After an opening set that includes the classic National Emblem march and the “Parade of the Charioteers” from the Academy Award-winning score for Ben-Hur, the Humboldt Bay Brass Band (HBBB) presents its new ensemble, the Fort Humboldt Brass Band, which plays authentic brass band arrangements of Civil War era American tunes during intermission. Carrying on the HBBB tradition of reviving vintage instruments, the group uses a recently acquired soprano “saxhorn” from 1860, and an 1895 E-flat tuba, which hasn’t been heard in Humboldt County since the 1940s.
Then the Veterans Day emphasis begins in earnest, with the HBBB playing the “Mars” section of Gustav Holst’s The Planets, “Let Nothing Ever Grieve Thee” by Johannes Brahms, and American Salute by Morton Gould (based on “When Johnny Comes Marching Home”).
The concert concludes with “Hymn for the Fallen” by John Williams, from the film Saving Private Ryan, and “Dona nobis pacem,” the last movement of J.S. Bach’s Mass in B-Minor. This music was selected, said HBBB director Gilbert Cline, “to allow individuals in the audience to find a personal meaning.”
Humboldt Bay Brass Band performs on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 11 and 12 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus in Arcata. Tickets are $7 general, $3 students/seniors, from the HSU Ticket Office (826-3928) or at the door. Free to HSU students with ID. Directed by Gilbert Cline, produced by HSU Music Department. HSUMusic.blogspot.com.