Frederick Hemke

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Frederick L. Hemke (né Fred LeRoy Hemke Jr.; July 11, 1935 – April 17, 2019) was an American virtuoso classical saxophonist and influential professor of saxophone at Northwestern University. Hemke helped increase the popularity of classical saxophone, particularly among leading American composers, and raised recognition of the classical saxophone in solo, chamber, and major orchestral repertoire throughout the world. Throughout his career, Hemke built American saxophone repertoire through many composers including Muczynski, Creston, Stein, Heiden, and Karlins.[1][2]

For half a century (1962 - 2012), Hemke was a full-time faculty member at Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music. In 2002, he was named Associate Dean Emeritus of the school.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] He retired in 2012.

Journalist and author Michael Segell, in his 2005 book, The Devil's Horn, called Hemke "The Dean of Saxophone Education in America."[11][12]

Hemke died April 17, 2019.[13]

Formal education

File:Conservatoire de Paris.JPG
Paris Conservatory (2007)

From 1955 to 1956, Hemke studied saxophone with Marcel Mule at the Paris Conservatoire National de Musique et de Declamation, earning in 1956 the Premier Prix diploma.[lower-alpha 1] Hemke holds the distinction of being the first American saxophonist to earn a Premier Prix diploma from the Paris Conservatory. In 1958, Hemke earned a Bachelor of Science degree in music education from University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. In 1962, he earned a Master of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music. In 1975, Hemke earned a D.M.A. degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.[3]

In primary and secondary school, until the start of college, Hemke studied saxophone with Eddie Schmidt, a band director in Milwaukee, and a close friend of Ralph Joseph Hermann (1914–1994) — musician, composer, songwriter, and music publisher. Hemke was highly influenced by Schmidt's recording of Marcel Mule — and also of his recordings of Al Gallodoro, and Freddy Gardner. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Hemke studied with Jay Morton, teacher of woodwinds. Hemke did not have a formal saxophone teacher at Eastman, but while there, studied reeds with clarinetist Stanley Hasty (1920–2011), flute repertoire with Joseph Mariano (1911–2007), and oboe repertoire with Robert Sprenkle (1914–1988).[14][15]

Teaching career

Hemke taught saxophone at Northwestern's School of Music for fifty years. He began in 1962 as a teaching associate. In 1964 he became an assistant professor and was appointed chairman of the newly formed Winds and Percussion Instruments Department. In 1967 Hemke was elevated to associate professor; on September 1, 1975, Full Professor; and on September 1, 1991, chairman of the Department of Music Performance Studies at the School of Music. Hemke served as senior associate dean for administration in the School of Music from 1995 to 2001. In 2002, Hemke was named the Louis and Elsie Snydacker Eckstein Professor of Music and also named Associate Dean Emeritus of the School of Music. He retired from full-time teaching in 2012.

As a music educator in higher education, Hemke taught hundreds of saxophonists, many of whom have flourished as performing artists and music educators of international rank.[3] From 2013 until his death, Hemke served as artistic director and taught during summers at the Frederick L. Hemke Saxophone Institute, located at Snow Pond Center for the Arts in Sidney, ME.[16]

Other positions

File:Saxophone reeds-alto, tenor.jpeg
Frederick L. Hemke Reeds

Hemke was well known as the designer of a line of reeds which bear the trademark "Frederick L. Hemke Reeds." D'Addario began making the brand in 1982. Hemke was an artist-clinician for The Selmer Company,[lower-alpha 2] the North American distributor of saxophones made in France by the Paris firm, Henri Selmer Paris. In 1979 Hemke was host for the Sixth World Saxophone Congress held at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

Performing career

Hemke was known worldwide as one of the great classical saxophonists. He performed extensively as a solo artist, conducted master classes and delivered lectures in the United States, Canada, Scandinavia, and the Far East. He also performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and many other orchestras.

Hemke premiered several works for saxophone including Allan Pettersson's Symphony No. 16 (February 24, 1983)[17] and James Di Pasquale's Sonata for tenor saxophone. Di Pasquale, a prolific composer, had studied saxophone with Hemke and Sigurd Rascher.

Selected performances
  1. "Illuminations" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  2. "Sunrise Ballad"
  3. "Chasing Radiance"
  4. "Solar Rings"
Hemke, saxophone, with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, William Boughton conducting
Recorded at Woolsey Hall, New Haven, Connecticut, February 27, 2014[19]
Commissioned as a retirement gift to Fred Hemke by current and former students; the composer, Thomas, had been Hemke's colleague at Northwestern
From the album, A Portrait of Augusta Read Thomas, Nimbus Records (CD) (2014); Template:Catalog lookup link

Advocacy for B♭ tenor saxophone

Among the instruments in a traditional modern saxophone quartet — B♭ soprano, E♭ alto, B♭ tenor, and E♭ baritone saxophone — classical solos were, and still are, mostly written for the soprano and the alto. Hemke decided to focus on the tenor as a classical solo instrument, as evidenced by the release of his 1971 solo album Music for Tenor Saxophone.

In orchestral music, the tenor saxophone is one of three saxophones heard in Ravel's Boléro — they were originally scored for two players, one on E♭ sopranino and the other alternating between the tenor and the soprano as required. Recordings by tenor saxophone virtuoso James Houlik and others notwithstanding, classical tenor saxophone music is still a very small portion of classical saxophone repertoire and discography.

Selected discography

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Solo recordings
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Template:Catalog lookup link (mono) (cassette)
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James Jacobs Edmonds (1931–2002), piano
Hemke performed on a Selmer Mark VI
Side 1
Matrix N° XCTV-87627[lower-alpha 4] (mono)
Matrix N° RG 576A (stereo)
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Side 2
Matrix N° XCTV-87628[lower-alpha 4] (mono)
Matrix N° RG 576A (stereo)
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Milton Lewis Granger (born 1947), piano
Album cover art: Fred Hemke
Notes by Charles (Chuck) Brewster Hawes, PhD (born 1945)
  1. Sonata, for tenor saxophone and piano, by James Di Pasquale
  2. A Ballad in Time and Space, by William Duckworth
  3. Poem, for tenor saxophone and piano, by Walter Hartley
  4. Music for Tenor Saxophone and Piano, by Martin William Karlins
Milton Lewis Granger (born 1947), piano
Album cover art: Fred Hemke
Notes by Alan Burrage Stout (born 1932)
  1. Concerto, for alto saxophone, by Ingolf Dahl
  2. Farewell, by Warren Benson
  3. Concerto, for alto saxophone, Karel Husa
  4. Aeolian Song, by Warren Benson
  • Music for Tenor Saxophone (1971) and The American Saxophone (1971) was
Re-issued as a compilation under the title:
The American Saxophone, EnF Records[lower-alpha 6] 1203-2 (CD) (2006); Template:Catalog lookup link
Douglas Cleveland, organ
Recorded at Alice Miller Chapel, Northwestern University on the Æolian-Skinner Organ and at Trinity United Methodist Church, Wilmette, Illinois, on the 2001 Reuter Organ
The Music of George Gershwin
Hemke, Alto Saxophone
Figard String Quintet: Tracy Figard, violin; Catherine Price, violin; Kristin Figard, viola; Sam Norlund, cello; Douglas Nestler, double bass
Notes by Jonah L. Blum (born 1976) (in English) and Hemke
Cover art by Hemke
  • Premier, February 27, 2014, Augusta Read Thomas, Hemke Concerto, Prisms of Light, for solo alto saxophone and orchestra
  1. "Illuminations" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  2. "Sunrise Ballad"
  3. "Chasing Radiance"
  4. "Solar Rings"
Hemke, saxophone, with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, William Boughton, conducting
Recorded at Woolsey Hall, New Haven, Connecticut, February 27, 2014[19]
Commissioned as a retirement gift to Fred Hemke by current and former students; the composer, Thomas, had been Hemke's colleague at Northwestern
From the album, A Portrait of Augusta Read Thomas, Nimbus Records (CD) (2014); Template:Catalog lookup link
Ensemble recordings
Hemke has recorded with the Eastman Wind Ensemble, and The University of Chicago Contemporary Chamber Players.
Recorded at the Stockholm Concert Hall, October 17 & 18, 1984[lower-alpha 7]
Northwestern University Wind Ensemble, John Philip Paynter (1928–1996) (nl) conducting
Recorded November 1976
4th work: Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra of Wind Instruments, by Ross Lee Finney, Hemke, alto saxophone
Hemke, E♭ alto saxophone
With the Kronos Quartet: David Harrington, violin; John Sherba, violin; Hank Dutt, viola; Joan Jeanrenaud, cello
Recorded November 27, 1978, Kresge Recording Studios, Eastman School of Music
First work: The Dream Net, quintet for saxophone and string quartet, commissioned by Hemke
  1. "Slow" (audio)
  2. "Quick" (audio)
  3. "Flexing" (audio)[20]
Notes by Carter Harman
For soprano, violoncello, trumpet, E♭ alto saxophone, French horn, piano, tympani, cymbals, tomtoms, irons, and gongs
Bethany Beardslee, soprano, Contemporary Chamber Players of the University of Chicago
Ralph Shapey conducting
Re-released CRI Records (CD) (1995); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released CRI Records (CD) (2007); Template:Catalog lookup link
Interlochen Arts Academy Wind Ensemble, Dennis L. Johnson (born 1946) conducting
33rd Annual Midwestern Conference on School Vocal and Instrumental Music
Performed live, January 21, 1978, Hill Auditorium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
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University of Wisconsin–Madison Wind Ensemble, (H. Robert Reynolds) conducting

Chicago Symphony Orchestra

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Jean Martinon conducting
Re-released RCA Camden Classics Victrola CCV 5011 (LP) (1971)
Re-released RCA VICS 1593 (LP) (1971); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released RCA (LP) (1977); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released RCA LPS 9845 (LP)
Stokowski conducting
Recorded February 20–21, 1968, Medinah Temple, Chicago
Re-released RCA Red Seal LSC 3133 (LP) (1970); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released RCA Red Seal (LP) (1975); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released RCA Red Seal (LP) (1979); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released RCA Red Seal (CD) (1997); Template:Catalog lookup link
Also re-released with several various compilations
Martinon conducting
Solti conducting
Recorded May 1976, Medinah Temple, Chicago
Original release Decca (1977)
Original release London Records (LP) (1977); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released Decca (CD) (1996); Template:Catalog lookup link
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Re-released Universal Classics (2003); Template:Catalog lookup link
Re-released Deutsche Grammophon (2003); Template:Catalog lookup link
Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". and orchestral scores of Boléro at: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
Barbara Hendricks, soprano; Fred Hemke, Robert Black, soprano saxophones; Fred Spector, mandolin; Frederic Chrislip, tenor banjo; Herman Troppe, accordion; Solti conducting
Recorded twice. Once in 1976 after World Premier and again 1978, after second live performance series before Solti and his exacting standards would allow release. Medinah Temple, Chicago
Re-released on Decca Eloquence 442 995, Australia (CD) (2008); Template:Catalog lookup link

Selected publications

Educational publications

The dissertation explores in depth the saxophone's history and gradual acceptance in the realm of symphonic music
The Selmer Series, Elkhart, Indiana

Commissions and dedications

2000; Template:Catalog lookup link
Revised 2006; Template:Catalog lookup link, Template:Catalog lookup link, Template:Catalog lookup link
Commissioned by Jean-François Guay
Homage to Marcel Mule, Jean-Marie Londeix, Eugene Rousseau, Fred Hemke, Daniel Deffayet
Funded in part by the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec
  • Episode, for saxophone quartet, by Jared Tozier Spears (born 1936), commissioned by Hemke (1969); Template:Catalog lookup link
  • Symphony for Saxophone and Wind Band, by Gerald Eugene Kemner (1932–2006) (composed around 1962 for Hemke)

Music editions

  • Hemke has edited works for saxophone solos and saxophone ensembles, twenty-five of which are part of the Frederick Hemke Saxophone Series published by the Southern Music Company.[lower-alpha 9]

Awards and honors

1956 Premiere Prix[lower-alpha 1][21] du Saxophone, Paris Conservatory; Hemke was the first American to win a First Prize from the Conservatory; his achievement inspired other American saxophonist to work towards First Prize diplomas at the Paris Conservatory, and other well-known European conservatories known for classical saxophone, including the Royal Conservatory of Brussels
1976–1978 Founding coordinator of the North American Saxophone Alliance; later awarded Honorary Life Membership
1999–2001 Distinguished Service to Music Medal, Kappa Kappa Psi, for Instrumental Music Education[22]
2004 Appointed the Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence at Northwestern University
2013 Centerstage Lifetime Achievement Award, Conn-Selmer[23]
2013 Honorary Alumni Award, Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois[24]

Influence on saxophone design

Hemke was a primary design consultant for the S-80 mouthpiece manufactured by Henri Selmer Paris, and he used a custom version of it on alto saxophone. The mouthpiece is metal with a square chamber.

He was also a design consultant for the Selmer Mark VII E♭ alto and B♭ tenor saxophones, introduced in 1974.

Audio samples and videography

Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Yuri Ahronovitch conducting, Swedish Society Discofil (1994); Template:Catalog lookup link
For 12 saxophones
North American premier
Northwestern University Saxophone Ensemble, Hemke conducting
For 9 saxophones
World premiere, 2008, Pick-Steiger Concert Hall, Evanston, Illinois
Northwestern University Saxophone Ensemble, Hemke conducting

Hemke Legacy Tribute: May 29 – June 3, 2012, Northwestern University

7:30 <templatestyles src="smallcaps/styles.css"/>pm, May 31, 2012, Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, Northwestern University
Songs by Gershwin, arranged by Jonah L. Blum (born 1976)
Northwestern University Chamber Orchestra, Robert Hasty conducting
Scenes from Porgy and Bess
  1. "Summertime" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  2. "Bess, You Is My Woman Now" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  3. "I Got Plenty o' Nuttin' " (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  4. "Gone, Gone, Gone" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  5. "I Loves You, Porgy" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
  6. "Summertime" (Template:Replace on YouTubeScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".)
(Brahms's Variations on the St. Anthony Chorale by Haydn)
Arranged by Gary S. Bricault (born 1952) at the request of Fred Hemke
Northwestern University Alumni Saxo Orchestra, Stephen Alltop conducting
Performed June 3, 2012, at Northwestern University
105 saxophones: 3 E♭ sopraninos, 23 B♭ sopranos, 35 E♭ altos, 25 B♭ tenors, 12 E♭ baritones, 6 B♭ basses, and 1 E♭ contra bass tubax[lower-alpha 10]

Further reading

Academic offices
Preceded byTemplate:S-bef/check Full-time faculty, saxophone
Bienen School of Music
Northwestern University
1962–2012 Template:S-ttl/check 		Template:S-aft/check Succeeded by

Notes

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  1. ↑ a b A First Prize from the Paris Conservatory, in any musical discipline, is an internationally recognized distinction. A First Prize in saxophone from the Paris Conservatory under Marcel Mule holds a unique distinction because of Mule's unprecedented level of virtuosity, his influence in building the saxophone family of instruments in orchestral repertoire, and his role in developing a new generation of highly influential performing artists.Mule's leverage from his American First Prize protégé, Hemke, greatly helped transform classical saxophone in America, a country that led the world in the use of saxophones. When Hemke began teaching saxophone in 1962 at Northwestern University, few American universities and conservatories had full-time saxophone-only faculty members. The role was typically filled by other orchestral woodwind experts who doubled on saxophone. By 1970, many reputable music institutions of higher learning had a dedicated saxophone professor. As of 2014, most major universities, and all comprehensive music institutions of higher learning, have a least one dedicated saxophone instructor.
  2. ↑ a b H. & A. Selmer, Inc., and its successor, The Selmer Corporation, based in Elkhart, Indiana, has not been owned by Henri Selmer Paris since 1927. But in the North American market, H. & A. Selmer assembles and distributes Henri Selmer Paris instruments manufactured in France. H. & A. Selmer, Inc. — its successors and affiliates — are now part of Conn-Selmer.
  3. ↑ The imprint date is inferred from an announcement in the Music Educators Journal, April May 1963, pg. 137; Template:Catalog lookup linkScript error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".
  4. ↑ a b The alpha matrix prefix "XCTV" was an imprint of Columbia Custom Records of Columbia Records. The prefix was designated for LP mono. The matrix numbers XCTV-87627 (side A) and XCTV-87628 (side B) were handwritten on the stamper and appear in the runout areas of both sides of this particular pressing.
  5. ↑ a b Brewster Records was a label with a mailing address of 1822 Monroe Street, Evanston, Illinois. It was founded in 1967 by Charles Brewster Hawes, PhD (born 1945), who was also its chief engineer. Other engineers included James S. Hill and Robert E. Diehl. All three were saxophone students at Northwestern University
  6. ↑ a b c The acronym EnF (for EnF Records) reflects the initials of the first names of Elizabeth and Fred. Elizabeth is Fred's daughter.
  7. ↑ From the liner notes for the CD cataloged under Template:Catalog lookup link.
  8. ↑ The alpha matrix prefix "ZAL" indicates that the record is a London-based Decca 12-inch 33-<templatestyles src="Fraction/styles.css" />1⁄3 rpm stereo record ("Decca/London Phase Four Recordings — Part V: Decoding the Inner Groove Information," The Absolute Sound, Vol. 11, No. 42, July–August 1986, pps. 181, 182; Template:Catalog lookup linkScript error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".)
  9. ↑ Southern Music Company, the former San Antonio based sheet music retailer and wholesaler founded in 1937, sold its sheet music assets in 2012 to Lauren Keiser Music Publishing of Maryland Heights, Missouri, and became known as Southern Music LLC. The sheet music is published and distributed by the Hal Leonard Corporation.
  10. ↑ The E♭ contrabass tubax, made by Benedikt Eppelsheim Instruments in Munich, is pitched one octave lower than a standard E♭ baritone saxophone
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References

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  1. ↑ The Cambridge Companion to the Saxophone, Richard Ingham (ed.), Cambridge University Press (1998), pps. 46, 166; Template:Catalog lookup link
  2. ↑ The Saxophone, by Stephen Cottrell, Yale University Press (2012), pg. 256; Template:Catalog lookup link
    Cottrell is a saxophonist and professor of music at City University London
  3. ↑ a b c Frederick L. Hemke Papers, Northwestern University Library
  4. ↑ The New Grove Dictionary of American Music (Hemke is in vol. 2 of 4), H. Wiley Hitchcock & Stanley Sadie (eds.) Macmillan Press (1986); Template:Catalog lookup link
  5. ↑ International Who's Who in Music and Musicians' Directory, 1990–1991 (12th ed.), International Who's Who in Music (1990); Template:Catalog lookup link
  6. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  7. ↑ Who's Who in Entertainment 1998–1999 (3rd ed.) Marquis Who's Who (1997); Template:Catalog lookup link
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  10. ↑ Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Classical Musicians, Nicolas Slonimsky (ed.), Schirmer Books (1997); Template:Catalog lookup link
  11. ↑ The Devil's Horn: The Story of the Saxophone, from Noisy Novelty to King of Cool (first Picador edition), by Michael Segell (born 1951), Farrar, Straus and Giroux (2006), pg. 261; (2005 Farrar, Straus and Giroux edition Template:Catalog lookup link)
  12. ↑ Template:Cite thesis
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Fostering Artistry and Pedagogy: Conversations With Artist-Teachers Frederick Hemke, Eugene Rousseau, and Donald Sinta Template:Webarchive, (PhD dissertation), by Julia Nolan, University of British Columbia (2012)
  15. ↑ "An Interview with Frederick Hemke," by Jonathan Helton, The Saxophone Journal, Vol. 31, No. 1, pps. 26–31 (2006)
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Allan Pettersson: destin, douleur et musique: la vie et l'œuvre, by Jean-Luc Caron, Éditions L'Âge d'Homme (fr) (2007), pg. 106; Template:Catalog lookup link
  18. ↑ "Fred Hemke at Town Hall," New York Times April 17, 1962
  19. ↑ a b "A Light Breeze: Premiere Of A New Sax Symphony At NHSO," by Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, February 27, 2014
  20. ↑ List of Chamber works with audio mp3 samples Template:Webarchive, Warren Benson Script error: No such module "URL".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
  21. ↑ "The Paris Conservatory: Its Oboe Professors, Laureates (1795–1984)" Template:Webarchive (explaining First Prize), by George Arnold Conrey, DFA (1919–1994), IDRS Journal, Vol. 14, No. 8, July 1986; Template:Catalog lookup linkScript error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".Script error: No such module "check isxn".
  22. ↑ Guide to Membership for the 2011–2013 Biennium – Template:Webarchive Chapter: "Distinguished Service to Music Medal," Nick Smith (ed.), Kappa Kappa Psi/Tau Beta Sigma, pps. 57–59
  23. ↑ "Dr. Fred Hemke Wins the Conn-Selmer Centerstage Lifetime Achievement Award," Template:Webarchive (press release), Conn-Selmer, June 12, 2013
  24. ↑ "Alumni recognition awards for 2013," Template:Webarchive Augustana College, June 5, 2013
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