Feb24-newsletter

MARCH SEASON CONCERT

Sunday, March 3

at 4pm

Washington Center

360.753.8586

Tickets: $8-$23

Six & under free CONCERT SPONSOR

LEAD. INSPIRE. PERFORM.

SHOWCASING THE BEST OF SOGO

Cameron May, Music Director

Acolleague of mine recently remarked that, “things seem to be moving at a much quicker pace in all facets of the world.” While that has certainly been the case for SOGO in the past few years, the increasing complexity is for all the right reasons. When I arrived in 2018, our enrollment stood at 95 students across three orchestras. Today, at time of writing, membership has hit 167, with each of the orchestras topping 50. Those 167 students come from 45 schools in 13 districts across four counties. Our upcoming concert on March 3rd will showcase the very best of what SOGO offers this increasingly diverse body of young musicians.

After the usual opening fanfare by the Brass Choir (in this case, a brand-new piece, BrassTastico, by SOGO’s court composer Mark Thome), the Debut Orchestra will take the stage under the direction of Mr. Dan Craig. Regular audience members will be impressed by the way Debut now fills the stage, both in size and in sound. Debut will present music by Bizet, Mozart, and Johann Strauss, and local music educator Lisa Pearson from Bush Middle School in Tumwater School District will guest-conduct one of the pieces. After the Brass Choir comes back to perform two additional beautiful selections, the Academy Orchestra and Greg Allison will round out the first half with a varied program, some of which was featured the week before on

During COVID-19, boredom prompted me to start arranging trombone choirs. I’d browse Musescore, print out scores, record each part, and merge them into a single track, sharing the results on my YouTube channel. As I exhausted available pieces, I began arranging my own for trombone choirs, then expanded to brass choirs and full symphony orchestras. Currently, I’m working on Strauss’s “An Alpine Symphony” and Mahler’s 2nd and 3rd Symphonies for Brass Choir, along with two unnamed compositions for the symphony orchestra.

SOGO’s annual Academy Runout Tour, which included two performances at the historic 7th Street Theater in Hoquiam.

The second half of the concert features the Conservatory Orchestra, who will perform three exciting pieces as well. The first one, Huapango, was composed in 1941 by José Pablo Moncayo. The title refers to a genre of Mexican music and dance styles, and this piece will certainly make you want to get up and dance! Last year, we ended the season with Danzón No. 2 by Arturo Márquez, and the students really enjoyed it, so I decided to include a piece by another great Mexican composer this season.

After Huapango, we will give the first-ever performance of a new orchestration of Debussy’s The Sunken Cathedral, completed by SOGO senior Cade McBride. This is one of my personal favorite Debussy compositions, and to be able to premiere an arrangement by a current student adds an extra special layer to the occasion. And finally, we close with the fourth movement of Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8. This fiery finale showcases many different instruments of the orchestra, especially the trumpet and cello sections, and contains a major flute solo that all five of our talented flutists had to learn and audition for. The Dvorak has come together surprisingly quickly and will bring the concert to a suitably exciting conclusion.

Hearing your work performed is surreal - Cade McBride

I was introduced to Debussy’s “The Sunken Cathedral” by my mother. Drawn to the works’ rich low notes, reflecting my affinity for the orchestra’s low end as a trombonist, my orchestration features a contrabassoon for added depth.

It’s exhilarating to hear orchestras perform pieces I’ve arranged, like

when Mr. May suggested the Conservatory Orchestra perform my piece. Witnessing an orchestra play something I arranged, knowing every detail from writing each note, is surreal. As for my future, while uncertain, I aim to major in trombone performance, possibly at Jacob’s School of Music, Indiana University, and aspire to join a top-tier orchestra. I also seek to deepen my knowledge of composing and arranging.

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WELCOME

GUEST CONDUCTOR

March 3, 4pm

Mrs. Pearson

Lisa Pearson, guest conductor with the Debut Orchestra, has had a life revolving around her passion for music, which began with her early violin lessons and culminated in advanced degrees in violin performance. She has dedicated herself to teaching, obtaining a teaching certificate from Saint Martin’s University, and currently serves as an orchestra teacher in the Tumwater School District.

Mr. Craig, the Debut conductor, has thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with guest conductor Mrs. Pearson. He remarked, “Lisa is able to connect with the students and bring out the best in each member of the ensemble.” Expressing gratitude for the opportunity to work with such a knowledgeable and skilled conductor, Mr. Craig added, “This experience has allowed us all to engage more deeply with the music, and we are eagerly anticipating the performance on March 3rd at 4 pm at the Washington Center.”

Tickets can be purchased by calling the box office at 360.753.8586.

We Are Headed West

About the time this newsletter arrives, SOGO Academy Orchestra students and their conductor, Greg Allison, will be on the bus heading to Grays Harbor County to present children’s concerts for 3rd grade through HS students.

The SOGO to Schools program received a generous gift from the Goldberg Family Charitable Foundation. Mr. Allison and SOGO teaching artists have been working with students from six schools in Hoquiam, Montesano, Elma, McLeary and Ocean Shores. It only seemed natural to do a runout Children’s Concert this winter to help inspire children to sign up for instrumental music and to encourage those that already play an instrument. (Spoiler Alert – SOGO has a possible opportunity to start an after-school program for strings in the Grays Harbor area).

The concert, held February 23 at the beautiful 7th Street Theater

COLLABORATING

Dr. Nikolas Caoile

Min Hoquiam, will have over 1,000 elementary school children from the aforementioned cities, and also students from Cosmopolis and Westport. Several Grays Harbor SOGO members, special guests, and their local music teachers and principals will be featured guest artists in the concert.

We look forward to our time and the possibility of starting a new program in the area.

If you are interested in more information, please contact Greg Allison, Artistic Director, and Conductor, at 360.352.1438 or email him at ArtisticDirector@studentorchestras.org.

Active and retired public employees of the State are encouraged to sign up for the State’s payroll contribution program for a convenient way to give to SOGO. Our charity code number is 0456457.

he first SOGO rehearsal of February brought a special guest, Dr. Nikolas Caoile, Director of Orchestras at Central Washington University, to work with the Conservatory and Debut Orchestras, Brass Choir and the SOGO conducting

egan Wakefield, SOGO Alum (trumpet 2018) and a former SOGO Student Board member will be singing Ae Fond Kiss with the SOGO Brass Choir for our Winter Concert. Recently, Megan sang the soprano solos for our Sing-Along Messiah and we thought it would be terrific to feature her again.

Mark Thome composed the arrangement for this traditional Scottish ballad with lyrics by Robert Burns. Mark’s arrangement also gives a nod to the

staff. It is a reminder that we are all lifelong learners and the faculty and students were treated to a new voice bringing attention to musical details, ensemble accuracy, and artistry. All of us left richer from Dr. Caoile’s instruction, determination, care, and encouragement, and we look forward to future collaborations.

(Pictured L to R Dr. Caoile & Mr. May)

seniors in our group as they play alone during an interlude between verses sung by Megan. She is currently in her fourth year of voice and opera study at Portland State University.

(Megan shown rehearsing with the Brass Choir)

Ae Fond Kiss