My passion: Music
Playing the flute & the piccolo in a woodwind orchestra
"Music was my first love and it will be my last"
~John Miles
The wind orchestra
A wind orchestra, also called wind ensemble or concert band, is a
performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass, and
percussion families of instruments. Occasionally including the harp,
double bass, or bass guitar. On rare occasions, non-traditional
instruments may be added to such ensembles such as piano, synthesizer,
or electric guitar.
Concert band music generally includes original wind compositions,
concert marches, transcriptions of orchestral arrangements, light music,
and popular music. Though the concert band does have similar
instrumentation to the marching band, a marching band's main purpose is
to perform while marching. In contrast, a concert band strictly performs
as a stationary ensemble.
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Instruments in the woodwind section
- Flutes & piccolo
- Oboes
- Bassclarinets & Clarinets
- Bassoons
- Alto, tenor & baritone saxophones
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Instruments in the brass section
- Trumpets & cornets
- French horns
- Trombones
- Euphoniums
- Tubas
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Over the last fifty years, many composers have written major works
for wind ensemble. My top composers are listed below:
- Belgian composer: Bert Appermont
- Dutch composers: Jacob de Haan, Carl Wittrock, Johan De Meij
- Italian composer: Ennio Morricone
- American composers: James Swearingen, Frank Ticheli, Steven Reineke, Eric Whitacre (best known for his choral music)