The sounds of woodwind, brass and percussion filled the auditorium of the Redfern Arts Center’s Main Theater as the KSC Concert Band took the stage once again for its annual end-of-October concert.
The band, playing under the direction of Dr. John Hart, performed several musical selections all tied into the theme of “Monuments” on October 30.
Hart reflected on the concert’s theme during remarks at the beginning of the performance.
“We’ve explored all of the various means of the word ‘monument,’ what it means in a physical, literal sense, what it means in a metaphorical sense, and what it means in a personal sense,” Hart said.
Looking at the theme of monuments through the lens of monumental composers, the band played Fugue à la Gigue, a piece originally composed by the renowned German composer Johann Sebastian Bach and orchestrated by Gustav Holst, a “monumental” English composer.
Another piece performed by the band from a “monumental” composer was four movements from “Lincolnshire Posy” by Australian composer Percy Grainger.
Hart described “Lincolnshire Posy” as the most performed piece in wind band literature, adding that there are vocal versions of the piece that pull from folk tune stories of the time.
One piece touched on the theme of monuments in the physical sense – playing “Keepers of the House,” composed by American composer and violinist Connie Ellisor.
KSC’s event listing for the concert described the piece as “a love letter to old-growth forests that stand like timeless sentinels.”
The event also drifted into a somber and reflective tone at one point, as Hart introduced the New Hampshire premiere of “In This Breath,” a tribute to the late conductor Glen Adsit by award-winning composer Shuying Li.
Hart reflected on his relationship with Adsit, having been a mentee under Adsit during his time as a student at the Hartt School in West Hartford, Conn.
“[Adsit] was a monumental figure in a professional sense but I think more important to us on the day-to-day is how somebody is monumental to us
on a personal level, in a human connection level, and that’s what Glenn was for me and for many people,” Hart said to the audience, urging attendees to think of someone who was monumental in their lives.
“[Li] was Glenn’s partner in the last few years of his life, and as he confronted his own mortality, ‘In This Breath’ was a piece that Shuying wrote for Glenn after he passed,” Hart said, noting that Adsit had a hand in its creation as well.
Hart closed the performance with a piece from American composer David Maslanka entitled “Give Us This Day.”
He remarked to the audience about his experience working with Maslanka as a graduate student, particularly how Maslanka kept working through his battle with cancer, leading up until his death in 2017.
“[Maslanka] ruminated with the audience about how, at its core, music is an act of peace,” Hart said.
Local community member Riley Cahoon said she enjoyed the concert.
“It was very deep, I liked that a lot,” Cahoon said.
Sophomore Aaralyn Evans, who plays clarinet for the concert band, spoke about her experience playing and the amount of time and effort that went into it.
“We’ve all been working really hard on this music for the past couple months and I think it went really well. I was really proud of everyone,” Evans said.
Evans also said the theme of monuments was heavily discussed in the lead-up to the performance.
“I just love playing music that means something; it’s not like we’re just playing to play,” Evans said.
Evans said her favorite piece played was Maslanka’s “Give Us This Day,” adding how the switch between movements, as well as the saxophone elements of it helped elevate it for her.
Junior Melina Martello-Munoz said she came out to the performance to see Evans play.
Martello-Munoz said the performance made her emotional.
“It really hit hard, especially when Dr. Hart started talking about his personal experiences, and he was like ‘Think of someone in your life,’ and I definitely thought of a couple people who made me feel the same way,” Martello-Munoz added.
Nathan Hope can be contacted at
