The Birch Creek Percussion & Steel Band Summer Academy in Egg Harbor, WI offers a comprehensive summer education experience for the young adult percussionist. Through firsthand experience with many performances, small-group instruction, and master classes, this program provides an incredible study of all the instruments and styles expected of today’s percussionist who is planning on working at the college level and beyond.
All students in the Percussion & Steel Band session learn to play the steelpan and are placed in a Birch Creek steel band. Steel bands rehearse daily and perform 8 times during the students’ 2-week residency.
Composer: Pharrell Williams
Arranged by: Yuko Asada
Director: Liam Teague
Play length: 3:08
Performers: Birch Creek Percussion and Steel Band Students – 2014
Composer: Ben Wahlund
Director: Ben Wahlund
Play length: 2:40
Performers: Birch Creek Percussion and Steel Band Students – 2014
Composer: Ken “Professor” Philmore
Director: G. Alan O’Connor
Play length: 3:41
Performers: Birch Creek Steel Band with Liam Teague
All Symphony session students at Birch Creek are assigned to a chamber ensemble which rehearses daily and is coached by a faculty member. These ensembles perform for prelude music before evening concerts and at the final afternoon concert of the session.
At Birch Creek, students combine with the faculty to form the 80 member Birch Creek Symphony Orchestra. They perform 6 concerts (4 entirely different programs) during their 2-week residency, plus have numerous opportunities to perform in their chamber ensembles.
Johannes Brahms
Conductor: Brian Groner
Play Length: 10:59
Composer: Sir Edward Elgar
Conductor: Brian Groner
Play length: 3:53
Composer: Claude Debussy
Conductor: Brian Groner
Play length: 9:40
Composer: Claude Debussy
Conductor: Brian Groner
Play length: 7:02
Composer: Claude Debussy
Conductor: Brian Groner
Play length: 8:31
Composer: Antonin Dvorak
Performers: Birch Creek Student String Quintet
Play length: 9:18
At Birch Creek, students perform in large groups and small ensembles. They perform in 7 concerts and 2 to 3 combo performances. They also have additional opportunities to perform in other public outreach concerts.
Composer: Frank Foster
Director: Nic Meyer
Performers: Birch Creek Studio Band
Play Length: 4:30
Composer: Ferde Grofé
Director: José Encarnación
Performers: Birch Creek Jazz Ambassadors
Play length: 12:35
Composer: Dizzy Gillespie
Arranged by: Gil Fuller
Director: Phil Crews
Performers: Birch Creek Lab Band
Play length: 3:13
Composer: James Ellis
Arranged by: Kris Berg
Director: Jim Stombres
Performers: Birch Creek Studio Band
Play length: 4:46
Composer: Duke Ellington
Director: Jeff Campbell
Performers: Birch Creek Acadamy Jazz Orchestra
Play length: 6:36
Birch Creek is supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
