Schedule / Friday
Bernstein at 100: The Centennial Celebration
Trae Blanco
3:30 pm – Friday, March 9
Adams Center for Musical Arts - Band Room (Room 301)
I’m challenged by two statements from two very different people: At the 1981 National Conference of CBDNA, Gunther Schuller said “It bothers me enormously that the wind ensemble and band medium is not yet perceived by our culture, by our musical establishment and by our tastemakers and cultural leaders as an important, viable, and integral part of this country’s musical life.” More recently at the 2017 CBDNA National Conference Andrew Granade challenged wind band conductors to “ventilate our silos” as words of encouragement before we implode. I’m constantly wondering what it would be like for us to work on an international musical level, an even playing field, with our colleagues across the globe in opera, art song, symphony orchestra, and musical theatre. The Bernstein at 100 international centennial celebration is one of those ways! Be part of the discussion as we look at the repertoire available to us in the wind band profession through transcriptions, original works for band, and newly discovered masterpieces.
Currently, Dr. Trae Blanco serves as Director of Bands at the University of Southern Maine School of Music, in Gorham, ME where he conducts the Wind Ensemble, Concert Band, the Portland Youth Wind Ensemble, and the Casco Bay Wind Symphony. After completing his Bachelor of Music Education degree at New Mexico State University (NMSU), Dr. Blanco completed four years as Director of Bands at Las Cruces High School.
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Dr. Blanco holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in wind conducting from the Herberger Institute at Arizona State University where his principal teachers include Professor Gary W. Hill and Dr. Wayne Bailey. Prior to attending ASU, Blanco completed a Master of Music degree in Wind Conducting with Professor Stephen W. Pratt at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. In July 2015, Dr. Blanco was a guest conductor with the United States Army "Pershing's Own" Concert Band in Washington, D.C. and in both 2015 and 2016 Dr. Blanco was a finalist in the American Prize in Wind Conducting.
