Something Special!!!

There is something special about December.  When living in the desert, we don't always have the chill in the air or the snow on the ground. Being raised in Northeast Ohio, I was a child of snow days, snowball throwing, snowmen building, etc. from the time I could walk.  When I moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1996, it was definitely a different climate to accept.  I quickly discovered that the holidays are what you make it.  While I was a teacher, the time between Thanksgiving and Winter Break were the fastest three weeks known to man.  Fine Arts Week would need to be developed, winter concerts would need to be performed, parades would need to be marched, and then it was Christmas.  The bustle was the only thing that could be enjoyed because there wasn't time for anything else.

Since I have left the teaching profession, I have had some time to reflect on a lot of experiences.  I wouldn't trade my 17 years of teaching for anything, because it has made me the woman I am today.  I would have loved to stop and enjoy the great aspects of my career, including my students, my colleagues, and the music.  So much of who we are as people get lost in today's society. I am a wife, a mother, a sales director, a private lesson teacher, a clinician, an oboist.  I can wear one hat, or all of them at once, depending on the time of day.  My story is no different than any adult's in today's world.  We are constantly pulled in multiple directions, and rarely have time to take a breath and enjoy the moment.

This year, I have looked forward to playing, and using my oboe as my outlet.  Music-making was the part that I knew I would miss as a conductor, but I was looking forward to becoming a better oboist by playing in Las Vegas' Contemporary Wind Ensemble, The Desert Winds.  I have used the weekly rehearsals as my escape, and enjoy the people who are a part of this group and creating something truly special.  Each concert gives us new challenges as an ensemble.  Our musicianship is elevated, our passion for what we do is ignited, and I know our audience base is expanding because of it.

I have been able to look forward to our upcoming Christmas Concerts with a renewed energy and excitement!  Each rehearsal brings us closer in our preparation.  Each nuance that is added creates more opportunities for enjoyment from both the musician and the audience member.  The literature we will be performing on both nights is fun to play and extremely enjoyable to listen to as an audience member.  If you haven't been to a Desert Winds concert, now is the time to make plans to do so! December 14 will be at Community Lutheran Church and December 15 will be at Green Valley United Methodist Church.  Both concerts start at 7:30pm.  Even though we won't have freezing temperatures or snow, you will be put into the Christmas Spirit!  I know that if you attend either of these nights, you will be entertained, energized with something so special I cannot begin to put it into words, and you will become a fan of this great ensemble.  I hope to see you

The Past, Present, & Beyond…

The Past, Present, & Beyond…

Jordan Mathisen, Clarinetist & Personnel Advisor/Librarian

As the Desert Winds heads towards the pinnacle of its fall season, we musicians become very enthusiastic about putting together a spectacular and innovative product that will delight, provoke, and inspire our listeners during the holiday season. While our audience loves to take part in our performances, many cannot begin to imagine what meticulous planning and dedicated preparation goes into each rehearsal.

Every concert season, the biggest challenge ensembles face is how to create an alluring image that will set the appropriate tone for the upcoming year. Looking back at the start of our season, it was clear through the beginning notes of our first rehearsal in August that our Artistic Director Charles A. Maguire had put careful consideration and thought into each and every selection when programming our October “Sketches” concert. With its brilliant array of works that encompassed several cultures around the globe, the ensemble was enthusiastically challenged and the audience was thus wowed by the intricate and diverse passages that begin to shape the Desert Winds’ future as Las Vegas’ premiere contemporary wind ensemble.

This November, our “Veterans Day Salute” concert continued a tradition established by the Desert Winds three years ago. Considered by Maguire as “the most important concert we perform each year,” one cannot help but be inspired by this truly honored performance, either as a performer or patron. As the tribute to our veterans was heard through the organization of both sound and silence colored by snippets of patriotic music held so near and dear to our nation, genuine respect for those that have sacrificed for our country and a celebration of our civil freedoms this election year remained ever present in our minds and hearts.

Now, as rehearsals for our "Winter Sketches" concert cycle have begun, again the Desert Winds is focused on continuing to paint a unique and vivid picture on a canvas of silence. While many consider holiday concerts to be “fun” and “cheery,” Maguire’s unique vision and energy will result in an extraordinary aesthetic experience for our holiday audiences. Though the sacred and secular melodies we have grown to love are still ever present, Maguire’s incredible musicianship is guiding the Desert Winds to explore and create new sounds as never heard before. Such an approach will undoubtedly make listeners reminisce about their childhood and relive their own feelings of wonder and innocence on Christmas Day.

We look forward to seeing you this December!

The Past, Present, & Beyond…

The Past, Present, & Beyond…

Jordan Mathisen, Clarinetist & Personnel Advisor/Librarian

As the Desert Winds heads towards the pinnacle of its fall season, we musicians become very enthusiastic about putting together a spectacular and innovative product that will delight, provoke, and inspire our listeners during the holiday season. While our audience loves to take part in our performances, many cannot begin to imagine what meticulous planning and dedicated preparation goes into each rehearsal.

Every concert season, the biggest challenge ensembles face is how to create an alluring image that will set the appropriate tone for the upcoming year. Looking back at the start of our season, it was clear through the beginning notes of our first rehearsal in August that our Artistic Director Charles A. Maguire had put careful consideration and thought into each and every selection when programming our October “Sketches” concert. With its brilliant array of works that encompassed several cultures around the globe, the ensemble was enthusiastically challenged and the audience was thus wowed by the intricate and diverse passages that begin to shape the Desert Winds’ future as Las Vegas’ premiere contemporary wind ensemble.

This November, our “Veterans Day Salute” concert continued a tradition established by the Desert Winds three years ago. Considered by Maguire as “the most important concert we perform each year,” one cannot help but be inspired by this truly honored performance, either as a performer or patron. As the tribute to our veterans was heard through the organization of both sound and silence colored by snippets of patriotic music held so near and dear to our nation, genuine respect for those that have sacrificed for our country and a celebration of our civil freedoms this election year remained ever present in our minds and hearts.

Now, as rehearsals for our "Winter Sketches" concert cycle have begun, again the Desert Winds is focused on continuing to paint a unique and vivid picture on a canvas of silence. While many consider holiday concerts to be “fun” and “cheery,” Maguire’s unique vision and energy will result in an extraordinary aesthetic experience for our holiday audiences. Though the sacred and secular melodies we have grown to love are still ever present, Maguire’s incredible musicianship is guiding the Desert Winds to explore and create new sounds as never heard before. Such an approach will undoubtedly make listeners reminisce about their childhood and relive their own feelings of wonder and innocence on Christmas Day.

We look forward to seeing you this December!

The "DON'T MISS" Concert

IT’S FINALLY HERE!! The Desert Winds is prepped and ready to make some musical magic happen at our first concert of the 2012-2013 Season.   We are so excited to be opening our season at Life Springs Christian Church on October 12, 2012 at 7:30pm.  If you have been one of the fortunate fans of this ensemble, you do not want to miss our program entitled, “Sketches”.  Each year, this ensemble has improved in quality, musicianship, and artistry.  Our audience will be entertained by the literature that will be performed and the quality of the performance they will get to share with this amazing group of men and women.  It’s going to be outstanding.Donation tickets are available at www.showtix4u.com for the cost of $10.  You may also purchase tickets at the door.  Seating is limited, so get your tickets today!  
  

    

If you haven’t had the opportunity to “Like” The Desert Winds on Facebook or “follow” us on Twitter, I encourage you to do so!  We have expanded our fan base exponentially in the last few weeks, and we want to reach even more!  Please visit facebook.com/thedesertwinds and “like” us, if you haven’t done so yet!  You can also follow us on twitter @thedesertwinds.

The musical colors you will get to experience this season by attending our concerts is going to be amazing!  I am so proud to be a member of this ensemble, humbled to be the publicity/marketing advisor, and grateful that we have the opportunity to grow the arts even more in the Las Vegas/Henderson area! 

I hope to see you on October 12 and thank you personally for your support of this contemporary wind ensemble.  I look forward to seeing your “likes” on Facebook and “tweets” on Twitter!

Dance, Hum, and Be Transported!

Dance, Hum, and Be Transported!

When our audience attends our performances, they see and hear the final product that sounds effortless and expressive.  Often times, the battle towards achieving musical expressiveness is never seen by our audience, so let me paint a "sketch" of what our musicians face as we strive for a successful performance.

Paris Sketches features musical ideas that playfully dance around the ensemble like the bohemian characters in the popular movie Moulin Rouge.  These creative motifs will make you hum your favorite tune as the piece develops.  The challenge the musicians face is placing these musical motifs in a volume and interpretation that allow the listener to imagine them in a clear fashion.  Maestro Maguire did a great job describing this goal to the ensemble, and the Desert Winds will depict many great characters with their performance of this piece.

The ensemble will face a different kind of challenge when performing Irish Tune from Country Derry.  In one of my band trips to New York City, I visited Ground Zero in 2005.  The cleanup efforts were still continuing, but there were large pictures of the events that occurred on 9/11 mounted on the fence surrounding Ground Zero.  As I stood in front of a picture describing the collapse of Tower One, a street performer sitting on the pavement began to play the theme of Irish Tune, "Danny Boy", on his flute.  Tears could not stop flowing from my eyes as I began to think of the lives that were affected that day, and even though the composer, Percy Grainger, never intended to write this for an event like 9/11, the sweet melody transports your mind to the deep emotions of your soul.  For the musicians of the Desert Winds, the challenge will be to reach within our individual emotions and use our instrument as an expressive tool that will move our audience to memories deep in their hearts.

Arabesque is a piece that will make you get on your feet and dance!  Like Shakira's articulate hip moves, the moving and precise musical lines in this piece will pose a fun challenge for the woodwind section.  The section leaders of the woodwind sections have set sectional schedules and online guides as how to play these passages.  I know many metronomes and metronome apps will be used to help each musician perform these passages consistently accurate.  At our performance, this showcase of technical mastery will look controlled and effortless and will help showcase the powerful and energetic brass and percussion features.

The personal challenges the musicians encounter at each concert are ongoing, but we know they are worth it when we hear our audience members humming a tune, dancing on their seats, or discussing a piece that transported them to a memory they cherish.  

We hope you dance, hum, and are transported at our first concert!  See you in October!

Monica Guido

Education Advisor

The Desert Winds

www.thedesertwinds.org

facebook.com/thedesertwinds

...THE WOODY RAIN FOREST AND BEYOND

Here we go…the 2012-2013 concert season. The first rehearsal was exhilarating and indicative of an amazing year of musical excellence. Thank you to the musicians first and foremost for believing in something bigger than yourself: MUSIC. With a full calendar of performances with an average of 6-7 rehearsals for each…we have a tall order. After listening to the sounds made last night, I feel confident in saying that each concert will be outstanding.   I offer this commentary on what I observed Monday night… “Irish Tune from County Derry”: After an amazing read through with soaring horn and ample low brass support, Maestro Maguire commented that the ensemble needs to achieve “a reedy, woody rainforest. I noticed that the addition of the string Bass is fabulous and adds a subtle, but impressive depth of sound.

“Arabesque”-Get ready for the handclap! This sultry piece included both fingery woodwind sections and  IN YOUR FACE brass sections. “Scare the audience…in tune” I believe was the phrasing for the brass, in fact. Flute solo is obviously going to be a shockingly beautiful intro to this piece. The low brass, especially the seasoned trombone section gave great balance. The French horn section is going to set the group apart from so many angles..what a joyous rapture of sound!

“Amazing Grace”-Encore piece…pretty demanding one in terms of range and the END of a concert. Of course the Desert Winds is up for the challenge.

“Paris Sketches”-I believe the Maestro requested “pretentious French sounds”. Ha, I love it! This piece is an amazing journey of difficult rhythms and dynamic extremes. Every section in the ensemble was asked to shine and though the ensemble will need some rehearsals for this piece in particular, there were some glorious moments nonetheless.

First saxophone, get outta here with your solo in the second movement!

Percussion section- kudos to you on both the bellwork in movement one and the timpani playing throughout.

The flute section brought the noise in Les Halle with some very clean playing and a pic solo that is already heading somewhere groovy!

Horn section…be still my heart.

“Be Thou My Vision”-Does not appear to be challenging piece at first look, a Grade IV, yet there were some opportunities for greatness. It also offered a sharp contrast to the more aggressive pieces slated for the October concert.

“Symphony No. V Finale, Op. 47”-Whoa. The transcription of this piece is great in that it includes a harp, String bass, and piano. The ensemble was deep into the rehearsal when this crazy piece was read and let’s be honest….it was crazy hot in that band hall! Even with the heat and length of playing prior, the first read-through was pretty impressive.

I am beyond impressed with this ensemble’s potential for this season.  While playing the most diverse and difficult wind music available; you sweated through a rehearsal with class poise and, above all, musicality.

Musically Yours,

Dr. Teresa Stewart Meli

SKETCHES PREPARATION

The first thing that I noticed when studying Martin Ellerby's Paris Sketches is that the music is clearly not the product of music software.  Each line of notation was carefully rendered in the hand of the composer.  The lines support each other as if guided by the palettes that they are representing.  In a day when music is often composed at the computer, it is incredibly refreshing to experience contemporary music composed in a somewhat archaic yet thorough way.  This "pencil to paper" approach has allowed the composer to sonically represent the artistic depth that Paris is known for.

Based on four unique areas of Paris, each "sketch" is musically painted in a way that allows the listener to feel as if they are there.  Hints of Ravel, Stravinsky, and Berlioz are sprinkled throughout to provide homage to the musical influence held by Paris on composers of our past.  I am most excited about The Desert Winds performing this work as it will provide an enjoyable rehearsal experience.  We look forward to providing our audience with a short trip to Paris (sans passport)...

See You In October!

C. Maguire

Conductor

The Desert Winds

So, I'm wearing a slightly different hat (figuratively and literally) to stay busy musically during The Desert Winds' off-season. The 7-person cast and the 4-member band have provided me a wonderful musical experience this summer.

Discounted tickets can be found at

http://www.goldstar.com/events/las-vegas-nv/the-great-american-trailer-park-musical

I look forward to wearing sleeves when I return to my role as Concertmaster of The Desert Winds for our first rehearsal on August 20.

...our work in progress

Programming is always such a fun part of the year for me as a conductor.  I enjoy the challenge of creating a set of concerts that stretch the ensemble and at the same time provide an incredible artistic experience for an audience.  As we have started the planning for the upcoming season, it has been so overwhelming to think of the growth this ensemble has experienced both in foundational and artistic ways.  You have never seen The Desert Winds the way you will see them this fall.  Our first concert entitled Sketches takes many works from different countries and genesis' and presents them in a way that will be incredibly entertaining for the audience and nurturing for this ensemble.  I look forward to seeing you all in the fall.

Yours in music!

Charles A. Maguire
Artistic Director