Dr. John Zastoupil, Conductor
with
DOBYNS-BENNETT HIGH SCHOOL WIND SYMPHONY
Lafe Cook, Director
Tuesday, April 25, 2023 at 7:30 p.m.
James R. Cox Auditorium
Alumni Memorial Building
DOBYNS-BENNETT HIGH SCHOOL WIND SYMPHONY
Until the Scars (2014 / 2019)
John Mackey (b. 1973)
With Heart and Voice (2001)
David Gillingham (b. 1947)
Itamar Freilach from Klezmer Suite
Alexis Ciesla
The Dobyns-Bennett High School Saxophone Sextet
Caroline Caveness, soprano
Liam Klug, alto
Albert Li, alto
Will Mayhew, alto
Luke Nash, tenor
Alex Batts, baritone
Finale, from Symphony No. 1 (1894 / 1958)
Vasily Kalinnikov (1866 - 1901)
UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE WIND ENSEMBLE
Chester (1957)
William Schuman (1910 - 1992)
Alex Boone, graduate assistant conductor
Concert Suite (1998)
William Bolcom (b. 1938)
Dr. Allison Adams, saxophone
- Lively
- Like an Old Folksong
- Scherzando
- Introduction and Jump
Pines of Rome (1924 / 1974)
Ottorino Respighi (1879 - 1936)
trans. Duker
- The Pines of Villa Borghese
- Pines Near a Catacomb
- The Pines of Janiculum
- The Pines of the Appian Way
Until the Scars
Until the Scars is an adaptation of the first movement of Wine-Dark Sea: Symphony for Band, a work based on the ancient story of The Odyssey by Homer.
After ten years of bloody siege, the Trojan War was won because of Odysseus’ gambit: A horse full of soldiers, disguised as an offering. The people of Troy took it in as a trophy, and were slaughtered. Odysseus gave the Greeks victory, and they left the alien shores for home. But Odysseus’ journey would take as long as the war itself. Homer called the ocean on which Odysseus sailed a wine-dark sea, and for the Greek king it was as murky and disorienting as its name; he would not find his way across it without first losing himself.
In this section of the story, Odysseus, having filled his ship with the spoils of war, leaves for home, but he carried another, more dangerous, cargo: pride. This movement opens with his triumphal march, and continues as he and his crew maraud through every port of call on their way home.
With Heart and Voice
With Heart and Voice was commissioned by Apple Valley High School Bands, Scott A. Jones, director (Apple Valley, Minnesota), to commemorate the 25th year of existence of this high school.
Thematically, the work is based on the Apple Valley High School Alma Mater, an old Spanish hymn which has made its way into most church hymnals under the name of Come, Christians, Join to Sing. It is perhaps fate that this hymn, a particular favorite of mine, happens to be the tune used for the Alma Mater. Christian Henry Bateman wrote the words for the hymn in 1843, and the first verse contains the line, "Let all, with heart and voice, before the throne rejoice". Hence, the title, With Heart and Voice.
Itamar Freilach from Klezmer Zuite
Itamar Freilach from Klezmer Zuite is the first movement form a three-movement suite for large saxophone ensemble features two traditional klezmer themes, Itamar Freilach and Hershel, and an original composition, Doumka's Freilach.
Finale from Symphony No. 1
Sickness and privation haunted the young Russian composer Vasili Kalinnikov for the entirety of his short life. Initially, his studies at the conservatory level slowed due to a lack of financial stability. He won a bassoon scholarship to the Moscow Philharmonic Society Music School in 1884 and studied there with composers Alexander Ilyinsky and Pavel Blaramberg. While in music school Kalinnikov continued to face serious poverty, and despite playing bassoon, violin, and timpani in theater orchestras, giving private music theory lessons, and fulfilling copy work for other composers, the desperate Kalinnikov continued to struggle with scarcity. Kalinnikov’s close friend Semyon Nikolayevich Kruglikov, a music critic, along with other contemporary composers Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Sergei Rachmaninov, were supportive of young Kalinnikov’s compositional talents. In 1892, Tchaikovsky recommended him to be the conductor of the Maly Theater in Moscow, and soon after he also became the assistant conductor at the Moscow Italian Theater. However, within a few short months, Kalinnikov’s continued struggle with tuberculosis forced him to resign his posts. He moved to Yalta, on the Crimean peninsula, with hopes that the warmer climate would aid his recovery. While there, Kalinnikov composed his Symphony No.1, which he dedicated to his close friend and mentor Kruglikov. This symphony is commonly considered as his greatest compositional achievement and displays Kalinnikov’s complex musical writing that frequently draws from Russian folksong. This final movement begins with recollections of the lyrical and folk motives from the preceding movements and concludes with an expansive exultation.
Chester
The tune on which this composition is based was born during the very time of the American Revolution, appearing in 1778 in a book of tunes and anthems composed by William Billings called The Singing Master's Assistant. This book became known as Billings' Best following as it did his first book called The New England Psalm Singer, published in 1770. Chester was so popular that it was sung throughout the colonies from Vermont to South Carolina. It became the song of the American Revolution, sung around the campfires of the Continental Army and played by fifers on the march. The music and words, both composed by Billings, expressed perfectly the burning desire for freedom which sustained the colonists through the difficult years of the Revolution.
Let tyrants shake their iron rod,
And Slav'ry clank her galling chains,
We fear them not, we trust in God,
New England's God forever reigns.
The Foe comes on with haughty Stride;
Our troops advance with martial noise,
Their Vet'rans flee before our Youth,
And Gen'rals yield to beardless Boys.
What grateful Off'ring shall we bring?
What shall we render to the Lord?
Loud Halleluiahs let us Sing,
And praise his name on ev'ry Chord.
- Program Note by William Schuman
Concert Suite
This piece (1998), originally for alto saxophone and concert band, was written specifically for the University of Michigan Symphony Band and the famed professor of saxophone Donald J. Sinta. It was commissioned by the University of Michigan Band Alumni Association and is one is a series of four original works for the band's centennial celebration in 1997.
- Program Note from publisher
Pines of Rome
The Pines of Rome was written in 1924 and was performed first in Rome in 1925. The composition is in four parts: The Pines of the Villa Bourghese, The Pines Near a Catacomb, The Pines of the Janiculum, and The Pines of the Appian Way. It is based on the following program:
The children are at play in the pine-groves of the Villa Borghese, dancing the Italian equivalent of "Ring around a rosy;" mimicking marching solders and battles; twittering and shrieking like swallows at evening; and then disappearing. Suddenly the scene changes. We see shadows of the pines which overhang the entrance to a catacomb. From the depths rises a chant which reechoes solemnly, sonorously, like a hymn, and then is mysteriously silenced. There is a thrill in the air. The full moon reveals the profile of the pines of Giancolo's Hill. A nightingale sings. Now it is misty dawn on the Appian Way. The tragic countryside is guarded by solitary pines. Indistinctly, incessantly, the rhythm of innumerable steps is heard. To the poet's phantasy appears a vision of past glories; trumpets blare, and the army of the consul advances brilliantly in the grandeur of a newly risen sun toward the Sacred Way, mounting in triumph the Capitoline Hill.
This setting for symphonic band was done in 1966 by Guy Duker, assistant director of University of Illinois Bands since 1953.
-program note by Harry Begian
Dr. Zastoupil assumed the role of Director of Wind Studies and tenured associate professor of music at the University of Tennessee in the fall of 2022. His primary responsibilities at UT include conducting the critically acclaimed University of Tennessee Wind Ensemble, teaching graduate courses in music, guiding the graduate wind conducting program, and providing the administrative leadership for all aspects of the University of Tennessee’s diverse and historic band program.
Dr. Zastoupil previously served as Director of Concert Bands and tenured associate professor of music at Missouri State University where he guided all aspects of a comprehensive concert band program of five concert ensembles - over 400 students. He conducted the Missouri State Wind Ensemble, Wind Symphony, Springfield Youth Wind Ensemble, Community Band, and taught the graduate wind conducting studio. While at MSU, he founded three nationally recognized events: the MSU Conducting Workshop, the Springfield Youth Wind Ensemble, and the Palen Concert Clinic for concert bands. The MSU Wind Ensemble received national attention with invited performances at the 2018 and 2022 CBDNA Southwestern Regional Conventions, the 2018 MMEA Conference, as well as performances at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, MO and the Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas, TX. The University Wind Symphony was selected and performed for the 2020 MMEA Conference and the Community Band was selected and performed at the MBA Summer Convention in 2021.
An advocate of music education and advancing the wind repertoire, Zastoupil has collaborated with composers such as James Stephenson, Kevin Day, Michael Daugherty, William Bolcolm, Augusta Read-Thomas, Stephen Gryc, Gunther Schuller, Scott McAllister, Paul Dooley, Scott Boerma and others. Since 2013, his online conducting course through Conn Selmer’s MusicProfessor platform has received worldwide recognition as a valuable resource for online conducting pedagogy. Since 2021, he works extensively with the Yamaha Corporation of America to assist in the education and outreach of the Harmony Director 300, helping band directors all over the globe incorporate this technology into their classrooms. Zastoupil regularly guest conducts professional and student honor ensembles throughout the United States and has conducted abroad in Europe and Asia.
Zastoupil’s professional experience includes having served as the Associate Director of Bands/Director of Athletic Bands at the University of Texas – Arlington and Eastern Michigan University, as well as brass staff faculty for the Santa Clara Vanguard DCI corps. Originally from Texas, Zastoupil holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Northwestern University where he was the L.K. Skornia endowed fellowship winner and was an adjunct instructor in the Bienen School of Music. He received his Master of Music degree in wind conducting from the University of Michigan, his Bachelor of Music Education degree from Baylor University, and is a former student of the Aspen Music Festival and School.
Lafe Cook has been a high school band director for 31 years and is in his 26th year as the Director of the Dobyns-Bennett Band in Kingsport, Tennessee. Mr. Cook is a graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where he was drum major of the Pride of the Southland Marching Band and a graduate assistant with the music department.
He is a past president of the Tennessee Music Education Association, past state chair for the Tennessee Music Education Association, past president of the Tennessee Bandmasters Association, and past president of East Tennessee Band and Orchestra Association. Cook serves on the Bands of America Advisory Board, served two terms on the Board of Directors of the National Band Association and is a five-time recipient of the National Band Association’s Citation of Excellence. Cook was also honored by the John Philip Sousa Foundation as a Sudler Flag of Honor Laureate and was named “Aide de Camp” to the Governor of the State of Tennessee in 2005. Mr. Cook has been a clinician for state and regional honor bands as well as university honor ensembles across the country and has presented professional development sessions at the Midwest Clinic and multiple state music education conventions.
The Dobyns-Bennett Band under Cook’s direction has performed at the Midwest Clinic (twice), the Music for All National Concert Festival, the Tennessee Music Education Association Conference (six times), the American Bandmasters Association Convention and Carnegie Hall. The Dobyns-Bennett Marching Band has appeared in the Macy’s Parade (2 times), the Tournament of Roses Parade (4 times), and the Presidential Inaugural Parade. Competitively the Dobyns-Bennett Band has been a Bands of America (BOA) Regional and Super Regional Champion, has been a BOA Grand National Finalist and has been the BOA AAA National Champion on three occasions.
Dr. Allison Adams is Associate Professor of Saxophone at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville, where she shares her excitement for music with the next generation of music educators and performers.
To this end, Adams is currently co-authoring a saxophone method, titled Playing and Teaching the Saxophone: A Modern Approach, with saxophonist Brian Horner. This book focuses on saxophone pedagogy for collegiate method class students and band directors. Its expected release date is July 2023, through Oxford University Press.
A versatile performer in addition to a pedagogue, Adams will be a featured concerto soloist at The International Saxophone Festival Bellas Artes Cali in Cali, Colombia this summer.
She has also been a featured soloist at venues across the country, from the Dallas Latino Cultural Center, to San Diego's Athenaeum Music and Arts Library. She has also a frequent performer at conferences such as The World Saxophone Congress, The International Saxophone Symposium, and The North American Saxophone Biennial Conference, and the International Clarinet Association Conference.
In addition to her solo work, Adams is the tenor player for the Estrella Consort, a saxophone quartet that has toured both locally and abroad. In May 2022, the quartet was featured as the ensemble-in-residence for the Alba Music Festival Composition Program in Italy. They have also held a residency at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, AZ and toured Ecuador as part of a cultural exchange. While the Estrella Consort has performed and worked with students at many high-profile schools around the country (including Northwestern University, the University of Michigan, and Arizona State University), they also take pleasure in exposing audiences outside the academic community to contemporary music in an approachable way.
Adams' love of contemporary music is further explored in her collaborations with Nief Norf, a mixed chamber ensemble that focuses on the avant-garde work of living composers. As the saxophonist of the group, she has been featured on numerous concerts and also serves on the faculty of the Nief Norf Summer Festival. In 2018, Adams and Nief Norf had the opportunity to combine forces with the renowned new music ensemble The Bang on a Can Allstars to present Michael Gordon's Big Space at the annual Big Ears Festival.
Besides her study of the saxophone, Adams’ main area of research centers around performance injuries, wellness for musicians, and the integration of yoga into music performance. A chapter on her recovery from focal dystonia is available in the collection Notes of Hope, published by Mountain Peak Music. She has also authored an essay on yoga for musicians, which can be found in the multi-media resource Cross Training for Musicians (available through Mountain Peak Music as well). She has taught several “Yoga for Musicians” courses for students ranging from high school to college. Recently, her focus on wellness has expanded to include a presentation on the anatomy of breathing at the 2017 International Saxophone Symposium, and a presentation on how pregnancy affects saxophone performance at the 2018 North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference.
Adams has previously served on the faculties of Ithaca College and Cornell University and has commissioned works from Andrew Sigler, Baljinder Sekhon, Gregory Wanamaker, Dominick DiOrio, Keane Southard, and Caleb Burhans.
Adams holds a B.M. in Music Education and Performance from Ithaca College, a M.M. in Music Performance from the University of Minnesota, and a D.M.A. from Arizona State University. Her main saxophone teachers have included Steven Mauk, Eugene Rousseau, and Timothy McAllister.
Adams is a performing artist for both the Selmer and D'Addario companies.
* = principal
Flute
Whitney Applewhite*
Parrel Appolis
Andrea Byrd
Allan Cook
Kaylei Malone
Oboe
Nathan Ebbs
Jada Laws
Jessie Wilson*
Bassoon
Ava Kroepler
Austin Hill
Contra Bassoon
James Carnal
Clarinet
Anna Hutchinson
Alberto Martinez*
Noah Melvin
Bryce Neely
Lillian Smith
Troy Weatherford
Joshua Zhou
Bass Clarinet
Emily Ayers
Meredith Williams
Saxophone
Sean Keenan (tenor)
Matthew Rhoten* (alto)
Brooklynn Williams (alto)
Benjamin Strobel (bari)
Horn
Rose Capooth
Caleb DeLong
Nichole Hollenbeck
Aaron O’Donnell
James Roddy*
Trumpet
Nathan Coffman
Micah Ireland
Lexy Kilgore*
Thomas Mika
Philip Troutman
Carver Whitson
Tenor Trombone
Alex Boone
Hugh Lindsay*
Jacob Noel
Jarod Schafer
Bass Trombone
Chandler DeArmond
Elijah Hoffmann
Euphonium
Stephanie Hensley
Brett Rodgers
Amy Smith
Tuba
Jonathan Bradshaw
AJ Johnson*
Cameron McKenzie
Percussion
Tyler Delaney
Eli Garcia
Trik Gass
Grant Gordon
Caleb Hupp*
Julia Larcoque
Luke Lawley
Piano
Lily Witemeyer
Double Bass
Will Ross
Harp
Marissa Purnell
Dr. Maria Fernanda Castillo, flute
Dr. Victor Chavez, clarinet
Phylis Secrist, oboe
Zach Millwood, bassoon
Dr. Allison Adams, saxophone
Dr. Arthur Zanin, trumpet
Dr. Katie Johnson-Webb, horn
Dr. Alex van Duuren, trombone
Dr. Alex Lapins, euphonium/tuba
Dr. Andrew Bliss, percussion
Dr. Michael Stewart, Associate Director of Wind Studies, Director of Athletic Bands
Dr. Fuller Lyon, Assistant Director of Wind Studies, Assoc. Director of Athletic Bands
April 27, 2023
Symphonic and Concert Bands
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Want to know more about the bands at the University of Tennessee? Please visit utbands.utk.edu.