On this episode of the Front Row Clint Barrick talks with Dr. Sarah McKoin about the Texas Tech University Symphonic Wind Ensemble’s concert they will perform on Tuesday night.
Tell us about the concert.
It’s a little bit of a special concert for us, our ensemble was accepted to perform at a conference in Chicago that is in its 73rd year. It’s the largest of its kind. This is sort of our send off concert. It’s the end of the semester and our last concert and we have a special guest with us, who is guest conducting our concert tonight (Tuesday, Dec. 4), as well as in Chicago.
Getting invited to these conferences, this is a big honor, right?
It’s a very nice honor and we’re humbled and flattered to be able to go. It’s a blind audition process. They have performing ensembles from middle school, high school, college and professional groups that play. It’s a very significant conference for music educators and performers across the country.
So you mentioned the special guest to conduct, Robert Reynolds. He’s here with us. Tell us about yourself and your journey with music.
It’s been a long journey. I did the usual thing with the public schools and played there and tried to convince my relatives that I wanted to go into music because they thought that was nice, but not a profession for a grown person. They finally realized it was and I went to school to become a band director, and I did become one.
I conducted bands in public schools in Michigan and then California and then I was able to get a college position at a local school in California. I went from there to the University of Wisconsin, then to the University of Michigan. I retired from the University of Michigan about 20 years ago and somebody called me on the phone and said we need somebody for one year. Come to the University of Southern California for one year because we lost our wind ensemble conductor. So I did it…so now I’m in the middle of my 18th year of that one-year job.
Listen to the full interview at the top of the article.
