Courtesy Utah Premiere Brass

A concert to benefit the Food and Care Coalition is on the docket this weekend to help further its current project of building transitional apartments for those coming out of homelessness and other situations.

To honor and help the Food and Care Coalition with some of its special projects, Utah Premiere Brass, Utah’s only British brass band, will perform in concert at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Ashton Auditorium at Library Square in Orem. This benefit concert will highlight the contributions of the coalition. There is no charge for admission.

“We are very excited for this opportunity to perform in the new Ashton Auditorium and especially pleased to partner with Food and Care Coalition,” director Kirt Saville said. “They do so much to help provide housing and support for those most in need in our community.”

The Food and Care Coalition was started in the 1980s by a handful of churches in downtown Provo. The United Church of Christ Community Congregational Church acted as team leader. Through the years, the success of the coalition has come from its many volunteers.

Its primary mission began as a way to feed the hungry. Over the years, it has expanded to offer other services including hygiene, shower facilities, laundry services, internet access, haircuts, transitional housing, client outreach, education and more.

Isaac Hale, Daily Herald file photo

The Food and Care Coalition is in the middle of a project to provide 72 new subsidized apartments for homeless individuals and families. Construction is currently underway with the first units scheduled to open this year.

Concertgoers will have an opportunity to contribute directly to this construction effort during the concert. According to Executive Director Brent Crane, approximately 75%-80% of those helped by the coalition “are out of our services in four to six months.”

“It is that chronic population that often needs more assistance and help and this project will address that need,” he said.

The concert will feature the 28-member Utah Premiere Brass performing a wide range of numbers, including one of the most difficult pieces in the brass band repertoire, “Plantagenets” by Edward Gregson, which was a test piece for the British Brass Band championships.

The highlight of the concert will be a performance of “Shine as the Light” by Peter Graham. This stirring piece is an arrangement of three hymns: “It’s a Great Day,” “Candle of the Lord” and “The Light Has Come.” Each emphasizes the need for all to care for one another.

Courtesy

Utah Premiere Brass was organized 20 years ago to continue the tradition of brass bands in Utah. Many pioneer companies came across the plains with their own brass bands. There were over 200 such bands in Utah at the end of the 19th century. One of the most popular bands was the Provo Brass Band, a favorite of Brigham Young. They played regularly at church, civic and territorial functions.

Saville, the conductor for Utah Premiere Brass, retired recently after 13 years at the BYU School of Music, the final five years as director.