US Air Force service members serenade Clarksburg veterans with free woodwind concert

Oct. 31—CLARKSBURG — Visitors who filed into Clarksburg's Robinson Grand Performing Arts Center on Sunday afternoon were met with the sounds of various woodwind instruments, each performing a unique tune as performers warmed up for the day's show.

At the top of the hour, these sounds merged into a single, harmonious melody, with the Heritage Winds band welcoming the local community to its free performance.

Heritage Winds is the woodwind section of the United States Air Force Heritage of America Band, which travels the country providing local communities tunes deeply rooted in American history.

Each member of the band is an active member of the U.S. Air Force, coming together to inspire patriotism and tell the story of the United States through the power of the music. The group is based at Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, Virginia, and is currently traveling across nearby states in honor of Veterans Day, which falls this year on Nov. 11.

While the group is based in Virginia, players come from all over the country, including Senior Airman Deborah Law, who hails from Portland, Oregon. Law joined the Air Force as a bassoonist roughly two and a half years ago, and today serves as music director for Heritage Winds, playing a key role in each performance.

Beyond playing instruments, Law said members of Heritage Winds — herself included — arrange pieces for the group to perform themselves, coordinating performances of both classic and contemporary American musical works.

For example, Sunday's show began with a performance of Julia Ward Howe's 1861 "Battle Hymn of the Republic" arranged by Airman First Class Patrick Lyons, adapted to fit Heritage Winds and the instruments present in the show.

Selecting pieces for the various performances Heritage Winds takes on often means taking into account the local flavors and histories of the communities that they visit, Law said.

The piece was written in the Civil War era, and is also known as "Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory" or "Glory, Glory Hallelujah" in some areas.

But before Ward Howe's composition — the best-known rendition among contemporary audiences — the song amassed popularity as a folk tune with many different renditions and lyrics, Law said.

Originally, the piece told the story of the 1859 raid on Harpers Ferry, W.Va. by abolitionist John Brown, and has come to be heralded as a seminal piece of art in Civil War-era American history. Its lyrics were written by soldiers stationed near his execution site in Charles Town, W.Va., Law said.

For a performance in West Virginia, tapping into the state's rich abolitionist history seemed particularly topical, she said.

Other pieces performed by Heritage Winds on Sunday likewise aimed to connect the local community with American history and musical culture. One piece arranged by Law, "Elegy for Oregon," is a staple of Veterans Day services, and one with particularly patriotic messages, she said.

The piece was written by Sir George Thomas Thalben-Ball, an organist who spent most of his life in England, Law said.

Thalben-Ball provided musical compositions for a daily religious service broadcast on the BBC during World War II. "Elegy for Oregon" was written when one day's broadcast ended earlier than expected, and Thalben-Ball was tasked with improvising a melody for the rest of the show.

After his performance, Thalben-Ball and BBC rushed with calls and positive feedback encouraging the artist to share his piece with the world. Thalben-Ball rushed to write down what he could remember of the piece he had just improvised and, thus, "Elegy for Oregon" was born.

The piece received particular positive feedback so far in the Heritage Winds Veterans Day performance tour, with an organist in Parkersburg telling Law that he would play the piece to celebrate Veterans Day this year, she said.

For Law and Heritage Winds, the opportunity to visit Clarksburg and the broader region to celebrate Veterans Day was meaningful, and a chance to connect with American history through song.

Today, we are "celebrating Veterans Day, which is right around the corner from us," Law told audience members at the start of her group's performance on Sunday. "Thank you so much for spending your afternoon with us."

Reach Jack Walker by email at jwalker@timeswv.com.