Moran Woodwind Quintet to Perform April 15

by Richard Veit

The critically acclaimed Moran Woodwind Quintet plays an engagement in Waco Wednesday, April 15, as part of its extensive Big 12 Tour. The concert begins at 6:30 p.m. in Meadows Recital Hall on the Baylor University campus.
This chamber group, the resident faculty quintet at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln (UNL), is one of the busiest professional ensembles in the Midwest. They appear under the auspices of the Nebraska Arts Council Touring Program.
Formed in 1986, the Moran Woodwind Quintet was named in memory of Dr. John Moran, who served as director of the UNL School of Music from 1972 to 1977. Its members are flutist John Bailey, oboist William McMullen, clarinetist Diane Cawein, bassoonist Gary Echols and hornist Allen French.
The program will open with the Trois pièces brèves ("Three Brief Pieces") of Jacques Ibert and then the Quintet for Winds by contemporary American composer John Harbison.
Following intermission, the Moran Woodwind Quintet will perform the playful Kinderspielzeug ("Children's Toy") of German composer Theodor Blumer, whose works the Quintet recorded in 1994 on a compact disc from Crystal Records.
The concert will conclude with Jim Parker's Mississippi Five. This engaging piece is in five programmatic movements: "King Oliver Steps Out," "Blues for Johnny Dodds," "The River Queen," "Le Tombeau de Bessie Smith" and "Les Animaux."
In addition to the Blumer release, the Moran Woodwind Quintet has recorded for Coronet Records. Its 1990 appearance on National Public Radio earned a nomination for NPR's Lucian Wulsin Award for Best Regional Performance by a Small Ensemble.
The concert is free of charge and open to the public.