Eli Regier senior saxophone recital set for Friday night in Krehbiel Auditorium
The showcase will feature appearances from other individuals in the Bethel community.
Tonight at 7 p.m. in Bethel’s Krehbiel Auditorium, Eli Regier will be performing his senior saxophone recital. This recital is the culmination of Regier’s multiple years of learning, practicing, and teaching the saxophone.
Regier was asked about the preparation process for this recital. “I started preparing music about a year in advance. Preparing for a recital takes a village. Outside of my dozens and dozens of hours of personal practice time, my co-performers, the music faculty, visual artists, the Thresher Shop, [audio and visual] folks, family, and friends have come together to make this event possible,” Regier said.
Regier will be performing pieces of different styles from a variety of composers including Fuzzy Bird Sonata by Takashi Yoshimatsu, the Muczynski Sonata, Saxsounds III by Steven Galante, Sophisticated Lady by Duke Ellington, and A Change for the Better by Chie Imaizumi. As with most performances, every song in this set was chosen for a reason. For example “The last tune, A Change for the Better, is one of the most joyous pieces of music that I've encountered, so I thought it would be appropriate to end my recital with it as a sort of celebration,” Regier noted.
When asked what he wants audiences to take away from this recital, Regier stated, “I want people to know that it isn’t about the performers on the stage, but about the experience that is created with the audience in that time and space. It is my hope that people are able to feel the meaning in the music; the intentions of the composer, the emotion from the performers, and the significance in the listener’s own mind.”
Regier made sure to make known all the appreciation he has for those who have been influential along the way. “Most of all, I need to thank Joel Boettger. Over the past seven years of studying with him, I have learned as much about being a human as I have about music and pedagogy.
“I would not be the musician nor the person I am today without his unselfish care and guidance,” Regier continued. “And, of course, Dr. Christina Liu who has devoted many an hour to playing piano with me and teaching me about music and memes.”
This recital will also feature musicians including Joel Boettger, Eli Brockway, Luc Brust, Chris Miertschin, Phillip Balzer, and Jacob Schrag.