Hear the harmonic sounds of Akron Symphonic Winds’ piccolos, flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, saxophones, French horns and more drift out over Barberton’s Lake Anna July 10 at 7 p.m., combining the majesty of nature with the splendor of music.
“In that space, it is just so beautiful. The green, the lake itself, and when we play outside,” says Linda Simon, Akron Symphonic Winds founding director, bass clarinetist and baritone saxophonist, “us woodwinds, we resonate off the trees. One of my favorite contemporary composers always said the clarinet sounds like a tree singing.”
Akron Symphonic Winds, a professional music ensemble that brings free concerts to Northeast Ohio communities, is performing a series of America250 concerts in celebration of the country’s semiquincentennial — including the Lake Anna concert, a concert at the Akron-Summit County Public Library auditorium July 9 and a concert presented by the Richfield Historical Society July 14.
“We are doing America’s cultural heritage through music,” Simon says. “Everything from the beginning of our country’s forming as a country 250 years ago today, to current music as well. We are covering all the great composers of American music.”
The concert repertoire includes music from American composers and musicians such as John Philip Sousa, Leonard Bernstein, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Aaron Copland and Duke Ellington.
“America’s music is a reflection of who we are,” shares Michele Monigold, board member, associate director and clarinetist. “It is a reflection of all these different people coming together, with influences from all the places that they’ve drawn from, all the history, all the good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful moments, the difficult moments.”
The ensemble was founded in 2017 to give professional musicians an outlet to play and to bring free concerts to community members through performances at visual art events, community events, festivals and more. The ensemble also performs holiday concerts and facilitates school side-by-side concerts. Symphonic Winds members work with students and give them master classes — then perform side by side with them.
“We try to play music that is something that the audience will enjoy, maybe something that they’ll recognize, also something that might challenge them to listen to and bring new ideas to them,” Monigold says. “We’re creating patrons of the arts and bringing joy.”
Audience members can learn more about the pieces in the performance between songs — some of which include “Seventy-Six Trombones” by Meredith Willson, “Liberty Fanfare” by John Williams and “Armed Forces Medley.”
“We want to give the audience a little bit of background, interesting things about the piece, so we’re not just playing piece after piece. We’re also telling them things to listen for, what they might recognize it from, giving the history, what the composer intended,” says Monigold. “It’s one of the very few things that can link people from many generations.”
Before the performance, enjoy all-day breakfast at Tusk diner or grab a latte at Anna Bean Coffee Company. After the show, see members of the band mingle with the audience — driving home its community-focused mission.
“It’s a language everyone speaks and everybody loves,” Simon says. “We’re all on the same playing field when it comes to music, and when we address people, we address all people through music, and everybody has a shared experience together. And that can only heal our community.”
akronsymphonicwinds.mystrikingly.com
Akron Symphonic Winds
Akron Symphonic Winds
Akron Symphonic Winds
Akron Symphonic Winds
Akron Symphonic Winds
