Wind ensembles will perform Thursday
OGLESBY — The Wind Ensembles of Illinois Valley Community College and Illinois Wesleyan University will present a joint performance at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the IVCC Cultural Center. This program marks the second time the two groups have performed on the same program together.
Gene Montgomery has conducted the IVCC Wind Ensemble since the spring of 1990. The group has performed at the Illinois Music Educators All-State Conference (1991 and 2005), on the campuses of Northern Illinois University and Illinois Wesleyan University and shared concerts with St. Ambrose University and Simpson College. The IVCC Wind Ensemble is a credited class accommodating students, adult performers and music educators from within and outside the Illinois Valley region.
Founded in 1979 by Steven W. Eggleston, the Illinois Wesleyan Wind Ensemble has since developed an impressive reputation, richly cultivated by the ensemble’s prestigious guests and performance opportunities. The IWU Wind Ensemble has had the opportunity to work closely with world-renown composers by bringing many prominent musical figures such as Estonian composer Avro Part and Dutch composer Louis Andreissen to the IWU campus both to clinic and conduct the Wind Ensemble. The group has also hosted Pulitzer Prize-winning composers such as Karel Husa, Joseph Schwantner and William Bolcom. In addition, John Corigliano, winner of the 2000 coveted Oscar award for his film score to The Red Violin, has been a recent guest of the ensemble’s. The revered composer Vince Mendoza, winner of two Grammy awards and composer with Bjork of the film score to Dancer in the Dark, was the Wind Ensemble’s 2005 Symposium guest.
Along with hosting such prestigious guests, the IWU Wind Ensemble continues to have many esteemed performance opportunities. Such past concerts have included performing with the College Band Directors’ National Association Conference and with the Illinois Music Educators Association Conference as well as performing on frequent tours throughout the Midwest.
