Prairie Winds Festival with The Westerlies

Featuring multiple wind ensembles and genre-defying brass quartet, The Westerlies

The Westerlies, “an arty quartet…mixing ideas from jazz, new classical and Appalachian folk,” (New York Times) is a New York-based brass quartet founded by childhood friends from Seattle and including Riley Mulherkar and Chloe Rowlands on trumpet, and Andy Clausen and Addison Maye-Saxon on trombone. From Carnegie Hall to Coachella, The Westerlies navigate a wide array of venues and projects with the precision of a string quartet, the audacity of a rock band and the charm of a family sing-along. Formed in 2011, the self-described “accidental brass quartet” takes its name from the prevailing winds that travel from the west to the east. “Skilled interpreters who are also adept improvisers” (NPR’s Fresh Air), The Westerlies explore jazz, roots and chamber music influences to create the rarest of hybrids: music that is both “folk-like and composerly, lovely and intellectually rigorous” (NPR Music). The ensemble has produced numerous critically acclaimed albums of genre-defying music.

As part of the KU School of Music’s Prairie Winds Festival, The Westerlies will perform with multiple ensembles, including the KU Wind Ensemble. Conducted by Paul W. Popiel, the KU Wind Ensemble has been described by The New York Times as “one of America’s most esteemed concert bands.”

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