The West Virginia University Wind Symphony will present a concert Monday, Nov. 8, at 7:30 p.m. at the Lyell B. Clay Concert Theatre at the Creative Arts Center. Conducted by WVU Director of Bands Don Wilcox, the concert will also feature several student conductors, as well as Associate Director of Bands John Hendricks.

The program will open withCelebration Overture, Op. 61,by Paul Creston, a bright festive work. It will also featureSymphony in B-flat,by Paul Hindemith, which is considered one of the most significant works for band of the 20th century.

Hendricks will conductTrauersinfoniewritten in 1884 by Richard Wagner, which is a musical homage to German composer Carl Maria von Weber, who died that year. Because the score was not published until 1926, it is among the least known of all Wagners compositions. It is based on two themes from Webers operaEuryanthe.

The first half of the program will conclude withVarients on a Medieval Tuneby Norman Dello Joio, which was commissioned by the Duke University Band in 1963. The theme,In Dulci Jubilo,has been used by many composers, including Bach, as the basis for a variety of musical works.

Following intermission will beFanfare, pour preceder �€~La Periby French composer Paul Dukas. He composedLa Perias a single-movement programmatic piece based on dance forms. The fanfare precedes the dance and enjoys great popularity of its own as one of the most famous fanfares in 20th century literature. Dereck Scott, a graduate student in conducting and principal trumpet with the Wind Symphony, will conduct.

Handel in The Strandby Percy Grainger was originally titledClog Dance.It is dedicated to William Gair Rathbone, a close friend of Graingers, who suggested the present title because the music seemed to reflect both Handel and English musical comedy. The Strand in London is a street which is the home of English musical comedy. Allen Heath, a senior music education major, who is a tuba player with the Wind Symphony and field conductor with the WVU Marching Band, will conduct.

Next on the program isRhosymedreby Ralph Vaughan Williams. In 1920, Williams composed three preludes for organ based on Welsh hymn tunes which have become standards of organ repertoire. Of the three,Rhosymedre,sometimes known asLovely,has become the most popular. It will be conducted by Brent Alexander, a graduate student working on a masters degree in conducting.

Alleluias and Thanksgivingby Rachmaninoff is a descriptive title for two of the 15 movements that make up RachmaninoffsAll Night Vigil,a worship service of the Russian Orthodox Church that extends from sunset to sunrise. The music is deeply traditional and was written for four to eight part unaccompanied choir. It is based on ancient chant and liturgy of the church and is solemn, quiet and intensely reverent.Alleluias,the sixth movement, is a series of exchanges between one part of the choir and another, with each prayer answered by the Alleluia response.Thanksgivingis the final movement of the service and is a brief joyful hymn of praise.

The final work on the program isVariations on Americaby Charles Ives. This set of Ivesvariations on the old English melodyGod Save the Queen(which becameAmericawith a new set of words) is filled with humor, satire and musical jokes. It uses all of Ivesfamous techniques of two or three keys at once, melodies and accompaniments that do not always begin or end together, odd and abrupt changes of style, and strange little interludes. The tune is always there, but usually in a very unusual presentation.

For tickets to the Wind Symphony Concert, contact the Mountainlair Box Office at (304) 293-SHOW.