The Brockport Symphony Orchestra and Golden Eagle String Band will present their “Erie Canal Celebration Concert” on Sunday, May 4 at 4 p.m. in the Seymour College Union Ballroom, Residence Drive on The College at Brockport campus. There is a suggested donation of $3 for this performance. Under the baton of Jonathan Allentoff, the program will feature canal-themed works and folk music. The orchestra will premiere William Hullfish’s arrangements of “Dewitt Clinton’s Grand Canal March” and “Grand Canal Waltz.” Hullfish, associate professor of music emeritus at The College at Brockport, restored and arranged these works from original manuscripts found at the Erie Canal Museum and Johns Hopkins University. He was awarded a Gold Medal by the Smithsonian Institute as a Smithsonian/Folkways recording artist for his cultural contributions. Hullfish will also appear as vocal soloist for “A Tribute to Pete Seeger” featuring “Turn, Turn, Turn” “If I Had a Hammer,” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?”
The Brockport Youth String Orchestra, comprised of young musicians from the local elementary schools, will perform three international folk songs. The selections include “French Folk Song,” Brackett’s “Simple Gifts,” and Beethoven’s “Russian Folk Dance.” The youth orchestra was founded by Allentoff in 2013 with Brockport educator Daniel Polino serving as co-artistic director.
The program will conclude with Allen-toff’s “Erie Canal Rhapsody” for narrator, string band, and orchestra. Narrator Bill Andrews, professor of political science emeritus, has written books on the history of the Brockport village, Civil War Brockport, and the Erie Canal. He currently serves as deputy-mayor of Brockport, village trustee, historian emeritus, and director of the Welcome Center.
The Golden Eagle String Band has been performing in the Northeastern U.S. since 1978. The band has recorded for Smithsonian/Folkways and toured under a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
This performance is the grand finale of the New York Folklore Society Day of Music and Dance in Brockport and the Low Bridge, High Water Canal Opening Celebration, sponsored by the Village of Brockport.
