The Raritan Valley Symphonic Band under the direction of Dr. William Berz, will present its Holiday Concert, “Sounds of the Season” on Sunday, December 18 at 3 PM. The concert will be held at Bridgewater-Raritan High School, 600 Garretson Road, Bridgewater.
Dr. William Berz returns to the podium of the Raritan Valley Symphonic Band after his initial time as the conductor in the early 2000s. He is Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University where he served on the faculty for almost 42 years. He taught classes in music education and literature, and conducted a wide variety of performance ensembles, including bands, orchestras, contemporary music groups, and opera. With the Rutgers Wind Ensemble, he won the praise of many distinguished composers, and released 24 CDs on the Mark Masters, Naxos, and Ravello labels.
Dr. Berz has also served as Music Director and Conductor of the New Brunswick Chamber Orchestra and the New Jersey State Youth Orchestra. He was also the Assistant Conductor of the Jupiter Symphony and Naumburg Orchestra, both of New York City. In addition to his work as a conductor, he is active as a researcher and writer. He has published a number of articles, presented many sessions in music education and conducting, and is co-author of two books.
The Holiday Concert will feature several light classical works, including Henry Fillmore’s march The Klaxon, inspired by his band’s appearance at the Cincinnati Automobile Show. A klaxon was a type of car horn popular in the early days of the car and served as the inspiration of the title. An arrangement of J.S. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in B-flat Major follows, which is part of a collection of 8 preludes and fugues first published around 1852. The first half of the concert concludes with selections from the Tony Award-winning musical The Sound of Music by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein.
After a brief intermission, the concert will continue with many holiday favorites, starting with Victor Lopez’s Holiday Treat. The program includes Steven Bulla’s Rhapsody for Hannukah, consisting of a medley of songs associated with Hannukah, and Charles Wiley’s Old Scottish Melody, featuring the tune more known as Auld Lang Syne. The concert program concludes with the traditional Leroy Anderson favorites Sleigh Ride and A Christmas Festival.
RVSB comprises about 65 musicians from the northern and central New Jersey area. Band membership includes professional musicians and music educators, as well as amateur musicians ranging in age from high school through retirees.
As always, admission to the concert is FREE. Please note that masks are optional at this performance.
This concert is funded, in part, by a grant from the Somerset County Cultural and Heritage Commission. For more information about the band please visit www.rvsb.org.
