tech folk orchestra

The Tech Folk Orchestra is a medium ensemble (winds, brass, strings, percussion, voice, dance) specializing in group performance of various music and dance traditions that have been historically learned by ear and held in the memory, focused upon but not limited to musics of northwestern Europe and the Americas. TFO began as a small group (“the TTU Celtic Ensemble”) playing traditional instruments of the Celtic world (flute, fiddle, guitar, mandolin, tin whistle, and so forth), but has expanded over the years due to increased interest from a wider diversity of instrumentalists and singers. Because many of those interested to participate are winds or brass specialists who do not have the hours or years available to learn a traditional instrument, TFO’s repertoire and orchestrational choices have expanded to accommodate this wider diversity. 

Currently, the ensemble includes winds, brass, strings, percussion, SATB vocals, and dancers; the repertoire is founded in the most traditional folkloric sources, from within and beyond northern and western Europe, but is arranged for the one-to-a-part chamber orchestration and sight-reading capacities of the expanded ensemble. TFO is a particularly good situation for players, at a range of skill levels, who will benefit from experience at: playing by ear, playing from memory, playing dance music rhythms with authentic and effective feel, exploring related instruments or performance modes (e.g., singing or dancing), playing with a full rhythm section, “head” arrangements, and related “bandstand” skills. Participants are also encouraged to employ instruments used in these musics, of which the VMC holds a small collection, and in appropriate languages insofar as possible; opportunities for learning associated dances are also available. Presents three recital concerts per academic year, in addition to other service as part of SOM and Vernacular Music Center events (especially the Solstice Celebration each December) as required.

In addition, the TFO collaborates widely with fellow artists, and with organizations across and beyond the TTU campus, including TTU Theatre & Dance, the historic Wallace Theater in Levelland Texas, the Louise Hays Underwood Center for the Arts, Lubbock-Con, and a range of other arts and advocacy organizations. The TFO also has an “alternate history” alter ego, the “house band” of the Bassanda Multiverse, and engages with cosplay, speculative fiction, historical role-playing games, and more. 

​Director, Dr. Christopher Smith
​Email: ​christopher.smith@ttu.edu

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