Playing music has a rejuvenating impact on many people, and members of the Gorge Winds Concert Band say their experiences have been especially rewarding.
“I attended one of their Christmas concerts and knew immediately that I wanted to be part of the band,” recalled Joan Ahier, who plays French horn in the band. “My husband bought me a French horn that very Christmas, and the rest is history. I joined the band in the spring of 2015.”
Ahier said attending that Gorge Winds concert changed her world.
“I hadn't really played a French horn since high school, and I’m so happy to be playing again,” said Ahier, who lives in The Dalles. “I have made many new friends, and I get to spend time with several friends that already were members of the band. Plus, we get to make beautiful music together. It makes me proud every time I leave a rehearsal or perform in one of the concerts to be part of this wonderful group of people.”
Gorge Winds percussionist Rick Cowart said he had a similar experience.
“I joined the band in April of 2002,” Cowart said. “Sue Hinatsu, a band member, was talking to me and told me there was a symphonic band here in The Dalles and they could use percussionists. So I joined.”
Cowart had been a music major in college and always had a love for symphonic band music, but he didn’t think he would be able to jump right back into a live band setting.
“If you would have told me that I could still play music from my high school and college days, I never would have believed it,” he said. “This has been such a big part of my life these past 15 years. I have always felt that this is a very special organization, and that we should treasure it always. I have been blessed to be a part of this.”
The Gorge Winds Concert Band is comprised of volunteer musicians who live in the mid-Columbia area. For the past 17 years, the band has performed in a variety of venues throughout the Columbia River Gorge, with members donating their time and talents to help enrich Gorge communities with their dedication to music.
The Gorge Winds, which has approximately 45 active members, was formed in 2000, and will be performing its annual spring concert at Calvary Baptist Church in The Dalles on Sunday, April 30.
Larry Loop, director of the band, said annual performances around The Dalles have become a tradition.
“We always have the spring concert and the Christmas concert in The Dalles,” said Loop. “Those are our two biggies.”
Loop, who lives in The Dalles, pointed out that Calvary Baptist Church is a wonderful venue for a concert because there is plenty of parking and the venue seats approximately 500.
“We usually have about 400 to 450 people there,” Loop said. “The Christmas and spring concerts are so important – what people give funds us.”
The upcoming concert is titled “An Afternoon on Broadway,” and will feature selections from a number of musicals. Loop said there was a practical reason to select the Broadway musical theme for this year’s spring concert.
“I was looking for something we could put together of interest to a lot of people,” explained Loop, who joined the band in 2011 and has been its director since 2012.
The band’s name fits perfectly, Loop said.
“It’s a great name, because we’re a wind band,” said Loop.
He said the band performs with three primary categories of instruments: woodwinds, which are instruments such as flutes, clarinets and saxophones; brass, which includes French horns, trumpets, trombones, and tubas; and percussion, which includes drums, chimes, bells, and xylophones.
“We’re a concert band, not an orchestra,” Loop explained. “We don’t have strings.”
According to Loop, the band performs a variety of marches, overtures, classical works, pop, and ballads, along with specials such as the Broadway musicals they will perform later this month in The Dalles.
The band even plays some original tunes.
“We have a local composer — Steve Hodges — who lives in The Dalles and writes mostly marches and overtures. We try to include some of his material,” Loop said.
And the band virtually never charges people to hear them perform.
“It’s usually ‘donations gladly accepted,’” he explained. “There’s usually no admission fee. We are funded through donations, and sometimes an organization out of the blue will send us a check.”
Loop said band members have shown an inspiring level of dedication over the years.
“These people come from all over the Gorge – Glenwood, White Salmon, Hood River, Trout Lake, Lyle, Odell, Goldendale, The Dalles, Dufur,” he said. “About one-third of the band members are from The Dalles. Goldendale’s a huge supplier too, for whatever reason. They are dedicated to put that many miles on their cars, and driving in bad weather in the dark to get home. They are great people.”
Cowart agreed.
“I have met some very remarkable musicians here in Gorge Winds. You will never meet a more willing group of musicians to meet a challenge,” Cowart said. “I am thrilled to see what a difference we make in our community and the communities around the Gorge.”
Loop, who was born in Salem but moved to New Orleans when he was young, got started in music when he was just 8 years old. In the fourth grade, he started learning the trombone. He took trombone lessons all the way through his high school days in New Orleans.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in music education from Southeast Louisiana University in 1969, and soon began a long career teaching music.
“I taught for 40 years,” he said. “Band, choir, general music, you name it.”
In 1978, Loop moved back to Oregon.
“We moved from New Orleans to Grass Valley,” he recalled. “What a cultural shock! It was great for our three kids.”
Loop went on to get a master’s degree in music education from Western Oregon University in 1984. He retired from teaching in 2001.
Loop said the Gorge Winds Band does three or four concerts a year, with Fourth of July concerts and community events like the Trout Lake Arts Festival.
The band has played at a variety of venues, including the occasional graduation ceremonies at Columbia Gorge Community College.
The band also does some joint concerts with local high schools and middle schools.
“One of our goals is to bring music into the schools and show kids music is a lifetime skill,” Loop said.
That objective is reinforced by the age range of members of the Gorge Winds Concert Band.
“We have high school kids and also have people who are in their 80s,” Loop pointed out.
Timothy McGlothlin, a member of The Dalles City Council and a music lover who has played in the White Salmon Jazz Band, said the Gorge Winds Concert Band fills a vital role.
“Over the years, the Gorge Winds have provided an outlet for musicians that seek to continue playing music beyond the high school setting,” McGlothlin said.
“The Gorge Winds gives each musician the opportunity to experience music in a group setting.”
Anyone interested in joining the band can visit their website, gorgewinds.com, or call Loop at 541-990-5023.
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