Thursday
April 24, 2025
7:00 PM
Rialto center for the arts
The Purple Pageant (1933/1982)
KARL L. KING | 1891-1971
ARR. JOHN P. PAYNTER | 1928-1996
Najja Hughey, conductor & Winner of the 2025 Undergraduate Conducting Competition
Karl L. King was an American composer and bandleader. His family moved to Xenia, Ohio, a short time after his birth, and around the turn of the century the King family moved to across the state to Canton, where young Karl would begin to develop an interest in bands and music. After receiving some instruction on the cornet, King switched to baritone. His first band experience was with the Thayer Military Band of Canton, while in his teens. In 1909 King spent some time as a member of bands in Columbus and also Danville, Illinois. While a member of these bands, King began to compose marches and other works. Beginning in 1910, King began a decade-long career as a circus musician, spending one season each as a baritone player in the bands of Robinson’s Famous Circus, Yankee Robinson Circus, Sells Floto Circus, and the Barnum and Bailey “Greatest Show On Earth.” He continued to write music while a member of these bands, and in 1913 wrote what would become his masterpiece, Barnum and Bailey's Favorite.
Blue and Green Music (2011)
SAMUEL R. HAZO | B. 1966
Braeden Weyhrich, conductor
"Blue and Green Music" by Georgia O'keeffe
The stunning artwork of Georgia O'Keeffe is no more apparent than in her famous 1921 painting entitled Blue and Green Music. Fittingly commissioned by the Patrick Marsh Middle School in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin (O'Keeffe's birthplace), Samuel Hazo does an amazing job of portraying subtle as well as bold colors into musical terms. Based on a single theme that is manipulated and varied throughout, the piece progresses from delicate mallet percussion effects up to climactic impact points for the entire ensemble. O'Keeffe explained her idea that “music could be translated into something for the eye.”
- Program Note from publisher
The Wearing of the Green (1947/2009)
from the Irish Suite
LEROY ANDERSON | 1908-1975
ARR. DOUGLAS E. WAGNER | B. 1952
This wonderful setting was not a part of the original "Irish Suite" for orchestra but was added later. Unlike the original four movements, it was not rescored for band until now and was well worth the wait! A rollicking dialog between woodwind and brass sections, it's an excellent addition to concert band repertoire. Whether used for concerts, festivals, pop concerts or St. Patrick Day celebrations, it's a sheer delight to listen to or perform.
- Program Note from publisher
The Eire Society of Boston, Massachusetts commissioned Leroy Anderson to create an orchestral suite of traditional Irish folk music to be performed by the Boston Pops Orchestra. Anderson completed four movements in just 11 days while staying with his parents in his boyhood home on Chatham Street in Cambridge.
"The Wearing of the Green" was completed two years later in 1949 along with another additional movement.
Red Tails (2020)
AYATEY SHABAZZ | B. 1971
Mr. Shabazz is the Founder, President, and CEO of The Devmusic Company. Shabazz scores music for a host of film and T.V.projects for Disney and Pixar, notably the Pixar film INCREDIBLES 2 ,and bonus feature music for the movie SOUL on Disney+.
Tuskegee Airmen"refers to all involved in the so-called "Tuskegee Experience,"the Army Air Corps program to train African-Americans to fly and maintain combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, navigators, bombardiers, maintenance and support staff, instructors, and personnel who kept the planes and pilots in the air.The military selected Tuskegee Institute to train pilots because of its commitment to aeronautical training. Tuskegee had the facilities, engineering and technical instructors, anda climate for year-roundflying. The first Civilian Pilot Training Program students completed their instruction in May 1940. The Tuskegee program was then expanded and became the center for African-American aviation during World War II.The Tuskegee Airmen overcame segregation and prejudice to become one of the most highly respected fighter groups of World War II. They proved conclusively that African Americans could fly and maintain sophisticated combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen'sachievements, together with the men and women who supported them, paved the way for fully integratingthe U.S.military.
T. Devin Reid
T . Devin Reid is currently an active musician and educator throughout the southeast. A native of Fayetteville, NC, Mr. Reid is a 2005 recipient of the North Carolina T eaching Fellows Scholarship. He holds a Master of Music in Wind Band Conducting from Georgia State University and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
In 2018 Mr. Reid accepted the position as Assistant Director of Bands at Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. Prior to this, Mr. Reid served as the interim assistant director of bands for two years. In this capacity he co-teaches the Panther Marching Band, conducts the Basketball Band, conducts the University Concert Band, teaches undergraduate and graduate level conducting courses, and supervises student teachers in the field among other duties and courses. Since his arrival, the GSU Concert Band has grown to become the largest instrumental concert ensemble at the university. With Mr. Reid’s direction, the GSU Panther Band performed in 2019 as part of the Pepsi Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show, been accepted as a CBDNA Southern Region top marching band in 2020, and been accepted to perform in the 2022 Tournament of Roses Parade. Preceding to his appointment at Georgia State, Mr. Reid taught public school in Georgia and North Carolina and served as Graduate Assistant for the Georgia State University Bands. While teaching at James Kenan High School (NC), Mr. Reid grew the program from 0% to 10% of the school population in just three years. His ensembles performed at numerous events in and out of the community including the NC Muscadine Festival, NC PAS Day of Percussion and the Virginia International Music Festival.
Mr. Reid has presented clinics and workshops at the North Carolina Music Educators Conference, Georgia Music Educators Conference, Tennessee Music Educators Conference, South Carolina Music Educators Conference, Florida Music Educators Conference, American String Teachers Association National Conference and the Georgia State University Bands of Distinction Honor Clinic. He is a recurrent guest conductor at the International Euphonium and Tuba Festival. He is also an active concert band and marching band clinician and adjudicator throughout Georgia, Virginia and NorthCarolina.
As a performer, Mr. Reid is an actively sought-after musician. He was the percussionist for the popular brass quintet and Delos recording artist “Da Capo Brass”. Their debut album “From The Beginning” stormed the iTunes classical charts at #8 in January 2012. He has also been a member of the regionally acclaimed bluegrass band, “T.R. and the Boys” as baritone vocalist and mandolin player. They have three releases, and their most recent album; “Lonesome” features one of his original songs as the title track. He is a member of the National Association for Music Education, College Band Directors National Association and is an endorser for Sabian Cymbals.
Mr. Reid is happily married to his beautiful wife Amy and they reside in Powder Springs, GA with their daughter Katelynn and son Ethan.
Najja Hughey
B.M. Music Education
Winner of the 2025 Undergraduate Conducting Competition
Najja (Naj) Hughey is a music educator, conductor, and performer based in Atlanta, Georgia. A graduating senior at Georgia State University, cum laude, he is earning a Bachelor of Music Education with a focus on instrumental music. During his time at GSU, Naj has held several roles that showcase his leadership and commitment to music. He has served as a two-year Drum Major for the Panther Band, a two-term President of the Nu Alpha Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi, and a two-term Head Senator for the College of the Arts.
Naj's impact extends beyond campus through his work as a brass instructor, clinician, and drum major coach for band programs in seven metro Atlanta school districts. In these roles, he has also served as a sectional coach and provided private lessons in trombone and euphonium throughout the area.
As a performer, Naj is the Principal Euphonium of Tara Winds—a community wind ensemble based in Marietta, Georgia. He has also been an active member of multiple ensembles, including the Georgia State University Symphonic Wind Ensemble, the GSU Basketball Band, and various chamber ensembles. He has showcased his musicianship at the Georgia Music Educators Association Conference and is set to perform at Carnegie Hall with Tara Winds in May 2025. His achievements include being one of only four students in the state to earn the 2024 GMEA CNAfME Scholarship, earning the Panther Band Director’s Award, winning the 2025 Undergraduate Conducting Competition, and being honored with the J. Lee Burke Student Achievement Award—the highest honor bestowed upon an active member of Kappa Kappa Psi.
Beyond performing and teaching, Naj is deeply committed to arts advocacy. He represented Georgia at the National Association for Music Education Collegiate Advocacy Summit in Washington, D.C., where he met with lawmakers and staffers on Capitol Hill to advocate for increased federal funding for music education and the inclusion of the arts in federal education policy. Additionally, through his leadership in the Student Government Association, he advocated for increased support for the arts in higher education, representing over 2,700 students in the College of the Arts.
Naj plans to begin a Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction in Music Education at Florida A&M University in the summer of 2025 while teaching high school band, furthering his dedication to shaping the future of music education through leadership and service.
Braeden Weyhrich
Graduate Teaching Assistant & Wind Band Conducting Student
Braeden Weyhrich is a Master of Music student and graduate assistant at Georgia State University, where she studies wind band conducting with Dr. Robert Ambrose. Before graduate studies, she was the Band Director at Hinton Community School in northwest Iowa, where she taught and administered all aspects of the band program for students in grades 5-12. She was also the Associate Conductor of the Siouxland All-America Concert Band, Librarian for the Sioux City Municipal Band, and a member of several district and state-wide committees of the Iowa Bandmasters Association. Braeden is a part of The Access Collective, a program piloted in Iowa and soon to expand nationally which works to assist band directors in connecting their students to other people and cultures through music.
Braeden holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and an Honors College Degree from Oklahoma State University, where she graduated magna cum laude and was recognized as an OSU Alumni Association Outstanding Senior. Her organizational affiliations include Tau Beta Sigma, Sigma Alpha Iota, and Women Band Directors International.