The Lord
of the Rings
November 1, 2025
7:30PM
Brendle Recital Hall
Piedmont Wind Symphony
Mark A. Norman, Artistic Director & Conductor
Ksenija Komljenović, Antek Olesik; Percussion Duo
Johan de Meij, Guest Conductor
"Energetically" from Dragon Rhyme - Chen Yi
Gotan Concerto - Emmanuel Séjourné
Symphony No. 1 - "The Lord of the Rings" - Johan de Meij
Step into Middle-earth as Piedmont Wind Symphony brings to life Johan de Meij’s Symphony No. 1 The Lord of the Rings, a powerful musical journey inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s iconic fantasy epic. Composed in 1988 and winner of the prestigious Sudler Composition Award in 1989, this groundbreaking work was the first symphony ever written specifically for concert band by de Meij.
Structured in five evocative movements, de Meij’s symphony captures the spirit and mystery of Tolkien’s world—from the commanding presence of Gandalf to the shimmering beauty of Lothlórien, the tragic duality of Gollum, the perilous Journey in the Dark, and the warm-hearted resilience of the Hobbits. With vivid orchestration and dramatic storytelling, this performance promises an unforgettable adventure for Tolkien fans and symphonic music lovers alike.
$29.99-$68.00
About the artists
Ksenija Komljenović, percussion
A prizewinner of the International Percussion Competition Luxembourg, Ksenija is a percussionist, educator, and composer. Ksenija's journey has taken her across continents, performing and teaching in Europe, the United States, and Asia. Ksenija is a faculty member at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, the oldest public arts conservatory in the United States. She holds the distinction of being the first woman from Serbia to earn a Doctor of Musical Arts in Percussion Degree. Ksenija has been recognized for her performances in Hong Kong, England, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Poland. In 2024/2025, she made her Carnegie Hall debut with the New York premiere of Gabriela Ortiz’s Can We Know the Sound of Forgiveness. That same season, she premiered Episodes for Marimba and Orchestra, composed for her by six-time Emmy winner and Academy Award nominee Chris Boardman. Her concerto appearances include Viet Cuong’s Re(new)al, Sideman
by Grammy Award-winning composer Mason Bates, and Gotan Concerto by Emmanuel Séjourné. She has presented hundreds of concerts and conducted masterclasses at more than 60 educational institutions worldwide, maintaining a strong commitment to mentoring aspiring musicians globally.
She co-founded Vesna Duo with pianist Dr. Liana Pailodze Harron, an ensemble known for its blend of classical, jazz, contemporary, and folk traditions, playing concerts exclusively from memory. Their debut album, Vesna Duo Presents: The Rite of Spring, featuring Ksenija’s arrangement of Stravinsky’s ballet, received widespread media attention. Tim Page of The Wall Street Journal called it his "favorite new recording," while Reader’s Digest UK named it one of the “5 Best Creative Classical Music Arrangements.”
As a composer, Ksenija draws inspiration from her Slavic and Balkan heritage. Her wind band piece Slavdom, commissioned by a consortium of ten universities, features her singing and is available on the Tōnsehen label. Her collaborative work Epilog, created with dancers, was featured at the ceremonial reopening of the annex of the Memorial Museum of Ivo Andrić—a Yugoslav Nobel Prize winner—in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Offstage, Ksenija is dedicated to expanding opportunities for young musicians and fostering cultural exchange. She has founded and directed events such as the SoundWaves Music Festival and the TIERRAS South Texas Percussion Competition, co-produced the At Percussion Podcast, and organized Serbia’s first drumline camp and contemporary percussion workshop. Additionally, she writes a blog in both English and Serbian providing free resources for students who wish to pursue a music career.
Ksenija holds degrees from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, Illinois State University—where she was recently honored with the Outstanding Young Alumni Award—and the Faculty of Music in Belgrade, Serbia. Her primary teachers include Svet Stoyanov, Matthew Strauss, Dr. David Collier, dr Srđan Palačković, and Miroslav Karlović. She is a Marimba One Artist.
Antek Olesik, percussion
Polish-born percussionist Antek Olesik (2000) started his musical education and won his first competition at the age of seven. He has since won twenty first prizes on a national and international level, including the First Prize of International Marimba Festiva Competition 2014 and 2018 (Bamberg, Germany), International Vibraphone Competition 2015 (Luxembourg), International Competition Young Virtuosos 2015 (Sofia, Bulgaria), Tomarimbando International Percussion Competition 2017 (Tomar, Portugal), and the Frost Concerto Competition 2021 (Miami, FL). As a concerto soloist, Antek made his debut playing Ney Rosauro’s Second Marimba Concerto with the Collegium Musicum Aschaffenburg (Germany) at the age of twelve. He has since performed with the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Silesian Chamber Orchestra, and Zabrze Philharmonic Orchestra. In September 2019, along with the Frost Percussion Group and New World
Percussion Consort, he premiered Charles Wuorinen’s Second Percussion Symphony. He is a member of the PNEUMA chamber ensemble.
Upon graduating from the studio of Krzysztof Jaguszewski at State Secondary Music School Karol Szymanowski (Katowice) in 2019, Antek joined the Frost School of Music, pursuing his Bachelor of Music Degree under the guidance of Svet Stoyanov and Joseph Petrasek. He holds the University of Miami’s President’s Scholarship and DiMare Exceptional Music Scholarship. Antek is the winner of the inaugural 2021 Frost Artist Launch Competition.
Johan de Meij, composer / guest
conductor
Dutch composer and conductor Johan de Meij (Voorburg, 1953) received his musical training at the Royal Conservatory of Music in The Hague. His award-winning oeuvre has garnered him international acclaim and have become permanent fixtures in the repertoire of renowned orchestras throughout the world, such as The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, The New York Philharmonic and The Tokyo Philharmonic. His Symphony No. 1 The Lord of the Rings was awarded the Sudler Composition Prize in Chicago and has been recorded by myriad ensembles including The London Symphony Orchestra and The North Netherlands Orchestra. He has written five symphonies including Symphony No. 2 The Big Apple and Symphony No. 3 Planet Earth, and ten solo concertos, including T-Bone Concerto (trombone) and Casanova (cello). De Meij has conducted in prestigious venues such as the Philharmonie-Berlin, Carnegie Hall-New York, Suntory Hall-Tokyo and
the Esplanade-Singapore. He received thirty-one awards and nominations, including 1st Prize at the International Composition Competition of Corciano – Italy for Casanova, the Dutch Wind Music Award, the Buma Classical Award and the Buma Wind Music Award.
Before devoting his time exclusively to composing and conducting, Johan de Meij enjoyed a successful professional career as a trombone and euphonium player, performing with the major orchestras and ensembles in The Netherlands. He currently maintains posts as principal guest conductor with The Simón Bolívar Youth Wind Orchestra, The New York Wind Symphony and The Kyushu Wind Orchestra in Fukuoka, Japan. Johan is founder and CEO of his own publishing company Amstel Music, established in 1989.
When not traveling, Johan divides his time between his Hudson Valley home and Manhattan & Amsterdam apartment with his wife and muse Dyan and their cats Lenny & Lulu.