According to tradition at Henderson State University, the Reddie Spirit of pride and motivation that drives the university’s students and alumni and serves as the school mascot was born Feb. 3, 1914, when fire destroyed the main building on the campus of what was then called Henderson-Brown College.
Vocalists and band members from the university will commemorate the event in the coming weeks with a series of concerts that began Wednesday night.
“The opening concert, Fire and Heart, included “The Firebird Suite,” music from Igor Stravinsky’s controversial ballet The Firebird transcribed for wind ensemble,” said Carrie Pawelski, director of bands at Henderson State. “The programs are excellent, and the students are sure working hard. They are doing their job.”
The second of the three concerts will be at 3 p.m. Sunday in Arkansas Hall on the HSU campus and will feature the Henderson State Symphony Band, under the direction of Shaun Popp, assistant director of bands.
“The symphony band is, of course, larger than the wind ensemble but has basically the same instruments,” Popp said. “The ensemble often has just one instrument per part. We often double the instruments for many of the parts.”
The symphony-band conductor said the theme of the concert will be based on the song “We Shall Overcome,” music considered to be the anthem of the civil rights movement.
“We have combined music for Black History Month and the way Henderson State overcame the tragedy of the fire with a positive spirit that would not give up on the school in its darkest days,” Popp said. “One of the pieces is called “A Movement for Rosa Parks,” named for a woman in Montgomery, Ala., who
refused to leave her seat after she was ordered to move to the colored section in the back of a city transit bus.”
“The practices have been going well,” Pawelski said. “We’re excited.”
The special series of concerts will end March 18 with performances from the HSU Concert Choir and Henderson’s Chamber Chorale, conducted by Ryan Fox, the director of choral activities in the music department at the university.
The concert is named Out of Gray Ashes, Fox said.
“I largely programmed pieces along the theme of re-creation of life. I also wanted to celebrate our entire history,” he said. “So I’ve programmed pieces that address specific elements of the school’s character and history, like the first commencement and the School With a Heart.”
Fox said two choirs will be used.
“The Concert Choir is an auditioned ensemble of 55 singers, and the Chamber Chorale is a smaller ensemble of 24 singers who are part of the choir; however, they have to complete a second and more rigorous audition to be in the chorale,” Fox said. “Most of the members of the chorale are music majors, with a few majors from other disciplines.”
All three conductors said their musicians have been working on the music since they returned from the Christmas break at the beginning of the year.
“We may program a couple of these pieces in our April concert,” Fox said, “but this is the only time they will be performed together.”
Pawelski said the conductors and the students are “excited and honored to be asked to do the series for the students, faculty, alumni and members of the community.”
All the concerts are free and open to the public.
Staff writer Wayne Bryan can be reached at (501) 244-4460 or wbryan@arkansasonline.com.