Everything Nac

The SFA Percussion Ensemble and SFA Steel Band, both directed by Dr. Brad Meyer, will perform their annual “Percussion in the Pines” holiday concert at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2, in Cole Concert Hall on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus.

The Percussion Ensemble will play several holiday favorites, including “Deck the Halls,” “Carol of the Bells,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Oh Holy Night” and “Silent Night,” according to Meyer, director of percussion studies for the SFA School of Music.

The ensemble’s performance of “The 12 Days of Christmas” is always a “hilarious and exciting way to end the first half of the concert,” Meyer said.

The second half of the concert will feature the SFA Steel Band, also known as the “Jacks of Steel,” performing numerous traditional and contemporary steel band tunes culminating in the crowd favorite “Pan Christmas,” Meyer said.

“This concert is a great, annual tradition that gets the university and community ready for the upcoming winter break,” he said. “Audience members are welcome to sing, clap and dance along during the concert.”

For anyone who cannot attend in person, the concert will be streamed live at: www.music.sfasu.edu/stream.php

“Students and audience members are encouraged to wear ugly/tacky holiday sweaters to create a festive and fun ambiance,” Meyer said.

This concert is a joint presentation of the College of Fine Arts and School of Music.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

For more information about the SFA Percussion Studio, visit/subscribe/”like” their online presence at:

• Facebook: www.facebook.com/SFAPS

• Website: www.Brad-Meyer.com/sfa

• Twitter/Instagram/Vine/Tumbler/Pinterest: SFAPercStudio

The Wind Symphony and Symphonic Band at Stephen F. Austin State University will present a concert of British and American band classics at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec.1, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus.

“The Ties that Bind” is a program that includes the music of Malcolm Arnold, Clifton Williams, W. Francis McBeth and John Barnes Chance. The program will also feature “Thanksgiving Hymn,” arranged for band by SFA Director of Bands Fred J. Allen and conducted by graduate student Dwight Watson of Lavon.

The Symphonic Band, directed by Dr. Tamey Anglley, assistant director of bands at SFA, will open the concert with Arnold’s “Peterloo Overture,” arranged for concert band by Charles Sayre.

“Originally composed in 1967 for orchestra, Arnold captures the moments in 1819 when a gathering of Manchester political protestors was brutally quashed by the cavalry,” Anglley explained.

The Symphonic Band’s performance of “Thanksgiving Hymn,” which has been sung in American homes and churches for more than 200 years, will highlight the woodwind and brass choirs of the band, Anglley said.

The Symphonic Band will conclude its half of the concert with Arnold’s “Prelude, Siciliano and Rondo.” Arnold’s “Little Suite for Brass, op. 80” was arranged for band by John Paynter in 1979 and given the current title, according to Anglley.

“Paynter’s arrangement expands it to include woodwinds and additional percussion but faithfully retains the breezy effervescence of the original composition,” she said.

The Wind Symphony, directed by Dr. David Campo, associate director of bands at SFA, will open its half of the concert with Williams’ concert march “The Sinfonians,” commissioned by Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America. It was the first in a series of instrumental pieces to be commissioned by the Sinfonians and was dedicated to Archie N. Jones, former president of the fraternity and later director of that organization’s foundation, according to Campo.

“Williams conducted the first performance of ‘The Sinfonians’ at the fraternity’s national convention in Cincinnati, Ohio, in July 1960,” Campo said.

The Wind Symphony’s program continues with McBeth’s moving tribute to his teacher, Clifton Williams. Howard Dunn and the Richardson High School Band commissioned “Kaddish” in 1977, the year following Williams’ untimely death, Campo explained.

“Kaddish is the Jewish prayer for the dead, said by the bereaved each morning and evening for 11 months and then on the anniversary of the death thereafter,” he said.

The program concludes with music by Chance, another student of Williams. “Incantation and Dance” was premiered as “Nocturne and Dance” by Herbert Hazleman and the Greensboro High School Band in November 1960. The name was changed to more aptly reflect the mysterious character of the opening of the work, according to Campo.

The concert is a joint presentation of the College of Fine Arts and School of Music.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

The Wind Ensemble at Stephen F. Austin State University will present the program “British Masters” at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 23, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus.

“All the pieces are rooted in the English musical tradition,” said Fred J. Allen, director of bands and of the ensemble.

Two featured works are “Crown Imperial” by William Walton and “Four Scottish Dances” by Malcolm Arnold.

“Crown Imperial” was composed for both band and orchestra for the coronation of King Edward VIII, Allen explained.

“But after his abdication, it was used to crown his brother, George, as king in 1937,” he said. “It was used more recently as a recessional in the wedding of Kate Middleton to Prince William.”

Allen described Arnold’s compositions as “witty music.”

“His ‘Four Scottish Dances’ are enjoyable to hear and reflect his clever sense of orchestration,” he said.

The concert will also include two pieces by Percy Grainger and works by Edward Elgar and Kenneth J. Alford.

The recital is a joint presentation of the College of Fine Arts and School of Music.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

Students in an SFA 101 class recently orchestrated a mini-event, Business for Dummies, within Stephen F. Austin State University’s Nelson Rusche College of Business.

This free event featured four 30-minute workshops to help educate students on various topics, including networking, social media, business dress and degree/major opportunities. Approximately 50 students attended.

Chelsea Heidbrink, adviser within the Nelson Rusche College of Business, has been working with her SFA 101 class to prepare for this event since August.

“The SFA 101 students did a wonderful job. They received great experience from speaking in front of their peers and presenting in a more formalized setting,” Heidbrink said.

Heidbrink divided her class into three groups with each group having a specific task in the event planning.

“This was a neat event because the students planned the whole thing, and they were given grant money from the Center for Teaching and Learning to execute their plans,” Heidbrink said.

Two groups planned two sessions each, and one group was in charge of marketing promotions.

The grant allowed the class to work within a budget. The marketing promotions group built a marketing strategy to promote the event, which included fliers, posters and social media.

“This assignment allowed the class to explore different professional topics and collaborate with others within the college,” Heidbrink said. “Students now have a deeper understanding of the effects of marketing, event planning and acceptable practices in the business world.”

The networking workshop featured a question-and-answer format and open discussion with guest speaker Dr. Chris McKenna, SFA professor in the Department of Business Communication and Legal Studies. McKenna also served as the guest speaker in the degree/major opportunities workshop, and educated students on the many real-world opportunities available with their major.

Social media interns Holli Harrison and Tori Thurman offered insight about maintaining a professional and effective social media presence for professional branding in the social media workshop.

The group hosting the business dress workshop showcased a PowerPoint presentation outlining what is appropriate to wear in the professional business world. A question-and-answer session and fashion show followed the presentation.

Overall, Heidbrink believes this event provided students with a unique college perspective and helped hone their organization, communication and interpersonal skills.

“This gave students a different spin on developing college success and professional development skills,” Heidbrink said. “I am really proud of the students and the work they put in. It definitely paid off.”