By Jesse Bertel

Maestro Clydene Dechert leads the Central Arizona Concert Band (CACB) in a celebration of the changing seasons with an upcoming late fall concert. The diverse program encompasses a blend of classical and contemporary compositions, ranging from stirring military marches to romantic opera overtures.

The concert is scheduled for 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19, at the Davis Learning Center on the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University campus, 3700 Willow Creek Road, Prescott.

Music director and conductor of the CACB, Dechert has crafted a unique concert program kicking off with “Die Bosniaken Kommen,” a popular march by Austrian composer Eduard Wagnes.

“[The piece] brings the attention of the full band together and announces the beginning of a program and I always end something like that too — with a march at the end,” Dechert said. “People don’t always remember what’s in between, but they remembered the beginning and the end of the concert.”

Following that dynamic start, the band will enchant the audience with the sparkling overture to Ambroise Thomas’ opera “Raymond.”

“I start always with a march and then generally follow that with an overture or waltz, which is totally different in an arrangement,” Dechert said.

In line with the band’s commitment to showcasing local talent, Dechert presents Richard Strauss’ “Allerseelen” (All Souls Day), featuring a special arrangement by Albert Oliver Davis. A well-known music educator with 39 years of experience, Davis has left a lasting impact on the local music scene, serving as the chairman of the music department at Phoenix College for 27 years and composing over 600 published works.

“It was originally written for an orchestra and this is now arranged for a band only, so the clarinets are playing the violin parts,” Dechert said. “Davis’ daughter, Cindy Franklin, is one of my bass clarinetists and I have done a lot of his arrangements and quite a few of his original works. So, I thought this would be a nice number to have in and Cindy said it was her absolute favorite of some of the stuff that he’s done.”

The concert also features Eugene Damare’s delightful concert polka, “La Tourterelle” (The Turtledove), showcasing the virtuosity of Jaime Ondrusek, the principal flautist with the band. “He’s doing a piccolo solo, which is unusual to have as a solo instrument,” Dechert said. “We have featured trumpet before and clarinet before, but we had never featured a piccolo and I thought this would be entertaining for the audience and for the band.”

Among the familiar tunes on the program are Aaron Copland’s “Variations on a Shaker Melody” from “Appalachian Spring,” the march scene from the movie “El Cid,” and other crowd-pleasers.

“[Variations on a Shaker Melody] really features all of the instruments in the band somewhere throughout,” Dechert said. “It’s a challenge for the band. I try to find a variety of music that will challenge the band and still entertain the audience, so they have a little bit of everything.”

Admission prices are $12 for adults and $5 for youth, with tickets available at the door.

For more information, visit centralarizonaconcertband.com.