Bear on the Square

Description

Perry Holbrook brings us a slightly comical, yet worrisome scenario…there is literally a bear on the town square! A musical nod to a unique event, “Bear on the Square” is a great one to start their year!

Program Notes

In April 1996, a mother black bear and her two cubs went sightseeing in downtown Dahlonega. For reasons known only to bears, the mother took one cub and left, while the other did what any self-respecting bear cub would do—climbed a sycamore tree in the middle of the town square. The cub quickly became the town’s most famous visitor (at least for the day), drawing a crowd of fascinated onlookers. Eventually, wildlife rangers stepped in and returned the wayward adventurer to the Chattahoochee National Forest. One year later, artists and musicians from Dahlonega, the enchanting small town featured in several Hallmark movies, founded an arts festival in commemoration of the event.

“Bear on the Square” is a lively Appalachian bluegrass-style piece, perfect for first-year String students. It reinforces bow-arm technique, introduces open-string double stops, and plays on a clever double pun—Galamian’s “at the square” bow technique and Dr. Suzuki’s encouragement for students to perform publicly “at the square.” This versatile piece could also work well with Guitar or light percussion. “Bear on the Square” conveys this fun tradition to any classroom or ensemble.