Dana School of Music to mark 150 years with gala concert

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

To celebrate its 150th anniversary, the Dana School of Music at Youngstown State University will present a gala concert at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Stambaugh Auditorium.

Tickets are $11 ($6 for senior citizens and students; and free for anyone with a valid YSU ID) and are available in advance at stambaughauditorium.com or by calling 330-259-0555. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

The concert will display the diverse musical talent at the Dana School of Music with performances by numerous choral and instrumental ensembles.

“We are celebrating the past, present and future of Dana, with works from the 19th century by Dana alumnus Roland Seitz up to our current composition students,” said Randall Goldberg, director of the Dana. “Selections on the program highlight the breadth of Dana faculty and student scholarship and virtuosity and our new collaborative initiatives. It’s going to be an amazing night of music.”

Included in the lineup is Voices of YSU, directed by Daniel Keown, which will perform Rahman’s Balleilakka, collaborating with YSU’s Dance Ensemble, under the direction of Amy A. Wright.

Jazz Ensemble 1, directed by Kent Engelhardt, will perform selections composed by Tadd Dameron while Omphalo Centric Lecture by Nigel Westlake is the featured piece by the YSU Percussion Ensemble, directed by Glenn Schaft.

YSU Wind Ensemble’s performance of Helix for Alto Saxophone & Chamber Octet by Jan Bach, conducted by Stephen Gage, will highlight soloist James Umble, saxophone, a member of the Dana School of Music faculty.

Roland Seitz’s March Grandioso will be performed by the YSU Concert Band, directed by Dr. Brandt Payne.

The Dana Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Gage will perform Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Higdon’s popular Blue Cathedral.