MSU Wind Symphony - Rocky Point Holiday

"Rocky Point Holiday" (1966)
by Rob Nelson
Michigan State University
College of Music
Wind Symphony
Conductor: Kevin L. Sedatole
9/30/10
7:30 p.m.

[@larryward569]

I’m a retired band director and know how hard Rocky Point is. This performance not only captivates how well these students handled the technique but the interpretation and transparency that Dr. Sedatole brings to the table is simply amazing. I’ve heard a lot of good bands come close but none of them came as close to perfection as this particular ensemble. Much respect for the talented students in this group as well as their gifted conductor.

[@philp3512]

There's no way the clarinets could tongue those sixteenths that fast. They must have staggered them. And Bravo to that marimba player, the mallets in that piece are ridiculous.

[@timothyj9403]

The tone and agility of this clarinet section was absolutely superb!!! Love it💙💙

[@aeroplano111]

The mallet percussion in this piece is crazy.

[@jeffs1147]

On a good day you get about 70% of the notes, especially at this tempo.

[@galadrielpokracki8153]

It's utter fucking pain

[@allegrobeats611]

It's a garbage mallet part. It's unnecessarily difficult and often gets buried.

[@kevine.phillips7578]

This is an incredible group year after year. My son was a euphonium player in this group. Kevin Sedatole is a master.

[@bambino100011]

HOLY SHIT!!!! That was fast and just about a flawless performance of Rocky Point I have ever heard. Tempo was spot on!

[@ckkeck2003]

this performance totally kicks ass! i think they all went to starbucks and got jacked up on coffee to play that fast

[@jasmaxwell77]

dude - marimba guy - you rocked it! Yah that was damn good. RPH is one of my favs. I played trumpet - hated those mute changes!

[@jwbmw6084]

Now this is the tempo that this should be played, and they handled it perfectly. Great conductor as well.

[@dantehman224]

Really well done. Especially the marimba guy and the clarinet players who played those trade-off sixteenth note patterns. I am a clarinet player and we are playing this right now, and that part is really frustrating!

[@samanthahughes4098]

this whole thing just absolutely flabbergasts me everytime.

[@roheryn43]

One of the best, if not THE best performance of this composition I’ve ever heard! Wow! Amazing!!

[@jslasher1]

This is NOT a bloody 'song'. It's an 'instrumental' work.

[@jeffs1147]

It's the best live performance I've seen yet for sure. Actually better than some studio recordings.

[@annawood7472]

That was amazing! The 1st clarinet part is so hard! 🌑☝🎄

[@jon7696]

True!

[@geoffreyblair6078]

So true! I played 1st clarinet on this for all-state band in 1984. I thought our performance was brisk, but this one is blazingly fast. And awesome.

[@Glamdotzan]

yooo this is so hard to play especially at this tempo and with all those time changes. this incredible

[@willow19460]

Damn good for a live show on this one! Everybody hold on to the bar.

[@keitha.neubert3063]

The mallet percussion playing was phenomenal. I enjoyed how the saxes and French horns brought out the inner melodic lines so gently yet audibly. A great bold sound from a smaller wind symphony. You did this piece its justice!

[@Nanananaheyhey1]

Wow, happy anniversary

[@Erika201115]

we r playing this in my band class and i absolutely love this song( i play the oboe btw) and i never realized how fast this piece was intended to be played at but im so excited to to play this

[@nancyherro38]

FYI, it's Ron Nelson not Rob! Easier to search that way. Such a great piece. Fantastic performance!

[@BandBoy1410]

Magnificent. One of my favorite pieces written for band!

[@BrianHaag]

So good as to transcend critique--the energy and total _ownership_ of the music here is amazing. Man, bravo. Wow.

[@bandgeek-ru3vj]

This is my favorite performance of this piece that I have ever heard. I refer to the tempo used here as the perfect, "goldilocks," tempo. I often hear bands whose conductors feel that it should be taken at the FASTEST TEMPO HUMANLY POSSIBLE. And, if taken even a bit too slow, it becomes extremely tedious. Combined with outstanding musicianship and a great conductor, this will be my "go to" recording for many, many years! So thank you and congrats!

[@pkslayer123]

oboes! same here! love this piece and the nice easy oboe solos, dont have to worry about messing up!

[@C_Trlak7]

I played marimba for this last year, my hands could not move fast enough to single stroke all of that so I had to double stroke large portions of it, which was still incredibly difficult. well done

[@mlefeb]

Chris Trlak Why wouldn’t you double stroke? It’s so much more musically fitting with this piece

[@samrowley6047]

Bravo 👏

[@SammyTanders]

That marimba part is wicked.

[@davidkehler6179]

Good ole Rob Nelson

[@TorsoJones1]

This is one of the few concert band songs I've played with a really fun string bass part.

[@scotthamilton007]

Nice work! You pegged the cadence: just a hair slower than many interpretations and the better for it, without question! Bravo.

[@danielramos7772]

fast, exciting! internal parts I have never before, I heard now. congrats! I honestly think that 3 tubas would be a better sonority especially in sounding the pedal D with volume and power. just my humble opinion.

[@genvvrules]

I'm a percussionist in our school's highschool band and i have to play the marimba part. I wish i could play that fast, but right now, everything is quarter notes for me

[@samanthahughes4098]

4:22 ..... OH YES.

[@xylowave]

Wow! We played the shit out of this piece at all-state, but we did not come even close to sounding this good. That was outstanding. Bravo!!!

[@ckkeck2003]

exactly....

[@jdawg3771556]

me too! what part are you on? im on first but u know the tongued 16th note runs? are you double tonguing those? im not sure its physically possible for me to single tongue those parts up to tempo.....

[@dianawolf894]

The amazing percussion instructor who taught college Percussion in a different state?

[@windowdresser]

Marimba!

[@jeffs1147]

That thing is a marimba concerto. I was lucky enough to get the vibe part in college, which is also no damn picnic, but at least you can make it through!

[@camdenburr1811]

Great performance? Who are your tuba players and can my high school borrow them?

[@mmmarx9631]

Fantastic piece by Ron Nelson! (not Rob)

[@NitsedFTW]

I didn't hear any bass clarinet? Were there even any of them in this ensemble?

[@jameshamontree4036]

There are two, next to the bassoons.

[@dianawolf894]

Rocky Point

[@Racky8790]

Haha, fyi, his name is Ron Nelson, not Rob. However, this is a great recording.

[@bryancavitt1569]

This is an excellent performance. I aways find it interesting to find an ensemble using Fennell's wind ensemble set up (1 to a part) and can still get the volume and balance necessary to play pieces of this caliber. I played this in high school and our director pared down our top band to Fennell's set up and we wailed on this. 38 years later I have yet to be in an ensemble that is willing to tackle this. I would love to do this again sometime if these old fingers could still play those 16ths up to tempo! As a comparison, check out the Dallas Wind Symphony's performance of Rocky Point Holiday. Pretty much considered the reference recording of RPH.

[@ckkeck2003]

WICKED WICKED clarinet part!!!!

[@zephyrgaming9642]

Oh man the trumpet part got totally covered up by the other players.I could barely hear them in the beginning

[@socco14]

CAMDEN!!!

[@danieldekok6949]

The performance DOES kick butt, though...

[@guitarmt3095]

needs moar peddle D in the tubas.

[@danieldekok6949]

That's RON Nelson, doofus. Takes a Spartan...

[@dianawolf894]

Rocky Point