Orchestra of Southern Utah

Sharing Significant Music

by Sara Penny

Certain melodies conjure the best of a symphony orchestra. The "Immortal Melodies" concert features some of our favorite pieces as well as showcasing two outstanding local musicians. Join the Orchestra of Southern Utah on Thursday, Feb. 20, at 7:30 p.m. at the Heritage Theater, 105 N. 100 West, in Cedar City. Tickets now available at myosu.org.

The Moldau by Smetana takes a journey along a Czech river complete with a wedding dance as the river goes from the mountains of Bohemia to Prague. This symphonic poem tells a story complete with castles and rapids as the river wends its way to the Elbe.

Berceuse and Finale from Stravinsky's Firebird Suite conjures the magic of the bird who helps the king defeat an evil sorcerer. The famous ballet music is a triumph of good over evil.

Alexander Borodin was a chemist who composed on Sundays. The Polovtsian Dances from the opera Prince Igor include a melody that became famous in the musical Kismet. "Take my hand, I'm a stranger in paradise" was a huge hit in 1953. Energetic dances propel the music forward. David Jordan will be conducting this piece.

Pachelbel's Canon is a deceptively simple piece with eight notes repeating under a timeless melody. This arrangement by cellist Pat Pinkston gives the cellists a chance to share the melody. Using the harp for the piano part adds another level of musical magic.

"We are so excited to be joined by some extremely talented instrumentalists for our February concert including Ben Bradshaw on bassoon and David Torres on trumpet. You won’t want to miss this spectacular addition to our season!" said Music Director and Conductor Carylee Zwang.

Dr. Ben Bradshaw has chosen a Concertino for Bassoon. The Finnish composer Bernard Crusell wrote this Concertino for bassoon in 1829 "for his son-in-law Franz Preumayr who was considered Sweden's foremost bassoonists at the time." They lived in Stockholm and this virtuosic piece was premiered in 1829. Bradshaw teaches at both SUU and Utah Tech and has played in numerous ensembles across the country.

Kevin McKee wrote Centennial Horizon as a commission from Albany trumpeter Catherine Sheridan. "With two contrasting movements (Aspen Grove and Roaring Gunnison) connected by an interlude (Alpenglow), I have attempted to capture some of the beauty and adventure of what truly is an amazing place: Colorado (the "Centennial State"). Inspired by my late grandmother's love of that state, the first movement is an homage to her," said McKee. David Torres teaches at SUU where he has developed the Thunderbird Marching Band. He is an active performer with touring musicals. Torres served as one of the final trumpet players/conductors for the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The Southern Utah String Quartet will provide lobby music by Schubert before the concert.

Concert tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students. Go to myosu.org for ticket purchases. No children under six or babies for the evening concerts please, as these concerts are recorded. Recordings are available on the website and selective past performances are posted on the OSUCedarCity YouTube channel.

"We are excited to bring this unforgettable music to you," said Harold Shirley, OSU President. "Come and enjoy an evening of great symphony orchestra music with us on Feb. 20."

(Poster Design by Rollan Fell)

Links to Preview the music at https://osulistening.blogspot.com/2025/01/immortal-melodies-concert-on-feb-20-2025.html

Guest Artist Bios:

David D. Torres serves as Assistant Professor at Southern Utah University, where he teaches applied trumpet lessons and directs the university's comprehensive athletic bands program, including the Symphonic Band, Brass Choir, and the Sound of Southern Utah Athletic Bands. Under his leadership, the Thunderbird Marching Band, established in 2022, has quickly become renowned in the region for its innovative show design and high-energy performances as "The Sound of Southern Utah!" The Athletic Bands and Independent Winterguard programs have garnered national recognition, performing at prestigious venues including UMEA State Championships, NCAA March Madness, The WAC Tournament in Las Vegas, and WGI regionals. His trumpet students have consistently achieved excellence, receiving invitations to multiple International Trumpet Guild Conferences and earning quarterfinalist status at the 2024 National Trumpet Competition.

Before joining SUU, Torres served as Assistant Professor of Trumpet and Director of Athletic Bands at Southern Arkansas University, where he expanded the marching band program into one of the state's largest collegiate ensembles. His trumpet students at SAU achieved remarkable success, securing positions in graduate programs, summer festivals, world-class drum corps, and military bands. The SAU Trumpet Ensemble regularly participated in ITG Conferences and advanced to the National Trumpet Competition quarterfinals.

Torres brings extensive professional performance experience to his academic role. His Broadway and National Tour credits include Disney's "Beauty and the Beast," "The Drowsy Chaperone," and "The Producers." He spent five years as trumpet soloist with the Tony Award-winning Broadway show "Blast!" and "BLAST II MIX," and served as one of the final trumpet players/conductors for the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. His distinguished career began at Walt Disney World, and he is an alumnus of the prestigious Disneyland All-American College Band. His orchestral experience includes performances with the Tuacahn Center for the Arts Orchestra, Texarkana Symphony, South Arkansas Symphony,Southwest Symphony, Orchestra of Southern Utah, Tampa Bay Symphony, and numerous other professional ensembles.

Currently pursuing his doctorate in Brass Pedagogy at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Torres holds dual Master of Music degrees in Trumpet Performance and Wind Conducting from New Mexico State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance from the University of South Florida - School of Music. His primary trumpet teachers include Jay Coble, Pancho Romero, Charley Davis, and William Adam. He maintains professional affiliations with ITG, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity, Tau Beta Sigma Honorary Band Fraternity, Utah Music Educators Association, National Band Association, Texas Music Educators Association, and The American Federation of Musicians (Las Vegas #369). Torres performs on Powell and Yamaha Trumpets, and is an endorsing artist for Hercules Stands and ChopSaver lip balm. He resides in Cedar City, Utah, with his wife Anna and their dog Lola.

Over many years of playing the bassoon, Dr. Benjamin Bradshaw has developed interests in nearly all things related to the instrument. His main performance interests are in contemporary and electric music for bassoon. He also maintains a strong interest in technology and how it can improve practicing, analysis, and pedagogy.

From a young age, he was inspired by the playing of Paul Hanson and Mike Rabinowitz with electric bassoon and effects pedals. Ben had the opportunity to explore this aspect of the bassoon at Southern Utah University, where he played bass trombone and bari sax parts in the Jazz Ensemble on the electric bassoon. This turned into a major research interest, culminating in a dissertation entitled A Bassoonist’s Guide to Interactive Electroacoustic Bassoon Music. Much of this research is hosted on the websitehttps://www.electricbassoon.org. Recently, he premiered a new electric bassoon concerto by Keith Bradshaw entitled In the Beginning

On the classical side of bassoon, Ben has played in numerous ensembles across the country, including wind ensembles, woodwind quintets, orchestras, and solo recitals. As a soloist, he won the Halversen Young Artist Concerto Competition with the Orchestra of Southern Utah in 2009 and again in 2014, performing movements from Wanhal's Concerto for Two Bassoons and Mozart's Concerto for Bassoon.

As a researcher, Ben has been interested in music technology and its applications in practicing, music notation, performance, and analysis. This ranges from using the Humdrum toolkit to analyze the bassoon concerti of Vivaldi to creating interactive Schenkerian analysis diagrams hosted on webpages to using audio programming languages to create practice tools.

Ben received his Doctorate in Bassoon Literature and Performance from Indiana University. He studied at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts for his Masters of Music in Bassoon Performance. Ben graduated from Southern Utah University summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music in Bassoon Performance, and a Bachelor of Science in Pure Mathematics. His principal teachers have been William Ludwig, Saxton Rose, and Virginia Stitt. He currently teaches at Southern Utah University and Utah Tech University.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the 84th Cedar City Messiah performance. We appreciate all of the orchestra musicians, the chorale, the Heritage Theater staff, and patrons who create this a special experience. We especially thank the Dixie and Anne Leavitt Foundation, State Bank of Southern Utah, and the Leavitt Group for making it possible to have this as a gift to the community.

A couple of responses to the performance:

On Facebook from Alayna Stein: Stunning performance! I especially enjoyed the encore of The Hallelujah Chorus.

From the patron survey:

Monday night, Dec. 9th I attended the Handel's Messiah's Light of Redemption. First, I would like to thank those who sponsored the event so tickets were free. I just moved into this state, this city doing Christian missionary work and I was so pleased to be able to attend.

Second, the event was so incredibly amazing, it just moved me. I could NOT stop smiling or in tears. I just had to reach out and thank each of you for your hard work to create an amazing performance for such an important element to bring LIGHT into the darkness and share what Jesus did for all humanity. It was one of the most joyous nights to share my love for Jesus. What a way to worship Jesus. Again, thank you so much.
Please thank the Leavitt Group and State Bank for providing the tickets.
I look forward to attending other events.
God Bless each of you. Praise God for His Son Jesus Christ.
Kind Regards,
Debbie Miller-Joseph

Full program at Click this for the program

Article about the performance at Click this for the article about the performance