ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Roy McLerran*, originally from San Augustine, TX, holds a degree in music education from Stephen F. Austin State University (2013) in Nacogodches, TX and a Master's of Instrumental Wind Conducting from the University of Miami (2022). He has seven years of public school teaching experience in East Texas and South Florida and is currently earning a D.M.A. in Instrumental Wind Conducting from the University of Miami. McLerran founded the East Texas Chamber Winds in 2015 in order to give back to the community and to promote the performance of harmoniemusik.

MEET THE MUSICIANS FOR THIS SEASON

SUMMER 2024

*denotes an original member

FLUTES

Callie DeJesus is originally from Rockwall, TX and holds a degree in music education from Stephen F. Austin State University. She is an Assistant Band Director for Marshall ISD.

Christina Smith is from Center, TX and has a degree in Music Education from Stephen F. Austin State University. She is currently the Head Middle School Band Director for Center ISD.

Jessica Monasmith has been a band director for two years in Masfield ISD. She graduated from Baylor University (2021) with a degree in Music Education and an emphasis on flute. She currently lives in Arlington, TX with her husband, Chris, dog Pazu, and cat Grey Kitty.

OBOES

BreiAnn Gee* is originally from Lufkin, TX. She earned a degree in Music Education from Stephen F. Austin State University. She is currently an Assistant Band Director for Jacksonville ISD.

Christopher Monasmith is a native of Harlingen, TX and holds a degree in Music Education from Baylor University. He is currently an Assistant Band Director for Texas City High School.

Brooke Olivarez is originally from Cypress, TX and is currently earning a degree in music education from SFASU. An active musician in East Texas, she has played English Horn for the Longview Symphony Orchestra and maintains a studio of oboists in the area.

CLARINETS

Gary Jones, from Houston, TX, graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University with a degree in music education in 2017 and a master’s in conducting in 2019. Currently he is the Director for the Houston Chamber Music Society, where he conducts the professional ensemble, The Wind Project. He also serves as the Assoc. Director of bands and Coordinator of Academic Music Studies in Galveston ISD.

Marina McLerran* is originally from Austin, TX. She graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University in 2014 and served as a band director in East Texas for five years. She earned a Master’s of Music Education from the University of Miami in 2021 where she is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Music Education and continues to serve as a Graduate Teaching Assistant.

Cesar Montelongo is originally from Dallas, TX and is currently a band director in Duncanville ISD. He holds a degree in Music Education from Stephen F. Austin State University.

FRENCH HORNS

Ismael Mendoza*, from Dallas, TX, graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University in 2017 with a degree in music education. He is currently the Band Director for San Augustine ISD. 

Quentin Fisher is from Tyler, TX and is graduate with a BM in Music Education from SFASU in 2023. He is currently earning a Master’s degree in Horn Performance from Arizona State University.

Abigail Ramsey Jones

BASSOONS

Dr. Cody Hunter is originally from Sun Prairie, WI and currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Bassoon and music theory at SFASU.

Brandon Beavers* is from Livingston, TX and holds a degree in Music Education (2016) and a Master’s in Instrumental Conducting (2018) from Stephen F. Austin State University. Currently, he is an Assistant Band Director for Lufkin ISD and the Contemporary Worship Leader for the First United Methodist Church of Nacogdoches.

DOUBLE BASS

Mason Poirer is originally from Dallas, TX and is currently serving as an Assistant Band Director for Liberty Junior High in Richardson ISD.

OUR HISTORY

The East Texas Chamber Winds (ETCW) is a Texas ensemble dedicated to the accurate performance of harmoniemusik. The ETCW’s premiere concert took place in San Augustine, TX at the First United Methodist Church in the summer of 2016, conducted by Roy McLerran. Members of the ETCW are mostly current students or recent graduates of the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music in Nacogdoches, TX.

Since its premiere concert, the ETCW have returned to the First United Methodist Church three more times, performed five additional concerts at the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music and provided the musical entertainment for the Gilbert I. Low Excellence in Education Awards Gala (San Augustine, TX) in both 2018 and 2019. The ETCW were honored to participate in the 2018 Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Music Showcase series in San Antonio, TX. The ensemble logo was designed by Kubs Sabsrsula in preparation for the convention appearance. It is meant to represent a lyre - small harp or music holder. In January 2019, the ETCW performed the world premiere of “Mountain Songs” by Jack Wilds at historic Mast hall in downtown Nacogdoches, TX as part of their winter concert series. At the request of their attendees, the ETCW returned to Mast Hall again in January 2020 for their 4th annual winter concert.

After a one-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ETCW returned to the stage for the summer 2021 concert at Naca Valley Vineyard where they celebrated their fifth anniversary with Mozart’s complete “gran partita” to a record audience turnout. The ensemble performed their sixth annual summer concert in June 2022 at Millard’s Crossing Historic Village in Nacogdoches, TX with Guest Conductor, Jack Hontz. In the fall of 2022, the ETCW were granted official 501c3 status, making the ensemble an independent non-profit organization. In January 2023, the ETCW returned to Mast Hall with a performance of lesser-known French pieces and the world premiere of an arrangement of Saint-Saens’ “Carnival of the Animals” by Roy McLerran. The ensemble performed their seventh annual summer concert at the historic Fredonia Hotel in downtown Nacogdoches, TX in June 2023. They returned to the hotel for the Winter 2024 concert in January (“Music of the 70s”).

The ETCW are excited to return to The Fredonia Hotel for their Summer 2024 concert on Saturday, June 15th.

A SHORT HISTORY OF HARMONIEMUSIK

            During the Classical Era, small wind bands, or harmonien, were the premiere source of entertainment within refined households and courts across Europe. The popularity of wind ensembles began in tandem with the height of orchestras’ success. For this reason, wind instruments were not considered lead or melody voices, but instead played the harmony parts. Eventually, as composers began to experiment with the capabilities of a wind ensemble, the German word “harmonien” was used to refer to an ensemble of six to eight wind musicians who performed without string instruments. These ensembles were composed of the most talented wind musicians in the world and performed at the pleasure of their employers. Because of the royal interest in music, most notably from Joseph II of the Austrian Empire and King Louis XIV, harmoniemusik was a major focus for composers like Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, and Schubert and quickly became a sign of great wealth. Harmonien played original compositions, or small-scale versions of popular works, for occasions ranging from casual dinner parties to outdoor festivals or hunts.

At the start of the Romantic Era, the tradition of chamber wind music was continued by several recognized composers including Ludwig van Beethoven, Felix Mendelssohn, and Gaetano Donizetti. While some composers merely paid homage to an existing musical tradition, others saw the harmonien as a perfect trial medium, a mini-wind ensemble if you will, for new compositional methods and uncommon harmonic preferences. This was especially true in the case of composers like Arnold Schoenberg or Igor Stravinksy: two respected composers of 20th century music. It was also during this more recent period that several of the wind instruments were mechanically updated, which allowed composers of chamber wind music to demand a much higher caliber of individual player for this genre.

It is the responsibility of classically trained musicians to promote the continued performance of these historic works, to entertain as well as to educate the listener about the origins of our craft.