to the second performance of our 21st Season! As we observe the theme of “We are a Community” throughout this season, we are mindful of the many blessings that our community offers to us. And so, tonight “We Celebrate!”

We celebrate our opportunity to gather for 2.5 hours each week to make music together. There is something of a primal need for each of the people on stage to have that outlet. We celebrate the music that is placed before us so that we might offer our own talents and interpretations to its performance. And we celebrate the ability to present our music to you, our audiences. Truly, “We are a Community”!

We also celebrate the music of the season, along with two special birthdays. Jean Sibelius’ 150th birthday is December 8 and Frank Sinatra’s 100th birthday is December 12. Five treatments of Christmas music round out our program tonight.

Thanks for celebrating with us!

Music DirectorSolano Winds Community Concert Band

Mark your calendars! Save the dates for our upcoming concerts:

We Play! March 11, 2016

featuring the many talentsof the Solano Winds members!

Welcome

We March! May 6, 2016

featuring “Symphony onThemes of John Philip Sousa”

the History of Solano Winds On December 9, 1995, a new community band took the stage in the auditorium at Will C. Wood High School in Vacaville. Comprised of 55 volunteer musicians under the direction of Robert O. Briggs, Solano Winds performed a program of eight classic selections from the Wind Band repertoire before a very receptive audience. Briggs, the just-retired Director Emeritus of the University of California Band in Berkeley, formed the ensemble along with Bill Doherty, the first President of the organization. It was apparent to everyone in the room that this new performing group was here to stay.

Now in our 21st Season, Solano Winds continues to provide band members and audiences an opportunity to enjoy music making. Over the years, many things have changed: we’ve moved rehearsal spaces from Fairfield High School, to Armijo High School, to Solano Community College, to our current location at Vanden High School. Rather than using all borrowed music as we did in 1995, we now maintain our own extensive music library. And to support our growth, our donor base has grown significantly since 1995, when we started with two important donors – Gordon’s Music & Sound and the Fairfield High School Scarlet Brigade Band Boosters.

During this time, though, many more things have stayed the same. Our commitment to perform high quality Wind Band literature well and to have fun while doing it has been a consistent staple of our organization. While some members have come and gone over the years, we continue to maintain a healthy blend of experienced and young musicians. Upon the passing of Bob Briggs in 2008, Bill Doherty was named as Music Director, continuing the traditions started when the band formed in 1995.

Since that premiere performance at Will C. Wood High School, we’ve performed at the Fairfield Community Center, the Vacaville Performing Arts Theatre, the Lesher Center for the Arts, and the Napa Valley College Performing Arts Center. In our second season, we performed as a part of the Carmichael Park Community Band Festival, and have performed in that Festival every year since that appearance. Through all of this, our performance home has been the intimate space on Texas Street, formerly the Fairfield Center for Creative Arts, now the Downtown Theatre, of which Solano Winds is a resident company.

Like any successful performing organization, we can credit our longevity to three factors: the care that our musicians place on mastering their musical performance, the appreciation consistently shown by our audiences, and the relationships that we’ve been able to build with each other over these first twenty-one seasons.

Program

Finlandia

For All the Wyle Eternal

Agnus DeiIn Memoriam

Sinatra!

Minor Alterations No. 2Carols from the Dark Side

Jingle Them Bells

Merrily on HighSponsored by Jennifer Doherty

Christmas with Mozart

Christmas and Sousa Forever!

Jean SibeliusArranged by Lucien Cailliet

Ralph Ford

Melvin BritoWorld PremiereConductor: Melvin BritoSoprano: Kori Miles Alto: Michelle WilliamsNarrator: Liz Wildberger

Arranged by Stephen Bulla

David Lovrien

James PierpontArranged by Julia Giroux

French TraditionalArranged by Julie Giroux

Julie Giroux

Julie Giroux

Intermission

Library SponsorsWe extend our sincere thanks to tonight’s library sponsor:

Jennifer DohertyYou can help us defray the costs of expanding our music library by becoming a “Library Sponsor”. Contact us at library@solanowinds.org for assistance with selecting a musical selection for our library. We will then purchase that music in your name, imprint a perpetual note of thanks to your generosity on each musician’s copy of the music, and include our thanks to you in our concert programs in perpetuity whenever we perform that musical selection. 

Notes FinlandiaThe eminent Finnish composer Jean Sibelius was born at Tavastehus, Finland. The world celebrates his 150th birthday on December 8 of this year. In the autumn of 1899, Sibelius composed the music for a series of tableaux illustrating episodes in Finland’s past. The music culminated in a stirring, patriotic finale, “Finland Awakes.” This music soon came to be in great demand as a separate concert piece and Sibelius revised it in 1900, giving it the title “Finlandia”. It became a symbol of Finnish nationalism. After the Russian aggression against Finland in 1939 (the Winter War) the Finnish poet V.A. Koskenniemi supplied a text for the hymn, one that has been used ever since.

For All the Wyle EternalThis work was commissioned by the Georgia Music Educators Association, District II, in memory of Mr. Gene Wyles.

Gene Wyles devoted his life to helping, teaching, and guiding young people. In 2005, he was inducted into the Georgia Band Directors Hall of Fame. He was a past president of the Georgia Chapter of Phi Beta Mu honorary music fraternity and a past State Instrumental Chairman with the Georgia Music Educators. He was frequently requested as a guest clinician and conductor for band clinics and festivals throughout the Southeast.

“For all the Wyle Eternal” was originally entitled simply, “…for Gene.” The main reason for this original approach with the title is that the main melodic motif for this piece is based on the pitches G, E, N (either an upper or lower neighboring tone) and E. This is combined with quotes from “Eternal Father, Strong to Save”, which was not only Gene’s favorite hymn, but references his time serving in the United States Navy.

Agnus Dei - In MemoriamThe final two weeks of my mother's life was filled with love, friendships and reunion. But most of all PEACE. My mother was able to see and hear how much she was loved and adored by many. Former students from as far as 30 years ago, childhood friends and grandnieces showered my mother with love and fond memories. Tears and laughter filled the air as many shared my mothers' last few moments with her.

On September 8, 2015, I asked my mother one last question: "Who loves you?" Barely audible, she tells me..."You do, but I love you more.” - Melvin Brito

Peaceby Henry Dyke

Here is Sweet music, melting every chainOf lassitude and pain:

And here, at last, is sleep, the gift of gifts,The tender nurse, who lifts

The soul grown weary of the waking world, And lays it, with its thoughts all furled, Its fears forgotten, and its passions still,On the deep bosom of the Eternal Will.

Sinatra!We celebrate the 100th birthday on December 12 of “the greatest singer of the 20th century”, Frank Sinatra. After starting his musical career with Tommy Dorsey and Harry James in his early twenties, Sinatra went on a solo career on stage, TV, film, and in the recording studio. He spent many years on the stages of Las Vegas as the most prominent member of the “Rat Pack”. Sinatra won an Academy Award for his role in “From Here to Eternity”, and was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Gold Medal, and eleven Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Trustees Award, the Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Tonight’s selection is a medley of four Sinatra hits: “Come Fly With Me”, “Witchcraft”, “That’s Life”, and “Fly Me to the Moon”.

Minor Alterations No. 2 - Carols from the Dark SideIn this sequel to the hugely popular “Minor Alterations: Christmas Through the Looking Glass”, David Lovrien takes a new set of familiar holiday melodies and twists them, distorts them, transposes them from major to minor and finally sets them in the styles of famous minor-keyed orchestral pieces. You will never be the same after hearing “O Holy Night” set against “Ride of the Valkyries”. It’s like a Christmas stocking full of very dark chocolate!

David Lovrien has been a member of the saxophone section of Dallas Wind Symphony since 1991, performing on nearly all their recordings and appearing several times as featured soloist. He is also a founding member of the renowned Texas Saxophone Quartet, the first saxophone ensemble to win the prestigious Fischoff Competition in 1988. His compositions and arrangements have been performed throughout the world, and his website celebrating the life and work of John Philip Sousa is recognized as one of the best Sousa authorities on the Internet.

Jingle Them Bells This rendition of Pierpont’s well-known “Jingle Bells” takes the listener through a number of styles with high energy and lots of color. A simple melody, it lends itself to creative ideas in presentation. This setting is in fact a kind of wild ride for the performer and the audience.

Merrily on High“Ding Dong Merrily on High” first appeared in print as a dance in a book written by Jehan Tabourot. The lyrics are from the English composer George Ratcliffe Woodward which he published in his book “The Cambridge Carol-Book: Being Fifty-two Songs for Christmas, Easter, and Other Seasons.” Giroux’s light hearted and joyful treatment presents several showcases for a variety of instrumental combinations.

Christmas with MozartThis light-hearted arrangement is a blend of Mozart, a little Beethoven, and a lot of Christmas music. It essentially answers the question, “What would these carols sound like if Mozart arranged them for band?”. It assumes that Mozart was in a bit of a silly mood when he undertook the project.

Christmas and Sousa Forever!John Philip Sousa gave us our national march, “The Stars and Stripes Forever”. The composition has been an ongoing gift to the nation. Giroux reimagines the famous march, with even more explicit gift-giving contained within.

Julie Giroux composer/arranger

The last four selections on tonight’s program are all composed or arranged by Julie Giroux.

Julie Ann Giroux was born in 1961 in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, and raised in Phoenix, Arizona and Monroe, Louisiana. She received her formal education at Louisiana State University and Boston University. She studied composition with John Williams, Bill Conti and Jerry Goldsmith. She performs on piano and horn, and published her first composition at the age of nine.

Julie has been writing music for concert band since 1983 and began composing, orchestrating, and conducting music for television and films in 1985. Her arrangements and compositions have earned several Emmy nominations. When she won her first Emmy Award, she was the first woman and the youngest person ever to win the award in that category. She has arranged for Celine Dion, Paula Abdul, Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, Madonna, Reba McEntire, Little Richard, Billy Crystal, Michael Jackson, and many others.

Music Director Biography

Bill Doherty Music Director and Conductor Bill Doherty has been participating in community bands ever since his days at a student at Encinal High School, where the Alameda Community Band rehearsed under the direction of Bill’s high school director, Jim Hewitt. He earned his music degree at the University of California, Berkeley, where he played under the direction of Bob Briggs and Michael Senturia and studied with Andrew Imbrie and Philip Shoptaugh. He has been a trumpet student of John Coppola and David Goedecke. While working as the Director of Bands at De La Salle High School and then at Orestimba High School, Bill conducted the Berkeley Symphonic Band. He performed extensively with the Diablo Valley College Night Band with Art Dougherty, the CSU Stanislaus Wind Ensemble with Ed Harris, the CSU Stanislaus Jazz Ensemble with David Goedecke, and various freelance ensembles. He was the Music Director at Vanden High School and Green Valley Middle School before adding Mathematics to his teaching credential. Since that time, he taught math at Dover Middle School, and since 2001 has taught mathematics and acts as the Technology Coordinator at Campolindo High School.

In 1995, as Bob Briggs was entering his retirement from the University of California, Bill worked with Bob to help establish Solano Winds. Bill was the founding President and has served continuously on the Board of Directors since the group began. He was the principal trumpet, playing under Bob’s direction, for thirteen years. Upon the passing of Bob Briggs in 2008, Bill was named Music Director and Conductor of Solano Winds. Under his direction, the band has continued to grow and flourish, becoming a Resident Artist at the Downtown Theatre, performing annually at the Carmichael Park Community Band Festival, and accepting an invitation to perform in 2013 at the Association of Concert Bands’ National Convention. Since assuming the duties of Solano Winds Music Director, Bill has continued to perform on the trumpet as well. He was a member of the North Bay Wind Ensemble and the Napa Valley College Orchestra for three years, and continues to perform for occasional freelance engagements.

Bill is joined by each of his family members in the joy of the performing arts. His wife, Jennifer, is a percussionist with Solano Winds and teaches music at Crystal Middle School. Daughter Melissa, a Colorado resident, earned her degree in Dance from the University of Oregon. Son Kevin is a professional actor on the stages and screens of Los Angeles. Daughter Emily, a Solano Winds alumnus on oboe and English horn, is studying Music Education at Michigan State University.

Member Biography

Dick Grokenberger by Liz Wildberger

Richard (Dick) Grokenberger, a member of the Board of Directors of Solano Winds serves as band librarian, membership coordinator and uniform organizer. He also finds time to play the tuba in the band. Dick is a charter member of the Solano Winds community concert band, playing in the band since its founding twenty-one years ago. A native of California, and with the exception of military assignments, he has lived here all his life. He attended Chico State University from 1958 through 1963, earning a teaching credential as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree.

It was during those college years that Dick met his future wife, Carla, who shared his love of fine music. They sang together in the college A Cappella Choir and fittingly, were cast as romantic leads in productions staged by the college Opera Workshop. This partnership would continue throughout their lives, as they married and earned Master of Arts degrees in music at Sacramento State University, while working at careers in music education.

Dick taught instrumental and choral music in various middle and high schools, including Fairfield High School and Vanden High School. He also taught English at Vanden and retired in 2003 after 36 years in the classroom. He had a parallel career as well. In 1967, Dick enlisted in the U.S. Army, was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant of Armor and served for over four years with active duty that included a year in Viet Nam. After this military service, he returned to teaching, but he continued to serve his country in the U.S. Army Reserve. When he retired in 1992, it was with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel after twenty-five years of combined service.

Three careers claimed him: husband/father, teacher, and Army officer. For most men, this would represent a very full life, but Dick had a passion for music that could not be silenced. He performed in choral societies, local theater productions and church choirs. He had leading roles in eleven Broadway musical productions performed locally, and served as Music Director for three others.

For Solano Winds, Dick goes well beyond his job descriptions. Not only does he keep the large library of band music organized and available to members of the band, he does it with a librarian’s precision. The garage at his home has become a music librarian’s man cave, with file cabinets lining the walls in bibliothetique order. As membership coordinator, he uses his considerable computer skills to prepare a directory of band members that includes a photograph of each person. An annual calendar, color-coded according to performance, is a valuable addition to information that Dick not only assimilates, but shares. From his experiences dealing with purveyors of polo shirts with a band logo, he could literally “go into retail.” With it all, Dick maintains a wry sense of humor and an ironic view of the world. His colleagues in the brass section agree that he qualifies for an award for Perfect Posture While Playing a Tuba Citation, yet to be recognized by ASCAP.

The couple have three adult children, two daughters and a son, and feel blessed that they all live in the Fairfield/Vacaville area. Their six grandchildren are, unfortunately, scattered all over the U.S.A. but all are united through music. All of the members of the Grokenberger clan have inherited the music gene and have been involved with music in one form or another, to the delight of Dick and Carla, who continue to make beautiful music together.

Would you like to play in Solano Winds? We rehearse Tuesdays from 7:00 to 9:30 in the Vanden High School Music Room, 2951

Markeley Lane, Fairfield, from August through early June. If you play a band instrument, you are welcome to join us. Band musicians of all abilities are welcome!

For more information, send an email tosw-info@solanowinds.org,

or visit our website atwww.solanowinds.org.

Personnel ConductorBill Doherty – Math Teacher/Technology Coordinator

Piccolo Lauren Nucum – Chemical EngineerCathy Pierce – Retired

FluteMay Dulce – Business AnalystRachel Liu – StudentLauren Nucum – Chemical EngineerCathy Pierce – RetiredEve Somjen – Retired City Planner

Oboe Mary Cabral – Clinical Laboratory ScientistBill Aron – Musician

English Horn Bill Aron – Musician

Bassoon Lynn Garrison – Retired TeacherJorge Ruvalcaba – Music Teacher

ClarinetRosie Aron – Special Ed. Assistant/NanaJennifer Gasser – Pension AnalystDon Meehan – RetiredPam Nadeau – Music TeacherElaine Schaefer – Retired Music TeacherMichelle Williams – Mom/Musician/TeacherMartha Saldaña-Wolf – Retired English/Broadcast/Speech

Bass Clarinet Clifford Gordon – Music SalesRussell Grindle – Autism SpecialistGarnet Piper-Lopez – Retired Advice Nurse/MicrobiologistMonica Spencer – Student/Music Retail

Contra Alto ClarinetCaitlin Olmstead – Genetic Counselor

Alto SaxophoneStinn McDaniel – Music TeacherNathan Tedrow – Office Wizard

Tenor SaxophoneEvie Ayers - Arts AdministratorNilo Dulce - Q. A. InspectorJoe Rico – Telecommunications Staff EngineerMark Wissman - USAF Musician

Trumpet Heather Handa – Science TeacherJack Hanes – Music TeacherKori Miles – Voice Teacher/Domestic Goddess Chip Miller – Retired Sales RepresentativeKeith Nordquist – USAF PilotJoe Regner – Retired Electronic EngineerJim Wolf – Retired School Counselor

Horn Linn Benson – Ret. Lt. Col. USAF/Business OwnerCarissa Brambley – Human ResourcesSarah Delgardo – Student/Restaurant WorkerKathy Granger – HomemakerGlenn Nash – Psychiatric TechnicianGarth Olmstead – Student (Criminal Justice)Kim Rodriguez – Database Administrator

TromboneBob Evans – Coordinator of Educational Services Ted Foreman – Music TeacherLarry Knowles – Retired Engineer/Big Band LeaderKim McCrea – Mommy

EuphoniumDelbert Bump – Ret. Music Educator/Jazz Musician/Composer Raymond Cabral – Programmer/AnalystRon Garrison – Theatrical Director

TubaDick Grokenberger – Ret LTC US Army/Music-Eng TeacherTim Mack – Retired Music Teacher/Administrator

String Bass Tyler Miles - Student

Harp Barbara Tutt – Freelance Musician

TimpaniSergio Cabada - Student

PianoMelvin Brito – Office Administrator/AuditorDelbert Bump – Ret. Music Educator/Jazz Musician/ComposerJennifer Doherty – Music Educator

Percussion Melvin Brito – Office Administrator/AuditorSergio Cabada – StudentJennifer Doherty – Music EducatorChristine Donovan – LawyerPhil Doty – Retired Teacher/US MintWally Hunt – Music TeacherTyler Miles – StudentGeorgina Nash – Retired Registered NurseLauren Nucum – Chemical Engineer

Give to our Community! From sponsoring music to donating your car, there are lots of

ways to make a meaningful contribution to Solano Winds. As a nonprofit community organization, we rely on tax-deductible

gifts to continue bringing music to our beautiful county.

Ask Solano Winds personnel for more information, or visit us online at www.solanowinds.org/support-us.html

Donors

Concert Sponsors ($1500 +)The Delong-Sweet Family Foundation

The Jelly Belly Candy CompanyParadise Valley Estates Residents Council

Enthusiast ($250 +)Lt. Col. Linn and Mona Benson

Edna BiedermanVivian Bowen

Robert O. Briggs Scholarship Endowment FundDan Child

John and Susan ColemanBud DeLong

Bill and Jennifer DohertyNilo and May Dulce

Spike and Betty FlertzheimCharles Goldman

Cliff GordonThomas and Nancy Gunther

Samantha JohnsonLive Music Center

Marcus MillsGloria NemsonMichael Oman

Myrlee PotosnakBetsy and Harry PriceEverett and Jean RiehlBill and Elaine Smith

Christine Tooby2003 Tutt Family Trust

in memory of Jim TuttEleanor Vasak

in memory of Otto VasakVasak Family Trust

in memory of Eleanor VasakDonald and Rose Marie Wong Endowment Fund

The Solano Winds wishes to express

its sincere appreciation for the $2,500 grant fromthe Donald and Rose Marie Wong Endowment Fund,

held by the Solano Community Foundation

Devotee ($100 - $249)

Murray BassCol. Paul Bergerot

Richard and Judith BlakemoreDorothee Brown

Vern and Sondra BrowningTerry Buntrock

Christine and Paul CloseJohn and Patty Cole

Ann CongerMargaret Cutshall

Fred DanielsCecelia Doherty

May DulceMr. and Mrs. Richard Feaster

Marilyn FigelPhilip and Virginia Fisher

John and Charlotte GearhartJ Pat Glover

Dick and Carla GrokenbergerWilliam and Constance Gum

Earl HandaDaun Herbert

Bob and Terry KeckKen and Layna Kinsman

Ken KuraicaDorothy and Jack Lindeman

Ed and Sue Lippstreu

Sally LivingstonThomas A. Martin Jr.

Walt and Esther McDanielBarbara McKee

Wally and Pat MitchellBarbara Palmer

Stephen and Cathy PierceGarnet Piper-Lopez

Betty and Bill RawlinsonJoe and Connie Regner

Frederick SchleichMr. and Mrs. G. Ray Schoch

Alvina SheeleyInga Soule

Mary Ann SteingassRob and Lacey Thayer

Otto and Elly VasakScott and Geri Vasak

in memory of Otto VasakDr. Wayne T. Walker

Sid and Mary Gay WhitingLiz and Marty Wildberger

Ruth Wolfein memory of Richard D. Wolfe, M.D.

Ralph W. and Daisy L. YoungCatherine Zimmerman

Mr. and Mrs. Alfred AbramsPatricia Benacquista

Doug and Cyndi ChancellorJohn and Carol Donovan

Debbie, Doug, and Emily EakinsSally Ferejohn

James HathawayMr. and Mrs. Harold Jacobs

Jeanne KerstenLynn Lippstreu

Major Mary E. Longland

Admirer ($50 - $99)

Jeanne MichaelMarcy MurrayJeanne ReavisKim RodriguezShelly Sandford

Steve and Shelagh SpaffordBetty St. George

Donna and Bill SumnerJuliette Thomas

Elise WigtonMichael and Michelle Williams

Thomas Winburn

Lucy BonnettManuel and Ina Claire Escano

Isabella LivelyMr. and Mrs. Robert Schumack

Donor (up to $49)

“Stay Tuned” with our Mailing List!Join our mailing list in the lobby, or send an e-mail to

sw-info@solanowinds.org to join & get up-to-the-minute information on programs and dates!

For Young Audiences and the Young at Heart

Concert bands like Solano Winds need a lot of instrumentsto play their music! Which of these can you spot on the stage?

bassoon alto saxophone

horn

flute

timpani

clarinetzebra

harpjingle bells

Support Solano Winds! Amazon Smile

Help support the Solano Winds while taking care of your holiday shopping list! Amazon Smile will donate 0.5% of

the eligible Amazon Smile purchases to Solano Winds.

1. Visit smile.amazon.com2. Choose “Solano Winds” from the search menu3. Shop using the Amazon smile site. It is the

same as Amazon and you can use your Amazon Prime account.

Eligible purchases will show an Amazon Smile logosimilar to the “prime” shipping logo.

Vehicle Donation ProgramNeed an end-of-year tax write-off? Donate your car, truck,

boat or R.V., running or not to the Solano Winds!

• Easy and convenient• No cost to you• Tax receipt given• We handle everything!

Call 877-411-3662 for more information & to arrangea free pick up!

Solano Winds Online Music StoreGive the gift of Solano Winds music!

Visit our website at www.solanowinds.org to purchase recordings from our live performances.

You can also purchase a gift card redeemable for downloads of our recordings.

We are also on iTunes!