May 1, 2012

SOU Performing Arts Department of Music presents Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra Debuts New Work by Ashland Arranger

Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra Debuts New Work by Ashland Arranger

 

(Ashland, Ore.) – The Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra and Cascade Clarinet Consort, under the direction ofProfessor Rhett Bender, D.M.A., will present Preludes and Processions, Overtures and Entrances, on Monday, May 14th at 7:30 PM at the SOU Music Recital Hall. Special guests will be the Mazama Saxophone Quartet, who is kicking off their Great Britain tour with a tribute to the bagpipe. Audience members are invited to a cake reception following the concert.

 

The performance includes the debut of a new arrangement of the Poet and Peasant Overture by SOU Associate Professor Vicki Purslow, Ed.D.. “This debut culminates the end of a 9-month project that would have been very challenging without the support of members of the New Works for Saxophone Consortium. Poet and Peasant has been out of print for saxophone ensembles, and I am excited to bring the work back into the repertoire,” said Purslow.

 

The evening’s program also features the music of Handel, who churned out operas and oratorios in as little as two weeks, just like sitcoms; and Rimsky-Korsavkov, who said of operatic overtures: “I will have nothing more to do with this music, or I might unhappily develop a liking for it.”

 

The Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra (SSO) and Cascade Clarinet Consort (CCC) are collaborative learning environments for students, faculty, and staff at Southern Oregon University. Both ensembles are under the direction of Rhett Bender.

 

The Mazama Saxophone Quartet, featuring Rhett Bender, Vicki Purslow, Steve Davidson, and Jamie Krull will be touring the United Kingdom this summer, with a program called Pubs, Churches, and Donkeys.  The quartet will be performing at the World Saxophone Congress in St. Andrews, Scotland, at Dame Judi Dench’s Winchester Arts Festival in England, and at several churches and pubs throughout Great Britain.  Their tour includes a benefit performance for the Island Farm Donkey Sanctuary, home for abused and ill-treated donkeys and other animals.  Locally, Mazama will appear will also appear at the OSF Greenshow and Britt Festival.   

 

Tickets for this performance are only $5 for general admission and free for students.  Tickets and season passes may be purchased by calling 541-552-6101 or at the Music Box Office prior to the performance.  For more information, please visit Southern Oregon University’s Department website at www.sou.edu/music.

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