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Boston Brass Swings into Keene

KEENE, N.H. 10/21/02 Considered by many critics to be North Americas freshest and most exciting new brass ensemble, the award-winning Boston Brass will swing into Keene for an evening of classical and jazz favorites. Winners of the 1992 International Brass Quintet Competition in Narbonne, France, the Boston Brass will perform at Keene State Colleges Redfern Arts Center on Brickyard Pond on Wednesday, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m.

The public is also invited to attend a free lecture demonstration with the ensemble at on the same day 1:30 p.m. in the Alumni Recital Hall of the Arts Center. Those attending the class from off campus will need to park in the KSC visitors lot on Wyman Way. The lecture demonstration and concert are made possible through a corporate sponsorship from Markem Corporation.

Tickets for the concert are available at the Arts Centers box office at 603-358-2168 or on the web at www.keene.edu/racbp. Prices are $15 for the general public, $13 for seniors and KSC faculty and staff, $7 for youth 17 or younger, and $5 for KSC students with ID.

The five members of Boston Brass have been characterized as brash because of the lively repartee they engage in between numbers. Their running commentaries are touched with a humor that bridges the gulf between classical formality and boisterous fun. They have even been known to indulge in some clever five-part harmonies.

The works that will be heard during the evening program will showcase the ensembles versatility. Among the classical works that will be heard are Franz Liszts Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2., Antonin Dvoraks Largo from the New World Symphony, and Aram Khatchaturians Suite from the Gayaneh Ballet. Jazz will also be featured in the concert with arrangements of Josef Kosmas Autumn Leaves, David Raksins Laura, Duke Ellingtons Caravan, and Sid Wyches Alright, OK, You Win, among others.

Boston Brass performs over 120 concerts annually at concert halls and jazz festivals in such cities as New York, Portland, Seattle, Philadelphia, Detroit, Dallas, San Antonio, Minneapolis, Sacramento, and Los Angeles. They have conducted master classes at colleges and universities around the country including the University of Connecticut, Syracuse University, the University of North Carolina, the University of North Texas, Boston College, Northwestern College, and Notre Dame. Boston Brass has also conducted clinics and concerts at regional and national educational conferences in New York, Massachusetts, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and Texas.

They have been featured on National Public Radios Performance Today and have recorded several albums. Two of these albums appear on the Summit Records label: Stealing the Show and Young Fogeys, a collage of jazz and swing favorites. Their latest release, Out of this World, on Loft Records, features heroic music for brass and organ.

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