On Tuesday, Nov. 16, the Department of Music at UTM put on the Chamber Ensembles Concert. It began at 7:30 p.m. in Watkins Auditorium and featured various ensembles such as the Acrimonious Competition Saxophone Quintet, the Horn Ensemble and the Four Stikx Clarinet Quartet.
The pieces played by each ensemble took the audience into the world of music. There was not only older, more classical music, but also different pieces showcasing several periods of music, showing audience members a variety of types of music.
“The audience members were definitely exposed to new types of music. For example, when the trumpet octet played the ‘Canzon Primi Toni, Ch.170’ (Gabrieli, Giovanni), that style is completely different than everything else on the program. It is representative of the transition from the Renaissance style to the Baroque style. Sometimes, when either of those styles is even mentioned to non-music majors, they may think it to be boring, but what usually happens is the listener actually enjoys the music anyway,” trumpet player Rory Anderson said.
Getting a taste of those different styles may indeed yield a new appreciation for certain types of music.
“The audience members get a taste of many different styles of music from all of the chamber ensembles,” trumpet player JP Pannell said.
This show was not only a success for the audience, but for the musicians as well.
“This performance was the Four Stikx Clarinet Quartet’s premiere. The clarinet quartet was formed this semester under the direction of Dr. Amy Simmons, and so far, I feel that the group has worked unbelievably well together and has great potential for the future. I enjoyed working with amazingly talented musicians while preparing for this performance. I progress as a clarinetist every time that the four of us meet together and rehearse,” Four Stikx member Lee said.
The other performers agreed.
“I felt a sense of accomplishment from the chamber ensemble I performed in. Given the short amount of rehearsals, I feel like the trumpet chamber ensemble really got a lot of work done,” Pannell said.
Still, some performers like Anderson find that there is still work to be done despite the success.
“I think that the concert was a success, definitely. I personally feel I could have performed better, but I also think that the performance was still a lot of fun. I always just like performing. I like being able to use my talents and in the chamber ensemble setting, it is even more enjoyable to share that with other musicians,” said Anderson.
