In this video, UK Wind Ensemble director John Cody Birdwell and a couple of students discuss the group's upcoming trip to China. Video by Amy Jones, courtesy of UK Public Relations.
This morning, 67 students faculty and friends of the University of Kentucky Wind Ensemble are winging their way west -- Or, should we say far east? -- to China. The journey will take the UK band on a six city tour of the country that is eagerly anticipating the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics while simultaneously mourning the devastating earthquake that struck Central China a week ago today.
We've got a story about the trip, how it came about and what's going to happen, in today's paper and at LexGo.com.
We've added a photo album of pictures taken by the Herald-Leader's Whitney Waters at events leading up to the trip.
If you'd like to follow along, Cindy Stewart-Birdwell, wife of Wind Ensemble director John Cody Birdwell, is blogging about the experience.
Click the play button below to hear John Mackey's Turbine from the UK Wind Ensemble's Distilled in Kentucky, the CD that was a key to earning the offer to play in China.
Click here to hear UK President Lee Todd's interview of Birdwell for WUKY's UK Perspectives program.
The UK Wind Ensemble's tour of China will help the "mainland" of China to better understand the "heartland" of America.
Congratulations to all the musicians and everyone associated with the University of Kentucky Wind Ensemble as well as the entire UK Music Department for making this bold cultural excursion.
Presumably on their concert programs they will play at least one composition in a "Miner" key.
David McKnight
Durham, N.C.
Posted by: David McKnight | May 19, 2008 at 02:54 PM