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03.13.06

Contact: Nancy Condon, 404-727-1687, ncondon@emory.edu

The Prairie Winds Blows Into the Schwartz Center

On Thursday, April 6, 2006 (8 p.m.), the wind quintet Prairie Winds will blow the audience away at Emory’s Schwartz Center for Performing Arts with some of the finest wind quintet literature in concert programs. The Emory program begins with an arrangement of Copland's Variations on "Simple Gifts" from the ballet "Appalachian Spring," followed by " Quintet No. 2" by 20th-century composer David Maslanka. The program also includes 18 th-century Hungarian dances, a selection of works from Paquito D’Rivera and Leonard Bernstein’s Suite from West Side Story. Tickets are $10, $5 for discount category members, free for Emory and non-Emory students. Following the concert is a meet-the-artist dessert reception for ticketholders. Earlier in the day of the performance, as Emory Coca-Cola Artists-in-Residence, Prairie Winds musicians will hold a “Perspectives on Performance” lecture/demonstration for Emory students. The public is welcome to observe.

Founded in 1996, the Chicago-based Prairie Winds blends powerful musical technique with humor and intriguing background information — which the members talk to the audience about from the stage — to create what one critic called "a unique approach to the shaping of the concert experience (that) is sure to keep them in demand" (Tryon Daily Bulletin). The ensemble, considered by many to be North America's foremost wind quintet, is comprised of Jonathan Keeble, flute; Ariana Ghez, oboe; Susan Warner, clarinet; David Griffin, horn; and Timothy McGovern, bassoon. Known for their entertaining concerts, the Prairie Winds performs classic quintet repertoire and new music, and spotlights individual members of the group.

Since their debut in 1996 at the historic Unity Temple in Chicago’s Oak Park community, the Prairie Winds have performed throughout the United States and at a number of celebrated music festivals, including the Ravinia Festival, the Juneau Jazz and Classics Festival, Chamber Music America's Education and Residency Institute and the Britt Festival in Oregon, where they were quintet-in-residence for four years. In July 2005 the Prairie Winds premiered Darius Milhaud’s score from “Calvalcade d’Amour” (1939) as a multimedia presentation combining live music with film. The quintet also has an active radio presence. Recent broadcasts include full-length concerts for Chicago’s WFMT “Live from Studio One” program and for listeners of Minnesota Public Radio.

The Prairie Winds members have active musical careers outside the group. Warner is a member of the Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra and also has played with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CS0). McGovern, now principal bassoonist with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, has performed with many orchestras, including the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, where he met Griffin. Griffin is currently a member of the CSO and has in the past served as acting principal of its renowned horn section at the request of Music Director Daniel Barenboim. Ghez, formerly principal oboe of the Santa Fe Opera (2005), joined the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra as principal oboist at the beginning of this season. Flutist Keeble is a regular in concert series throughout North America; his concerto appearances have taken him to venues in North America, South America and Europe, performing works by Mozart, Nielsen, Bach, Vivaldi, Gordeli, Chaminade, Martin and Rodrigo.

For more information about the Prairie Winds, go to www.prairiewinds.org.

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