Sousa Concert and Documentary Premiere at the Lowell Mason Auditorium

On the evening of July 3rd, the Sousa International Honors Band and Choir kicked off their impending European tour with a concert at the Lowell Mason Auditorium at Medfield High School.  Even though the evening was terribly hot and humid, over 200 people attended the concert.  Organized by the Lowell Mason Foundation, the event was both a fundraiser to help raise money for the restoration of the Lowell Mason House, and an opportunity to bring a group of fine student musicians to the area to celebrate the July 4th holiday. 

Introduced by Mr. Thomas E. Reynolds, one of the five conductors who direct the group, the 70 student musicians began the evening with “Old Time Spirit” by Robert Jager and then went right into “Moravian Dance” by Travis Weller.  Later, Mr. Reynolds told a surprised audience that the students had only started playing together as a group on Monday, two days prior to the concert.  Each musician was given their music to rehearse on their own prior to their arrival in Massachusetts.  None of the audience would have guessed the group had played together for so little time given the quality of the music. 

Later, the choir sang “Barn Dance” by Brant Adams and a medley of international favorites, such as “Frère a Jacques” with many of the audience members singing along. 

Just prior to the intermission, the Lowell Mason Foundation premiered a short documentary produced and directed by Joseph Baron, Medfield resident and recent Boston College graduate, which chronicles Lowell Mason's career, the saving of his birthplace from demolition, and the current status of the Lowell Mason House.  The documentary includes interviews with both Caleb Mason, a Lowell Mason descendant, and Richard DeSorgher, Medfield Town Historian.  The documentary can be seen here.   Permanent structural supports and a concrete basement floor will be installed at the house before winter.  For more information on how you can help restore Lowell Mason's birthplace and help support music education, please go to www.lowellmasonhouse.org.

During the second half of the concert the band performed a rousing rendition of John Philip Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever” in honor of the 4th of July and later closed with evening with “Auld Lang Syne” to a standing ovation.  The next day, on July 4th at 2:30 pm, the group boarded a flight to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris to begin their two week tour of Europe including performances in France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland.   The audience stood, not only for the great show the student musicians put on, but also to wish them safe travels.  It was a fine way to kick off the Independence Day holiday.

About the Lowell Mason Foundation

Lowell Mason (1792-1872) was born in Medfield, Massachusetts and is considered the Father of Music Education in America  He was instrumental to introducing music as part of the regular curriculum to America’s public schools as well as professionalizing the teaching of music.  The Lowell Mason Foundation was formed in 2010 by a group of concerned Medfield citizens and music educators after it was learned that Lowell Mason’s birthplace had been sold and was slated for demolition.  In one year the group successfully moved the house to safety, which occurred on April 19, 2011.  The Foundation continues to raise funds to restore and expand Lowell Mason’s birthplace for use as a historic, cultural and educational site.  For more information go to:  www.lowellmasonhouse.org  

About the John Philip Sousa Foundation

The John Philip Sousa Foundation is a non-profit foundation dedicated to the promotion of international understanding through the medium of band music. Through the administration of band related projects, the foundation seeks to uphold the standards and ideals of that icon of the American spirit, John Philip Sousa.  For more information go to:    www.sousafoundation.net