The Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band will present their first concert of the year at 8 tonight.
The concert is the first of the year for the two groups. After new members auditioned, the groups began working on the concert in the first few weeks of class, said Dennis Glocke, conductor and music professor.
The concert will open with the Symphonic Band playing "The Duke of Marlborough Fanfare," a piece by Percy Grainger.
The band will also perform "Fiesta del Pacifico" by Roger Nixon, which has African, Spanish and Mexican influences and themes in it, he said.
The Symphonic Wind Ensemble will perform a piece called "In Wartime," by David Del Tredici, who recently visited campus with the Orion String Quartet.
During his visit, Del Tredici met with the ensemble and worked with the musicians on his piece, an opportunity Aaron Grant (junior-music performance) said is rare.
"It's always nice to work with a composer. It's an adventure. He gave us a lot of insight. He changed his mind a lot since he wrote it," said Grant, who plays the flute. "Composers can change their minds, so he helped us with that."
Glocke said he picked "In Wartime" because he knew Del Tredici would be on campus to provide feedback.
"He gave us suggestions and was very impressed with the group. He was very kind and very complimentary," Glocke said.
Another piece features student Brian Edwards (graduate-performance) on the tuba. Edwards won the right to the solo after winning the 2008 Symphonic Wind Ensemble Concerto Competition, Glocke said.
Grant said one of Glocke's strengths is he picks a program that has a wide variety of pieces.
"You've got everything from the old, standard band pieces to the 'this was written yesterday and is way out there,' " Grant said.
Oboe and English horn player Matt Butterfield (senior-music education) said despite the stress of preparing for a show, it is worth it in the end.
"At least for us, we know our efforts pay off. If we can satisfy ourselves in our performance then the audience will be satisfied as well," he said.
