A piece composed for the occasion by Dr. Stephen Shewan, an accomplished composer and arranger, will be performed during the concert. The work, “Evening Lights,” celebrates the 1825 lighting of gas street lights in Fredonia.

Shewan considered the lighting of the first gas-powered street lamps in Fredonia to be a significant and evocative event in the community’s history.

“I like to study these places to see what is of interest to the community,” Shewan said. And, the composer added, he sees a parallel between the illumination of those street lights and the musicians of New Horizons. “I thought about how these lights were metaphorical for older people shining their lights for the first time,” he added.

The piece opens with pointillist rhythmic patterns depicting the illumination of individual lights. The predominant color of the hammers, piano and upper winds depict light through sound, Shewan explained.

Dr. Stephen Shewan

“Like the street lights, the musicians of the New Horizons Band of Western New York continue to shine. Based in Fredonia, their performances bring joy to their families, friends, community members and themselves,” added the composer.

The concert will also feature a variety of music from Broadway – “Les Misérables” – to video game culture – “Baba Yetu”.

Led by Fredonia School of Music Professor Emeritus Katherine McKay, the band was launched in collaboration with the SUNY Fredonia School of Music 20 years ago and has as its founding principle that it is never too late to play and enjoy music. New Horizons band members who are at least 50 years old are learning to play a band instrument, returning to a band instrument after a long absence, or continuing to improve their playing of an instrument they have enjoyed for a long time.

McKay has led the band since its inception. The group has over 60 musicians ranging in age from early 50’s to early 80’s. The band welcomes new members and can offer lessons for beginners.

“Making music is too much fun to leave to the younger generation,” McKay said. “Almost anyone can enjoy learning to play a musical instrument when good instruction, a friendly environment and plenty of helping hands are available.”

More information on New Horizons’ musical endeavors and the New Horizons Band of Western New York is available at

Shewan has composed music for many mediums, including orchestra, string quartet, chamber ensembles, symphony band, solo voice, choir and piano. His music has been performed by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, US Army Strings, Eastman Wind Ensemble, Moores School Symphony Orchestra, Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Choir, and numerous choirs, bands, chamber ensembles, and soloists in the United States and Europe. He has won numerous awards for his music.

Shewan taught and directed bands at Williamsville East High School near Buffalo, NY from 1993 to 2020, and taught instrumental music at Odessa-Montour High School from 1983 to 1992. He is a graduate of Roberts Wesleyan College and Ithaca College and received his DMA from the Eastman School of Music.

Now retired from full-time teaching, Shewan devotes his time to composing and accompanying, and teaches an advanced aural skills course at Roberts Wesleyan College.