UNCSA welcomes acclaimed jazz composer Omar Thomas as artist-in-residence

The School of Music at UNCSA presents the UNCSA Wind Ensemble, in partnership with the Piedmont Wind Symphony, performing a joint concert featuring the works of internationally acclaimed jazz composer and musician Omar Thomas on Friday, Nov. 4, at 7:30 p.m. at the Stevens Center. The ensembles will be conducted by music director and Music faculty member Mark Norman.

Tickets are $20 regular, $15 for students with valid IDs on our website or by calling the box office at 336-721-1945.

The UNCSA Wind Ensemble and the Piedmont Wind Symphony will perform several of Thomas’ pieces including “A Mother of a Revolution,” “The Low-Down Brown Get-Down,” “Come Sunday” and “Shenandoah.” Thomas will be introducing his pieces and speaking throughout the concert.

The concert will also feature Jeff Scott’s “Baile si quiere!” featuring the UNCSA Faculty Winds; John Mackey’s “Songs from the End of the World,” featuring soprano Lindsay Kesselman and the Piedmont Wind Symphony; and Chen Yi’s “Energetically” from “Dragon Rhyme” with the UNCSA Wind Ensemble. Conducting graduate student Tim Heath will serve as guest conductor.

Mark Norman, the School of Music’s director of instrumental ensembles who also serves as the music director of the Piedmont Wind Symphony, says bringing in renowned talent like Thomas is crucial for students.

“It’s a complete honor that we are hosting perhaps one of the most sought-after and influential composers of this generation, certainly his generation,” said Norman. “It’s a thrill for us to have him on campus working with our students, working with our community, and our professional musicians within the community. We’re very excited and the students are excited.”

During his residency at UNCSA, Thomas will also rehearse his pieces with students and serve as a guest lecturer for the composition seminar and performance hour.

Thomas’ work to be performed during the concert highlights the era of blaxploitation films during the early ’70s. This genre of filmmaking placed Black actors in lead roles, was aimed at African American audiences and was controversial for stereotyping characters. “Despite the backlash studios received, the films possessed an exciting, raw, soulful quality, and from these films were born some of the most iconic characters and soundtracks ever created,” Thomas said. “The Low-Down Brown Get-Down” pulls from various sounds and styles of African American folk music including funk, R&B, soul, early hip-hop and the blues, he added.

“I’m thrilled to work with Mark Norman and UNC School of the Arts,” said Thomas. “With the excellent musicianship of UNCSA’s students and the gracious leadership of Mark, I think we will create a memorable and funky performance.”

The UNCSA Faculty Winds includes Music faculty members Tadeu Coelho, flute; Jaren Atherholt, oboe; Ronald Rudkin, clarinet; Maria Serkin, horn; Stephanie Patterson, bassoon; and Chris Reichmeier, bongos.

About Omar Thomas

A Brooklyn native of Guyanese descent, Omar Thomas has been commissioned to create both jazz and classical style work with his music performed in concert halls around the globe. His work has been performed by such diverse groups as the Eastman New Jazz Ensemble, the San Francisco and Boston Gay Men’s Choruses, The United States Marine Band, the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the Houston Symphony Orchestra, and the Showa Wind Symphony, in addition to several of the country's top collegiate music ensembles. In 2019, Thomas was awarded the National Bandmasters Association/Revelli Award for his wind composition “Come Sunday,” becoming the first Black composer awarded the honor in the contest’s 42-year history. He is now a Yamaha master educator whose first album “I AM” debuted at No. 1 on iTunes Jazz Charts and peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard Traditional Jazz Albums Chart.

About Lindsay Kesselman

Lindsay Kesselman is a two-time Grammy-nominated soprano who passionately advocates for contemporary music. She has been featured in “Energy in All Directions” by Kenneth Frazelle with Sandbox Percussion at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, the role of Anna in Kurt Weill’s “The Seven Deadly Sins” with the Charlotte Symphony, “Astronautica: Voices of Women in Space” with Voices of Ascension and more. Kesselman has been the resident soprano of the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble for 10 seasons and Haven, Kesselman’s trio with Kimberly Cole Luevano and Midori Koga, which actively commissions and tours throughout North America. Kesselman holds degrees in voice performance and music education from Rice University and Michigan State University.

About the UNCSA Wind Ensemble

The University of North Carolina School of the Arts Wind Ensemble combines selected talented high school, undergraduate and graduate students to perform a variety of classic literature and modern wind band repertoire. All sections rotate to individual part assignments that are personalized for each student by the applied faculty and director.

Throughout its history, the wind ensemble has enabled students to work with world-class soloists and composers and has participated in numerous new music commissioning projects leading to world and regional premieres. Many former members now perform with professional orchestras, military bands and chamber ensembles around the world.

About the Piedmont Wind Symphony 

Founded in 1989, the Piedmont Wind Symphony (PWS) consists of the finest professional musicians in the Piedmont-Triad area of North Carolina. Known for their energetic and innovative programming, PWS consistently brings headlining performers such as Ben Folds, Al Jarreau, The Capitol Bones, Demondrae Thurman and Arturo Sandoval to its audiences. Thousands of concertgoers enjoy PWS performances and its Piedmont Pops concerts each year. Serving as a leading ambassador for N.C. bands, PWS frequently works with today’s composers and music educators in producing recordings and providing inspiration to band participants of all ages. 

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