On Friday, February 21, Houghton University’s Wind Ensemble will present a free concert of musical selections for the public titled Remember. The event will take place at 7:30 p.m. in Wesley Chapel and is free and open to the public.

“This concert explores reactions to memories,” said Dr. Timothy McGarvey, professor of conducting, director of instrumental activities and wind ensemble conductor at Houghton. “The selections will focus attention on types of memories we hold and how they affect us. We are excited to present this exciting, moving and meaningful concert.”

The repertoire of the concert comprises a variety of works, including Steve Danyew’s “Into the Silent Land,” a piece seeking to remember, and especially not forget, the lives lost in the Sandy Hook tragedy of 2012. The work is based on lines from Christina Rosetti’s poem, “Remember.” Having attended Sandy Hook as a child, Danyew’s expression is especially strong. “Three Japanese Dances” by Bernard Rogers is the composer’s response to the art of Japanese wood block masters. This performance will include soprano soloist Victoria Pitre, faculty member of the Greatbatch School of Music. In “Irish Tune from County Derry,” listeners may recognize the tune most often associated with “O Danny Boy” in this beautiful and lush setting by Percy Grainger. “Mother Earth (A Fanfare)” by David Maslanka is an energetic work based on a prayer of St. Francis of Assisi celebrating God’s creation. Several other pieces will be on the program including “Ghost Apparatus” by David Biedenbender,

“The Bells from William Byrd Suite” by Gordon Jacob and “Elegy for a Young American” by Ronald Lo Presti. The concert will also feature graduate conductors Marissa Perez and Dakota Hirsch conducting Barber’s “Commando March” and “Rhosymedre” by Vaughan Williams, respectively.

The Houghton Wind Ensemble is one of the major ensembles of the Greatbatch School of Music. It is composed of both music and non-music majors and performs several times throughout the year. The  Houghton Wind Ensemble seeks to expose its students and audiences to the highest-quality music written for wind and percussion instruments. For more information on the free concert, visit https://www.houghton.edu/undergraduate/houghton-ny/majors-programs/academics/music/ensembles/wind-ensemble/.