Listen while you read!

Musical performances honoring the fifth anniversary of the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music were held on Wednesday, Oct. 15, at Georgia Southern’s Statesboro Campus, and Thursday, Oct. 16, on the Armstrong Campus. The Sound, Armstrong’s advanced commercial ensemble, and the Georgia Southern University Symphonic Wind Ensemble collaborated to perform multiple pieces.

These ensembles performed musical works such as “Living for the City” by Stevie Wonder, “Running up that Hill” by Kate Bush, “Africa” by rock band Toto and more. “For this specific show, we’re playing ‘Live and Let Die’ by Paul McCartney and Wings. We’re excited to play that. It’s a lot of sound, and it’s a big, glorious piece. It’s really fun,” said Dr. Benjamin Mathews, the director of The Sound.

Fred and Dinah Gretsch were in attendance at Thursday’s performance on the Armstrong Campus. In between songs, Dr. Terre Johnson, chair of the music department, invited an educator to the stage and gifted her a Gretsch guitar on behalf of the Gretsches. The educator attended with a group of students from her high school who were eagerly watching from the audience.

The Creation of the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music

Fred and Dinah Gretsch are the owners of the Gretsch Company, a 141-year-old drum and guitar manufacturing company. The couple made a $3 million pledge to Georgia Southern University in Feb. 2021, which led to the creation of the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music. Today, the school offers numerous degrees, programs and ensembles which students can audition for. 

While the Georgia Southern University Wind Ensemble and The Sound typically perform separately, the two ensembles came together to honor Fred and Dinah Gretsch for their generous contribution to the music school. 

Collin Morgan, a member of the Wind Ensemble, said “collaborating with The Sound, it gives a whole new idea to the Wind Ensemble. Introducing something like this, it just revitalizes the whole idea of what wind ensembles can do.”

Upcoming performances by The Sound and the Georgia Southern University Wind Ensemble, along with numerous other Georgia Southern ensembles, can be found here.