John Boyd, Frederick Fennell, and the Philharmonia A Vent

By Glen A. Tuomaala

The French translation of Terre Haute shares a lot in common with the professional wind band that calls that Indiana metropolis home. This Midwestern town may have been recognized by more people for the birthplace of the American Socialist Party, the Baking Soda industry, the glass Coca-Cola bottle and the college career of basketball player Larry Bird, but today it stands as a landmark in the musical world of professional wind band recordings. “Higher ground” is French for Terre Haute and it symbolizes the effort that Philharmonia A Vent, one of only two professional wind bands recording today in America (the other being the Dallas Winds), is contributing to the musical world of wind band repertoire.

Under the direction of Dr. John Boyd and Dr. Frederick Fennell the ensemble has been rehearsing and recording on the campus of Indiana State University for over three years and has created some of the finest quality compact disk recordings of both new and standard band literature. In early September Band & Orchestra News joined the Philharmonia A Vent for their fourth recording session to interview the conductors, meet the musicians, and listen alongside the recording engineers and producers to learn more about how the ensemble began and where it is heading in the future.

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

John Boyd’s previous experience recording with the Kent State University Symphonic Band prepared him to work with the Indiana State University Faculty Winds in 1996. One significant advantage was that Terre Haute is home to the largest compact disk factory in the United States producing 16 million units per month for Sony recording projects. With the in-kind donation of those services by Sony and a matching grant from the Indiana State University Research and Development Office new recordings were not only possible, but also affordable. Within a short time Dr. Boyd was working with faculty musicians to record new compact disks for recruitment and marketing purposes with the sales benefiting a new music scholarship fund.

It was during this process that Dr. Boyd began to imagine the larger possibilities of building a professional wind band dedicated to recording the best new and standard wind literature available. With the support of the Ludwig Publishing Company the ELF record label was created. This new record label absorbed and re-issued the previous Indiana State University recordings and prepared for new recordings with the Philharmonia A Vent. The ensemble now had it’s own record label with dozens of high quality recordings in the catalog plus a major publishing company to help support future large ensemble recording projects.

RECRUITING MUSICIANS

Similar to the success of St. Martins in the Fields Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonia A Vent would began as purely a recording ensemble dedicated to selecting the finest repertoire, the most talented musicians, and the best recording technology to create worthwhile and rewarding recording projects.

The high caliber of musicians in the Philharmonia a Vent (“symphony of winds”) is drawn from the music faculties of Indiana State University, Indiana University, Vincennes University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, DePauw University, Butler University, and Northwestern University. In addition to a large number of music professors freelance musicians from the Chicago area, graduate students, and professional musicians from the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Terre Haute Symphony, Lafayette Symphony, Evansville Philharmonic, and Owensboro Symphony are also invited to perform. The farthest musicians travel from Kentucky and Florida for the opportunity to perform together.

90% of the musicians have been playing together since the first compact disk recording project in 1988. New musicians are invited into the ensemble based on recommendations from current members and professional contacts in the Midwest area. With the success of the previous recordings there has never been a shortage of talented artists willing to travel long distances to perform together. There was even a waiting list for musicians interested in performing on the fourth compact disk.

“Great musicians have a choice of whether they want to play with Philharmonia A Vent; great musicians can play anywhere because they sound terrific. They keep coming back here because they really enjoy playing with each other. We are lucky to have such wonderful musicians playing in the group,” Dr. Frederick Fennell

SELECTING REPERTIORE

The musical direction of Dr. Boyd and Dr. Fennell is the primary impulse behind the choice of repertoire for each compact disk. Both conductors believe in the need to focus on repertoire that has not been over-recorded, while still being recognizable and identifiable to a variety of musicians. Being very active in the music publishing arena they are also more aware of new and unique editions of wind band music and often have the opportunity to be the first to record them. To strike a balance within all of these needs produces a good compact disk.

The time constraint of limited rehearsals and recording sessions is also a factor in repertoire selection that is approached by balancing works that may take more time to perfect with those that are easier to achieve or are already more familiar with the musicians. An ingenious choice in gathering programming input was communication with program managers at public radio stations to investigate the factors that would contribute to having their wind music played on the radio.

The results of that communication revealed three recommendations from radio station program managers that would indirectly affect the choices of repertoire:

1. The recording must be from a professional ensemble. Unlike the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, which has a very strong brand name and is automatically associated with quality, a new wind band recording will be more likely to gain “air time” if it is recognized as a professional caliber ensemble.

2. Target some selections to the time slot that will be most often available on a public radio station. Those time slots are normally right between the weather report and the traffic report; a short amount of time and not enough for a 20 minute performance.

3. Choose some works by composers that all audiences will recognize to help build a wider audience among all listeners of serious music. In the end, don’t apologize for wind music since there are millions of listeners around the world who have played in their high school band and already appreciate great wind music.

The results have been spectacular. With Ludwig Music sending out promotional recordings of the previous three compact disks to almost 300 public radio stations across the country Dr. Boyd has slowly gotten used to e-mail and phone calls from musicians from Seattle, Washington to St. Petersburg, Florida who have heard the music of the Philharmonia A Vent on the radio.

THE SOUND ENGINEER

One man directly responsible for the quality of recording the Philharmonia A Vent has enjoyed is Chuck Hawes from Chicago, Illinois. As a classmate of Dr. Boyd at Northwestern he went on to teach middle school band for many years; always building upon his love for recording technology. Since then he has recorded the Northwestern Wind Ensemble under the direction of John Paynter and Mallory Thompson, the Northshore Concert Band, and numerous local orchestra and chamber music ensembles.

Hawes’s 36 years of experience provides the confidence to continue to experiment with microphone selection and placement for every recording with the Philharmonia A Vent. Arriving during the last few rehearsals on campus he sets up a variety of microphones and records examples of each set-up that the recording team of Boyd, Fennell, and Werle evaluates on the breaks. His belief is that “rehearsals are the time to experiment with microphones”

Part of that view comes from the acoustics of the room and the post-production that may be necessary. Since the room the ensemble records within is a rehearsal environment the initial sound quality will be “dry” to the average listener. Due to this the post-production editing will add digital ambiance that was sampled from the Krannert Center for the Arts at the University of Illinois School of Music. “In a way, when you listen to a Philharmonia A Vent recording your ears are hearing them perform at the Krannert Center, even though we’ve never even been there,” said Chuck Hawes.

At the same time, Hawes is careful not to change or modify the depth and texture of the sound too much. “Listeners are very savy today and are annoyed when there is too much manipulation in post production. I try to do as little as possible and err on the side of a natural sound.”

“Every recording has been different since our perception of the ensemble and especially the repertoire has changed and developed. For example, for contemporary works that are generally more transparent we chose to use multiple pick-up microphones for timpani, piano, harp, string bass and solo instruments. That set-up creates a sense of clarity that is beneficial to the type of repertoire, but even with the use of computer technology in the post production process it also sacrifices some of the ambient depth that is necessary for large romantic works.”

“In the case of the ‘Basically British’ compact disk we did exactly the opposite by limiting the number of pick-up microphones and focusing on their placement. For the new ‘Dances’ recording project we will probably lean in that direction as well. We keep experimenting right up until the last rehearsal,” said Chuck Hawes

His arsenal includes a pair of Neuman KM184 condenser microphones, a pair of Royer R121 bi-directional ribbon microphones, three Schoeps omni-directional condenser microphones with CM S6 amplifyer and MK2S capsules. These are all in addition to a large selection of pick-up microphones including Royer R-121’s, Neuman U-87’s, and AKG KD-224E’s used for close placement near the timpani, string bass, piano, harp and mallet percussion.

The heart of the operation is a Dell 7500 laptop computer with an 11 gig hard drive, digital audio card, and sound forge software onto which everything is recorded (he also uses from one to two portable Tascam DA P1 digital audio tape units as backups to the computer). Every sound is recorded to the hard drive at a rate of 10 megabites per minute of sound; generally enough hard drive space for three recording sessions. With the addition of a Mackie 8-bs mixer, an Apogee Rosetta analog to digital converter, numerous microphone stands, yards and yards of lines, and a few rolls of precious duct tape his system is complete.

THE RECORDING PROCESS

Philharmonia A Vent has maintained the same rehearsal and recording schedule for every recording project with three sessions of three hours each of rehearsal followed by three sessions of three hours each for recording. All rehearsals and recordings take place on the campus of Indiana State University in a climate controlled and sound-proof hall located in their new Center for Performing and Fine Arts. Rehearsal schedules are posted every day while the recording schedule is dependent on performance and personnel needs.

“We set the recording order taking into account the difficulty of playing, especially for principal players such as trumpet, and the number of musicians that are needed at any one time. For example, we don’t require piano and harp on every piece so we try to record those works in a single block; it’s more efficient for the players, “ said Dr. John Boyd

Working with professional level musicians changes the atmosphere of the rehearsal with comments and musical input coming from the players as well as from the conductors. In that type of rehearsal mode new ideas are brought out and expanded on a faster pace than what you would expect in a high caliber university wind ensemble.

Each work is allotted a time slot and as the saying goes when recording, “it takes as many takes as is needed”. Time saved in recording one work is easier absorbed in another that may be more challenging. During this process the Recording Engineer and a group of producers is set-up in another room with play-back equipment listening to each and every note from the ensemble. The golden rule when recording is that you have to trust the producers in the other room even more than what you hear from the podium.

The goal for the day is the sound quality from the perspective of the microphone. Sometimes it will sound terrific inside of the recording hall and the producers will have heard ten things that were unacceptable. Hiring the best recording engineer and producers is absolutely vital to building the trust to be able to know when to record a passage again for the tenth time and when to move on.

In the recording room Floyd Werle, retired Chief Arranger for the Air Force Band for 32 years, was joined by four graduate students in wind conducting from Indiana State University and either Dr. Boyd or Dr. Fennell depending on who was on the podium at the time. This team behind the scenes is really what makes the entire effort possible and successful in the long run.

POST PRODUCTION

The post production and editing process starts with Dr. Boyd and Fennell reviewing the master tapes from the recording sessions and selecting the exact segments to combine to make the best possible final product. Sometimes a complete take is the best while at other times the editing process involves multiple segments that must be pieced together in the studio.

A score of each work is marked with the ideal segments for the final product, delivered to Chuck Hawes in Chicago who creates a master disk. That edited version is then reviewed again by both Dr. Boyd and Fennell. Changes are even made after this point to better refine each selection. The total time from the last recording session to a final product is normally three months. The September recording sessions marked the fourth album released by ELF records in four years; each album released at the same time of the Midwest Clinic in Chicago (December, 2001).

THE NEXT STEPS

Even with three successful recordings completed and a fourth being prepared for release in December, 2001 Dr. Boyd and the Philharmonia a Vent are looking forward to the future and new goals for the ensemble. As a successful professional level recording ensemble the next step that many of the musicians are talking about is the opportunity of performing concerts in the local Indiana area and developing a dedicated audience for wind band music. That step goes hand in hand with also building a comprehensive business and marketing plan for the next few years that would allow and encourage such significant growth. With the groundwork already laid and a high level of musical excellence achieved the sky is the limit for the Philharmonia A Vent.

PLAYER QUOTES

“I have known Dr. Fennell since when I was in high school in Japan and he began conducting the Tokyo Kosai Wind Ensemble. Even then he was recognized as an amazing musician and conductor. I’m sure my friends would not believe that now I’m playing for Dr. Fennell and making this recording. I might be dreaming!”

- Isami Kawachi: Principal Clarinet, Philharmonia A Vent

Principal clarinet, Indiana Chamber Orchestra

“It is a privlidge for me to make music with Philharmonia A Vent”

“My collegues are committed professionals who bring their best to the rehearsals”

“As a university band director I am constantly learn form the high standards both Dr. Boyd and Dr. Fennell bring to the recording sessions”

“I am always happy to be a part of an ensemble or project that enlarges out body of recorded wind literature”

“Philharmonia A Vent is dedicated to enriching and expanding the availability of quality wind music. I applaud them and will continue to value my participation.”

- Craig T. Pare: Timpani and principal percussion

Director of University Bands and Percussion Faculty, DePauw University

To be released December, 2001:

"Dances" – John Boyd and Frederick Fennell, Conductors

TURINA: Three Fantastic Dances

SURINACH: Ritmo Jondo

CHANCE: Incantation and Dance

PRESS: Wedding Dance

HANSON: Prelude to Act II & Maypole Dances from "Merry Mount Suite"

HUSA: Slovak Dance

Other compact disk recordings by Philharmonia A Vent:

"Russian Masterpieces" – John Boyd and Frederick Fennell, Conductors

MUSSORGSKY/BOYD: Pictures at an Exhibition

TCHAIKOVSKYWINTERBOTTOM: Theme and Seven Variations from "Suite III, op. 55"

TCHAIKOVSKYBOYD: Festival Coronation March

SHOSTAKOVICH/HUNSBERGER: Festive Overture

"Basically British" – John Boyd, Conductor

VAUGHN WILLIAMS: Fanfare for Glorious John

HOLST/BOYD: Japanese Suite

WOOLFENDEN: Illyrian Dances

JACOB: Original Suite

SULLIVAN: Pineapple Poll – Suite II

"Masterworks for Wind Band" – John Boyd and Frederick Fennell, Conductors

MIASKOVSKY/BOYD: Dramatic Overture, op. 60

BACH/PAYNTER: Toccata, Adagio, and Fugue

BRAHMS/BOYD/FENNELL: Three Chorale Preludes, op. 122

WAGNER/VOTTA/BOYD: Trauermusik

HUSA/BOYD: Divertimento

DEBUSSY/BOYD: Danse

Instrumentation of Philharmonia A Vent

FLUTES AND PICCOLOS

Powell custom made flute

Brannen Brothers custom made copper flute

Brannen Brothers grenadilla wood piccolo

Brannen Brothers silver piccolo with Keefe head joint

OBOES & ENGLISH HORN

Loree Conservatory AK model

Loree Conservatory AK model

CLARINETS

Buffet R-13 Prestige model clarinet with Richard Hawkins mouthpiece and Vandoren V12 #4 reeds

Buffet R-13 Prestige model clarinet with Richard Hawkins mouthpiece and Vandoren V-12 reeds

Buffet R-13 Prestige model clarinet with Rick Sayer mouthpiece and Vandoren reeds

Yamaha CX model clarinet with Woodwind G8 Marcellus mouthpiece and Vandoren reeds

Yamaha YCL 72 model clarinet with James Pyre mouthpiece and Vandoren reeds

Selmer Recital model clarinet with Selmer C85, 120 mouthpiece and Vandoren V12 4Vs reeds

BASS CLARINET

Buffet Prestige model bass clarinet with James Pyne mouthpiece and Vandoren reeds

BASSOONS

Renard Fox 220 model bassoon with Heckel “3” bocal

Renard Fox 601 model bassoon with handmade custom bocal by the player

SAXOPHONES

Selmer Series III soprano saxophone with Selmer C-star mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 reeds

Selmer Series III alto saxophone with Selmer C-star mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 reeds

Selmer Mark VII alto saxophone with Selmer S80 C-star mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 reeds

Selmer super action Series II tenor saxophone with Selmer C-star mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 ½ reeds

Selmer S-80 Series II baritone saxophone with Salmer S-90 190 mouthpiece with Vandoren #4 reeds

HORNS

Holton 180 with custom made Moosewood mouthpiece; Steve Lewis mute from Chicago Holton “Merker-Matic” H275 with Bach 7 mouthpiece; Stoneline mute

Holton H281 with a Bach 7 mouthpiece

Conn 11D (UMI artist model) with Moosewood BW12 mouthpiece; Trumcor mutes

TRUMPETS

Monette C-997 model trumpet with Monette C1-2 mouthpiece; Bach straight mute and Dennis Wicke cup mute

Bach Stradivarius model Bflat and C trumpets with Stork mouthpieces; Jo-Ral and Humes and Berg mutes

Bach Stradivarius model 37 trumpet with Bach megatone 3B mouthpiece; Jo-Ral straight mute and Bach black plastic straight mute

Yamaha YTR 6445 HGS model C trumpet with Laskey 70C mouthpiece; Bach plastic straight mute and Dennis Wicke cup mute

FLUGELHORN

Yamaha 635T flugelhorn

TROMBONES

Bach Stradivarius model 42C tenor trombone with Bach 46 mouthpiece; Jo-Ral mutes

Benges model 190C tenor trombone with Schilke 52D mouthpiece; Jo-Ral straight mute

Edwards model 987 dual bore slide, silver leadpipe bass trombone with Bach 1 ¼ GM mouthpiece; Jo-Ral and Dennis Wicke mutes

EUPHONIUMS & BARITONE

Besson euphonium (medium bore) with Schilke 51D mouthpiece; Tom Crown mutes

Hirsbrunner compensating euphonium model HBE with Bach 6 ½ AL and AM mouthpieces; Dennis Wicke mute

Yamaha baritone horn model YBH-621

TUBAS & STRING BASS

B & S Perantucci six quarters CC tuba (PT7) with Perantucci PT50+ mouthpiece

Hirsbrunner CC tuba (HB-2. 1979) with Perantucci Mega PT-88 mouthpiece

Abraham Prescott string bass - 1818 Camorican

PERCUSSION STICKS AND MALLETS

Vic Firth, Hinger and Saul Goodman timpini sticks

Vic Firth, Malletech (cirone), Lamb, and GMS snare drum sticks

Stossel triangle beaters

Balter, Encore, malletech keyboard mallets

THE BAND MEMBERS

The musicians of Philharmonia A Vent come from a wide variety of places both geographically and professionally. A snap-short of their backgrounds includes:

1. Professional musicians and freelance artists from the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Terre Haute Symphony, Lafayette Symphony, Evansville Philharmonic, and Owensboro Symphony

2. Faculty members from Indiana State University, Indiana University, Vincennes University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, DePauw University, Butler University, and Northwestern University

3. Graduate students from Indiana State University, Indiana University, and the University of Illinois

4. Elementary, middle school, high school band and choir directors; and a professional instrument repair technician

THE CONDUCTORS

Dr. Boyd is Director of Bands, professor of music, and Coordinator of the Wind/Percussion Division at Indiana State University. Prior to joining the Indiana State University faculty in 1989, Dr. Boyd taught at Northern Illinois University, Wichita State University, Kent State University, and the University of Arizona. He received a Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music degrees from Northwestern University and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. His advanced study in conducting was with John Paynter, Bernard Rubenstein, and Crawford Gates.

Dr. Boyd has guest conducted The U.S. Army Band twice, conducted/lectured at the Royal Northern College of Music at Manchester, UK, and the 9^th WASBE International Conference in addition to state and regional CBDNA and MENC performances, the Western Collegiate Wind Festival, Fresno, and invitations to appear at three National Music Educators Conferences. On April 11^th, 2002 the Indiana State University Symphonic Wind Ensemble will perform at the Music Educators National Conference in Nashville, Tennessee.

As an active arranger and composer of all forms of wind ensemble music, he has published works in the catalogs of Ludwig, G. Schirmer, Barnhouse, Cole, and Associated Music.

Dr. Frederick Fennell is one of the world's most active and innovative conductors. He is principal guest conductor of the Dallas Wind Symphony, principal conductor of the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra in Japan, guest conductor for the Philharmonia A Vant, and Professor Emeritus at the University of Miami School of Music.

The internationally-acclaimed conductor is widely regarded as the leader of the wind ensemble movement in this country, is one of America's most recording living American classical conductors, and is a pioneer in various methods of recording.

While maintaining obvious devotion to the band and its music, he has pursued such illustrious and wide ranging activities as conductor of orchestra, opera, and popular repertoire. He has made guest conducting appearances with symphony orchestras and bands all over the world and has won numerous awards including the John Philip Sousa Star of the Order in 1985, the Interlochen Medal of Honor and the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic Medal of Honor in 1989 and the National Bandmasters Association Hall of Fame for Distinguished Conductors to name just a few.

Dr. Fennell has authored several publications with musical topics including his 1954 book Time and the Winds. He is also the author of the continuing series The Basic Band Repertory Study/Performance Essays, editor of contemporary editions of classic military, circus and concert marches for Theodore Presser Co., Carl Fisher, Inc., Sam Fox Publishing Co., Boosey & Hawkes, Inc., and the Fennell Editions for Ludwig Music.