CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Well-known TV and radio newscaster Dave Shaul, a “proud alumnus” of the University of Illinois Band, will emcee “The History of Illinois Through its Music,” the first concert of the Illinois Summer Band’s annual Twilight Concerts on the Quad beginning at 7 p.m. on June 19 (Thursday).
The program will feature music written specifically for Illinois bands and music that has become closely associated with Illinois bands, including “By Thy Rivers Gently Flowing, Illinois,” performed by the Illinois Glee and Mandolin Club in 1897, long before it became the official state song; “Illinois Loyalty,” first performed in 1906 and one of the oldest collegiate fight songs; “Cheer Illini” and “Oskee Wow Wow,” from an unfinished musical comedy written in 1908 by two Sigma Alpha Epsilon brothers; “March of the Illini,” commissioned by Illinois band director Albert Austin Harding in 1922; and “University of Illinois March,” by John Philip Sousa.
Linda Moorhouse, a music professor and the interim director of bands, will share the podium with a half-dozen guest conductors. Robert Hindsley, the retired director of bands at Homewood-Flossmoor High School in suburban Chicago and the son of Mark H. Hindsley, who was the assistant director and then the director of Illinois bands from 1934 till 1970, will conduct his father’s transcription of Wagner’s “Elsa’s Procession to the Cathedral.” William Kisinger, the retired associate director of Purdue University’s “All American” marching band and the son of Everett D. Kisinger, who was the director of the Marching Illini from 1948 until 1976, will conduct two of his father’s favorites, “Glory of the Gridiron” and “Revelation March.”
Mark Duker, the head of the fine arts program at Waubonsie Valley High School in Aurora, Illinois, and the grandson of Guy M. Duker, the associate director of Illinois bands from 1953 through 1978, will conduct “Illinois March,” by Edwin Franko Goldman, and “Barnum & Bailey’s Favorite,” by Karl King. The Marching Illini traditionally sing the trio portion of “Illinois March” using lyrics written by Guy Duker.
Other guest conductors are Gary Smith and Tom Caneva, both former directors of the Marching Illini, and Barry Houser, the current director of Illinois Athletic Bands (including the Marching Illini).
As always, music fans are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and picnic suppers to enjoy along with the concert on the Quad, just south of the Illini Union.
The second concert in the series, “Ice Cream and Independence,” will move indoors, to the Virginia Theatre in downtown Champaign. The July 3 concert, sponsored by TCBY, will feature the Champaign-Urbana Civic Wind Band along with the world-famous Canadian Brass, culminating their three-day residency on the Illinois campus. More than 30 brass players from across the country will be in town to attend master classes, receive coaching and play chamber music with Canadian Brass, which includes U. of I. French horn professor Bernhard Scully. Ronald Romm, a trumpet professor at Illinois, is also a former member of Canadian Brass. Frozen yogurt will be served beginning at 5 p.m.; the show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12 and available by phone at 217-356-9063, online at www.thevirginia.org or at the theater box office, 203 W. Park Ave. VIP packages, which include front-row seats and the opportunity to meet members of Canadian Brass backstage, are $40.
The final Twilight concert will take place on the Quad, on July 17 (Thursday) at 7 p.m.
