By Tom Ganser
Correspondent
Will Calcaterra, an East Troy Middle School sixth grader, was among 97 French horn players from throughout southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois who spent Nov. 1 in a day that was both educational and just plain fun during the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater’s 16th annual Fall Horn Festival.
This year’s festival theme was “Horns Go Halloween – So Much Fun, It’s Scary!” and included “Creepy Classics” like Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain” and “O Fortuna” from Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana.”
Calcaterra rehearsed and performed Carl Orff’s “O Fortuna” as a member of “The Zombies,” a small ensemble for beginning horn players led by Chris Zacher, director of bands and jazz ensembles in the Northport-Eastport School District on Long Island, New York.
The six small ensembles ranged in ability from beginners to adults (“Monsters and Mummies”).
The Chicago-based Über Horn Quartet offered a master class, performances, and served as leaders for four of the small ensembles.
Calcaterra also joined with the other festival participants in a Full Horn Choir performing Edvard Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” and in a “Monstrous Medley” performance of themes from “The Munsters,” “The Twilight Zone” and “The Addams Family” that also included faculty/guest artists and the UWW student Horn Ensemble.
The day featured a “Festival Fun Time” with a horn, music and equipment display and raffle prizes courtesy of Breber Music Company in Elkhorn, the major sponsor for the annual Fall Horn Festival; snacks; and photos of the participants wearing their orange festival T-shirts.
Linda Kimball, a faculty member in the Department of Music at UWW and an accomplished hornist, began the festival to increase interest in the horn and to provide an opportunity for hornists to share their common interest in a day both educational and enjoyable.
Although the date for the 2015 Fall Horn Festival has not yet been set, information about the festival can be obtained from Kimball through email at kimballL@uww.edu.
