Dr. Irvin Wagner and the University of Oklahoma Trombone Choir will perform at McPherson College as part of the Fern Lingenfelter Artist Series on Sunday, Feb. 5, at 3 p.m. in Brown Auditorium. Concert admission is free. Dr. Wagner is a 1959 graduate of McPherson College and former band director.
In addition to the Trombone Choir, this high-energy concert will spotlight a Solo Trombone Quartet. The quartet features Brent Mead, principal in the Wichita Symphony; Randy Crow, an adjunct brass instructor at McPherson College; Dan Hinman, trombone professor at Kansas State University; and Matt Blauer from the Wichita Symphony, making McPherson the “trombone capitol of Kansas,” for the evening, according to Dr. Wagner. The Lingenfelter Concert will feature some of Dr. Wagner’s original compositions along with classical and jazz trombone pieces. Dr. Wagner’s concerts are fun, educational, and enjoyed by musicians and non-musicians.
Dr. Wagner’s remarkable career includes conducting, performing, and teaching trombone for 53 years at the University of Oklahoma. He is a founding member of the Oklahoma Brass Quintet and conducts the popular OU Trombone Choir. He is a member of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic and the conductor for many of that orchestra’s pops concerts. He has also been a guest conductor at the Kansas City Symphony, the Santa Fe (Argentina) Symphony, the Paraguay National Symphony Orchestra, the St. Petersburg Imperial Orchestra, and others. His compositions and arrangements are in demand by many major symphony orchestras and trombone choirs. In 2019, he received the International Trombone Association Lifetime Achievement Award.
He is a pioneer for trombone ensembles stemming from his education at Eastman School of Music, where he studied under Emory Remington and later began researching older music for trombone ensembles. The OU Trombone Choir with Dr. Wagner as conductor, appears often at major conventions and many times at the International Trombone Festival. Approximately 30 musicians from the choir will perform at the McPherson concert.
“I have been fortunate to travel to many parts of the world as a trombone soloist and conductor,” Dr. Wagner said. “I call McPherson my home town, and McPherson College is where I received a remarkable education. I owe McPherson College for the wonderful education as a musician and person and for forming the foundation of all I have been able to do.”
Following the concert, Dr. Wagner will host a masterclass for trombonists and other low brass players from area public schools and colleges; audience members who wish to do so are invited to remain for this teaching and learning opportunity.
Admission to the Lingenfelter concert is free thanks to a generous commitment to McPherson College honoring Fern Lingenfelter. Lingenfelter, an alumna of McPherson College, taught piano in McPherson for many years to both college students on campus and younger students at her studio downtown. Her son, Steve Clark, chairman of Clark Investment Group of Wichita, established the fund that supports two annual music performance events with special emphasis on piano.