“To stop the flow of music would be like the stopping of time itself, incredible and inconceivable.” – Aaron Copland
When David Fodor took to the conductor’s podium for the Wilmette Community Band’s April 23 rehearsal, he faced a crowded stage. Most of those tuning up on woodwinds and bright brass instruments in from of him were members of the band; others were young guest performers.
But Fodor and everyone on the Wilmette Junior High School stage would probably agree with Copland. They seemed to be on stage for the pure love of music, unwilling to stop its flow and dedicated to keep concert band melodies going.
In fact, Wilmette Community Band members played some of Copland’s music that night, as they prepared for their 2014-15 season-ending free spring concert, “Music Is For All Ages,” scheduled for 7:30 p.m. April 30 at WJHS, 620 Locust Road.
The concert theme was chosen carefully: Joining the band for the first time this year are almost two dozen students from the Wilmette Junior High symphonic band.
The young musicians will perform with their older counterparts for two pieces: a medley of famous music from John Williams film scores, called “A Young Person’s Guide to John Williams,” and a march, “Emblem of Unity,” by J.J. Richards.
In addition to the two concert finale pieces members will play with students, the band will perform several other pieces, including a narrated version of “Peter and the Wolf,” a favorite for families and youngsters, and the “Original Dixieland Concerto” in honor of Jazz Appreciation Month.
The Wilmette Community Band is 33 years old, and has operated with the mission of bringing concert instrumentalists together for the joy of playing music together. Fodor and Band President Jeff Urban say players range in age and ability, from former professional musicians to dedicated amateurs.
The group operates nearly all year with the help of donations and voluntary member fees, rehearsing every Thursday night, either at WJHS or space provided by St. Joseph’s Church or Trinity Lutheran Church.
Rehearsals are open to anyone who wants to play concert band music; the group performs two or three indoor and outdoor concerts a year, at Fourth of July parades, and Memorial Day ceremonies.
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To Urban, a trumpet-playing Evanstonian, the group is “a full service band” whose 40 regular members come to it with varying levels of abilities and from various disciplines, all because they love playing. For fellow trumpet player James Swinger of Wilmette, playing in the band is a privilege, allowing him to pick up an instrument he first played in grade school.
Trombonist Doug Gillespie of Chicago not only loves playing, he enjoys the socializing that comes with being in the band, he said as he packed up.
Oboe player Pat Mihalec of Chicago has been a musician for 30 years, switching from flute to oboe.
“I’ve been playing since I was 9, and I just get a lot of enjoyment from it,” she said.
Glencoe resident Priscilla Sperling, a relative newcomer with the band, plays flute. She returned to the instrument, which she’d played as a child, once her own children were in college, and it was clear that she was having fun as a band member.
“At the beginning I was totally lost, but it’s all come back to me. I love it,” she said.
“To play in an ensemble, it adds to the musical experience,” Fodor said before rehearsal. The former band director at Evanston Township High School has directed the community band since February of 2014, He lauded music in general as a wonderful way to keep mind and spirit flexible – and band music in particular as a great way of doing so.
“I tell people that performing music is a full spectrum experience,” he said.
Kimberly Farris, the 22-year music education veteran who directs the Wilmette Junior High School symphonic band, has known Fodor professionally for some time. She was delighted when discussions between them roughly a year ago gave them the ability to work together on the project.
“We wanted kids to understand that (band class) is not the end of music in their lives,” she said April 27. “Most will not go into music professionally, but we wanted them to understand that music can be a lifelong joy for them.”
Roughly 125 students in the WJHS band program get their grounding in music appreciation by participating in either its concert ensemble or the more advanced symphonic band.
After talking to Fodor, Farris nominated about 25 members of her symphonic band, which includes students from WJHS and Marie Murphy Middle School in neighboring Avoca School District 37, to consider taking part in the April 30 concert.
She expected a handful of students to respond to her, and was delighted that 18 students eventually asked to become involved. After Fodor mailed her the music just before this year’s spring break, Farris practiced the two pieces with her students, but the April 23 practice was their first time with the adult band.
“The kids were pretty excited about it, and I think it went beautifully,” she said.
On rehearsal night, Fodor didn’t differentiate between his new temporary band members and the community band players among whom they sat. He ran them through sections of music that needed extra work, joked about the fine art of clashing cymbals with a young percussionist, and likened one section of the John Williams piece to a cartoon.
When the students left, Fodor and the community band went over their own pieces with the same good-natured intensity with which they’d started the evening. By the end of the night, Fodor nodded his head in satisfaction.
“Having a musical conversation with 40 people is something on another level,” he said, smiling. “There’s something about joining in that community of players that empowers you in a whole different way.”
For more information on the Wilmette Community Band, visit http://www.wilmetteband.org.
Twitter: @pioneer_kathy
Melodic mix
What: Free April 30 band concert
When: 7:30 p.m., Wilmette Junior High School, 620 Locust Road
Participants: Wilmette Community Band
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Guest players: WJHS symphonic band members
Community band info: http://www.wilmetteband.org