Alumni Band joins local choir for second concert
In its second concert of the season, the Utah State University Alumni Band welcomes the Imperial Glee Club as guest performers in the Intermission Feature. The Imperial Glee Club is one of the oldest independent and continuously performing male choruses in the western United States.
The concert, also the second indoor event of the season, is Sunday, June 24, in the Kent Concert Hall of the Chase Fine Arts Center on the USU campus. Concert time is 7 p.m., and there is no admission charge.
The concert begins with the band’s traditional opener, “Strike Up the Band” by Gershwin, followed by “Blessed are They” from “A German Requiem” by Brahms and arranged by Buehlman. Often, the band includes a contemplative selection, acknowledging the concert is held on a Sunday. “Blessed are They” fills that program area.
“‘The German Requiem’ is one of Brahms’ greatest choral works,” said Alumni Band Director Nicholas Morrison. “It was originally written for choir and orchestra, and while we have a wonderful choir joining us later in the program, this is a wonderful arrangement that only involves the concert band.”
Up next is “Light Cavalry” by Suppe, a work Morrison describes as a standard war horse overture for band. It’s big, brassy and bold – it’s pyrotechnical in the woodwinds, he said.
“Crystals,” a modern work by Thomas C. Duffy, is a contemporary work divided into four sections, and each section musically represents a type of crystal. Additionally, in the first movement, the saxophone section doesn’t play the saxophone, members play crystal goblets filled with various levels of water, rubbing the rim to create an eerie, ethereal, evocative sound, Morrison said. The four sections are played without pause.
“This is a modern piece, and this is the first time we’ve played it,” he said. “We have a good number of public school music teachers in the band, and I like to program something for them – something they can take back to their schools. This is a modern work and is not a toe-tapper and it involves some work and listening.”
The band turns the stage over to the Imperial Glee Club for the Intermission Feature.
“We are pleased to welcome this group,” Morrison said. “It has a rich history in Logan, and we are happy to present its members in one of our indoor concerts where the acoustics will appropriately present the colors and sounds of the group.”
Founded in 1916, the club has grown and maintained a membership of 20-30 men who hail from communities throughout Cache Valley. In a summary of its history, the club notes that in the early days, membership was highly coveted and tightly controlled. Men spent years waiting for a club member to move or to die for a spot to open.
In 1925, the Sixth Ward Glee Club changed its name – through a contest – to the Imperial Glee Club. Its goal is to foster and preserve four-part male vocal music. Today, the club meets once a week and performs at 20-30 venues throughout northern Utah. Twice a year, at Christmas and in the spring, the club performs public concerts in Logan. Participation in the club is by invitation or audition.
Following the Intermission Feature, the Alumni Band joins the Imperial Glee Club for a combined performance of “God Bless America” by Irving Berlin.
In the final portion of the concert, the band will present another major work, the finale from “Symphony No. 5” by Shostakovich.
“The finale is among the greatest movements from Shostakovich,” Morrison said. “As a composer, Shostakovich’s work could be considered part of the late Russian Romantic period. His work succeeds on many levels. He literally had the KGB standing over him saying ‘you will write happy music.’ He was serious about his writing and he was successful. At the end of the finale it is triumphant – this is triumph through adversity. We hear the resounding chords at the end. And while he didn’t see it, Shostakovich knew there would be freedom for artists in Russia, and that’s what we hear at the end of the piece.”
Morrison said the selection is challenging for the band but its members will love every minute of work in the process of preparing the piece for the concert.
Up next for the Alumni Band is its first outdoor offering Sunday, July 1. The patriotic-themed concert will take place on the USU Quad just east of Old Main.