Concert: Musicians from around the country honor Bob Briggs

By Kathleen Whalen | Daily Republic correspondent | February 18, 2009 11:11

FAIRFIELD - On Sunday night, the Fairfield Center for the Creative Arts hosted one of the most extraordinary musical events of this, or any other, year.

One hundred thirteen men and women from all over the country gathered to honor the memory of Robert O. Briggs, the late director of the Cal Band, by presenting a concert of his favorite music. (One wonders what the security personnel at the San Francisco airport thought as large numbers of trumpet, trombone, horn, even euphonium and tuba cases began passing by on their X-ray screens.)

There can be few in this area active in musical circles who did not know, or know of, Robert O. Briggs, who had a six-decades plus association with the Cal Band, the band of the University of California , Berkeley .

He joined in 1947 as a freshman cornet player. Then, he returned to the Cal Band as assistant director in 1967, became acting band director in 1971, then finally, in 1973, was appointed director of the Cal Band, a position he held for more than 20 years.

Retirement from the band didn't mean retirement from music as he helped to found the Solano Winds Community Concert Band, which he directed until his death in fall 2008.

Though the Solano Winds Community Concert Band hosted this event, the focus of the afternoon and evening was Briggs' association with the Cal Band. Most of the musicians had played with, or for, him at Cal , and it was the band music he loved that they chose to play.

Ten different conductors took turns putting down their instruments and walking to the podium to conduct music familiar to anyone who had played for Briggs.

Bill Doherty and the Solano Winds Community Concert Band also commissioned a new piece in Briggs' honor, written and directed by former Cal band member and composer Randy Biagi. His fantasia on 'Hail to California ' was an exciting piece with a grand scope requiring skilled players at the top of their game.

The Sunday concert was its world premiere. It's sure to become a staple in the concert band repertoire.

Most concerts are rehearsed and presented for the appreciation of an audience. This one was different. It was clear that, though the sound they were creating was important, to the musicians, it was the experience, the playing of the music that actually mattered.

Make no mistake, the music was wonderful to listen to, and some of it like 'Buglers Holiday,' an Andrew Lloyd Webber medley, and 'Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity' from Gustav Holst's' The Planets' was top-notch.

But the musicians played for themselves, for one another, and, most importantly, for Robert O. Briggs.

All reveled in the chance to play: the drummer, who, having rotated out so a colleague could have a turn, played the air in front of him; the clarinet player who grinned in frank delight as the piccolos sounded during 'The Stars and Stripes Forever March' and the trumpet player with the 'For Sale' sign on his case who said he hadn't touched his instruments for 20 years but couldn't miss this chance to play once more.

Doherty, who directs the Solano Winds Community Concert Band and was the primary organizer of this event, couldn't have created a better memorial than to bring together one last time men and women who had played for and with Briggs. This was truly a memorial in the spirit of the man it honored -- focused, upbeat, professional, but, above all, musical.

Everyone associated with this concert donated their time and all proceeds went to support a scholarship fund Briggs established for students at Solano County high schools who wish to pursue musical studies at four-year institutions. Contributions can be sent to the Robert O. Briggs Scholarship Endowment Fund at the Solano Community Foundation.

Kathleen Whalen is a free-lance writer living in West Sacramento . She can be reached at kw1954ohio@yahoo.com.