Piedmont Wind Symphony - Robert Simon, Director

Where are we located?

The Piedmont Wind Symphony rehearses and performs in Winston-Salem, North Carolina which is located in the Piedmont Triad area of northwest North Carolina. Nearby cities and towns include Greensboro, High Point, Thomasville, Kernersville, Clemmons and Lewisville.

The term Piedmont is from the Italian and literally means "foot of the mountains." The area is very hilly and although not in the mountains, the Blue Ridge range of the Appalachian mountains are less than an hour's drive to the northwest. The term foothills is also used to describe our area. Triad refers to the three major towns that make up this area: Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point, North Carolina.

The Piedmont Wind Symphony is in residence at Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. We rehearse at Wake Forest and give many of our concerts in the fine Brendle Recital Hall of the Scales Fine Arts Center on the campus of Wake Forest University, in addition to the Stevens Center, Downtown.

What is a wind symphony?

A Wind Symphony is made up of winds, brass and percussion (with other occasional guest instruments) and plays works from the standard band repertoire. We limit ourselves (with a few exceptions) to one player per part -- around 45 musicians -- relatively small by the standards of some bands. This results in a leaner, tighter, more precise sound than a symphonic band, which can have multiple players (sometimes two, three, or more) per part, which results in sound that is full but sometimes imprecise, and the more performers, the more possible problems with intonation.

We have performed many of the band repertory's most difficult pieces, of all styles and periods, both original works and arrangements from other media. We have performed contemporary, romantic, classical, and baroque works, as well as pop arrangements from movies, TV and Broadway as well as jazz works.

Click here for more information about works we have performed in concert.

Having one performer on a part requires the players to absolutely know their parts. There is no one else to cover up if you don't know yours and no one else to 'follow' if you are not absolutely solid in your preparation. Some groups like us call themselves 'wind ensembles,' as in the Eastman Wind Ensemble, founded by Dr. Frederick Fennell at the Eastman School of Music in 1952. Dr. Fennell is one of our greatest inspirations, and appeared with us as a guest conductor in 1998.

Who plays with the Piedmont Wind Symphony?

Members of PWS come from all over the Piedmont Triad area, some of us commuting from neighboring counties for our rehearsals and performances. Our motley crew is made up of all types of people: corporate vice presidents, school teachers, instrument repair technicians, private music instructors, free-lance musicians, college professors and not a few school band directors. A few of us are managers and some of us are in sales. While most members of PWS are adults, a few of us are high school students who take music seriously and aspire to a career in music.

Many members of PWS majored in music in college and went on to careers in other fields. Several of us have played in military bands stationed here or abroad. Some members of PWS have served as 'subs' for the Winston-Salem, Greensboro and Charlotte Symphony Orchestras. Many of our members play in or lead other local bands and chamber ensembles.

We all share one love: making good music.

Go to PWS Players