FIRST TUESDAY SERIES PERFORMANCE APRIL 1 AT ABAC

The final concert of the semester in the First Tuesday Performance Series at Abraham Baldwin College will take place April 1 at 7 p.m. in the Chapel of All Faiths.

The concert, which is called “A Night of Ensemble Music,” will feature performances by the ABAC Brass Quintet, the ABAC Clarinet Choir, the ABAC Saxophone Quartet, and a woodwind trio that features two of ABAC’s adjunct instructors.

Individual tickets for the performance may be purchased at the door. The cost is $3 for adults and $1 for students. ABAC students are admitted free with ID. Patrons of the Arts and Entertainment Series can also attend at no charge. For additional information, contact the ABAC Arts Connection at (229) 386-3558.

The ABAC Brass Quintet, organized and directed by Donald B. Coates, Chairman of the Music Program at ABAC, includes Coates, trumpet; Jamason Odom, trumpet; Don Wauchope, French horn; Anthony Hall, trombone; and Jason Carr, tuba.

The ABAC Clarinet Choir, organized by Eugene Wyles, Director of Bands at ABAC, includes Wyles, Ashley Hendrix, Sharanda Manley, Katina Robinson, and Pamela Shelton.

Members of the ABAC Saxophone Quartet, also organized by Wyles, include Wyles, alto saxophone; Nguyen Ly, soprano saxophone; Michael Spencer, tenor saxophone; and Jeremy Dye, baritone saxophone.

The woodwind trio consists of Sheri Wyles Grabowski, flute; Lesli Bellflower Holton, flute; and Robert Grabowski, bass-clarinet. Wyles Grabowski and Holton both serve as adjunct instructors at ABAC. Gina Lawhon will provide accompaniment for each of the members of the trio during their solo performances.

As part of the Arts and Entertainment Series sponsored by the ABAC Arts Connection, regional professional artists are featured on the first Tuesday of every month in the Chapel of All Faiths on the ABAC campus. The series is made possible by a generous gift from Lowe’s of Tifton for the Arts and Entertainment Series.

Coates received an A.A. degree from Central Florida Community College, a B.M. degree in Music Education from Brigham Young University, and an M.M.E. degree in Music Education from Florida State University. He joined the ABAC faculty in 1974. Coates organized and is the director of the ABAC Brass Quintet and the ABAC Jazz Ensemble.

After serving 31 years as band director at Worth County High School, Wyles joined the ABAC faculty as Director of Bands. He earned a B.F.A. degree from the University of Florida, a Master’s of Music Education from Vandercook College of Music in Chicago, and is also a graduate of the United States Naval School of Music in Washington, D.C.

Wyles Grabowski holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Columbus College and a Master’s in the Science of Education from Troy State University. She is known throughout Georgia as a band and flute clinician. Wyles Grabowski is a member of the Albany Symphony Orchestra and also manages and performs with her own professional chamber group, The Mannheim Trio. She has been teaching band and general music for 17 years and is employed by the Tift County School System.

Holton is currently Director of Choral Music for Worth County Middle School in Sylvester. She holds an Associate of Arts degree in Music from ABAC, and a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education and a Master of Music Education degree, both from Valdosta State University. Holton currently serves as Associate Conductor of the Tifton Choral Society and is the director of the Young Musicians Choir at First Baptist Church of Chula. She also performs regularly as a member of The Mannheim Trio.

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