MASON BANDS: Vivo
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vi·vo adjective \ ˈvē-(ˌ)vō
1. performed or interpreted in a lively, spirited, or vigorous manner.
2. characterized by vitality, energy, and animation
3. marked by freshness, brilliance, and expressive force.
VIVO celebrates the vitality, imagination, and expressive power of music being created in our own time. These works do not merely point toward the future; they inhabit the present with boldness, beauty, and conviction. They affirm that contemporary music is not a distant frontier, but a vibrant landscape filled with wonder, humanity, and endless possibility.
This performance holds special meaning for the Mason Wind Symphony, which was selected to appear as a Featured Concert Ensemble at the 2026 Virginia Music Educators Association Conference—the Commonwealth's most distinguished stage for school music ensembles. Such invitations recognize not only artistic excellence, but also a shared commitment to curiosity, craftsmanship, and the pursuit of meaningful musical experiences.
The evening begins with the Mason Symphonic Band, whose program offers three distinct voices within today's wind repertoire. Vaclav Nelhybel's Festivo radiates exuberance and celebration, its rhythmic vitality serving as a joyful invitation into the evening. In contrast, Nishant Amatya's as the fog settles unfolds with quiet introspection, immersing listeners in a world of mystery and delicate beauty. Benjamin Taylor's Shattering Infinity closes the set with unrelenting energy and soaring intensity, a work that reaches outward with imagination and boundless momentum.
The concert continues with a feature presentation of the combined South County HS and Hayfield Secondary School Bands, conducted by Kevin Engdahl and Robert Specketer.
The Mason Wind Symphony’s portion of the program appropriately begins with Zhou Tian's Vivo. Sparkling colors and propulsive rhythms burst forth with a joyful vitality that gives the evening its name and its spirit. The third movement of Stacy Garrop's Quicksilver follows, featuring Mason’s Professor of Saxophone, Dr. Connor Mikula in a dazzling display of virtuosity and brilliance, where agility and lyricism intertwine with breathtaking effect.
Viet Cuong's John and Jim is a deeply personal meditation on love, memory, and the enduring power of human connection. Inspired by the lives of John Arthur and Jim Obergefell, whose devotion to one another helped bring about a landmark moment in American history, the work draws upon fragments of Pachelbel's Canon in D—music long associated with marriage and celebration. Through shimmering textures and melodies that gradually discover and embrace one another, Cuong creates a sound world filled with tenderness, longing, and quiet triumph. The result is both homage and renewal, a testament to the profound ways in which love leaves its echoes upon the world.
The evening concludes with James David's Ghosts of the Old Year, a work born from the composer's reflections on the changing South and inspired by James Weldon Johnson's poem of the same name. Drawing upon the rich musical traditions of the region—jazz, blues, and the resonant strains of the shape-note hymn Beach Spring—David confronts both conflict and hope with unflinching honesty. As the old year gives way to the new, the music acknowledges the burdens of the past while casting its gaze toward an uncertain but hopeful future. It is a powerful reminder that renewal seldom arrives without reflection, and that optimism often carries with it the echoes of what has come before.
Together, these works proclaim a simple but profound truth: music is alive.
1. performed or interpreted in a lively, spirited, or vigorous manner.
2. characterized by vitality, energy, and animation
3. marked by freshness, brilliance, and expressive force.
VIVO celebrates the vitality, imagination, and expressive power of music being created in our own time. These works do not merely point toward the future; they inhabit the present with boldness, beauty, and conviction. They affirm that contemporary music is not a distant frontier, but a vibrant landscape filled with wonder, humanity, and endless possibility.
This performance holds special meaning for the Mason Wind Symphony, which was selected to appear as a Featured Concert Ensemble at the 2026 Virginia Music Educators Association Conference—the Commonwealth's most distinguished stage for school music ensembles. Such invitations recognize not only artistic excellence, but also a shared commitment to curiosity, craftsmanship, and the pursuit of meaningful musical experiences.
The evening begins with the Mason Symphonic Band, whose program offers three distinct voices within today's wind repertoire. Vaclav Nelhybel's Festivo radiates exuberance and celebration, its rhythmic vitality serving as a joyful invitation into the evening. In contrast, Nishant Amatya's as the fog settles unfolds with quiet introspection, immersing listeners in a world of mystery and delicate beauty. Benjamin Taylor's Shattering Infinity closes the set with unrelenting energy and soaring intensity, a work that reaches outward with imagination and boundless momentum.
The concert continues with a feature presentation of the combined South County HS and Hayfield Secondary School Bands, conducted by Kevin Engdahl and Robert Specketer.
The Mason Wind Symphony’s portion of the program appropriately begins with Zhou Tian's Vivo. Sparkling colors and propulsive rhythms burst forth with a joyful vitality that gives the evening its name and its spirit. The third movement of Stacy Garrop's Quicksilver follows, featuring Mason’s Professor of Saxophone, Dr. Connor Mikula in a dazzling display of virtuosity and brilliance, where agility and lyricism intertwine with breathtaking effect.
Viet Cuong's John and Jim is a deeply personal meditation on love, memory, and the enduring power of human connection. Inspired by the lives of John Arthur and Jim Obergefell, whose devotion to one another helped bring about a landmark moment in American history, the work draws upon fragments of Pachelbel's Canon in D—music long associated with marriage and celebration. Through shimmering textures and melodies that gradually discover and embrace one another, Cuong creates a sound world filled with tenderness, longing, and quiet triumph. The result is both homage and renewal, a testament to the profound ways in which love leaves its echoes upon the world.
The evening concludes with James David's Ghosts of the Old Year, a work born from the composer's reflections on the changing South and inspired by James Weldon Johnson's poem of the same name. Drawing upon the rich musical traditions of the region—jazz, blues, and the resonant strains of the shape-note hymn Beach Spring—David confronts both conflict and hope with unflinching honesty. As the old year gives way to the new, the music acknowledges the burdens of the past while casting its gaze toward an uncertain but hopeful future. It is a powerful reminder that renewal seldom arrives without reflection, and that optimism often carries with it the echoes of what has come before.
Together, these works proclaim a simple but profound truth: music is alive.
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Where is it happening?
4400 University Drive, Fairfax, VA, United States, Virginia 22030
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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Host or PublisherMason Bands
