The Carleton College Symphony Band will present “Of Sailors and Whales,” a performance designed to pay tribute to ships and those who sail them, on Friday, Oct. 26 at 8 p.m. in the Concert Hall. This event is free and open to the public.
The concert will feature pieces by American composer John Williams (best known for his many film scores) and Danish composer Carl Nielsen to commemorate the sinking of the Titanic, which took place 100 years ago this year. The symphony band will also play pieces evocative of sailing the high seas by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Richard Wagner, Vaughan Williams and other composers.
The centerpiece of the concert will be a performance of “Of Sailors and Whales,” a piece by W. Francis McBeth, a popular and prolific American composer who died earlier this year. The piece, published in 1990, is divided into four parts focusing on different characters from Herman Melville’s novel “Moby-Dick” (“Ishmael,” “Queequeg,” “Father Mapple,” “Ahab,” and “The White Whale”). The piece includes excerpts from the book itself, which will be read by Carleton English and environmental studies professor Michael Kowalewski and Professor of English Emeritus Jim McDonnell.
The symphony band, directed by Carleton professor of music Ron Rodman, focuses on band and wind ensemble pieces as well as orchestral transcriptions. Students are selected for the band through auditions. The band performs once each term as well as at Commencement at the end of each year.
For more information about this event, including disability accommodations, contact the Carleton College Department of Music at (507) 222-4347. The Carleton College Concert Hall is located on Winona Street South in Northfield.
