GENTRY: And now Great Arts at Eastern from the Portales campus of Eastern New Mexico University. I’m Jeff Gentry, Dean of the College of Fine Arts here on KENW, Your Public Radio Network. Today my guest is David Bowman, a double threat, who is a performance major in music at ENMU. Thank you for joining me today.
BOWMAN: Thank you, Doctor Gentry, for having me.
GENTRY: You bet. Tell me a little bit about how you fell in love with music as a child.
BOWMAN: So back in 5th grade, I was introduced to music, and I started in our music courses in Band and in Choir, and ever since then, it's just been a love of mine since today.
GENTRY: Alright, going all the way through today because you are in-in our major choirs and in our major bands, you play trombone- Bass, trombone. Tell me a what is it? What is great about playing bass trombone?
BOWMAN: So, you get all the love of the trombone with the notes of the tuba. We’re very closely related to the music of the tuba, and I really love that really low register in all aspects of my life.
GENTRY: Right, because you also sing the bass part, and so do you. Just love those notes, Low notes?
BOWMAN: Absolutely, it creates a strong foundation for any ensemble to fit right onto.
GENTRY: While speaking of ensembles, the College of Fine Arts is back to live performances. The Fall Choral Concert on October 14th is our next edition. So, are you excited to be back on the stage at Buchannan Hall?
BOWMAN: It’s incredibly. It’s incredible. I am very thankful to be able to be back in person making music with the wonderful ensembles we here- have here at Eastern.
GENTRY: Right, and you're in a bunch of them, right? So just list for us. I know of at least four that you're in.
BOWMAN: Yes, so I’m in both of our choirs. Our university singers and chamber singers. I'm in our marching band currently, which will transition over to our Symphonic Band. I'm in our wind Symphony, and I'm also in our brass choir and clarinet studio.
GENTRY: Okay, so you support the clarinet studio via- via trombone.
BOWMAN: Um, I actually am playing bass clarinet for the studio. I started back on clarinet in 5th grade.
GENTRY: Okay.
BOWMAN: And Doctor Schuler has asked me to perform with them.
GENTRY: My many apologies for calling you only a double threat. So, you just listed seven different ensembles, and that's- that’s pretty darn exciting. So, can you tell me about any of the selections planned for the Fall Choral Concert a week from tonight?
BOWMAN: Um, so yes, of course. Ah, the biggest one that comes to mind is we are in our Chamber Singers Ensemble. That are starting with a lifecycle set with a few selections from Eric Whitacre and other well-known composers, detailing out the lifespan of People. And um, specifically a boy and a girl, details the life cycle of a boy and a girl’s relationship throughout their life.
GENTRY: Wonderful. Well, that's really great. And I heard from an inside source. We won't describe it, but that the opening number is going to be awe-inspiring.
BOWMAN: Absolutely, it's very big, it's very powerful, and sends a very strong message that is filled with music.
GENTRY: Fantastic. So, can-. It seems to me that the bass voice isn’t featured as much in the world of music as maybe it ought to be. Am I wrong?
BOWMAN: You are not wrong. The bass do tend to get the boring rhythmic patterns and very stagnant notes as time goes on.
GENTRY: Right, and so? I mean, doesn’t Lou Rawls or Barry right- White, don’t they prove that low voices can sell records?
BOWMAN: Absolutely. Absolutely. It’s quite a mystery, especially when you hear those extreme low notes. It can really be a selling point.
GENTRY: Right. And to me, it's- it’s more about the range then- then where those notes are right.
BOWMAN: Absolutely.
GENTRY: Isn’t range more important than pitch?
BOWMAN: Um, In- In some aspects, absolutely. You can’t find very many people these days that have these rich low tones that set the foundation for the ensemble.
GENTRY: Right. Well, that's- that's fantastic. David Bowman. Thank you for joining me today on Great Arts at Eastern.
BOWMAN: Thank you, Doctor Gentry.
GENTRY: The fall choral concert is a week from tonight. That’s Thursday, October 14th at 7:00 PM in Buchanan Hall at ENMU. Concerts are free to the public and can be viewed on the Department of Music YouTube page. Our listeners can find all the Great Arts at Eastern at ENMU.edu/FineArtsEvents. Thanks for listening on KENW, Your Public Radio Network.
Fall Choral Concert
Jason Paulk, conductor
with Miles Massicotte, accompanist
Ballroom, Campus Union (CUB)
Thursday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m.
