Robert Alexander’s piece “That Thing” premieres with Stephen F. Austin State University Wind Ensemble

The Stephen F. Austin (SFA) State University Wind Ensemble premiered USC Thornton Composition alumnus Robert Alexander’s (’18) piece, “That Thing,” on Oct. 15 in the Griffith Fine Arts Building’s Turner Auditorium in Nacogdoches, Texas.

The piece was part of the Composing in the Wilderness program, led by adventurer-composer Stephen Lias and offered by the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival in collaboration with Alaska Geographic and the National Park Service. Alexander spent a week in the remote wilderness of Lake Clark National Park—along with five other selected composers—camping, hiking and kayaking while drawing inspiration from the surroundings. The composers were then tasked with creating a new work for the wind ensemble.

The SFA premiere was the first of three performances, followed by the University of Nebraska – Lincoln Wind Ensemble and the Grand Valley State University Wind Symphony.

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