LEARN MORE ABOUT WINDSYNC
The 2017-2018 season sees WindSync at its busiest yet, with 45 tour stops scheduled across the United States. This includes 10 performance residencies, unique partnerships with venues including the National Wildlife Museum of Art, Berkeley Chamber Performances, and String Theory at the Hunter Museum of American Art to not just present concerts but also enliven community spaces and educate youth.
In 2018, we aim to deepen relationships with presenters to sustain the impact of our work. WindSync has been designated an ensemble in residence at Adelphi University through 2019 and continues to build on 5 years as ensemble in residence at the Chamber Music Festival of Lexington (KY). In the coming year, we look forward to residency presentations by the Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival and New Orleans Friends of Chamber Music.
Your contribution supports our rehearsal time and space, music purchase and study, arranging costs, and of course, the hundreds of reeds that keep us sounding our best and pushing the limits of wind performance. The end result is a world class audience experience and an intimate, expertly curated performance.
In 2018, we aim to deepen relationships with presenters to sustain the impact of our work. WindSync has been designated an ensemble in residence at Adelphi University through 2019 and continues to build on 5 years as ensemble in residence at the Chamber Music Festival of Lexington (KY). In the coming year, we look forward to residency presentations by the Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival and New Orleans Friends of Chamber Music.
Your contribution supports our rehearsal time and space, music purchase and study, arranging costs, and of course, the hundreds of reeds that keep us sounding our best and pushing the limits of wind performance. The end result is a world class audience experience and an intimate, expertly curated performance.
Music is social glue. WindSync thrives on collaboration, teaming up with organizations in Houston and across the country from a variety of disciplines including dance, visual art, music education, city government, and local business. We believe in these projects as part of our artistic growth and contribution to the community.
In 2017, we found ourselves lucky to share the stage with great chamber musicians from across the United States, including Houston-based string collective Kinetic Ensemble, chamber singers of International Voices Houston, Daedalus Quartet, and soprano Katherine Whyte. We learned choreography by Kelly Ann Vitacca and Phillip Broomhead and presented our winter holiday concert “Simple Gifts” with dancers from Vitacca Vocational School for Dance at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts. Other notable collaborators include artist Jerome Ford, poet Alex Johnson, and space scientist Paul Schenk.
Inspired by the vitality of Sistema-inspired youth orchestras, we joined forces with students at MusicWorks of Lexington, KY and the Coda Music Program of the Houston Youth Symphony to perform Mark Buller’s “The Town Musicians of Bremen,” a piece for wind quintet, elementary school orchestra, and narrator.
In 2018, our Onstage Offstage Chamber Music Festival returns, and WindSync will again feature young musicians of the Houston Youth Symphony, including outstanding pre-college instrumentalists who are studying chamber music for the first time. On stage, we will trade guest appearances with Apollo Chamber Players, and we will host Austin percussionist Ivan Trevino for a world premiere.
In 2017, we found ourselves lucky to share the stage with great chamber musicians from across the United States, including Houston-based string collective Kinetic Ensemble, chamber singers of International Voices Houston, Daedalus Quartet, and soprano Katherine Whyte. We learned choreography by Kelly Ann Vitacca and Phillip Broomhead and presented our winter holiday concert “Simple Gifts” with dancers from Vitacca Vocational School for Dance at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts. Other notable collaborators include artist Jerome Ford, poet Alex Johnson, and space scientist Paul Schenk.
Inspired by the vitality of Sistema-inspired youth orchestras, we joined forces with students at MusicWorks of Lexington, KY and the Coda Music Program of the Houston Youth Symphony to perform Mark Buller’s “The Town Musicians of Bremen,” a piece for wind quintet, elementary school orchestra, and narrator.
In 2018, our Onstage Offstage Chamber Music Festival returns, and WindSync will again feature young musicians of the Houston Youth Symphony, including outstanding pre-college instrumentalists who are studying chamber music for the first time. On stage, we will trade guest appearances with Apollo Chamber Players, and we will host Austin percussionist Ivan Trevino for a world premiere.
In 2017, WindSync raised the bar for quintet programming by developing integrated concert experiences. Voyager added depth to space-themed music with immersive multimedia and a guest speaker from the Lunar and Planetary Institute, and Simple Gifts gave the holiday show a fresh twist with choreographed transitions between quintet, chorus, and dancers. Committed to supporting the music of here and now, we featured works by living American composers Mark Buller, Adam Schoenberg, and Miguel del Aguila.
As our 10th anniversary season approaches, we are excited to announce the commissioning of two new works that will amplify voices representative of our world and move the repertoire for wind quintet forward. It is only through your generous support that we can take on these enormous endeavors.
Marc Mellits: New work inspired by the 50th anniversary of the moon landing
Marc says, "I am very excited to have the potential to write a new wind quintet for WindSync. My fascination with the cosmos and with NASA will provide the inspiration for the composition. As we approach the 50th anniversary of NASA's first manned moon landing, I wish to commemorate this monumental event with music that finds inspiration from our moon, the stars, and the universe. I am envisioning the new composition to be multi-movement, with each movement relating to the others much like short movements of a baroque suite."
Ivan Trevino: Song Book, Vol. 3
Austin percussionist Ivan Trevino will write a new work for amplified wind quintet and multi percussion, and he will join us for the premiere in a collaborative concert. Each short movement will feature a different timbral mix of percussion plus winds—completely new sounds for the wind quintet. Amplification will allow us to take the piece to “untraditional” venues without worrying about acoustic challenges. We are so looking forward to this cross-Texas collaboration with one of the big names in the percussion world!
As our 10th anniversary season approaches, we are excited to announce the commissioning of two new works that will amplify voices representative of our world and move the repertoire for wind quintet forward. It is only through your generous support that we can take on these enormous endeavors.
Marc Mellits: New work inspired by the 50th anniversary of the moon landing
Marc says, "I am very excited to have the potential to write a new wind quintet for WindSync. My fascination with the cosmos and with NASA will provide the inspiration for the composition. As we approach the 50th anniversary of NASA's first manned moon landing, I wish to commemorate this monumental event with music that finds inspiration from our moon, the stars, and the universe. I am envisioning the new composition to be multi-movement, with each movement relating to the others much like short movements of a baroque suite."
Ivan Trevino: Song Book, Vol. 3
Austin percussionist Ivan Trevino will write a new work for amplified wind quintet and multi percussion, and he will join us for the premiere in a collaborative concert. Each short movement will feature a different timbral mix of percussion plus winds—completely new sounds for the wind quintet. Amplification will allow us to take the piece to “untraditional” venues without worrying about acoustic challenges. We are so looking forward to this cross-Texas collaboration with one of the big names in the percussion world!
To date this season, WindSync has performed for over 7,000 audience members at home in Houston and on tour. Approximately 60% of these audience members have experienced WindSync in free public concerts or educational programs in schools and community centers.
WindSync aims to leave students engaged, connecting music to curricular objectives, real world applications, or new modes of thinking. Highlights of 2017 educational programming have included performing our costumed, choreographed "Peter and the Wolf" for K-3 students at 24 schools around the country, two sensory friendly concerts at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts, and the Sound Places residency in Opelousas, Louisiana, which led to collaborative performances with student ensembles and the creation of visual art, stories, and poetry.
In 2018, WindSync will visit schools in 30 cities to introduce wind instruments to elementary students and to present interactive workshops for middle and high school bands. Committed to accessibility, we offer these services at rates that allow for the greatest impact but that do not cover all our expenses. Your support helps us bridge the gap to serve this critical generation.
WindSync aims to leave students engaged, connecting music to curricular objectives, real world applications, or new modes of thinking. Highlights of 2017 educational programming have included performing our costumed, choreographed "Peter and the Wolf" for K-3 students at 24 schools around the country, two sensory friendly concerts at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts, and the Sound Places residency in Opelousas, Louisiana, which led to collaborative performances with student ensembles and the creation of visual art, stories, and poetry.
In 2018, WindSync will visit schools in 30 cities to introduce wind instruments to elementary students and to present interactive workshops for middle and high school bands. Committed to accessibility, we offer these services at rates that allow for the greatest impact but that do not cover all our expenses. Your support helps us bridge the gap to serve this critical generation.
WindSync’s advantage as a nimble acoustic ensemble is that we provide audiences with the opportunity to experience live music in their own neighborhoods. Our goals as an ensemble align with those of many communities--improving livability, galvanizing engagement, and addressing the needs of a particular time and place.
In 2017, we launched a new and unconventional concert series for Houston. The Onstage Offstage Chamber Music Festival includes partnerships with local organizations including the Houston Youth Symphony, Hobby Center, Center for Performing Arts Medicine, Archway Gallery, and Young Audiences of Houston to explore the breadth of WindSync’s work in the community. Houston-based conductorless ensemble KINETIC was featured as the first guest artist.
Continuing in 2018, Onstage Offstage Chamber Music Festival is dedicated to making extraordinary chamber music accessible to new audiences in both concert halls and in non-traditional spaces. Programming includes a concert at Midtown Arts and Theater Center Houston, jam sessions with music students in three elementary schools in Houston’s Near Northside neighborhood, concerts at Houston Methodist Hospital, and several interactive pop up concerts in Houston’s outdoor spaces.
This year WindSync is one of two pilot ensembles of the Sound Places program, a joint effort of Chamber Music America and the Project for Public Spaces to assist Louisiana cultural districts in their community building goals. We enjoyed four visits to the city of Opelousas, where we undertook a year-long educational project at South Street Elementary School, Southwest Elementary School, and J.S. Clark Academy, assisted with producing events to energize the city library, courthouse square, and Vieux Village historic site, and engaged in Project for Public Spaces workshops to imagine a better Opelousas.
In 2017 WindSync partnered with presenters in Anchorage, AK, Skaneateles, NY, and Lexington, KY to activate public spaces through pop up style concerts. The venues have included museums, markets, green spaces, and public squares. We look forward to continuing this work in cities throughout the United States in 2018, and your support helps us deepen and broaden our efforts.
In 2017, we launched a new and unconventional concert series for Houston. The Onstage Offstage Chamber Music Festival includes partnerships with local organizations including the Houston Youth Symphony, Hobby Center, Center for Performing Arts Medicine, Archway Gallery, and Young Audiences of Houston to explore the breadth of WindSync’s work in the community. Houston-based conductorless ensemble KINETIC was featured as the first guest artist.
Continuing in 2018, Onstage Offstage Chamber Music Festival is dedicated to making extraordinary chamber music accessible to new audiences in both concert halls and in non-traditional spaces. Programming includes a concert at Midtown Arts and Theater Center Houston, jam sessions with music students in three elementary schools in Houston’s Near Northside neighborhood, concerts at Houston Methodist Hospital, and several interactive pop up concerts in Houston’s outdoor spaces.
This year WindSync is one of two pilot ensembles of the Sound Places program, a joint effort of Chamber Music America and the Project for Public Spaces to assist Louisiana cultural districts in their community building goals. We enjoyed four visits to the city of Opelousas, where we undertook a year-long educational project at South Street Elementary School, Southwest Elementary School, and J.S. Clark Academy, assisted with producing events to energize the city library, courthouse square, and Vieux Village historic site, and engaged in Project for Public Spaces workshops to imagine a better Opelousas.
In 2017 WindSync partnered with presenters in Anchorage, AK, Skaneateles, NY, and Lexington, KY to activate public spaces through pop up style concerts. The venues have included museums, markets, green spaces, and public squares. We look forward to continuing this work in cities throughout the United States in 2018, and your support helps us deepen and broaden our efforts.
2018 SUSTAINING SUPPORT
You can make a difference with a tax-deductible contribution today!
Mailing Address:
220 Westmoreland
Houston, TX 77006
Tax-deductible donations by check made out to "WindSync".
220 Westmoreland
Houston, TX 77006
Tax-deductible donations by check made out to "WindSync".
WindSync is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a mission to enrich the lives of children, families, and all members of the community through innovative, interactive chamber music concerts and educational programs. Your support makes a huge difference.