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Performing, for the first time ever, the Woodhaven concert band came together on the auditorium stage to present the Black History Month concert. These musicians put together a challenging selection of pieces that were all written by black composers. Their goal for this performance was to highlight the significant pieces that are often overlooked in the musical community. Band director Bradley Faryniarz states, “The idea for this concert was taken from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s annual Classical Roots concert. This concert features the contributions of black composers and artists to classical music, featuring a program of all black composers, conductors, and soloists. We took that idea and put together a challenging program of music by black composers and brought in a guest soloist and conductor. We do so much at WHS to recognize Black History Month that we thought it would be great to have a concert celebrating all that has happened throughout the month.”
The band played seven pieces that were all unique in their own way. Pieces such as “Duke Ellington” and “Soulful Sixties” included multiple tunes that flowed together. Soulful Sixties included popular tunes such as “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” and “Natural Woman,” which were sure to get you dancing in your seat a little. The band also played “Halcyon Hearts” and “A Mother of a Revolution,” which included a skillful drum set part that made the whole piece groove and flow. All of these pieces were chosen for the impact that these black artists had on the musical community with their contributions. Specifically, Florence Price, who wrote “Adoration” that the band performed, was the first black female composer to have her music performed by a major American symphony.
Surely one of the band’s favorite pieces, “Blue Horn” by Lionel Beltran-Cecilia, was originally written as a solo performance. It was later transformed into a piece for a concert band while still including a horn solo. For this performance, guest director Damien Crutcher conducted this performance, and music education student, Tyler Hinton, performed the iniquitous and technically challenging solo for the crowd. His performance shocked the crowd and an uproar of applause washed over the audience. They enjoyed him so considerably that the guest performers were welcomed back onto the stage with a roar of applause for a second bow.
Concert band student Grace Parkham explains, “My favorite piece was Duke Ellington. Playing jazz is something different in this band setting. Although we have a jazz band, playing jazz in band class was a fun switch up and I really like a lot of Ellington’s songs! The piece was also just a lot of fun to play!” Following this exhilarating performance, there was a brief intermission for the audience and band members. The band came back and performed the rest of their concert, ending the night with a spectacular layout of music that all had significant meaning.
The Black History Month concert was just the right connection needed to bring everyone together and highlight important black figures who had an impact on the musical community. From male to female composers and even first appearances to big performances, all of these pieces focused attention on the historical black impact they had forever. The band hopes to perform more concerts in the future that highlight cultural heritage and are delighted to share their hard work with the community.
