The Redfern Arts Center offered community members a taste of “heavy metal” on Wednesday, Feb. 25, but not in the way you might think. The KSC Concert Band hosted euphonium artist Bente Illevold and tubist/composer Dr. Jasmine Pigott in the program as part of its “Music of Social Justice Series,” both playing the lowest, heaviest instruments in the brass family.
KSC’s Concert Band, which is celebrating nearly half a century as a campus-community ensemble, put together the series as a means of inviting attendees to “experience how artistry and inquiry can come together to spark meaningful reflection,” according to KSC’s event listing.
The series also comes amid various other events and celebrations of Black History Month during February.
The featured program, “Roots,” showed both artists playing new pieces and telling new stories, according to KSC’s event listing for the concert. The music explored the African Diaspora in the U.S. through the lens of performance.
“Their works—including Illevold’s Concerto for Euphonium and Concert Band and Pigott’s Roots Torn, Routes Chosen: A Story of Black Migration—invite listeners to consider history, identity, and belonging through sound,” the listing describes. “With each performance, the Concert Band reinforces its mission to celebrate new music and encourage thoughtful engagement with the world around us.”
The two artists’ pieces filled the Redfern’s Main Theatre with deep, rich tones which amazed audience members.
First-years Derek Haase, Brett Kohs and Cole Shimkus attended the event as a group, and described the performance as “great.”
“There was one song that was especially really good, I forget the name of it [though],” Haase said following the performance.
“It was really good, just a bit long,” Kohs said.
The three attended the event as part of a requirement for their “Listening to America” class, which required students to attend the event and do a write-up reflection afterwards.
Despite their attendance being a requirement, the three agreed the event made them want to attend future Redfern performances.
For those who missed the event, the Redfern has several other ensemble and performance events coming up in the venue. KSC community members can check out upcoming performances at https://www.keene.edu/arts/redfern/.
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