Westchester Symphonic Winds Opens 38th Season with “Sonic Journeys”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

October 13, 2025

 

MEDIA CONTACT: 

Curt Ebersole – Conductor/Music Director, Westchester Symphonic Winds

Phone: (914) 281-1976 · E-Mail: [email protected]

Website: www.westchestersymphonicwinds.org

Westchester Symphonic Winds Opens 38th Season with “Sonic Journeys”

 

TARRYTOWN, NY – Westchester Symphonic Winds (WSW) presents “Sonic Journeys,” the opening performance of their 38th season on Sunday, November 9, 2025 at 3:00 pm at the Tarrytown Music Hall. 

 

Conductor/Music Director Curt Ebersole and the ensemble welcome three guest artists to their musical travels on the Sonic Journeys program. Guest soloist Morris Northcutt, a Schilke Trumpet Performing Artist, performs a dazzling and diverse set of works for flugelhorn, cornet, and trumpet. Guest conductor Dr. Brian Cardany, Director of Bands at the University of Rhode Island, leads the ensemble’s performance of Urban Light by James M. David. Traveling just a few steps from her seat in the WSW clarinet section to the podium for Solas Ane by Samuel Hazo is apprentice conductor Katherine Filatov.

 

Commenting on the concert program, Maestro Ebersole shared, 

This concert offers the opportunity to feature our brass section, along with our “triple threat” soloist, Morris Northcutt. The anchor work, The Pines of Rome, is a popular classic in orchestral circles, and we are thrilled to share its transcription for winds, written by Jacco Nefs. Sonic Journeys creates the perfect example of what a musical journey can be—vibrant, dynamic, and full of brilliant surprises.

 

Program includes:

SMITH/arr. Sousa & Damrosch – The Star-Spangled Banner

COHEN – Intrada

PIAZZOLLA – Oblivion, Morris Northcutt, flugelhorn soloist

DAVID – Urban Light, Dr. Brian Cardany, guest conductor

SPARKE – Song and Dance, Morris Northcutt, cornet soloist

HAZO – Solas Ane, Katherine Filatov, apprentice conductor

JAMES – Concerto for Trumpet, Morris Northcutt, trumpet soloist

RESPHIGI – Pines of Rome

 

To Purchase Tickets: Tickets for this performance are priced at $36 for adults, $26 for students and seniors, and free of charge for children under 10. Tickets may be purchased in person at the Tarrytown Music Hall box office, by calling 877-840-0457, or online at https://tickets.tarrytownmusichall.org/eventperformances.asp?evt=3115.

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About the Guest Artists:

Dr. Brian Cardany is the Director of Bands at the University of Rhode Island where he conducts the Wind Ensemble, Concert Band and URI Alumni Wind Ensemble, directs the athletic bands, and teaches conducting. He is the faculty sponsor for the Theta Upsilon chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi and the coordinator for the URI Southern New England Honor Band. 

In the greater music community, Cardany is Conductor and Music Director for the American Band of Providence (established in 1837), the Newport County Orchestra at Salve Regina University, and the Ocean State Pops Orchestra. He directs the South Kingstown Community String Orchestra, and has conducted the South County Chamber Orchestra in Narragansett, RI each summer since 2010. Since its founding in 2013, Cardany has been the conductor for the Rhode Island Recording Ensemble, an organization that supports the work of aspiring composers through recordings and clinics at URI.  An active guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator, Cardany has been invited to conduct ensembles throughout New England and in New York, Maryland, Arizona, and California.  His scholarly activity includes presentations at the MENC Eastern Division Conference and the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, and he has served as a research associate for several volumes of the Teaching Music through Performance in Band series (GIA Publications). Cardany began his career teaching instrumental music at public schools in Virginia and Maryland, and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from James Madison University, and both Master’s and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in Music Education from Arizona State University.  His affiliations include the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA), the World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE), the National Band Association (NBA), the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), and the Rhode Island Music Education Association (RIMEA).

Katherine Filatov is a dynamic woodwind musician, music educator, and arts administrator. Currently in her seventh year as the band director at Blue Mountain Middle School in the Hendrick Hudson School District, she leads over 200 young musicians in an exciting and high-achieving concert band program. In addition to directing three Concert Bands and a Wind Ensemble, her work there also includes serving as Music Team Leader and coaching girls soccer. Katherine also travels as a NYSSMA Adjudicator, offering encouragement and thoughtful feedback to developing musicians across New York State. Katherine regularly appears as a woodwind specialist (flute, clarinet, and saxophone) in pit orchestras for both school and professional theater productions. She has performed with companies such as the Hanger Theater, the Brewster Theater Company, and the Cortland Repertory Theatre. Katherine is a current member of the Westchester Symphonic Winds and has performed at Eisenhower Hall, Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Caramoor Center for the Arts, and Carnegie Hall. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Clarinet Performance and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Ithaca College and a Master of Music from Boston University. 

Morris Northcutt is a distinctive trumpet virtuoso known for his lyricism, artistry, and rare ability to cross seamlessly between classical, jazz, and folk traditions. Influenced by his heritage as the son of a Korean immigrant, he brings a global perspective to his music that resonates with audiences worldwide. A Global Music Award medalist and Schilke Performing Artist, Northcutt has performed with ensembles as diverse as Mannheim Steamroller, The Blues Brothers Reunion Band, Critical Mass Big Band, the Seattle Symphony Chamber Orchestra, and the Tacoma Symphony, while also serving for nearly 30 years as principal cornetist of the internationally recognized Tacoma Concert Band. His international performances include featured appearances in Canada, South America, and across Europe. Northcutt launched his recording career with the single All Is Waiting (2020), followed by the internationally acclaimed Tonada del Cabrestero (2021). He released two full-length albums, Tonada (2021)and Moliendo Café (2024). Northcutt is a dedicated educator and advocate for the brass community. He has presented clinics and masterclasses across North America and internationally for organizations including the International Trumpet Guild, the Rafael Méndez International Brass Festival, and the Washington Music Educators Association. His insights have also been featured on leading platforms such as Bob Reeves Brass Podcast: The Other Side of the Bell and Studio HFL. Morris Northcutt is a Schilke Performing Artist and Clinician, performing exclusively on the Schilke family of trumpets.

About the Conductor:

Curt Ebersole has served as the Conductor/Music Director (John P. Paynter Memorial Chair) of the Westchester Symphonic Winds since 2008, fostering its exponential growth over the past seventeen years, culminating in The American Prize for 2018-2019. He retired from Northern Valley Regional High School (Old Tappan, New Jersey) in 2013 after serving as Director of Instrumental Music for 31 years, and now teaches at The Masters School, in Dobbs Ferry, New York. He earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree and a Master of Music in Conducting degree from Northwestern University, where he studied conducting with John P. Paynter and clarinet with Larry Combs, and earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Clarinet Performance from SUNY-Purchase, studying with Ben Armato. He has served as guest conductor/clinician for many county, regional, and all-state student ensembles, and adult community ensembles across the nation, including performances at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, and Symphony Space, and in Las Vegas, South Korea and Australia. His achievements include multiple teaching awards, ensemble performances as a clarinetist and basset hornist, and speaking/clinic engagements with the Midwest Clinic, TEDxOneonta, and numerous state music education conventions and conducting symposia. 

About the Westchester Symphonic Winds:

The Westchester Symphonic Winds (WSW) is a 60-piece adult community-based wind and percussion ensemble, originally known as the Hudson Valley Wind Symphony. This year we celebrate our 38th season as the area’s premiere community band. We exist to promote music in our area, instill pride in our nation and heritage, provide opportunities for personal expression and growth within our membership, and nurture the love of music by offering an exceptional musical experience for people of all ages. WSW performed at the Association of Concert Bands National Conventions in 2012 and 2019, the New York State Band Directors Association in 2017, and the Caramoor Festival annually since 2014. WSW made its Lincoln Center debut in 2010, and its Carnegie Hall debut in 2023. WSW was the winner of The American Prize for 2018-2019. The organization is an Ensemble-in-Residence at the historic Tarrytown Music Hall in Tarrytown, New York, and rehearses there on Monday evenings, September through June.

 

Membership in the Westchester Symphonic Winds is available to all qualified musicians. Membership information can be obtained by contacting us via email at [email protected] or by U.S. mail (Westchester Symphonic Winds, Box 485, 333 Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains, NY 10605). You can also visit us online at: www.westchestersymphonicwinds.org and through any of our social media platforms.

 

Westchester Symphonic Winds, Inc. is a Section 501(c)(3) Not-for-Profit organization. Corporate and personal contributions, financial assistance, and volunteers are essential and always welcomed! 

For additional concert and ticket information, advertising, donations, and updates, visit us at: www.westchestersymphonicwinds.org.