Concert and Jazz band"Centennial Alumni Comeback" concert, reception at The College of St. Scholastica

Release Date: 10/17/12

DULUTH, MN - The College of St. Scholastica Concert and Jazz Bands will host a Centennial Alumni Comeback Concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 10, in the Mitchell Auditorium on campus. The concert is open to the public. Tickets cost $5 and are free for St. Scholastica band alumni, students, and sisters of the Monastery. A reception will follow in the Mitchell foyer. 

The bands are under the direction of Marianne Connelly, class of '77, director of bands and music education at St. Scholastica. The theme of the concert is "celebration." Connelly has returned this fall after a severe illness and wishes to invite alumni and friends to "come back, celebrate our Centennial and enjoy an evening of great music."

The Concert Band will open with "Women of the Podium March," saluting the women who have led bands at St. Scholastica. To honor the Benedictine Sisters of St. Scholastica Monastery, next the band will play "Sing My Tongue, Alleluia" by Minnesota composer John Zdechlik. A pictorial story of the sisters throughout the past 100 years will be shown as the music is performed. Anne McGinty's dramatic "Centennium" will be played, using intriguing instrumental colors and textures. Photos of band alumni will be shown during this performance.

Band alumni members will then be invited on stage for the final piece, "Fidelity," a march by Karl King written in 1912, the year St. Scholastica opened its doors.

The Jazz Band will welcome alumni back with "When the Saints Go Marching In," arranged by Dave Wolpe. This traditional tune, historically used for funerals, became popular with jazz fans when Louis Armstrong recorded an upbeat version in 1938. Robert Kouba will be featured on trumpet. "A Short History of Jazz" by Les Hooper will then take the audience on a quick tour of the history of jazz from the 1920s to the present.

The concert's them of celebration is continued with "What a Wonderful World" by George David Weiss and Bob Thiele. Vocalist Andrew Schreyer will be featured. "The song will be dedicated to the memory of David Williams, St. Scholastica alum, who often sang with our jazz band," notes Connelly. "He faced challenges with a smile and inspired us with his love of people and joyful outlook on life."

The concert will close with "When Big Bands Ruled the Earth" by Larry Neeck. Jazz band alumni are invited on stage to join in this up-tempo swinger.

St. Scholastica band alumni interested in playing in the concert are invited to rehearse at 10 a.m. the morning of the concert in the Mitchell Auditorium. Alumni should contact Marianne Connelly, band@css.edu, if interested in participating.

For more information, visit spotlight.css.edu or call (218) 723-7000. Spotlight@css.edu is St. Scholastica's one-stop shop for arts and lectures information and tickets.

The College of St. Scholastica is regularly recognized as one of the finest colleges in the Midwest. The 2013 "America's Best Colleges" survey by U.S. News & World Report magazine ranks St. Scholastica in the top tier of Midwestern universities. The Washington Post has rated St. Scholastica as one of the nation's 100 "hidden gems" among U.S. colleges and universities.