Monday, May 5, 2008

Saxofestivus - crazy name, wild sounds

Yes, Sunday night, a friend, Anne Marie Marra and I attended Saxofestivus – a concert of saxophone quartets at Western Connecticut State University. We went because it was close, and cheap. The press release on the college web page said the event was free, although a sign at the door suggested a $5 donation.

Considering all the pricy alternatives – we thought it might be a hoot to hear a bunch of saxophones playing in their brassy way. We sat in the back in case it wasn’t – so we could sneak out. But we didn’t sneak out. We stayed to the end and clapped for every round because it was worth clapping for….. Unlike a quite a few in the audience – we were not family to any of the players, nor fellow students at WCSU, but were just a couple of low budget boobs out for a little tune to tap a toe to…..

There were four student quartets that played – and the concert ended with a set by the first quartet, who ( I think) were upper classmen or at least the most experienced players of the evening. Who knew four saxophones at once would be so lush? The program ran the gamut from Bach to Twentieth Century music, and strayed once over into pop. All in all – the quality was very good. Well done.

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