AUSTIN YOUNGS
Special to The Leader
As a musician who has been playing the bassoon for nine years, I’ve seen the importance of the wind band in American music education.
That importance remains the same here at the Fredonia School of Music. At Fredonia, there are several large wind band ensembles all led by the Director of Bands: Dr. Paula Holcomb.
When COVID-19 hit, the ensembles were put on pause, only being able to connect through computer screens. When things seemed like we were at an all-time low, Holcomb and many other faculty members didn’t give up and made efforts to bring live performance back to the students in the music school.
When news was announced that they’d bring back large ensembles in the fall 2021 semester, there were a lot of mixed feelings going around. But the students weren’t the only ones feeling antsy about things.
In an interview with Holcomb, she said, “I was excited, but with trepidation” when referring to bringing ensembles back in fall of 2021. Even when there was uncertainty of what would happen, she knew that getting live music back out to the Fredonia community was extremely important.
Holcomb mentioned that there are two key things that make live music important — “music connects our hearts and souls,” and “music builds community.”
When looking back at how things were for that semester, I was just glad to be playing my bassoon with the wonderful talent here at Fredonia once again. And when the Wind Symphony played for the first time since Spring 2020 on Sept. 23, 2021, that community began to come back together.
Many were thrilled to get back to the lifestyle we had before the pandemic.
But even with all the excitement, there were still a number of students unsure about getting together and taking our masks off to play wind instruments.
Now that we are almost done with the spring 2022 semester and already heading back into what looks to be normal life, Holcomb hopes the bands perform a “quality repertoire,” even if it’s uncomfortable.
Holcomb believes that as artists, students need to explore the new and old. As a musician who has fortunately been able to play in the band program for six semesters, I can only say the exposure to these different genres has only made me a better musician.
On April 30, the Fredonia Wind Ensemble will present a world premier for a bassoon concerto composed by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Augusta Read Thomas. This concerto represents the quality and challenges Holcomb hopes to give her students.
Holcomb said, “It’s an honor to come in every single day to work with the school’s faculty and students.” Her enormous trust in the students’ desires to grow makes her feel confident that the musicians can present high-class performances, and I can only agree with her.
It’s exciting to see what the wind bands will bring to both our performers and listeners in the semesters to come.