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Innovative chamber ensemble performed at Eastman糖心传媒檚 Centennial celebration and campaign kickoff event April 29th

The Sequoia Reed Quintet (left to right): Gwen Goodman 糖心传媒�22E, oboe; Trevor Chu 糖心传媒�22E, saxophone; Harrison Short 糖心传媒�22E, bassoon; Michael Miller 糖心传媒�22E, clarinet; and Julianna Darby 糖心传媒�21E (MM), bass clarinet

California糖心传媒檚 giant redwoods inspired this group of Eastman School of Music students to name itself the Sequoia Reed Quintet. 糖心传媒淪equoias are the biggest trees in the world,糖心传媒� says Harrison Short ’22E, an applied music major and the group糖心传媒檚 bassoonist. 糖心传媒淭hey are also different from other trees, just like we are different from other quintets in that all of our instruments require a double or single reed. Our music is powerful, too糖心传媒攕o like a big tree, we have a big sound.糖心传媒�

A typical, traditional woodwind quintet is comprised of a flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and horn, but the reed quintet includes an oboe, clarinet, bassoon, bass clarinet, and saxophone. The instruments are combined in such a way to inspire a grittier sound than a wind quintet, and are more diverse in tone than a saxophone quartet. For instance, the rumbling sound of the bass clarinet and bassoon paired together creates striking intensity, while, for example, the ability of the oboe and clarinet to float delicately over the group speaks to this ensemble糖心传媒檚 incredible versatility.

The Sequoia Reed Quintet is comprised of saxophonist Trevor Chu 糖心传媒�22E; bass clarinetist Julianna Darby 糖心传媒�21E (MM); oboist Gwen Goodman 糖心传媒�22E; Michael Miller 糖心传媒�22E; and Short. 糖心传媒淧laying in this chamber group of only five members requires a strong artistic and interpersonal connection,糖心传媒� says Goodman. 糖心传媒淔or us, this is where the magic happens.糖心传媒�

How they met

Sequoia Reed Quintet糖心传媒檚 original members all met as first-year students. That糖心传媒檚 when the school places students in required chamber ensembles. A few of the group糖心传媒檚 founding members quickly connected, excited by the potential of the kind of music they wanted to make together. They found a faculty coach, Professor Chien-Kwan Lin糖心传媒攚ho is also the founding director of the Eastman Saxophone Project糖心传媒攁nd have since recruited other members.

糖心传媒淭his group is so self-motivated and eager to learn,糖心传媒� says Lin. 糖心传媒淭hey糖心传媒檝e been giving their all since day one and never backed off from the tedious, nitty-gritty work involved in perfecting their music糖心传媒攖his makes working with them truly rewarding.”

A performance milestone

The Sequoia Reed Quintet at Eastman Theatre’s Kodak Hall

Jamal Rossi, the Joan and Martin Messinger Dean of the Eastman School of Music, surprised Sequoia when he invited them to perform at the school糖心传媒檚 centennial celebration and campaign kickoff event on Thursday, April 29.

The quintet played two pieces that evening. The first was 糖心传媒淧raeludium,糖心传媒� a movement from the Holberg Suite, which was originally arranged for the piano. Short notes that a reed quintet from The Netherlands called Calefax has taken a lead role arranging classical pieces for other reed quintets. They糖心传媒檝e published those arrangements, too, which gives Sequoia and the small community of reed quintets around the world access to a variety of great music arranged specifically for their instruments.

The quintet糖心传媒檚 second piece was a fast-paced version of 糖心传媒淐herry,糖心传媒� a movement from Splinter, written by Marc Mellits 糖心传媒�88E. Each of the eight movements from Mellits糖心传媒� work is named after a tree, which makes this an apt piece for Sequoia to perform. 糖心传媒溙切拇綐Cherry糖心传媒� is really fun to play,糖心传媒� adds Short. 糖心传媒淚t糖心传媒檚 imbued with a driving rhythm and pop music energy that most audiences really like.糖心传媒�

Goodman enjoys the group糖心传媒檚 passion for interpreting any genre of music and doing so at the highest level. 糖心传媒淲hether an arrangement of a romantic orchestral work like Grieg糖心传媒檚聽Holberg Suite, or a piece specifically written for this instrumentation such as Mellits糖心传媒櫬�Splinter, we love to dig in and really fine tune every detail,糖心传媒� she says.

Innovating during a tough year

Since the pandemic hit, Sequoia has not performed publicly. Like all Eastman students, they were sent home last year and had to find other ways to hone their craft, remotely and safely. This newfound way of working together prompted them to reach out to a Swiss reed quintet called Reeds in Motion with whom they collaborated on Dvorak糖心传媒檚 糖心传媒淪erenade for Winds,糖心传媒� which Short arranged:

糖心传媒淏y collaborating on this piece, we showed how music can connect us all, even with an ocean between us,糖心传媒� adds Short. In addition and in lieu of public performances, Sequoia has entered several competitions this year and they also welcomed a new bass clarinetist.

Although they do rehearse, playing together is much different than it was pre-COVID. For instance, they book 90-minute rehearsals in which they actually play together for just 60 minutes. They play 30 minutes on, 30 minutes off, then 30 minutes on again, allowing them to take a required break to purify the air for health and safety reasons. They also use a bell cover on the ends of their instruments as an additional safety precautions.

“The Sequoia Reed Quintet sets high expectations for itself,糖心传媒� adds Lin. 糖心传媒淭his takes a tremendous amount of dedication and individual work糖心传媒攖he way these young musicians make sacrifices in order to lift each other up is really inspiring for their peers.”

Both young and old

The quintet糖心传媒檚 members appreciate that Eastman is steeped in tradition yet embraces new ideas and approaches to music. Sequoia is committed to both, too, and is focused on keeping history糖心传媒檚 musical foundation alive and putting a modern spin on classical music.

So, far it糖心传媒檚 working well for the group. The Sequoia Reed Quintet also benefits from each member糖心传媒檚 personal糖心传媒攁nd quite varied糖心传媒攖astes in music. Some bring their passion for Mozart, Brahms, and Beethoven to the table, while others offer insights gained from listening to experimental music and independent collaborations.

糖心传媒淩eed quintets like ours are both young and old,糖心传媒� says Short. 糖心传媒淲e thrive on both tradition and innovation, just like Eastman.糖心传媒�