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Email Announcements Received Today:

1) Symphony Band and Wind Ensemble Perform Feb. 21

A range of compositions for symphony band and wind ensemble will be performed Feb. 21 at Appalachian State University. The free performance begins at 8 p.m. in the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts. It is being held in conjunction with the Northwest District Band Clinic. Kevin Gray Richardson will conduct the Appalachian Symphony Band and John Stanley Ross will conduct the Appalachian Wind Ensemble. Graduate conductors are Onsby C. Rose and Matthew Brusseau. The program opens with Richard Strauss’ “Vienna Philharmonic Fanfare” performed by a brass ensemble. The Appalachian Symphony Band will perform “Esprit de Corps” by Robert Jager, “Tight Squeeze” by Alex Shapiro and “Armenian Dances, Part I” by Alfred Reed. The Appalachian Wind Ensemble will perform “Festive Overture” by Dimitri Shostakovich, “Fantasia in G Major” by Johann Sebastian Bach, “Strange Humors” by John Mackey, “Air for Band” by Frank Erickson and “Circus Days” by Karl King.

2) Chicago-based Axiom Brass Performs Feb. 18 at Appalachian

Axiom Brass, a Chicago-based brass quintet, will perform Feb. 18 at Appalachian State University. The 8 p.m. performance in Broyhill Music Center’s Rosen Concert Hall is free and open to the public. The ensemble specializes in concerts that cover a diverse range of musical genres from original brass quintet to transcriptions encompassing more than 400 years of music tradition. Their program, “New Standards,” will feature works by composers such as Brenard Rands, Victor Ewald, Johann Sebastian Bach, Patrice Caratini, Astor Piazzolla, Liduino Pitombeira. Trumpeter Dorival Puccini Jr. is a founding member of Axiom Brass. His interest in chamber music has led him to contribute more than a dozen transcriptions for brass quintet specially written for the Axiom Brass.  Puccini is on the faculty at Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Illinois, and at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Tuba player Kevin Harrison joined the Axiom Brass in early 2008 A highly sought after freelance musician, Harrison has established himself in Chicago and throughout the Midwest as a chamber musician, orchestral musician, educator, clinician and music coach. He is principal tuba of the Northwest Indiana Symphony. He also is guest lecturer in tuba at the Wheaton College Conservatory in Wheaton, Illinois. Axiom member and trumpeter Kris Hammond served in the U.S. Navy as trumpet instrumentalist assigned to the “7th Fleet Band” in Yokosuka­shi, Kanagawa, Japan. He was a full-­time member and principal trumpet of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the training orchestra of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, from 2010-12. Trombonist Orin Larson is a specialist in orchestral and chamber performance, and an expert on alto trombone, tenor trombone, euphonium and the rarely seen bass trumpet. He is in demand as a freelance musician throughout the Chicago and Saint Paul-Minneapolis metro areas, and has been involved in numerous educational outreach and recording projects. Horn player Jacob DiEdwardo has performed with the Palm Beach Opera, Palm Beach Symphony, Palm Beach Pops and the Symphony of the Americas. He was an associate member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 2013-14.

3) Western Watauga Community Center Hosts Gentle Stretch Program for Adults

Sign up begins now for Gentle Stretch Exercise Program for adults. Offered by the Western Watauga Community Center in Cove Creek. Gentle Stretch is designed for people who wish to increase their flexibility and gain strength. Meets Thursdays beginning on Feb. 19 from 12:15-1:15 p.m. Lasts 8 weeks. The cost is $50. Pre-registration is required by Wednesday, Feb. 18, at 4 p.m. to be paid at the community center. The instructor is Akal Dev Sharonne. For information, call Toni Wait at 297-5195. M-F 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m.