Metropolitan Wind Symphony Annual Report for FY 2007
The mission of the Metropolitan Wind Symphony is to foster the musical education and enjoyment of the public by providing musical performing experiences for talented and interested members of the community, programs for the performance of serious and contemporary wind music, and a channel for the commission and presentation of new musical works.
In 2007 the MWS continued to make a significant contribution to the cultural life of the Greater Boston community by providing its members with opportunities for musical growth and its audiences with concerts of high quality. The MWS presented five formal performances of traditional and contemporary wind band literature as well as five outdoor concerts featuring lighter repertoire. Two newly commissioned works were premiered, including The Guide by Noah Taylor, winner of the MWS 2005 North American Student Composer Competition, and Carefree Cacophony by high school student, Jesse Brault, which premiered at the 19th Annual Boston Festival of Bands at historic Faneuil Hall in June 2007.
Our 36th season featured three finalists for the position of MWS Music Director and Conductor who each rehearsed and conducted the MWS in a regular season performance. Finalists included Lewis J. Buckley, former Director of the U.S. Coast Guard Band- the Fall Concert; Mark Olson, Assistant Director of the Harvard Wind Ensemble- the Winter Concert and Continuum 2007; and Rob Franzblau, Director of Bands at Rhode Island College- the Spring Concert. At the end of the season Lewis J. Buckley was selected to be our next Music Director and Conductor. He will begin his tenure in September 2007.
Our educational outreach concert, Continuum 2007, was a tremendous success. We thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with the talented students of the Lexington High School Wind Ensemble, directed by Jeff Leonard and the Harvard University Wind Ensemble, co-directed by Tom Everett and Mark Olson.
James O’Dell, Acting MWS Music Director, conducted the 19th annual Boston Festival of Bands, hosted by the MWS and attended by over 2600 people. Performing in the Festival were seven bands from throughout the New England area: Charles River Wind Ensemble, Boston, MA; Sharon Community Band, Sharon, MA; Concord Band, Concord, MA; Upper Valley Community Band, White River Junction, VT; Casco Bay Concert Band, South Portland, ME; Air Force Band of Liberty, Hanscom AFB, MA; and the MWS.
The Outdoor season was also conducted by James O’Dell where we were thrilled to once again partner with the National Heritage Museum and the Scottish Rite Masons for a series of four concerts held on the museum grounds. These concerts were attended by over 1300 people and were all free of charge. We also performed at the annual Independence Day Concert and Fireworks celebration in Devens, MA which attracted over 10,000 enthusiastic audience members.
In an effort to encourage talented students to pursue music as a profession, the MWS gives a scholarship each year to a deserving high school senior who has chosen to major in music in college. This year we chose to recognize two very talented students:
Zach Nestel-Patt is an active participant in the rich variety of music performance opportunities offered through the Lexington school system and throughout the greater Boston area. He has been accepted into the jazz and classical double degree program in the College of Music at Michigan State University and will study under the direction of jazz bassist Rodney Whitaker and the acclaimed classical instructor Jack Budrow.
Our second recipient came from within our MWS family. Dan Byer has the distinction of being the youngest full-time member in MWS history, joining our percussion section in 2005 as a junior in high school. Dan is an active participant in the Mendon High School Concert Band, Jazz Band and Percussion Ensemble and has also participated in the University of Massachusetts All City Youth Wind Ensemble, the Southern New England Honor Band and the University of Massachusetts Honor Band and MMEA All State. Dan will begin his studies in the fall at the University of Rhode Island where he will be majoring in music education. We wish both of these young men the best of luck and many rewarding years of music-making.
For a roster of MWS Board of Directors and Advisory Board please click here.
To download a PDF of our most recent IRS Form 990 please click here.
