“Even in the first rehearsal we had, the sounds and the colors we were able to get as five reed instruments was unlike anything the five of us had ever heard before,” explains clarinetist Kari Landry of the Akropolis Reed Quintet’s initial meeting ten years ago.
“The sound was glassy, pure in a way like I had never heard anything else in classical music before. I was just awestruck by it. From that moment I was addicted to the sound that Akropolis creates,” chimes in Ryan Reynolds, who plays bassoon in the quintet.
Founded in 2009 at the University of Michigan, the musicians meld together the sounds of five different instruments: clarinet, oboe, saxophone, bassoon, and bass clarinet. “You have their unique colors, but you also have five different personalities on stage,” says saxophonist Matt Landry. “And what we enjoy sharing with audiences is the discovery that we made about the way these different musical personalities and colors come together to make really memorable concert experiences.”
The quintet is the first-ever ensemble of its makeup to win seven national prizes including a Fischoff Gold Medal and Fischoff Educators Award. Bringing their award-winning talents to the Clark County and Windmill Libraries, the Akropolis Reed Quintet will be playing works ranging from pieces that have been written recently to music that was composed several hundred years ago.
“The audience can certainly sense our energy and they kind of tune in with it,” says Andrew Koeppe, who plays the bass clarinet. Adds Landry, “Our mission of creating music that hasn’t existed before really resonates.”
“What makes our performances unique is certainly the interesting blends of sounds,” concludes oboist Tim Gocklin. “I still don’t think we have created all of them with our current repertoire, we are still exploring the colors you can create with different combos of instrument and different ranges.”
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