The first-ever reunion of graduates of the Ithaca College Band or Wind Ensemble will culminate in a free concert on Saturday, June 19. About 180 School of Music alumni will present a program conducted by the seven living conductors of the bands and wind ensemble. The performance will begin at 8 p.m. in Ford Hall in the James J. Whalen Center for Music.
“The alumni and families of any and all years have been invited back to campus to reconnect with former classmates,” said Mark Fonder, professor of music education and one of the reunion organizers. “The event will also give returning alums a chance to come together and perform music that has a special place in their lives.”
Though Ithaca College was founded as a music conservatory in 1892, the first band didn’t appear until 1922. In that year, the Patrick Conway Military Band School affiliated itself with the Ithaca Conservatory of Music and began educating band musicians and conductors. Among the institution’s graduates were Colonel George Howard, the first conductor of the U.S. Air Force Band; bandleader Les Brown, from Band of Renowned fame; Craig McHenry, longtime dean of the Ithaca College School of Music; and Walter Beeler, who conducted the Ithaca College Concert Band for more than three decades and established its national reputation as an outstanding performance ensemble.
After Beeler retired, he was succeeded by a number of influential conductors who maintained the tradition of musical excellence. Several of those forward-looking musicians — including Edward Gobrecht, Jack Bullock, Frank Battisti, Rodney Winther and Henry Neubert — will return to campus as guest conductors for the June 19 performance.
The Ithaca College Band and Wind Ensemble Reunion will take place on the college campus Friday and Saturday, June 18 and 19. For more information, visit www.ithaca.edu/music/ensembles/windensemble/reunion/. A short but detailed history of bands at Ithaca College is available at https://www.ithaca.edu/music/ensembles/windensemble/bandhistory/.
Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodation should contact the School of Music at 607-274-3717 (voice), the Office of Equal Opportunity Compliance at 607-274-3909 (voice), or 607-274-1767 (TDD) as much in advance of the event as possible.
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20100614134209393