MCC Band joins Valley musicians for elaborate night of music
A musical ensemble at the Mesa Community College’s Performing Arts Center brought together the college’s own Community Band and the Concert Band and Community Orchestra to showcase a performance entitled “Odds & Ends,” on Feb. 27.
The performance highlighted the diverse musical talents of MCC students and Valley musicians.
“What started as a Harkins Theater on Longmore just north of the U.S. Route 60 has transformed into a booming venue for what is one of the largest music departments at a community college in the nation,” said Sue Anne Lucius, former MCC music department chair who retired in 2020.
The concert within the PAC featured a diverse array of works for the band and orchestra, each without a common theme. The MCC Community Band opened the show with a stirring performance of J.P. Sousa’s march, “Hands Across the Sea,” followed by “A Longford Legend,” a collection of Irish Street Ballads. The band concluded their set with Alfred Reed’s lesser-known piece, “Alleluia! Laudamus Te.”
Following them, the MCC Concert Band commenced with the first movement of Richard Strauss’ “Concerto No. 1 for French Horn,” arranged for Symphonic Band, featuring MCC student Cole Evans on the french horn.
The band then showcased “Sailing with Whales” by Rossano Gallante, a piece that took the audience on a journey alongside the sounds of a real Orca Whale. Howard Hanson’s “Love Duet” from Merry Mount Suite followed, showcasing the band’s mastery of rich soundscapes.
The Concert Band wrapped up their performance with Karl L. King’s classic, “Barnum and Bailey’s Favorite.”
The evening continued with the MCC Community Orchestra, performing the Overture from Otto Nicolai’s opera, “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” and the Concerto for Alto Trombone and Orchestra, featuring MCC student Chanson Peck.
The orchestra also premiered the second movement of a new work by MCC student trumpet player and composer, Jacob Bozicevic, titled “An American Tapestry.”
The event reached its conclusion with the orchestra’s performance of the Berceuse and Finale from Igor Stravinsky’s classic “Firebird Suite.”
Correction: This article was updated to fix a quote in the third paragraph that was not in quotations, and to clarify that Sue Anne Lucius retired in 2020
