Friday, November 11, 2005

WILMINGTON, N.C. – A Movement For Rosa, Mark Campenhouse’s compelling tribute to civil rights heroine Rosa Parks, is featured as part of a Department of Music concert at 8 p.m. Nov. 21 in Kenan Auditorium. The concert, conducted by Christofer Ackerman, features UNCW’s premiere symphonic band, the Wind Symphony, with solo performances by the Chamber Winds ensemble. The evening also includes “Four Scottish Dances” by Malcolm Arnold as well as additional selections by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Theodore Dubois, and Richard Wagner.

On Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to relinquish her seat to a white man on a city bus in Montgomery, Ala. That seemingly small act of courage, and her ensuing arrest, is said to have sparked the most important civil rights movement in the U.S. An active member of the NAACP and recipient of the country’s highest civilian honor, a Congressional Gold Medal, Parks left an extraordinary legacy to, in her own words, “bring peace, justice, equality, love and a fulfillment of what our lives should be.”

The featured selection for this concert, A Movement For Rosa was commissioned by the Florida Bandmasters Association and completed by Campenhouse in November 1992. The movement is a quasi-tone poem consisting of three distinct sections held together by the hymn “We Shall Overcome” – the first representing the early years of Parks in rural Alabama; the second evoking the mounting racial conflict in Montgomery; and the final reaching a quiet and stunning climax, a single horn reminiscent of the continued existence of racism in America.

“It has always been important for classical music to touch upon the themes of the day,” said Ackerman, director of wind ensembles at UNCW. “A Movement for Rosa stands out as a tribute because it not only recall’s the life and work of this inspiring figure, but it captures the spirit of an important time in our nation’s history and reminds us of how far we still have to go.”

Admission for this event is $5 for the general public and free for UNCW students with a valid ID.

For more information, please contact the UNCW Kenan Auditorium Box Office at 910/962-3500 or the UNCW Department of Music at 910/962-7416.

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The Wind Symphony is UNCW’s premiere symphonic band and its members consist of music majors in the Department of Music and students university wide while also involving outstanding high school musicians, local music teachers, people in the music business and music industry, and other community members. The Wind Symphony is a place where the university connects with the community striving to create the highest level of musical communication possible through the performance of the wind band repertoire. Chamber Winds is a subset of the Wind Symphony that primarily consists of music majors in the Department of Music and performs works emphasizing strong musician independency and soloist practices. This is an opportunity for music majors to push their own personal artistic abilities to the highest level.

Christofer Ackerman is professor of trumpet, director of wind ensembles, and coordinates instrumental performances at UNCW. His professional career includes solo performances, lead parts in off-Broadway shows, tours through Norway and Germany, CD recordings, studio work, and other venues throughout the United States, Central America, and Europe. He is also the Principal Trumpet of the Long Bay Symphony Orchestra and the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra.