Northern Symphonic Winds
Founded in 1998, Northern Symphonic Winds is a 46-member wind and percussion ensemble comprised of faculty from The Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam, select Crane students, area music educators, and other talented musicians working in other professions. Participation in Northern Symphonic Winds is completely voluntary, unpaid, and by invitation.
The ensemble holds firmly to three primary objectives: to secure the finest wind and percussion performers available in the North Country; to perform music of the highest quality, and to bring enjoyment and satisfaction not just to the ensemble's musicians, but also to audiences around the North Country.
The ensemble is committed to donating concert proceeds to worthy causes in the community, and has hosted benefits for Potsdam Hospital Guild, the Malone Music Boosters, local food pantries, Potsdam Central School Music Program, the Potsdam Rescue Squad, Potsdam Humane Society's animal shelte, and the Foothills Arts Society.
The founding members who continue today as the Board of Directors include Crane faculty members Alan Woy, Scott LaVine, and Timothy Topolewski, Crane Professor Emeritus, Peter Popiel, and Potsdam High School music teacher Theresa Witmer.
Future plans for NSW include annual programs of two or three concerts performed throughout the North Country. The group hopes to broaden its audience base while bringing the very best of wind band music to our communities. The members of the ensemble express their appreciation to NYSBDA for the invitation to perform at the 2003 Annual Symposium.
Scott P. LaVine is Professor of Music at The Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam where he conducts the Symphonic Band and serves as Co-director of Computer/Music Technology. In addition, Mr. LaVine also teaches music technology, theory, and ear training courses, and is the webmaster for the Crane School Internet site. He received his undergraduate and graduate training at SUNY Potsdam and previously taught in the Norwood-Norfolk School District, serving as director of bands and chairman of the music department, before returning to Potsdam in 1991.
Mr. LaVine previously was conductor of the St. Lawrence University Consortium Band for several years and served as conductor/director of both the Crane Youth Music Wind and Jazz Ensembles before being appointed director of the program in 1998. He is the immediate Past-president of the New York State Band Directors Association (NYSBDA), a trustee and past-president of the Crane Alumni Association, and currently serves as president of the Crane Faculty Association.
In 1995, LaVine was nominated to the SUNY Confederation Honor Roll and was awarded the SUNY Potsdam Distinguished Alumni Service Award in 1999. Mr. LaVine is a member of the New York State School Music Association's Technology Steering Committee and is also the webmaster for the NYSBDA web site. An active clinician for music technology, he frequently performs as a percussionist, accompanist, and jazz keyboardist. He is a co-conductor and founder of the Northern Symphonic Winds and maintains a busy schedule as a guest conductor of and adjudicator of concert and jazz groups.
Timothy Topolewski is Professor of Music at the Crane School of Music in Potsdam, New York where he conducts the Wind Ensemble, Opera Orchestra and teaches conducting.
A native of Michigan, Timothy Topolewski received his undergraduate degree from Michigan State University, a Master's Degree from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and a Doctorate of Music Arts from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. After serving three years with distinction as soloist and enlisted conductor with The United States Army Band and Orchestra in Washington, D.C., he performed as principal clarinetist with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra, and the Cedar Rapids Symphony where he also served as principal on-call conductor. Topolewski has served as soloist, conductor or lecturer throughout the United States, the major cities of Mexico, Australia, and Germany including Berlin, Dresden, Potsdam and Leipzig. He is an active and published arranger, clinician and author and maintains an active schedule as guest conductor of both wind ensembles and orchestras.
Topolewski has works published with Carl Fischer Music, Warner Brothers, Kjos, Piansano Press, and de Haske Music. In May of 2001, he was presented with the "President's Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Endeavors" at SUNY Potsdam. His five-volume work titled "Errata Studies for the Wind Band Conductor" and two CDs with the Crane Wind Ensemble have won the praise and recognition of the nation's finest conductors, educators, and composers. He is a Past-president of NYSBDA and a member of the American Bandmaster's Association, MENC, CBDNA, and Phi Mu Alpha.