Band event held in Schaller

On Mar. 14 the BVU Concert Band will be hosting its annual Winter Concert in Schaller Memorial Chapel. This event will begin at 3 p.m. The  BVU Concert Band will be under the direction of Assistant Professor of Music, Jerry Bertrand.

The BVU Concert Band will be opening the program with “The Free Lance March” by John Philip Sousa.

Also being played by the concert band will be: “Vesuvius” by Frank Ticheli, “Three Choral Preludes” by William Latham, and a host of other songs.

“Gershwin!, should have the best audience response it is a melody of those old Gershwin pieces and a lot of the audience will be older. They will probably like those swing tunes back from the 40’s and 50’s. It has a fascinating rhythm,” senior Michael Brock said.

This year’s concert includes a special soloist performance by Dr. David Kassler playing the euphonium. Kassler will be performing “Fantasia di Concerto” by Boccalari, “Morceau de Concert” by Saint-Saens and “Nessun Dorma” from Puccini’s opera ‘Turnadot’.

Kassler has been a special guest artist across the United States at numerous universities.
Kassler believes that performing for all these different universities to be really scary.

“You go there and you are the guest artist, and they expect a lot from you. But, it always goes well for me. It is kind of a thrill ride…anybody who is on the theater stage or a dancer or a musician knows that it’s kind of like getting into a racecar. It is scary but once you do it, it is really fun,” Kassler said.

He is currently the principal trombonist for the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra. Kassler holds degrees in music from the University of Iowa and the University of Minnesota. He received his Doctoral of Musical Arts from the University of Miami.

In 2009, Kassler won the Rafael Mendez Brass Institute Mock Orchestra audition playing the euphonium.

Last year Kassler did a solo recital at BVU. Bertrand heard Kassler perform and invited him to be the soloist with the band this year.

Brock, playing the oboe part for the concert, believes that having Kassler will be an amazing addition to the BVU Concert band.

“This band has about forty students performing…so that’s a good chunk of the student population at the university doing something that isn’t normal to the university. We can see a sporting event every week. We can go to a lecture anytime. We’re tired of going to lectures, as a college student. But, we don’t often get to come to a band concert. It is something that is unusual and it is fun because of that,” Kassler said.

The Winter Concert will surely impress all who attend. This event is a part of the Academic and Cultural Event Series (ACES) and is a free event for anyone.