North Jersey Concert Band
Fair Lawn Summer Concert Series
Memorial Park - Fair Lawn,
NJ
August 14, 2022 - 8:00 PM
“American Music for a
Sunday Summer Night”
America, the Beautiful - arr.
Carmen Dragon
Chanteys - Robert Sheldon
A Tribute to Jerome Kern - arr.
Warren Barker
Opening Night on Broadway -
arr. Michael Brown
Come Sunday - Duke
Ellington
arr. Jon Roth (NJCB)
Rick Henly, trumpet soloist
Rise- Rossano Galante
Salute to American Jazz - arr.
Sammy Nestico
A Cole Porter Spectacular -
arr. Sammy Nestico
Selections from My Fair
Lady - Lerner & Loewe
arr. Robert Russell Bennett
La Virgen de la Macarena - arr.
Charles Koff
Rick Henly, trumpet soloist
Glenn Miller in Concert - arr.
Paul Murtha
Stars and Stripes Forever -
John Philip Sousa
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About our
Soloist:
 |
| Rick Henly |
RICK HENLY
can be heard on his two solo CDs: LOVE LIKE FIRE and CHRISTMAS PRESENT.
On March
7, 2003, Rick played the American Premiere of Steve Margoshes’ Ballade for
Trumpet and Orchestra with the Ridgewood Symphony. In November, 2004, he played
the World Premiere of Jake Lentz’s Suite for America with the Woodstock Chamber
Orchestra. He returned to Chicago in 2009 to play Janacek’s Sinfonietta with
the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and then travelled with them to New York for a
performance in Carnegie Hall.
Rick was
Lead Trumpet on a dozen Broadway shows, including the long-running hit, MISS
SAIGON and has over 20 years’ experience playing Lead Trumpet on Broadway
shows. He graduated from Ithaca College and earned a Master’s Degree in Trumpet
Performance from Northwestern University. Following school, Rick auditioned and
was appointed Principal Trumpet of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, a position
that included a scholarship to study with the great Adolph Herseth of the
Chicago Symphony. This was followed by a Fellowship to study for two summers at
the prestigious Tanglewood Music Center.
His early
career included performances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Lyric
Opera of Chicago. He also played on several recordings with the Chicago
Symphony. While in Chicago, Rick was also on the faculties of The American
Conservatory of Music, Elmhurst College and the Preparatory Department at
Northwestern University.
Called one
day to fill in for an ailing lead trumpeter (in Chicago), Rick went to the
theater to play for Meredith Willson's THE MUSIC MAN, starring Dick Van Dyke.
For that production, Conductor Milton Rosenstock had written a brilliant
trumpet cadenza (based on the MINUET IN G) to end the show. Conductor
Rosenstock was so impressed with Rick’s rendition of the trumpet solo, that he
insisted Rick come to New York and open the show on Broadway the following
week.
Since MISS
SAIGON, Rick has performed the on-stage 'Harry James' solo in FOSSE and
substituted as Lead Trumpet on THE PRODUCERS, CABARET, THE MUSIC MAN, FOLLIES,
THOU SHALT NOT, 42nd STREET, and the RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL ORCHESTRA. Rick
continues to give solo demonstrations and clinics all around the country.
Rick has
performed with the New York Pops, American Symphony, Brooklyn Philharmonic,
Little Orchestra Society (Soloist), Liza Minnelli (Lead Trumpet), Dennis
Edwards and The Temptations Revue (Lead Trumpet), Michael Amante “America’s
Tenor” (Lead Trumpet), Charli Persip’s SUPERSOUND (Lead Trumpet), Shirley
Bassey, and Frank Sinatra.
Conductors with whom Rick has worked include Leonard Bernstein, Sir Georg Solti, Claudio Abbado, Andre Previn, Pierre Boulez, Rafael Kubelik, Lukas Foss and Skitch Henderson.
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Program
Notes
America,
the Beautiful - arr. Carmen Dragon
Perhaps no song epitomizes our country in all its variety and majesty more than this tune, written by Samuel Augustus Ward (1848-1903), who was the organist and choirmaster at Grace Episcopal Church just down the road in Newark, NJ, the city of his birth. Ward served at Grace Church starting in 1880, and originally composed the music to accompany the words of the hymn “O Mother Dear, Jerusalem.” The lyrics were written by Katherine Lee Bates (1859-1929), a professor of English Literature at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. She originally published the poem under the title “Pike’s Peak.”
Ward and Bates never met, and the words and music were not paired until 1910, so it is unlikely that Ward ever heard his music sung to Bates’ lyrics. Despite its popularity for more than a century, the words of the multiple verses are often unfamiliar to many. One passage in particular, from verse 2, offers this admonishment to us regarding our personal deportment as citizens of this great nation: “....Confirm thy soul in self-control, Thy liberty in law.”
Carmen Dragon (1914-1984) was a California-based composer, arranger, and conductor who worked in film and television. He was the conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra in Los Angeles, and also won the 1944 Oscar for the Gene Kelly/Rita Hayworth musical Cover Girl. Dragon was the father of Daryl Dragon, the “Captain” in the pop duo Captain and Tennille.
This arrangement is a standard in the wind band repertoire and is one of the most frequently performed patriotic selections each year, especially around the Fourth of July. Set in the key of G flat major, and utilizing the rich sonorities of the entire ensemble, Dragon’s arrangement has what might be described as a noble quality, which illuminates a deep well of emotion that can only be expressed through music.
Chanteys
- Robert Sheldon
Chanteys is an original work that recalls the music of the sea and its sailors. A jaunty opening sparkles with character and style before yielding to a pensive "Andante", or softer section. The piece closes with a spirited juxtaposition of the main themes.
Robert Sheldon (b. Feb 3,1954) has taught instrumental music in the Florida and Illinois public schools and has served on the faculty at Florida State University where he taught instrumental music education classes, conducting, and directed the university bands. Following seventeen years as Director of Concert Band Publications for Alfred Music, he now maintains an active composition and conducting schedule.
A Tribute to Jerome Kern - arr. Warren Barker
America has had a lot of great songwriters, but Jerome Kern (1885 –1945) stands out among these composers of the Great American Songbook, as many of them publicly stated they considered him to be the best of their group! In this arrangement, we hear original treatments of I Won't Dance, Long Ago and Far Away, Pick Yourself Up, and All the Things You Are, all “standards” in jazz and popular genres.
Warren Barker (1923 – 2006) was an American composer, arranger, and conductor known for work in film, radio, and television, as well as for original band and symphonic compositions.
Opening
Night on Broadway - arr. Michael Brown
Michael Brown has written extensively for concert bands, having served as Chief Arranger for The United States Army Band ("Pershing's Own") in Washington, DC, and previously for The United States Military Academy Band at West Point, NY. His “civilian” credits include: the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, the Opening Ceremonies of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, UT, the National Symphony Orchestra, and the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, DC.
This work draws from the wealth music composed for contemporary Broadway shows, including: “Springtime for Hitler” from The Producers, “The Avenue Q Theme” from the show of the same name, “Always Look On The Bright Side of Life” from Spamalot,“For Good” from Wicked, and “Circle of Life” from Lion King.
Come Sunday - Duke Ellington
arr. Jon Roth (NJCB)
Rick Henly, trumpet soloist
Come Sunday began as a movement within a larger work by Duke Ellington (1899-1974) for his first Carnegie Hall recital entitled Black, Brown, and Beige. Ellington called the work “a tone parallel to the history of the Negro in America.” This movement, originally called Spiritual, is meant to depict the church-going experience of African Americans, and the solo depicts a single voice in religious expression. It was originally a feature piece for Johnny Hodges, the lead alto sax player in Ellington’s band.
In this arrangement, Jon Roth, the lead trombonist with North Jersey Concert Band, has set the music for trumpeter Rick Henly (see bio). The piece allows Mr. Henley the space to interpret the melody as he feels it in the moment, as the band provides a quiet, meditative background to Mr. Henley’s soulful interpretation.
Rise - Rossano Galante
In 2017, RISE: A Gay Games Anthem, was commissioned by the Federation of Gay Games to accompany the raising of the official Gay Games flag. The piece represents the three guiding principles of the Gay Games: Participation, Inclusion, and Personal Best.
Rossano Galante (b.1967), earned a degree in trumpet performance from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1992. He then was accepted into the film scoring program at the University of Southern California and studied with film composer Jerry Goldsmith.
Salute to American Jazz - arr. Sammy Nestico
Sammy Nestico has brought together four tunes from a variety of music styles that together present a musical tour of jazz stylings. Starting with Dizzy Gillespie’s “A Night in Tunisia,” the band demonstrates the complexity of jazz from the “small band” period of the ‘50s and ‘60s. Next, we travel back in time to visit the shady saloons and sketchy barrooms in “St. Louis Blues,” written by the great W. C. Handy in 1914. The music harkens back to the marching bands that accompanied weddings and funerals before and around the turn-of-the-century in American jazz cities such as New Orleans and, of course, St. Louis.
Moving up in time, we hear “It Don’t Mean A Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)” from the musical genius of Duke Ellington. There is so much to say about this American icon, we’ll have to explore it all in another concert. For now, Nestico gives us just a taste of the infectious rhythms and melodies of `this unique master of jazz. The jazz tour wraps up with a more recent composition, Joe Zawinul’s “Birdland.” First recorded by the jazz fusion group Weather Report in 1977, the tune has a driving beat, as well as a heavy bass line that was the work of noted bassist Jaco Pastorius. In 1994,the vocal quartet Manhattan Transfer set the song to words on their album “Vocalese,” and had a crossover hit with it. Taken as a whole, this arrangement proves that jazz is many things, and all of them are uniquely American.
A Cole Porter Spectacular - arr. Sammy Nestico
This arrangement of familiar tunes includes such standards as Night and Day, Don’t Fence Me In, and Begin the Beguine.
Cole Albert Porter (1891 – 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards, noted for their witty, urbane lyrics. Many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Porter’s music, like that of Jerome Kern, helped to musically define the generation of Americans before, during, and after World War II. Acclaimed for his swinging work with the Count Basie Orchestra, Sammy Nestico (1924 – 2021) was an award-winning composer, arranger, and educator. A trombonist in his youth, Nestico first emerged as a sideman and arranger with Charlie Barnet's big band before embarking on an over-15-year career in the military, leading the prestigious Airmen of Note and the Marine Band. Following his military service in the late '60s, he developed a fruitful relationship with Count Basie, arranging over ten albums with the legendary bandleader.
Mr. Nestico published nearly 600 compositions in his lifetime, and his works specifically for jazz bands are still among the most frequently performed by school, community, and professional ensembles. A Cole Porter Spectacular exemplifies his incredible mastery of the popular music genre and presents stylistic nuances that remind the listener of other noted musicians, including Henry Mancini and Herb Alpert.This arrangement of the music of Cole Porter includes treatments of three of his most beloved melodies, including Night and Day, Don’t Fence Me In, and Begin the Beguine.
Selections from My Fair Lady - Lerner & Loewe
arr. Robert Russell Bennett
Lerner and Loewe’s musical version of George Berbard Shaw’s Pygmalion opened on Broadway in 1956, and ran for 2,717 performances: a record at that time. The production starred Rex Harrison and was the Broadway premiere for a young but well-known actress from the UK, Julie Andrews.
This arrangement of the score from the show was set for concert band by Robert Russell Bennett, the masterful composer/arranger who created the orchestral arrangements for original productions of numerous Broadway hits of the 20th century. His scores for many of these same shows, such as My Fair Lady, are staples in the concert band repertoire.
La Virgen de la Macarena - arr. Charles Koff
Rick Henly, trumpet soloist
The title of this original solo for trumpet refers to a statue of the Virgin Mary in a basilica in Seville, Spain. It is to this statue that matadors were said to pay homage before entering the ring for their epic duels. While the Macarena is now known as a popular dance at weddings and social events, the Macarena of this work is actually the geographical district in Seville in which the basilica is situated. This musical work showcases the proud tradition of bullfighting, and the virtuosic trumpet music that accompanies the spectacle of this Spanish tradition.
Glenn Miller in Concert - arr. Paul Murtha
The music of the Swing Era bandleader is showcased in this arrangement by Paul Murtha (b. 1960). The medley includes the musical hits In the Mood, Tuxedo Junction, A String of Pearls, Little Brown Jug, and Pennsylvania 6-5000.
Glenn Miller (1904-1944) and his orchestra were, of course, hugely popular before and during World War II. His disappearance over the English Channel on Christmas Eve 1944 only added to that popularity in the years since.
In the present day, a band under the aegis of the Miller Estate continues to tour the US and the world, delighting audiences with the sound of Glenn Miller’s “sweet swing,” a sound that Miller developed by using the clarinet as the lead voice for his saxophone section. Fans started flocking to performances of Miller’s band in the late 1930s at the Glen Island Casino in New Rochelle, NY. Indeed, the band became so popular that individuals who couldn’t get into the Casino would often climb trees outside the venue just to be able to hear the band play.
Stars and Stripes Forever - John Philip Sousa
What more can be said regarding John Philip Sousa (1854-1932), or for that matter “The Stars and Stripes Forever,” that hasn’t already been said? The man was, and remains, an icon in the world of wind music. His marches are played consistently by bands of all levels, in every part of the Western world. Indeed, for many people around the globe, the music of John Philip Sousa IS American music. And this work, written on Christmas Day in 1896, is his most popular. In fact, the US Congress designated “The Stars and Stripes Forever” as the official National March of the United States of America in 1987. From the stirring introduction, to the first strain that almost always elicits rhythmic clapping from the audience, to the “dogfight” between the lower brass and woodwinds, to the signature piccolo obbligato in the trio (third) section, this march truly sparkles even after 126 years.
NJCB is proud and honored to feature this Sousa march as the “grand finale” for most of our summer concerts each and every year.
(Notes extracted and compiled from multiple sources, with additional material from the conductor.)
