The UF School of Music is offering two music ensemble courses as part of the Creative B Summer program. The ensembles are open to all UF students, faculty, staff and Gainesville community members this Summer B.
Archie Birkner IV, the assistant professor of music at UF, will be conducting the orchestra. He hopes the orchestra will be a full symphony, which contains string, brass, woodwind and percussion sections. About 33 musicians have expressed interest so far, he said.
UF Associate Director of Bands John M. Watkins Jr. will be conducting a concert band this Summer B. The concert band will have brass, woodwind and percussion sections, he said.
The orchestra will play standard orchestra repertoire that will be fun to play, Birkner said.
For the concert band, they are looking to perform music that a wide-ranging audience would enjoy, Watkins said. The music will include standard marches, movie and show tunes, patriotic music and summer-themed songs.
These ensembles are open to everyone in Gainesville to include those who want to make music over the summer, Birkner said.
Brandon McKinley, public relations and partnerships specialist at the College of the Arts, created Facebook event pages for both Summer B music ensembles. The auditions for both the orchestra and band will take place July 2. The orchestra auditions will take place in Music Building, Room 121, and the band auditions are in Steinbrenner Band Hall.
Students can earn academic credit for being in these ensembles, Birkner said. Because participants do not have to be affiliated with UF to participate, students can take it without receiving credit as well.
The course code for the Summer B University Orchestra is MUN1210 and the Summer B Concert Band is MUN1120.
The orchestra rehearsals will be every Tuesday and Thursday of Summer B from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Music Building, Room 121, McKinley said.
The concert band rehearsals will be every Monday and Wednesday from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Steinbrenner Band Hall.
This is not the first time there has been a Summer orchestra, but this is the first time the Summer orchestra has been run by faculty, Birkner said.
McKinley said both ensembles are being funded by the Office of the Provost at UF.
Provost Joseph Glover said the Creative B program consists of many activities, including ensembles.
“The Office of the Provost has funded the Creative B Summer program for over five years to enhance the cultural atmosphere of the campus for students during the Summer B term,” Glover said.
Follow Blake Trauschke on Twitter @BlakeTrauschkeand contact her at btrauschke@alligator.org.
