Gowen to present ‘Music of the Night’ horn recital

The South Dakota State University School of Performing Arts presents Sam Gowen in “Music of the Night,” a recital for horn, at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 9, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center’s Founders Recital Hall. 

Gowen is the academic advisor, scholarship coordinator and horn instructor for the school. 

The program will be presented in three scenes: Scene 1: Sunset into Twilight, Scene 2: Dreamscapes, and Scene 3: Awaken with the Dawn. Each scene will contain multiple pieces of repertoire and will be linked together with a mosaic of lighting and sound transitions. 

The pieces in Scene 1 are designed to emulate the feeling of both excitement and relaxation that can be felt during a breathtaking prairie sunset followed by the tranquility of peacefully drifting into slumber. 

The repertoire presented in Scene 2 explores vastly different musical styles that may seem mysterious or strange in the moment, as many dreams can appear on the surface. A piece from Tyler Ogilvie opens Scene 2, utilizing a horn echo effect and amplification, followed by Olivier Messiaen’s “Appel Interstellaire (Interstellar Call) for Solo Horn” and a selected movement from the Bruce Stark work “Suite for Horn, Trombone and Piano.” 

Scene 3 opens with a James Naigus work, “Remembrance from Visions,” which recalls the last motif presented in the opening work from Scene 1, “Visions,” also by Naigus. The recital closes with selected movements from Bruce Stark’s “Suite for Horn, Trombone and Piano,” which mirrors the glory and elation of a picturesque sunrise. 

Gowen, who joined the SDSU staff in 2023, will collaborate with Corey Shelsta, professor of theatre at SDSU, to realize a creative vision of sound and visuals and create a wholly immersive audience experience. Gowen will also collaborate with Bradley Snyder, SDSU’s instructor of low brass, and Xuan Kuang, SDSU’s artistic collaborator and instructor of group piano. 

The recital is free, and the public is invited to attend. For more information, please contact the SDSU School of Performing Arts at 605-688-5187.