music

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra performs its annual holiday concert, "A Nutcracker Holiday," at 4 p.m., Sunday, at Byron-Bergen High School, conducted by S. Shade Zajac.

Performances include "Christmas Concerto" by Corelli, "Sleigh Ride" by Leroy Anderson, "Piano Concerto No. 2" by Saint-Saens (featuring Amy Feng, GSO Young Artist Winner), T"he Nutcracker" by Tchaikovsky, a holiday selection featuring the Pembroke Elementary Chorus, and Christmas Festival by Leroy Anderson.

Tickets are adults $15, senior $10, and students with ID are free.

Byron-Bergen High School is located at 6917 W. Bergen Road, Bergen.

The DelPlato family has provided us with a new Christmas song: "The Sounds of Christmas," written by Mary DelPlato, performed by Anthony DelPlato, and video submitted by Carmen DelPlato.

Plaza Caribe is an original song by Batavia native Daniel King.

The Genesee Valley Wind Ensemble performs at 4 p.m. today at Pembroke High School.  Here's one of the numbers ensemble will play, American Overture for Band by Joseph Jenkins conducted by Philip J. Briatico.

Genesee Valley Wind Ensemble will hold its Fall Concert at 4 p.m. on Sunday at the Pembroke High School. It is located at 8750 Alleghany Road, Pembroke.

The purpose of the GVWE is to serve and to provide the Greater Genesee Valley audience with new and familiar live music, to serve its membership with the opportunity to perform challenging wind ensemble literature and to create the opportunity for the conductor and musicians to grow their collective musical talents.

Admission: $10 -- Adults; $8 -- Seniors (55+) & Veterans; $5 -- Students (with ID); Free -- Children 5 years old & under; $25 -- Family Deal for immediate family and children as defined by mother and/or father and up to four children.

Featured Works

Press release:

Sonny Mayo and the Lowdown are coming to Genesee Community College's Stuart Steiner Theater on Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m. for an evening of excellent rhythm and blues featuring a great selection of original tunes and old favorites.

Presale tickets are $10 each and can be purchased by contacting Derek Maxfield, GCC's associate professor of History at ddmaxfield@genesee.edu or 585-343-0055, ext. 6288.

All concert proceeds will benefit GCC's History Club's spring break history tour of important historical sites, museums and battlefields.

Frank Mayo, aka Sonny Mayo, is now a retired GCC public speaking professor, but he is anything but retired from his passion for music. He is bringing his trio with him for a show that promises to give local music aficionados a taste of folk, blues and Americana music, and all for great cause.

Presale tickets are $10 each and will be $12 at the door.

Advance tickets are encouraged by contacting: Derek Maxfield, GCC's associate professor of History and History Club advisor; or Marie Kochmanski, clerk-typist in the second floor Humanities Suite, Room B259; or Michelle Forster, secretary in the third floor GCC Human Communication and Behavior Suite, Room B359.

 For more information or to purchase tickets, email Maxfield at ddmaxfield@genesee.edu or call 585-343-0055, ext. 6288.

Press release:

Local guitarist/singer Dylan DeSmit will be releasing his new album, "Sittin' by the Fire," on Nov. 8th.

The new album is a follow-up to his 2017 EP, "Pizza for Breakfast."

Recorded over the past year and a half at Watchmen Studios in Lockport, "Sittin' by the Fire" features more of a Southern rock/country rock sound than DeSmit's previous work.

It consists of 12 tracks, including the singles "October" and "Castle." The album will be available on all online streaming platforms, including Spotify, Itunes, and Bandcamp. It will also be available on CD.

One of our previous recordings of The Batavian Sessions with Dylan DeSmit:

Here is the Genesee Symphony Orchestra during Monday's rehearsal performing Aaron Copland's "John Henry."

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra opens its 2019-20 season this Sunday at 4 p.m. with a concert in the auditorium of Pembroke High School.

The concert, "Symphonic Pictures I: Portraits" features "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" by Debussy, "John Henry," by Aaron Copland, "The Swan of Tuonela," by Sibelius, and "Pictures at an Exhibition," by Mussorgsky.

This is the fourth season S. Shade Zajac leads the orchestra.

For casual fans of orchestra music or those who have never been to see an orchestra perform, this is an excellent show. The pieces are largely modernist and fun. The Mussorgsky piece is particularly exciting (watch the video) and Aaron Copland is perhaps America's greatest composer.  

If you watch the video, you will likely want to attend this show.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors, and students (with ID) get in for free. Tickets are available at Roxy's Music Store, GO ART!, The YNGodess Shop, Bank of Castile in Le Roy and at geneseesymphony.com.

Pembroke High School is located at 8750 Alleghany Road (routes 5 and 77), Pembroke.

Previously: Video: GSO prepares for opening concert of the season, rehearsing 'Pictures at an Exhibition,' by Mussorgsky

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra opens its 2019-20 season this Sunday at 4 p.m. with a concert in the auditorium of Pembroke High School.

The concert, "Symphonic Pictures I: Portraits" features "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" by Debussy, "John Henry," by Aaron Copland, "The Swan of Tuonela," by Sibelius, and "Pictures at an Exhibition," by Mussorgsky.

This is the fourth season S. Shade Zajac leads the orchestra.

For casual fans of orchestra music or those who have never been to see an orchestra perform, this is an excellent show. The pieces are largely modernist and fun. The Mussorgsky piece is particularly exciting (watch the video) and Aaron Copland is perhaps America's greatest composer.  

If you watch the video, you will likely want to attend this show.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors, and students (with ID) get in for free. Tickets are available at Roxy's Music Store, GO ART!, The YNGodess Shop, Bank of Castile in Le Roy and at geneseesymphony.com.

Pembroke High School is located at 8750 Alleghany Road (routes 5 and 77), Pembroke.

Deep Blue played in Saturday's finale of the Smokin' Eagle BBQ & Brew Battle of the Bands contest and finished second but this video, if you ask me, came out really well. You should watch it. It's Deep Blue performing the Paul Butterfield Blues Band's "Born in Chicago."

And subscribe to our YouTube channel.

The John Payton Project won the 2019 Smokin' Eagle BBQ & Brew's Battle of the Bands on Saturday night. Here's JPP performing the third song of their set.

Click here for coverage of Saturday's event.

Click here to subscribe to our YouTube channel and help us reach 1,000 subscribers.

In the Fifth Annual Battle of the Bands at the Smokin' Eagle BBQ & Brew in Le Roy, after a summer-long competition, the John Payton Project came out on top in the finalist pairing of the season on Saturday night.

Second place went to Deeper Blue.

Here's a video highlighting last night's event. We'll have full-song videos from each band over the next two days.

Oakfield-Alabama's open house on Thursday night was capped off by the music department's annual cabaret show, which featured some of the students' favorite show tunes.

Submitted photo and press release:

An annual spring adventure where students in Genesee Community College's History Club visit important historical sites, museums and battlefields in April ultimately benefits the local lovers of blues music this fall.

Sonny Mayo and the Lowdown are coming to GCC's Stuart Steiner Theater on Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m. for an evening of excellent rhythm and blues featuring a great selection of original tunes and old favorites by a former GCC faculty member. All proceeds from the concert will be dedicated to the History Club's spring break history tour.

Frank "Sonny" Mayo is now a retired GCC public speaking professor, but he is anything but retired from his passion for music. Mayo is bringing his trio with him for a show that promises to give local music aficionados a taste of folk, blues and Americana music, and all for great cause.

Mayo released his first album, "So Far So Good," out of Nashville in 1981.The album was critically acclaimed by Record World magazine and culminated a six-year apprenticeship in Los Angeles and Nashville. Since then, Mayo has released 11 albums on the indie label, Thunder Road Music.

His most recent CD, "Chasing the Chord" was released in 2016 and is a blend of folk, blues and Americana, rich with vivid characters and editorial comments on societal issues.

Mayo has also performed as an opening act, host or shared the bill with numerous musicians including but not limited to Eric Andersen, Eric Bibb, Rory Block, The Burn Sisters, Jen Chapin, Guy Davis, Bill Morrissey, David Olney and slide guitarist Roy Rogers.

Professor Mayo was once a GCC "office neighbor" with Derek Maxfield, associate professor of history at GCC's Batavia Campus. Their collegial conversations lead to a number of dynamic opportunities through the years, to share the new music and support the experiential learning for their students.

"Educational spring breaks are an important facet to the student experience and to learning outcomes," Maxfield said. "As students see these historic places for themselves outside of a classroom, they come away with a new appreciation for the problems, opportunities and even mistakes made by people in the past.

"They also learn about themselves, the world around them, and often, they make life-long friendships. It is an honor that my former colleague and continued friend, Frank or Sonny Mayo, is willing to share an evening of music for such a worthy cause."

Presale tickets are $18 for adults and $20 at the door. GCC students and children under 12 are $10.

 Advance tickets are encouraged by contacting Maxfield, who is also GCC's History Club advisor, or Marie Kochmanski, clerk-typist in the second floor Humanities Suite, Room B259, or Michelle Forster, secretary in the third floor GCC Human Communication and Behavior Suite, Room B359.

For more information or to purchase tickets, email Maxfield at ddmaxfield@genesee.edu or call 585-343-0055, ext. 6288.

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra will perform its fall concert at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 20, in Pembroke High School Auditorium.

It is located at 8750 Alleghany Road, Pembroke (routes 5 and 77).

S. Shade Zajaz is the music director and conducter.

"Symphonic Pictures I -- Portraits" will feature:

• "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" by Debussy
• "Jon Henry" by Copland
• "The Swan of Tuonela" by Sibelius
• "Pictures at an Exhibition" by Mussorgsky, with arrangements by Ravel

Tickets are $15 for adults; seniors $10; students with student ID, free.

Tickets are available at Roxy's Music Store, GO ART!, The Wyngodess Shop, and Bank of Castile in Le Roy.

This concert is made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the NYS Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the NYS Legislature and administered by GO ART!