The Dallas Winds
The Dallas Winds is the leading professional civilian wind band in the United States today. Comprised of 50 woodwind, brass and percussion players, the band performs an eclectic blend of musical styles ranging from Bach to Bernstein and Sousa to Strauss. They combine the tradition of the British brass band with the musical heritage of the American town band and the pioneering spirit of the 21st century wind ensemble.
The Winds makes its home in one of the world’s greatest concert halls, Dallas’ Morton H. Meyerson Concert Center, where it performs an annual concert subscription series. They have seventeen highly acclaimed CDs on the Reference Recordings label under conductors Howard Dunn, Frederick Fennell and Jerry Junkin. In 1995, recognizing the Dallas Winds’ importance to the community, the City of Dallas granted the windband use of the historic Fair Park Bandshell, both as a venue for summer outdoor concerts and as an administrative office.
Since its debut in 1985, the Dallas Winds has entertained millions of people both at home, on tour and increasingly, through recordings and streamed media. Among those entertained was Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, for whom the Winds gave a command performance in March 1991.
The Dallas Winds Reviews:
“America’s rise in patriotism following the September 11th attacks is well known, and if any music deserves to be an anthem to this vast sentiment, it is the work of John Philip Sousa, “America’s March Master,” as this collection is subtitled. Every Sousa march that you can think of is here, including a few like “El Capitan” and “The Picadore” that you may not know were by Sousa but you have heard, and often. The playing and arrangements are stirring, with the Dallas Wind Symphony, Jerry Junkin conducting, creating some real heavy metal. The HDCD sound is very open and hugely powerful, many of the marches ending in a bang that only Telarc’s 1812 Overture recordings match in terms of sheer dynamic range. Like a pot of black coffee to your flag-waving soul, Strictly Sousa is a collection that I, as an American in late 2001, wouldn’t do without, and one for which we audiophiles can once again thank Reference Recordings…” —Marc Mickelson, SoundStage
“The Banner Saga sports a 71 minute magnum opus, most of it recorded by a group of musicians known as ‘The Dallas Winds.’ So it’s a wind orchestra, and they’re from Dallas, TX. And they sound absolutely amazing. …” —Patrick Gann, Original Sound Version
“This disc (Holidays & Epiphanies) is a sonic blockbuster.” —American Record Guide
“Perhaps most remarkable is the absolute rightness of his tempo choices: One can’t imagine one of these marches going even the slightest bit slower or faster. The Dallas ensemble plays superbly and the sound is phenomenal. We get the immediacuy and visceral excitement of Fennell’s Mercury recordings, the weight and atmosphere of the Cleveland Symphonic Wind performances on Telarc, plus a level of detail and ease of presentation that’s state-of-the-art.” —Andrew Quint, THE ABSOLUTE SOUND
“…Sustained high energy. There’s not a slack moment…you’ll cheer Frederick Fennell FAVORITES!” —H&B Recordings Direct