Wendy Stein

Wendy Stein
Clarinet, contra bassoon, and bass clarinet

Has played with the Salina Symphony since: 1972

Hometown: San Jose, California
Current City: Salina

Education:
Master of Music Education Kansas State University 1978
Bachelor of Arts Marymount College 1975

Job Title:
Band Director and Publications Officer St. John’s Military School

Earliest musical memory:
Listening to an album by Tommy Dorsey entitled Symphony for Tommy that always played on my mom’s Hi Fi (that’s what record players were called in the 1950s). My proudest memory is making first chair clarinet in the California State Honor Band and having COL Arnald Gabriel as our conductor.

Best part of being a Salina Symphony musician:
The most rewarding part of being in the Salina Symphony is collaborating with fellow musicians and having the opportunity to perform some of the world’s most beautiful and enduring music. It is also immensely rewarding to see how the symphony has grown since Eric laid a solid foundation at the feet of Maestro Hakoda. The symphony is flourishing through the combined efforts of a tireless and dedicated group of people: Ken Hakoda, Music Director and Conductor; Adrienne Allen, Executive Director; Alison Harbaugh, Administrative Assistant & Education Coordinator; and the Board of Trustees.

Most memorable performance with the Salina Symphony:
When Eric’s sons Rudy (cello), Eddie (violin), and Eddie’s wife Linda (piano) performed the Brahms triple concerto with the symphony. It was an extremely proud moment for the Stein family and meant the world to Eric.

Favorite composer:
Sergei Rachmaninoff

What song best describes you when you first wake up in the morning?
“Morning Has Broken” by Cat Stevens.

What’s on your ipod?
An abundance of jazz standards – Frank Sinatra, Michael Buble, Tony Bennett, Diana Krall. Many works by Romantic and classical composers – Rachmaninoff, Brahms, Mahler, Debussy, Mozart, and Beethoven. Also pops Barbara Streisand, Celine Deon, and Gloria Estefan. Music of the Beatles, John Denver, and, of course, Sousa marches

How do you spend your free time?
Practicing the clarinet and the bagpipes, working at St. John’s, and spending time with Steve Klitzke whom I met through Kay and Dick Werth (longtime friends of Eric and me). It has been wonderful to be able to share my life with someone again after losing Eric in 2007. Steve attends symphony concerts and loves and appreciates beautiful music. He is an advertising consultant with Eagle Radio in Hays, Kansas.

Whom do you admire?
I admire my mom and dad, William and Dorothy De Lisle, because throughout my life they enthusiastically supported my music. Dad (mom passed away in 2011) continues to be a huge supporter of Eric’s and my children, Derek and Adele, both of whom are freelance cellists.

What is your greatest accomplishment?
My greatest accomplishment has been to be a mother to two fantastic and talented children. I can’t imagine any achievement more important, rewarding, or precious. Also, my years of teaching music, first in Solomon, Kansas (five years) and St. John’s Military School (31 years). This experience has enriched my life in countless ways. Music has been at the center of my life for 50 years and I look forward to many more years of music making!