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Red Wing-based brass band to perform Monday at St. Olaf in free public concert

By David Gonnerman
March 27, 2003

The Sheldon Theatre Brass Band, under the direction of James Kurschner, will perform at St. Olaf College on Monday, March 31, at 7:30 p.m. The concert, in Urness Recital Hall, is free and open to the public.

The award-winning group from Red Wing will be in top form as they play their final concert before departing for the North American Brass Band Association (NABBA) Championships next month in Little Rock, Ark.

The program will include a variety of music drawn mostly from the British brass band repertoire: "The Melody Shop" by Carl King, "Hymn for Diana" written in memory of Princess Diana, "Song of the Cossacks," some Celtic music and the two contest pieces the band will play in Arkansas.

Conductor Kurschner calls "Variations on a Theme by Thomas Tallis" by contemporary composer Phillip Sparke "a beautiful piece of music." The second contest piece is "The Undaunted," a tone poem by Eric Ball.

The band performs annually at the NABBA championships. They won the Honors Division in Washington, D.C., 10 years ago.

Members of the band are professionals and serious amateurs from southeast Minnesota, including trombonist Doug Rowe, systems specialist at Classical 89.3, the public radio service of St. Olaf College.

"This group demonstrates a tremendous community effort," says Kurschner. "Members are men and women of all ages and from all walks of life." They include band conductors and teachers from regional schools, and Twin Cities and Red Wing professionals.

St. Olaf music faculty member Paul Niemisto adds that with strong public school music programs, several colleges and professional and semi-professional music-making groups, southeast Minnesota is a good region for music making. "This band has a good pool of brass-playing talent. There is also a solid audience base."

Kurschner, currently in his second year on the music faculty at Normandale Community College in Bloomington, explains that the British-model brass band has a unique sound. Instrumentation is restricted to cornets, a flugelhorn, tenor horns, baritones, euphoniums, trombones, tubas, and percussion.

"Because we use only conical instruments -- cornets instead of trumpets, for example -- our sound is darker and richer than the concert band sound familiar to most people," he says.

In addition to conducting, Kurschner is an accomplished pianist and saxophonist. Originally from Wisconsin, he was excited for the opportunity to return to the Midwest after teaching in Utah for 10 years. The British band "movement" was new to him. "I've had a lot of fun finding out about British band literature," he said.

St. Olaf College, a national leader among liberal arts institutions, fosters the development of mind, body and spirit. It is a residential college in Northfield, Minn., and affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The college provides personalized instruction and diverse learning environments, with nearly two-thirds of its students participating in international studies.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.