PRESS RELEASE
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS
COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS AND COMMUNICATION
Contact: Christina Madsen, (501) 852-2659; christinam@uca.edu
Dr. Ricky Brooks, (501) 450-5764; rickyb@uca.edu
March 6, 2015
UCA WIND ENSEMBLE TO PERFORM AT REYNOLDS
By Kendra Beattie
College of Fine Arts and Communication Media Office
CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas Wind Ensemble will perform selected pieces, showcase a conducting graduate student and accompany two talented students during a performance in Reynolds Performance Hall on March 11.
The event, free and open to the public, will start at 7:30 p.m.
“This is a student spotlight series we’ve been doing for about six years,” Director Dr. Ricky Brooks said.
This will be the ensemble’s first performance of the semester and will spotlight juniors Mallory Brooks and Taylor Cunningham, both from Conway. Brooks is an alto saxophone player, and Cunningham will perform an interpretive dance while the wind ensemble plays.
“We’re going to be playing a unique piece called ‘Solitary Dancer’ [to] feature…Cunningham’s interpretive dance,” Ricky Brooks said.
The piece will be conducted by graduate student Mary P. Light, who is working toward a master’s degree in conducting at UCA.
Mallory Brooks, an ensemble member and Ricky Brooks’ daughter, was selected as this semester’s spotlight by a panel of out-of-state judges. Each school year, the wind ensemble musicians have the opportunity to submit their music on a CD to Ricky Brooks, who then sends it labeled anonymously to the judges. Students are selected based solely on their music submissions, with no additional information included.
“We’ll also play ‘Easter Monday on the White House Lawn’ by John Philip Sousa,” Brooks said. “It’s a unique ragtime piece for Sousa and for us.”
The performance’s second half will showcase music from the opera “Carmen,” particularly the pieces “Toreador Song” and “Habanera.”
Ricky Brooks is responsible for music choices and selects pieces based on the students’ and audiences’ interests.
“I try to pick things the students need to know how to play, and also what audiences like to hear,” Brooks said. “I want to give a good overview of different styles and time periods.”
For more information on the UCA Wind Ensemble, contact Brooks at (501) 450-5764 or rickyb@uca.edu.
The UCA College of Fine Arts and Communication includes the Departments of Art, Communication, Mass Communication and Theatre, Music and Writing. The college’s primary mission is the preparation of the next generation of artists, educators and communicators. For more information about CFAC, visit www.uca.edu/cfac or call (501) 450-3293.
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