March 17, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Michele Abba
Cal Poly Music Department
805-756-2406; music@calpoly.edu
Cal Poly Open House Concert: 'Shades of Blue' on April 17
SAN LUIS OBISPO - Three Cal Poly music ensembles featuring 100 of Cal Poly’s finest student musicians will perform at this year’s Open House Concert at 8 p.m. Saturday, April 17, in Harman Hall in the Performing Arts Center.
The Cal Poly Symphony, University Jazz Band and Cal Poly Wind Ensemble will perform a concert titled "Shades of Blue." Wind Ensemble Director William Johnson says the blues is one of America’s greatest musical treasures and is the foundation of virtually every major American music form born in the 20th century including jazz, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll.
The Cal Poly Symphony, conducted by David Arrivée, will perform William Grant Still’s Symphony No. 1, “Afro-American,” a marriage of America's great blues tradition and European instrumental music.
The University Jazz Band, directed by Paul Rinzler, will perform Louis Jordan's "Blue Light Boogie," Al Byron and Woody Harris' "Every Day I Have the Blues" and Peter Chatman's "Some of My Best Friends are the Blues."
The Wind Ensemble, directed by William Johnson and Christopher Woodruff, will perform Frank Ticheli’s “Blue Shades,” “Postcard” and “Angels in the Architecture.” Cal Poly alum and Hollywood film composer, J. Eric Schmidt, will be on hand to conduct the world premiere of his composition "Cobalt Fire," written for wind band and dedicated to retiring professor William Johnson. Schmidt has composed, orchestrated and conducted the music for more than 300 episodes of animated shows produced by Disney and Warner Bros. His work has been featured in dozens of motion pictures, commercials and theme park shows. He is currently teaching conducting and composition at the USC Film Scoring Program.
Electrical engineering major David J. Roberts will conduct the premiere of his first work for wind band titled "The Ascent: Torrents, Fanfares and Bells." Roberts plays clarinet in the Wind Ensemble.
The public is invited to visit the campus for Open House and stay late to enjoy an evening of live entertainment. Tickets to the Open House Concert are $8 to $19 and can be purchased at the Performing Arts Ticket Office 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. To order by phone, call SLO-ARTS (805-756-2787); to order by fax, dial 805-756-6088.
Patrons who buy season tickets to four Music Department events through the Performing Arts Ticket office will receive a 10 percent discount; a 15 percent discount is given to those who buy tickets to five or more events.
The concert is sponsored by Cal Poly's College of Liberal Arts, Music Department and Instructionally Related Activities program. For more information, call the Music Department at 805-756-2406 or go to http://music.calpoly.edu.
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