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About Tara Winds |
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Tara Winds is an all-adult symphonic band organized in the spring of 1988 by Ed Davis, David Gregory, and Larry Volman to provide a performance medium for local instrumental musicians, to encourage school bandsmen to continue performing after completion of their formal education, and to be a source of entertainment for audiences of all ages. Under the direction of Conductor David Gregory, Associate Conductor Andrea Strauss, and Associate Conductor (Retired) Lloyd Tarpley, Tara Winds is composed primarily of musicians from metropolitan Atlanta, but draws its total membership from instrumentalists throughout Georgia. Men and women of many professions are represented in Tara Winds which has as its slogan, "Music: Enjoyment For All ages." Their commitment to music as a source of life-long enjoyment is evident through the giving of their time, energy, and talents in order to prepare and perform quality musical presentations for their audiences.
The band has gained recognition as one of the finest adult ensembles of its kind. It has presented invitational performances for numerous regional and national music conferences including the 1990 and 2004 joint conferences of the National Band Association and the College Band Directors National Association, the University of South Carolina Band Clinic and Conductor's Symposium, the 1993, 2001 and 2005 University of Georgia High School Music Festivals, the University of Southern Mississippi All-South Band Clinic, six Georgia Music Educators Association Inservice Conferences, the Atlanta International Band and Orchestra Conference, and the Bands of America Regional Concert Festival. The band has the distinction of having performed at two of the most prestigious musical conferences in the United States: the American Bandmasters Association National Convention in 1999 and the Midwest Clinic in 1994 and 2001. In June 2005, members of Tara Winds performed a week of highly acclaimed concerts in Rome, Italy as part of their first international tour. Tara Winds has been invited to perform at the Western International Band Conference in Seattle, Washington, in November 2006, and as part of the Reinhardt College Concert Series in February of 2007. Our ensemble has performed under the baton of internationally-known composers Quincy Hilliard, Francis McBeth, Steven Melillo, Ron Nelson, and Robert Sheldon, and has featured guest soloists Carlo Calcagnini, Vince DiMartino, Dr. Thomas Liley, Tom (Bones) Malone, Patrick Sheridan, Cecil Welch, and Jay Wucher. Guest conductors of the ensemble have been Col. John Bourgeois, Kerry Bryant, Col. William Clark, Randall Coleman, James Copenhaver, Robert Cowles, Paula Crider, Dr. James Croft, Ed Davis, Maestro Fulvio Cruex, Dr. John Culvahouse, Rodney Dorsey, Dr. Frederick Fennell, Dr. Tom Fraschillo, Col. Hal Gibson, Col. Lowell Graham, Dr. W.J. Julian, Mark Kelly, Dr. William J. Moody, Jimmie Saied (as John Philip Sousa), Dr. Mallory Thompson, Frank Wickes, and Dan Wilson. Julie Giroux, Sam Hazo, Robert Sheldon, and Luigi Zaninelli are listed as commissioned composers of the ensemble. Tara Winds is honored to have performed at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, Illinois and the American Bandmasters Association National Convention in Melbourne, Florida. We sincerely appreciate the opportunity to perform for the 2006 Georgia Music Educators Association Inservice Conference. |
| Jan 2006 |