* On the day of the concert, tickets can be purchased at the door
About the Concert
Travel with the MetWinds as we celebrate the rich musical inspirations of France! The concert begins with the only known example of French Impressionism written specifically for the band, Florent Schmitt’s Dionysiaques, and ends with a whirlwind tour of Paris in Martin Ellerby’s Paris Sketches. Along the way, we’ll visit Debussy’s haunting Engulfed Cathedral and hear a moving tribute to the Normandy American cemetery from World War II. No need to break out the French dictionary for this one!
PROGRAM
Dionysiaques - Florent Schmitt/ed. Hauswirth
Symphonic Prelude - Mark Camphouse
(The Cemetery at Colleville-Sur-Mer)
Suite Francaise - Guy Woolfenden
Suite Provencale - Jan van der Roost
The Engulfed Cathedral - Claude Debussy/arr. Longfield
Paris Sketches - Martin Ellerby
About the Conductor
Dr. Robert “Gabe" Southard joined Gordon College in the Fall 2022 as Associate Teaching Professor of Music and conductor of the Gordon Symphony Orchestra and Symphonic Band. Immediately prior to joining Gordon’s music faculty, Dr. Southard was serving as Associate Professor of Music and Director of Bands at Hope College, MI. At Hope College, he was also the Head of the Winds and Brass area and Head of the Instrumental Music Education Area. Dr. Southard completed his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Conducting at Michigan State University where he studied with Professor John Whitwell. Prior to this, Dr. Southard served as Wind Symphony conductor and Flute instructor at the University of Michigan-Flint. He also holds master and bachelor of music degrees from University of Wisconsin Madison and Ithaca College.
Dr. Southard is an active orchestrator. His largest project to date is an arrangement for wind ensemble of Rimsky-Korsakov’s Symphony No. 2 “Antar,” which is currently published through OHM Music. He has also started a line of flexible chamber arrangements aimed to help smaller schools perform great works even if they do not have the proper instrumentation.The first piece of this line, Mozart's Serenade in C Minor, has recently been published by J.W. Pepper.
As a flute player, Dr. Southard maintains an active performing schedule as a soloist and orchestral musician. He served as principal flute of the Holland Symphony Orchestra, MI for several years and has performed with the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Lucca Opera Orchestra, Italy, as well as a number of community orchestras. Dr. Southard was a semi-finalist in the National Flute Association’s Piccolo Artist Competition and winner of the 2016 Convention Performers Competition where he performed two new works at the convention in San Diego. In 2020, Dr. Southard was named a Pearl Flute Artist, one of less than 70 flutists worldwide. In 2022, he released his first flute CD – Gold Mosaic: Music for Flute by Dana Wilson. It is currently available on all streaming sites.
About MetWinds
The Metropolitan Wind Symphony was founded by Jerry Gardner in 1971, and was awarded the prestigious 2015 Sudler Silver Scroll Award for Community Concert Bands by the John Philip Sousa Foundation. Currently celebrating its 56th anniversary, MetWinds comprises over 60 talented woodwind, brass, and percussion instrumentalists who audition for membership and seating. MetWinds makes a significant contribution to the cultural life of the Greater Boston community by providing its audiences with high quality concerts and its members with opportunities for musical growth.
MetWinds presents formal performances of traditional and contemporary wind band literature, as well as more informal pops concerts throughout the metropolitan Boston area. Members rehearse Wednesdays from September through June, traveling from more than 30 communities in Massachusetts and neighboring states. All volunteers, they also pursue careers as varied as education, engineering, computer science, medicine, law, music, and public health.
Event venue & nearby stays
Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library, 33 Marrett Road, Lexington, United States
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