The Heisey Wind Ensemble presents: The Blue Marble

The Heisey Wind Ensemble will begin their 41st Season with a concert titled The Blue Marble on Sunday, October 19, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.  The concert will be held at the John W. Alford Performing Arts Hall in the John Gilbert Reese Center on the campus of The Ohio State University at Newark and Central Ohio Technical College.

Dr. Russel Mikkelson has programmed Symphony #6: The Blue Marble, by Julie Giroux as the main piece on this concert.  This three movement work will be performed to a video.  Composer and filmmaker Julie Giroux conceived the idea behind her 6th Symphony in the last months of the COVID pandemic.  “What we all need right now is a reminder of how wonderful the world is,” she said.  Symphony 6: The Blue Marble is just that – a celebration of life on planet Earth.  The program on October 19th will also include One Giant Leap by Erik Morales.  Perhaps no challenge has been greater in history than setting foot on the moon.  Relive those amazing moments with this piece that uses audio clips from President John F. Kennedy, Commander Neil Armstrong, and others.  The program will begin with His Honor, a march, by Henry Fillmore.  A recent new work for concert band, Godspeed, John Glenn, by Ryan Nowlin will also be performed.  Lt. Col. Ryan Nowlin is the 29th Director of “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band.  Muskingum University commissioned Ryan Nowlin to compose this wonderful piece in memory of alumnus John Glenn.  The first performance of this piece was at Muskingum University on April 13, 2018.

The HWE, formed in 1985, is recognized as one of Ohio’s finest adult concert bands.  Membership is by audition only and includes outstanding musicians from Licking, Franklin, Fairfield, Guernsey, Delaware, Coshocton, and Muskingum counties.  The band has been selected to perform at conventions of the Ohio Music Education Association (OMEA) and the American School Band Directors Association (ASBDA).  The first rehearsal for the HWE was on February 1, 1985, and the first concert was on June 10, 1985.  The group has performed 164 concerts to date.

The other concerts in the 2025-2026 41st Season are Saturday, December 13, 2025 at 7:30 pm (at Newark High School); Saturday, February 28, 2026 at 7:30 pm; Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 7:30 pm; and the HWE Big Band on Saturday, May 16, 2026 at 7:30 pm.  All concerts, except December, are at the Reese Center on the Newark Campus of OSU and COTC.

Tickets for HWE concerts are available only at the door.  Adults are $15, seniors (60+) are $10 and students are $5.  Additional information can be found at the band’s web site at www.heiseywindensemble.org