Many of those who live in Los Banos feel quite lucky to have settled in a town with such a wonderful and active arts council. The Los Banos Arts Council is a dedicated group of people who have been responsible for bringing some absolutely wonderful entertainment and culture to our town. This weekend the council gave their neighbors the opportunity to enjoy some classical music performed by a world class ensemble - The Stanford Woodwind Quintet.

The Stanford University website has this to say about the group: "The Stanford Woodwind Quintet is a professional ensemble composed of Stanford teaching faculty. Recognized for solo work and chamber music collaboration, the Quintet excels in music from the classics through the 20th century." The Stanford Website labels these five artists a 'faculty ensemble', but make no mistake, this is not 'simply a group of teachers' that just got together for a 'jam session' one day. As one of the quintet's founding members, Ms. Hawley notes, "We have been performing together for twenty years and all teach at Stanford University."

According to an email forwarded to this reporter, the members of the quintet have an amazing range of musical experiences and talent. Space precludes doing anything more than scratching the surface when it comes to describing their musical achievements, but here are a few of the highlights that caught my eye from the letter I received.

- Alexandra Hawley, (who played the flute on Saturday night), is a founding member of the quintet. She has performed in Carnegie Hall and at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. Ms. Hawley has also recorded for the Naxos label, including a CD of Robert Muczynski's complete flute works with the composer at the piano and with guest artist Jean-Pierre Rampal.

- James Matheson was the gentleman playing the oboe on Saturday. Mr. Matheson has held the position of principal oboe with the San Francisco Opera Orchestra since 1962 and was a member of the San Francisco Symphony from 1962-1980. He also reportedly toured with with the Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler.

- Mark Brandenburg played the clarinet at the concert. He is currently 'principal clarinet' in the Opera San Jose Orchestra and the Midsummer Mozart Festival Orchestra and he is a former member of the San Francisco Symphony and the San Jose Symphony. He has taught at San Jose State University and at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and is currently on the faculty at Stanford University and the University of California at Santa Cruz.

- Rufus Olivier, who performed on the bassoon, also has an impressive curriculum vitae. According to the email, "At the age of eighteen Olivier was selected to perform a concerto with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and later went on to play with that same orchestra. In 1977 he won a position with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra under Neville Mariner, and the same month joined the San Francisco Symphony."

- Lawrence Ragent was the hornist on Saturday. His training comes in part from the New England Conservatory where he graduated with honors. Mr. Oliver is a member of the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players. He has also performed or soloed with a number of well known organizations including the San Francisco Symphony, the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, Boston Symphony, The San Francisco Chamber Orchestra and others.

The ensemble entertained attendees with music from Ferenc Farkas' Hungarian Dance Suite, Claude Debussy's Petite Suite, Frigyes Hidas Quintet Number Two, Anton Reicha's Quintent in E, Erwin Schulhof's Divertimento, And Jaques Ibert's Three short Pieces 'fast slow and fast'.

Not only did the quintet play music for the crowd but they also took a few moments in between sets to teach or explain a little bit about the the composers, the music itself, and even their instruments. There were moments of levity as well. At one point a member of the quintet had just finished detailing why the performers paused now and again to pull a rag through their instruments, saying that it was in order to clear the condensation which would help to keep the notes pure - to which another member of the group quipped, "He called it condensation, most other people would call it spit!".

The performance ended on Saturday evening with an encore piece being played by the quintet after members of the audience had given them a standing ovation.

The Stanford Woodwind Quintet performed for an appreciative audience on Saturday at the Falasco Arts Center in Los Banos

Rufus Olivier performed on the bassoon

Alexandra Hawley - played the flute

Lawrence Ragent was the hornist

Mark Brandenburg played the clarinet

James Matheson on the oboe

If everyone in Los Banos would just take 1 or 2 hours a month to do something to help their neighborhood or their community we could truly make Los Banos the gem of the valley.

The above is only my personal opinion and I strongly encourage readers to seek out more information from expert sources. Copyright 2010