A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass, and percussion families of instruments, and occasionally including the harp, double bass, or bass guitar. On rare occasions, additional, non-traditional instruments may be added to such ensembles such as piano, synthesizer, or electric guitar.
The Midwest Clinic International Band and Orchestra Conference is the world's largest instrumental music education conference, annually drawing approximately 17,000 attendees to Chicago from all 50 states and as many as forty countries. It is held every December in downtown Chicago. As a non-profit organization, the Midwest Clinic exists exclusively for educational purposes: to raise the standards of music education; to improve the methods employed in music education; to develop new teaching techniques; to disseminate to school music teachers, directors, supervisors, and others interested in music education information to assist in their professional work; to examine, analyze and appraise literature dealing with music; to hold clinics, lectures and demonstrations for the betterment of music education; and in general, to assist teachers and others interested in music education in better pursuing their profession.
The BBC Big Band, originally known as the BBC Radio Big Band is a British big band, previously run under the auspices of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The band broadcasts exclusively on BBC Radio, particularly on BBC Radio 2's long-running series Big Band Special. It consists of professional musicians and is directed by a number of conductors. These include arranger and composer Barry Forgie, who has been the band's Musical Director since 1977, American jazz trombonist Jiggs Whigham, and guest musical directors.
The Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra is a professional concert band based in Tokyo, Japan. TKWO has been called Japan's premiere wind ensemble, one of the most influential Japanese wind bands, and one of the world's leading professional civilian wind bands.
The Philharmonic Wind Orchestra is a Singaporean semi-professional wind orchestra. The orchestra was formed in 2000 with Robert Casteels as Music Director and currently has more than 70 members. It is currently under the artistic leadership of Music Director Leonard Tan.
The Cal Poly Mustang Band, also known as The Pride of the Pacific, is the official marching band of California Polytechnic State University in the city of San Luis Obispo, California. Although the band is not a competitive marching band they serve as a school spirit organization. The band functions in two different forms throughout the year. In the fall the band marches as The Mustang Marching Band and during Cal Poly's winter quarter they function as a pep band. The band attends many athletic events during the year to encourage the school's athletic teams and audience support/involvement. The marching band is well-known around campus as an exciting and spirited group that brings pep, passion, and tradition to every performance. The marching band is conducted by three directors: Christopher J. Woodruff, Nicholas P. Waldron, and Len Kawamoto.
Dr. Glenn D. Price is a Canadian conductor who is the Director of Performing and Visual Arts at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), where he currently conducts the Symphony Orchestra and Wind Orchestra. He was formerly the Director of Wind Studies at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
The North Cheshire Wind Orchestra (NCWO) is a symphonic wind orchestra based in Warrington, England.
Yasuhide Ito is a contemporary Japanese composer.
Now defunct, The National Youth Wind Ensemble of Great Britain (NYWE) was regarded as one of the top youth wind groups in Europe, and hailed by Timothy Reynish as "one of the best wind groups in the world.".
The Pacific Symphonic Wind Ensemble is a Canadian wind band from the Metro Vancouver area in British Columbia. The ensemble's home venue is the Evergreen Cultural Centre in Coquitlam.
Scott Boerma is a composer of contemporary classical music, an arranger of music for marching ensembles, and the Director of Bands at Western Michigan University.
Michael Collie is a British television and radio presenter who appears on BBC News. He is also a former presenter of the weekly politics programme, the Politics Show, in addition to his work presenting BBC Midlands Today, produced by the BBC's West Midlands region.
Loris Ohannes Chobanian was an American-Armenian composer of classical music, conductor, and guitar and lute teacher and performer. He served as Professor of Composition as well as Composer-in-Residence at Baldwin-Wallace College Conservatory.
Boris Pigovat is an Israeli composer. Many of his works have been performed throughout the world. He studied at Gnessin Music Institute in Moscow. Between 1978 and 1990 he lived in Tajikistan, and immigrated to Israel in 1990. In 2002 he received his Ph.D. degree from Bar-Ilan UniversityArchived 2007-05-09 at the Wayback Machine (Israel).
Charles Rochester Young (1965) is an American composer, music educator, conductor and saxophonist.
The InterSchool Orchestras of New York (ISO) was founded in 1972 by Annabelle F. Prager as a response to the limited opportunities for school children in both public and private schools to play in an orchestra. It has since grown to include three beginning orchestras, an intermediate band, two intermediate orchestras, a symphonic band, and an advanced orchestra. An essential part of its mission is that no child ever be turned away because of lack of financial resources; 50% of its students receive some financial aid, including all members of the top orchestra. Its music director for much of its history was the late Jonathan Strasser.
The Brooklyn Wind Symphony (BKWS) is a community band based in Brooklyn, New York.
Kelly Tang is a Singaporean composer known internationally for his wind band, chamber and orchestral works. For his contributions to the local music scene, Tang was conferred the Cultural Medallion in 2011.
Peterloo, Op. 97, is a concert overture by Malcolm Arnold written in 1968 to commemorate the centenary of the first meeting of the Trades Union Congress. It is a programme piece which depicts the Peterloo Massacre of 1819. It was given a mixed reception by critics, but has nevertheless become one of Arnold's best-known works, being arranged several times for wind or brass band, recorded many times, and played twice at the Proms, once in its original form and once in a choral arrangement to words by Sir Tim Rice.
