The University of Delaware Wind Ensemble performed throughout Spain this summer in a tour described as “incredibly successful” and “life-changing” by its 45 student musicians and their faculty leader.

The tour in June took UD’s premier concert band to Barcelona, Valencia, Massanassa, Granada and Úbeda, where they performed four well-received concerts, said Lauren Reynolds, assistant professor and director of concert bands in the Department of Music. Reynolds led the ensemble, which also featured Harvey Price, associate professor of music, as vibraphone soloist.

The tour was supported by UD’s College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Music and Institute for Global Studies.

In Barcelona, the band worked with the leading conductor of Catalán music, Salvador Brotons, in a masterclass on one of his original pieces, and performed a concert at Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya, where the audience demanded an encore. 

The ensemble then traveled to Valencia province, where the musicians performed a joint concert with the municipal band of Massanassa. UD students were treated to a performance of traditional Valencian music, then shared a program of American and European works, and finally joined together for a massed band performance of two Valencian classics.

“The gorgeous hall at l’Auditorí Salvador Seguí was packed, and the extremely enthusiastic audience rose to their feet multiple times throughout the concert,” Reynolds said. Following the performance, members of the two bands came together for a reception of paella and singing, at which the mayor of Massanassa presented each member of the UD Wind Ensemble a gift of appreciation. 

At its next stop on the tour, the Wind Ensemble was invited to join the Banda Municipal de Ogíjares for a special concert at Manuel de Falla Hall in Granada celebrating the Banda’s 25th anniversary. The performance featured a joint performance of a popular Spanish piece.

“Finally, the ensemble gave a stunning performance at the gorgeous Hospital de Santiago in Úbeda, a UNESCO World Heritage site,” Reynolds said. “This invited performance was a part of the annual Úbeda Music Festival, which has seen such headliners as the London Symphony Orchestra, and served as a sensational conclusion to the performance tour.

“The grateful audience asked for multiple encores and extra bows.”

Student musicians share their thoughts

Members of the Wind Ensemble described the impact of their experience following the trip. Here is a small sampling of their enthusiastic comments, all offered as part of an anonymous review of the tour:

• “This trip was life changing! … It affirmed everything I believe in, regarding the importance and power of music to connect people from all walks of life and cultures.”

• “As someone who has never traveled abroad, let alone to play music, this experience changed my life. Exchanging music and stories in your own country, state or city is special, but being able to do that with an entirely different culture of people was something entirely its own. Seeing how music ignores borders, ignores language barriers, and ignores differences in skin color and gender on such a world-wide stage opened my eyes to the power music has to connect and unite people.”

• “It has made me aware as a future teacher of how much I want diversity and exposure to different cultures, arts and music to play a part in my own teaching and how important it is for my future students and children to be exposed to it.”

• “I like to think of myself as a global citizen, and this trip really solidified my belief that everyone in the world has problems and we all deal with them in similar ways. We are all just human beings trying to get by, and if we can share one common connection, in this case music, then we can begin to understand one another a little bit better … This trip has inspired me to share more music of the world with students that I come into contact with, so that they too can be inspired by something unlike anything they have ever heard or experienced. This trip was truly life changing.”