Samuel A. Livingston: American Scenes & Other Works for Concert Band Brno Philharmonic Orchestra & Stanislav Vavřínek

• Samuel A. Livingston (b. 1942): Celebrating the Fourth:
• 1Livingston: Celebrating the Fourth03:53
• 3 American Scenes:
• 2Livingston: 3 American Scenes: No. 1, Big Sky04:14
• 3Livingston: 3 American Scenes: No. 2, Mountain Lake at Dawn05:11
• 4Livingston: 3 American Scenes: No. 3, Cityscape04:28
• Silvertube Variations:
• 5Livingston: Silvertube Variations05:57
• Balkan Dance:
• 6Livingston: Balkan Dance04:05
• Total Runtime27:48

Info for Samuel A. Livingston: American Scenes & Other Works for Concert Band

"American Scenes", from composer Samuel A. Livingston is, as its title suggests, a painterly tribute to America. The album’s title piece, Three American Scenes, is a three-movement suite that expresses the grandeur of the American west, the serenity of a mountain lake at dawn, and the bustle of a busy day in a large city. The album opens with Celebrating the Fourth, which depicts an American Fourth of July celebration. The final two selections feature works for concert band with a solo instrument – the flute, in Silvertube Variations, and the clarinet, in Balkan Dance. In that last selection, Livingston turns his attention beyond our shores, to the harmonies and rhythms of the folk music of the Balkan countries, especially Bulgaria and Macedonia. Altogether, AMERICAN SCENES is thoughtfully-crafted and unabashedly jubilant, expressing appreciation for America and the world beyond with refreshing sincerity.

Winds of Filharmonie Brno
Stanislav Vavřínek, conductor

Stanislav Vavřínek
is one of the most prominent Czech conductors and has been Chief Conductor of the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice since 2018.

Having graduated from the Conservatory in Brno where he studied flute and conducting, he continued his education at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Subsequently, he also took master classes with Roberto Benzi in Switzerland, culminating with a concert in which he conducted the Biel Philharmonic Orchestra. From 1994 to 1998, Vavřínek was the principal conductor of the Prague Student Orchestra, which won many awards under his leadership. In 1998, he also conducted the International Youth Orchestra in the final festival concert in Shizuoka, Japan.

As a guest conductor, Vavřínek has collaborated with more than 30 symphonic and chamber orchestras including the Brno Philharmonic, the Prague Philharmonie, the Czech Philharmonic, the Prague Symphony Orchestra, the Slovak Philharmonic, the Hamburger Symphoniker, and the Gdansk Philharmonic. He has appeared on stages in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Poland and Spain, and Japan. He has also collaborated with a number of outstanding soloists and performed at a number of prominent festivals such as the Shizuoka International Music Festival, the Brno International Music Festival, the Prague Autumn, and the Prague Spring. He has recorded nine CDs with music by Mozart, Haydn, Dvořák, Tchaikovsky, Sternwald, Bartók, Shostakovich, and others.

From 1999 to 2008, Vavřínek served as the Chief Conductor of the South Bohemian Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra in České Budějovice before taking up the same position with the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic in Zlín, which he held until 2015. He is a frequent guest conductor of many orchestras both at home and abroad, not only in concerts, but also during various notable extraordinary productions.

From 2006 to 2010, Vavřínek taught at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, where he was a member of the Department of Conducting.

This album contains no booklet.