SFA's Stone Fort Wind Quintet to perform in Calliope Concert Series
October 31, 2017
The Stone Fort Wind Quintet at Stephen F. Austin State University features faculty members, from left, Charles Gavin, horn; Christopher Ayer, clarinet; Kerry Hughes, oboe; Christina Guenther, flute; and Lee Goodhew, bassoon.
The quintet includes SFA music faculty members Christina Guenther, flute; Kerry Hughes, oboe; Christopher Ayer, clarinet; Charles Gavin, horn; and Lee Goodhew, bassoon.
The program opens with "Pastorale" by Amy Beach.
"This lovely little piece by American pianist-composer Amy Beach features interesting harmonies as the melody floats through the ensemble," Guenther said.
Composer-conductor-mezzo soprano Jenni Brandon's "Five Frogs," a fun piece in six movements depicting various events in the life of frogs, is also on the program.
Each movement features one of the five quintet instruments, Guenther explained. "Leaping" features the clarinet actively jumping in eighth notes; "On the Lily Pad" features the oboe in improvisational melismas; "Swimming" features the horn, melodically, while the rest of the ensemble accompanies; "Bullfrog" features the bassoon as the bullfrog; "Catching Bugs" features the piccolo as the frog (and the horn mouthpiece as the bug); and "Epilogue" closes the work with some returning material from earlier in the piece.
Cuban composer Paquito D'Rivera's "Wapango," also on the program, is a short, lively and rhythmic work with a fun Latino flair, according to Guenther.
"'Wapango' is a Mexican folk dance and music style, part of the style 'son huasteco,'" she explained. "The word may be a corruption of the Nahuatl word 'cuauhpanco' that literally means 'on top of the wood,' alluding to a wooden platform on which dancers can make zapateado dance steps."
A five-movement piece by American composer Daniel Dorff, "Cape May Breezes" depicts different events in Cape May, such as the autumn monarch migration, dusk at Sunset Beach and night breezes on the boardwalk.
The final work on the program is a short, fun piece by American hornist-composer Lowell "Spike" Shaw. "Dear Tessiel" is a jazz-inspired quintet, Guenther said.
"The title does not refer to an individual, but rather was an exclamation that came into use (and then faded quickly) about the time Shaw first put the tune to paper," she explained. "It started out as a piano sketch, later surfaced as a 'chart' for big dance band, and then was put into quintet form as a concert closer."
Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.