Mobridge to host NSU band, illusionist
Two events this week in Mobridge will raise funds for the restoration of the Scherr-Howe Event Center in Mobridge.
On Monday night, the building will host the Northern State University Symphonic Band. On Friday night, Reza the illusionist will perform. Both events are presented by the Friends of Scherr-Howe.
The Monday concert begins at 7 p.m. The Mobridge-Pollock High School band, under the direction of Sara Bakken, will join the NSU Symphonic Band for a few pieces.
The concert, “Saluting America’s Wind Band Heritage,” includes an arrangement of “This is My Country, Land that I Love.” The was the music the NSU Marching Wolves played in the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 21. The NSU and Mobridge-Pollock bands will combine forces on the piece.
NSU Director of Bands Boyd Perkins said Northern is excited to return to the Scherr-Howe Event Center for the joint concert.
“The Northern State University band played at the beautiful and historic arena in an afternoon concert for the high school students and community members in spring of 2012,” Perkins said in a press release. “After the concert, we were talking with members of the Friends of Scherr-Howe committee and decided we must come back and play an evening concert for the community. The arena is a true South Dakota treasure and historic landmark. I am excited our band members will have an opportunity to experience some of our state’s cultural heritage.”
The program will feature three soloists: Jessica Perkins on euphonium, Fred Hemke on saxophone, and Grant Manhart on trumpet.
Included in the concert are“Xerxes,” by John Mackey; “Il Guarany Overture,” by A. Carlos Gomes, arranged by H.L. Clarke; “Crystals,” by Thomas Duffy; “Golden Jubilee,” by John Philip Sousa; “Pantomime,” by Philip Sparke, featuring Jessica Perkins; “Carnival of Venice,” by Jean Baptiste Arban, featuring Manhart and Perkins; “With Pleasure,” by John Philip Sousa; “Pas Redouble” by Camille Saint-Saëns, arranged by Arthur Frackenpohl; “Jubilant Overture,” by Alfred Reed; “Persuasion,” by Sammy Nestico, featuring Hemke; and “Symphonic Songs,” by Robert Russell Bennett.
Advance tickets for each event are $10 for adults and $5 for kids younger than 12. At the door, the prices are $12 and $7.
Tickets are available at the Mobridge Chamber of Commerce and Merkel’s Foods and Payless Foods in Mobridge.
The Mobridge facility, formerly known as Scherr-Howe Arena, is known for its massive murals by Lakota artist Oscar Howe.
The Friends of Scherr-Howe is a nonprofit organization that brings in performances to raise funds for the restoration of Howe’s murals, installation of handicap-accessible bathrooms and other causes.
The NSU Symphonic Band will also perform at 8:30 a.m. Thursday at Aberdeen Central High School and at 3:15 p.m. Friday at the South Dakota State University Performing Arts Center in Brookings.
