Wind Symphony blends traditional and contemporary

North Dakota State University’s (NDSU) Wind Symphony will present a concert on Saturday, March 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Discovery Middle School auditorium in Alexandria. The concert is free and open to the public.

Led by Warren Olfert, director of bands at NDSU in Fargo, the Wind Symphony will feature a variety of band music from the heritage of the march to contemporary compositions. The program includes the music of John Williams, Percy Grainger, Tim Jackson, Piet Swerts, John Philip Sousa and Scott McAllister.

NDSU Professor of Saxophone Matthew Patnode will be featured.

Composed of 46 select undergraduate and graduate students, the symphony was founded in 1904 as a military band in the university’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program.

The band acquired Gold Star designation from superior ratings earned during annual ROTC federal inspections.

For information, visit www.ndsu.edu/finearts/music/tour.html.

Tags: variety, entertainment, wind, instruments, symphony