NCB at the Midwest Clinic: 2000-2011
Since its founding, the Northshore Concert Band has been a driving force in the community band movement, setting high standards for musical excellence and community engagement. Nowhere has this impact been more clearly demonstrated than through its decades-long relationship with the Midwest Clinic, the world’s largest instrumental music education conference. This series chronicles the Band’s history at the Midwest Clinic, beginning with its groundbreaking first invitation in 1963 and continuing through the present day.
Northshore Concert Band’s appearances at the Midwest Clinic in the 2000s reflected a period of commemoration, continuity, and artistic affirmation. Through emotionally resonant performances, returning collaborators, and works honoring foundational figures, the ensemble deepened its legacy while embracing new voices in the wind band repertoire.
Northshore Concert Band returned to the Midwest Clinic in 2001 to once again present the finale concert. The program opened with the epic fanfare of Richard Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra, which segued directly into Holst’s Mars, the Bringer of War — the ominous ostinato lending added resonance in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Then-Principal Guest Conductor Mallory Thompson led the Band in Elgar’s “Nimrod” from Enigma Variations, followed by a brilliant performance of David Gillingham’s Vintage featuring euphonium virtuoso Steven Mead.
The ensemble’s emotional program continued in Ray Cramer’s arrangement of Górecki’s Totus Tuus, highlighted by a horn solo performed from the back of the ballroom in remembrance of longtime principal horn, Assistant Conductor, and Business Manager Barbara Buehlman. Operatic bass-baritone William Warfield joined the Band for Copland’s Lincoln Portrait, which proved to be one of his final public performances. The evening closed with America the Beautiful, Music Director John P. Lynch inviting the audience to stand and sing in a shared moment of solidarity and reflection.
The performance was met with extraordinary acclaim. Composer Alfred Reed immediately came to the stage to congratulate the ensemble. Others sang the Band’s praises in writing, Richard Floyd remarking, “Bravo and thank you for the exceptional concert you presented … The Northshore Concert Band enjoys a wonderful and longstanding tradition of musical excellence, and it has been my pleasure to hear you perform on many occasions over the years. In my opinion, this concert was one of your finest … Be assured that your music making served as an inspiration to me, and I am sure to all others in attendance.”
Northshore Concert Band at the 2001 Midwest Clinic. Photo courtesy of the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library Special Collections in the Performing Arts, University of Maryland.
In celebration of its 50th season, Northshore Concert Band returned to the Midwest Clinic in 2005 with a program that blended beloved repertoire, returning collaborators, and meaningful tributes. Steven Mead reprised David Gillingham’s Vintage from the Band’s 2001 appearance, while H. Robert Reynolds conducted Frank Ticheli’s Joy Revisited in his first return to the NCB podium since 1987. Roger Bjorklund, Mallory Thompson’s former high school band director, led a spirited reading of Meacham’s American Patrol, and John Whitwell joined the ensemble in Travis Cross’ arrangement of Be Thou My Vision.
Mark Camphouse’s whatsoever things… offered a musical homage to Northshore Concert Band founder John P. Paynter. Dedicated to Paynter’s memory, its title reflects Northwestern University’s motto and the ethos he instilled in generations of musicians. The program closed with two works closely associated with the ensemble: Richard Strauss’ Allerseelen and the final movement of David Maslanka’s Symphony No. 2 — the latter a staple of the group’s repertoire and a testament to its endurance, virtuosity, and commitment to outstanding wind literature.
Northshore Concert Band at the 2005 Midwest Clinic. Photo courtesy of the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library Special Collections in the Performing Arts, University of Maryland.
Northshore Concert Band’s most recent appearance at the Midwest Clinic came in 2011, with a program that highlighted new voices alongside enduring classics. Ben Hjertmann’s playful and unexpected Catclaw Mimosa opened the concert — a work Thompson first encountered in a graduate composition reading session in 2009 and one that would later win the Frank Ticheli International Composition Competition in 2013. The Band also performed Eric Osterling’s Bandology, the 1963 classic that Thompson remembered fondly from her own middle school years.
A collection of wind band staples followed, including “Ayre for Eventide” from Three Ayres from Gloucester, Holst’s “The Song of the Blacksmith” from his Second Suite in F, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Toccata Marziale conducted by Donald Hunsberger. Among the concert’s most memorable moments was Frank Ticheli’s Rest; at its conclusion, the composer was lifted onto the stage amid an extended ovation. The performance concluded with the Symphonic Dances from West Side Story, showcasing the ensemble’s technical brilliance, soloistic artistry, and collective energy across Bernstein’s virtuosic writing and most iconic themes.
Northshore Concert Band at the 2011 Midwest Clinic.
