I'm in Staples in Princeton waiting for my daughter's recital programs, so a quick blog. The trip here means that I must miss the Symphony Ball this evening. I know it will be beautiful and THE social event of the season in V-town! Word has it that so many folks asked to sit with new conductor Howard Hsu that a larger table was needed. It looks like next year, sitting with the maestro should be auctioned off as another fund raiser! Anyway, Dr. Hsu is doing a great job with our orchestra students and receiving rave reviews from students and colleagues alike. Make sure you've reserved the first Saturday in December for the next VSO Concert. Call 333-5804 for ticket information. I hope the Ball is spectacular - wish we were there. -Jim
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Monday, November 9
Late night blogging tonight. Excellent Masters Choral Conducting Recital this evening by Katy Workman and her volunteer choral ensemble. An eclectic program featuring choral examples through the ages. Katy is a graduate student of Dr. Paul Neal.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
As we head into this next week, the first state-mandated furlough day is upon us. The campus will be closed on Monday, the first day of fall break, as part of an action to alleviate the economic downturn.
This week also marks the beginning of my travel season. On Tuesday, I’ll be heading to Portland, OR to attend the College Music Society National Conference. I’m going a day early to participate in a pre-conference seminar on music administration. During the conference I’ll be serving a a member of the national committee on music education. I’ll be taking the trusty netbook along and hopefully finding the time to blog from Portland.
Our first audition day is less than a month away, so if you know of a student who is interested in joining the music department, please check out the admission and audition procedures. The day features informational meetings, an campus organization fair, a free lunch, a campus tour, and an audition in each specific area. Scholarship awards are based on the results of these auditions.
Please contact me at the department if you have questions about the audition procedure.
Have a great extended weekend! -Jim
Monday, October 12, 2009
Happy Columbus Day! Unfortunately, I'm old enough to remember when we used to get this day off . . .
NEWS FLASH! Congratulations to Amy and Paul Neal on the birth of their second son, John Christopher. The happy event took place this morning! The youngest Neal weighed in at about 7 lbs 15 oz and everyone is doing fine according to a post from the proud pop!
Well, MidTerm has come and gone—last week. I hope you all have been able to keep up with the many performances presented by the Department of Music.
In September, the Faculty Recital Series featured Maila and David Springfield who presented another ecletic evening featuring collaboration with the other disciplines within the College of the Arts as well as community involvement by the children's choir from St. John Church.
The newly formed Arcturus Trio comprised of trombone professor, Doug Farwell, guest trumpeter Adam Hayes from Berry College, and VSU music alumna pianist Erin Palmer performed an outstanding recital of music for this unique ensemble.
Towards the end of September, things started to move quickly. The Jazz season opened with a concert by the VSU Jazz Ensemble who were again up to their top form. The next weekend featured two programs that can only be described as sublime to "ridiculous!" The sublime was cellist Steven Taylor at Christ Church in a wonderful program that really explored the instrument through the music of Bach, Kodaly, and Beethoven. Violinist, Nina Lutz and Pianist, Maila Springfield were featured guests in a thoroughly delightful program. The ridiculous was the next afternoon when brave members of the music faculty and guests presented a tongue-in-cheek concert fetauring the music of PDQ Bach. Drs. Susan Eischeid and Beth Goode coerced various faculty members to show a different side of their performance abilities with this unique program. The visual and aural highlight of the afternoon was VSU president Dr. Patrick Schloss as a peerless percussionist. A great time was had by all and we managed to raise $850 for music scholarships.
The next evening, soprano Stephanie Parker kicked off the student recital series followed, the next night, by the seasonal debut of Dr. Joe Brashier and the VSU Wind Ensemble. Meanwhile, the regular Wednesday morning student recitals have been going full-force with an outstanding array of new and veteran student performers.
October started magnificently with the opening of the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra Season. New Director of Orchestra Studies and VSO Music Director Howard Hsu produced a marvellously varied program from Beethoven's unique Choral Fantasy to the Triumphant Music from Verdi's Aida complete with instruments surrounding the audience (which, by the way packed Whitehead auditorium!). Pianist Robert Henry was outstanding in the Beethoven as well as Grieg's famous Piano Concerto.
Coming up this week on Thursday, October 15 at 6:00 pm is the annual POPS IN THE PARK, a fund-raiser for the Music Scholarship Alliance. It's a great outdoor evening of picnics, decorated tables, and jazz. All the VSU jazz ensembles will be featured including the Steel Drum Band, the Spotlighters, the New Jazz Ensemble, the VSU Jazz Ensemble, and the Faculty Jazz Combo. Special guest star will be West Coast Trumpeter Ken Trimmins (a VSU alumnus). Tickets are $15 and are available by calling 333-2150. Please add to our music student scholarships by joing this evening of fun and great music.
On a personal note, October and November are my annual conference times. This year, I'll be attending the College Music Society National Conference in Portland, Oregon. I serve on the CMS national committee for Music Education. In November, I'll again be representing the university, college, and department at the National Association of Schools of Music National Conference in San Diego, CA. NASM is our accrediting body and attending this conference is mandatory, plus, it gives me an opportunity to talk with other department heads from across the nation. This year, I have been invited to participate in a special post-conference session with the NASM leadership team.
You've probably heard about it by now, but there were some problems last Saturday with the Met at the Movies presentation of Puccini's Tosca at the Valdosta Stadium Theaters. Evidently there was a sound issue that did not get resolved until about half-way through Act One. By that time several disgruntled patrons had left in disgust. My little group stuck it out and stayed for the conclusion. When the sound did come on, I thought it was a good performance. Marcelo Alvarez established himself as my favorite tenor to take over the leading Puccini roles. He was ardent, romantic, and thrilling, with a ringing chiaroscuro throughout. George Gagnidze (from the other Georgia!) was a terrific Scarpia, a la Tony Soprano--a truly bad dude! In my opinion, Karita Mattila was not in her best form on Saturday. Of course the Italian repertory requires a brighter resonance than many of her famous roles, however, some of the top tones were a bit shrill and intonation, at times, suffered. Nonetheless, she is a great artist and it was exciting to see her characterization of this role. I, for one, was not offended by the new production, or the sets, or the nudity, or even the gratuitous simulated sex scene. I was offended by the botched ending where a stunt-double sort of jumped from the tower and then was held in place by a rope or wire. This was a lesson in how to kill, not a heroine, but the entire opera! With all the technological advances the Met has made in the last few seasons (Damnation of Faust, for example), why are we treated to such a fiasco. I'd much rather see Tosca bounce back up from the trampoline!!! Anyway, the point here is that the good folks at the Valdosta Stadium Theaters are to be soundly (no pun intended!) commended for bringing the Met broadcasts to town, however, the management and staff need to become a little more aware of what opera broadcasts are all about. For an opera last year, at the Act One intermission, we were greeted by several theater workers ready to clean the theater—they didn't realize that the show wasn't over! Also, it seems like someone from the audience usually needs to turn out the house lights from a switch on the wall. And then, of course, last Saturday's silent opera presentation. I'm sure the sound could have (and should have) been checked before the conductor's entrance and subsequent downbeat. I know Tosca isn't Zombieland, but I think for $20 per seat, we deserve a little more. But, maybe that's just me . . .
Have a great month! I'll try to give you some updates from the conferences. There are lots of excellent performances coming up in October and November. Make sure you check the events calendar and try to make as many as you can! Cheers. -Jim
NEWS FLASH! Congratulations to Amy and Paul Neal on the birth of their second son, John Christopher. The happy event took place this morning! The youngest Neal weighed in at about 7 lbs 15 oz and everyone is doing fine according to a post from the proud pop!
Well, MidTerm has come and gone—last week. I hope you all have been able to keep up with the many performances presented by the Department of Music.
In September, the Faculty Recital Series featured Maila and David Springfield who presented another ecletic evening featuring collaboration with the other disciplines within the College of the Arts as well as community involvement by the children's choir from St. John Church.
The newly formed Arcturus Trio comprised of trombone professor, Doug Farwell, guest trumpeter Adam Hayes from Berry College, and VSU music alumna pianist Erin Palmer performed an outstanding recital of music for this unique ensemble.
Towards the end of September, things started to move quickly. The Jazz season opened with a concert by the VSU Jazz Ensemble who were again up to their top form. The next weekend featured two programs that can only be described as sublime to "ridiculous!" The sublime was cellist Steven Taylor at Christ Church in a wonderful program that really explored the instrument through the music of Bach, Kodaly, and Beethoven. Violinist, Nina Lutz and Pianist, Maila Springfield were featured guests in a thoroughly delightful program. The ridiculous was the next afternoon when brave members of the music faculty and guests presented a tongue-in-cheek concert fetauring the music of PDQ Bach. Drs. Susan Eischeid and Beth Goode coerced various faculty members to show a different side of their performance abilities with this unique program. The visual and aural highlight of the afternoon was VSU president Dr. Patrick Schloss as a peerless percussionist. A great time was had by all and we managed to raise $850 for music scholarships.
The next evening, soprano Stephanie Parker kicked off the student recital series followed, the next night, by the seasonal debut of Dr. Joe Brashier and the VSU Wind Ensemble. Meanwhile, the regular Wednesday morning student recitals have been going full-force with an outstanding array of new and veteran student performers.
October started magnificently with the opening of the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra Season. New Director of Orchestra Studies and VSO Music Director Howard Hsu produced a marvellously varied program from Beethoven's unique Choral Fantasy to the Triumphant Music from Verdi's Aida complete with instruments surrounding the audience (which, by the way packed Whitehead auditorium!). Pianist Robert Henry was outstanding in the Beethoven as well as Grieg's famous Piano Concerto.
Coming up this week on Thursday, October 15 at 6:00 pm is the annual POPS IN THE PARK, a fund-raiser for the Music Scholarship Alliance. It's a great outdoor evening of picnics, decorated tables, and jazz. All the VSU jazz ensembles will be featured including the Steel Drum Band, the Spotlighters, the New Jazz Ensemble, the VSU Jazz Ensemble, and the Faculty Jazz Combo. Special guest star will be West Coast Trumpeter Ken Trimmins (a VSU alumnus). Tickets are $15 and are available by calling 333-2150. Please add to our music student scholarships by joing this evening of fun and great music.
On a personal note, October and November are my annual conference times. This year, I'll be attending the College Music Society National Conference in Portland, Oregon. I serve on the CMS national committee for Music Education. In November, I'll again be representing the university, college, and department at the National Association of Schools of Music National Conference in San Diego, CA. NASM is our accrediting body and attending this conference is mandatory, plus, it gives me an opportunity to talk with other department heads from across the nation. This year, I have been invited to participate in a special post-conference session with the NASM leadership team.
You've probably heard about it by now, but there were some problems last Saturday with the Met at the Movies presentation of Puccini's Tosca at the Valdosta Stadium Theaters. Evidently there was a sound issue that did not get resolved until about half-way through Act One. By that time several disgruntled patrons had left in disgust. My little group stuck it out and stayed for the conclusion. When the sound did come on, I thought it was a good performance. Marcelo Alvarez established himself as my favorite tenor to take over the leading Puccini roles. He was ardent, romantic, and thrilling, with a ringing chiaroscuro throughout. George Gagnidze (from the other Georgia!) was a terrific Scarpia, a la Tony Soprano--a truly bad dude! In my opinion, Karita Mattila was not in her best form on Saturday. Of course the Italian repertory requires a brighter resonance than many of her famous roles, however, some of the top tones were a bit shrill and intonation, at times, suffered. Nonetheless, she is a great artist and it was exciting to see her characterization of this role. I, for one, was not offended by the new production, or the sets, or the nudity, or even the gratuitous simulated sex scene. I was offended by the botched ending where a stunt-double sort of jumped from the tower and then was held in place by a rope or wire. This was a lesson in how to kill, not a heroine, but the entire opera! With all the technological advances the Met has made in the last few seasons (Damnation of Faust, for example), why are we treated to such a fiasco. I'd much rather see Tosca bounce back up from the trampoline!!! Anyway, the point here is that the good folks at the Valdosta Stadium Theaters are to be soundly (no pun intended!) commended for bringing the Met broadcasts to town, however, the management and staff need to become a little more aware of what opera broadcasts are all about. For an opera last year, at the Act One intermission, we were greeted by several theater workers ready to clean the theater—they didn't realize that the show wasn't over! Also, it seems like someone from the audience usually needs to turn out the house lights from a switch on the wall. And then, of course, last Saturday's silent opera presentation. I'm sure the sound could have (and should have) been checked before the conductor's entrance and subsequent downbeat. I know Tosca isn't Zombieland, but I think for $20 per seat, we deserve a little more. But, maybe that's just me . . .
Have a great month! I'll try to give you some updates from the conferences. There are lots of excellent performances coming up in October and November. Make sure you check the events calendar and try to make as many as you can! Cheers. -Jim
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Happy end of August and beginning of School, everyone!
We're into full swing in the music department and the numbers look good. We enrolled sixty-three new music students and are well on our way to the goal of two hundred majors. Administratively, the past 10 days have felt like a madhouse in my office, but things are starting to calm down now. Great things are happening among students, faculty, and guest artists alike. I encourage you to peruse the activities calendar on this blog and make every effort to support live music by attending as many of the offerings as possible.
Last night I attended the excellent kick-off recital of our series. The program featured contrabassist, Craig Butterfield and guitarist, Matt Slotkin. It was a fascinating program for this unique combination of instruments. There were all sorts of connections for me with the performers and the repertoire. Mr. Slotkin heads the guitar program at Bloomsburg State University in PA, which is about eleven miles from where I spent the first 18 years of my life, and where VSU president, Dr. Patrick Schloss was recently employed! Additionally, one of the commissioned pieces on the program was composed by John Orfe who is on the faculty at Bradley University in Peoria, IL, which happens to be my alma mater for my undergraduate degree. Of course, the fact that I graduated in 1970 and Professor Orfe was born in 1976 means that our paths never crossed! Anyway, it was a skillful and enjoyable presentation and set the bar high for future performances.
Tonight, the program features hornist, Bernhard Scully, who will be accompanied by his father, VSU music professor Dr. Larry Scully. Scully, the younger, is an outstanding international performer having spent time as the horn player in the Canadian Brass ensemble. The program is at 7:30 in Whitehead Auditorium. Don't let the rain keep you away.
Then, on Friday, our own contrabassist, Dr. Tod Leavitt, will present his faculty recital. Tod's recitals are always interesting, often including what might be described as "performance art!" This time, he has commissioned a unique theatre piece where, in addition to playing the bass, he will take on the roles of three characters from the Sherlock Holmes stories. All this simultaneously. I hope that you are intrigued enough to come to Whitehead Auditorium tomorrow night to be amazed at the variety of skills on the stage.
I want to take this opportunity to welcome to our faculty, Ms. Elizabeth Jones, our new adjunct instructor in tuba and euphonium. Betsy will be here on Thursdays and Fridays putting our students through their paces. She has the distinct (and possibly dubious) honor of receiving her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan and her Masters degree from Michigan State! Whatever colors she wears, she is Red & Black now and we welcome her to our family.
Last Saturday, I had the honor to accompany the VSU Marching Band, the Blazin' Brigade, to Jacksonville, FL where they performed at half-time for the NFL game between the Jaguars and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I've included a few photos below:
Look at those beautiful NEW Sousaphones!
Thank you, Dr. Schloss.
And we can't forget about the new drum line equipment from Conn-Selmer! I love the red shells with the black heads -- very classy!
And finally, our fearless leader -- here's Professor Eric Bradshaw, during dinner at Jacksonvile Landing, indicating that we had better be back on the bus in five minutes! Yes, sir!!!
The students of the Brigade were excellent representatives of our university and the show was outstanding--sounding and looking terrific! Congratulations to all. By the way, you can catch the show this Saturday evening at 7:00 pm when the Blazers open the season by taking on Newberry at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium.
I think that's plenty for now. With school on, perhaps I can be a little more frequent posting to this blog. Please encourage your friends and family to click all over this site to find out about all the excitement within the Department of Music as we start the 2009-2010 academic year. Cheers! -Jim
We're into full swing in the music department and the numbers look good. We enrolled sixty-three new music students and are well on our way to the goal of two hundred majors. Administratively, the past 10 days have felt like a madhouse in my office, but things are starting to calm down now. Great things are happening among students, faculty, and guest artists alike. I encourage you to peruse the activities calendar on this blog and make every effort to support live music by attending as many of the offerings as possible.
Last night I attended the excellent kick-off recital of our series. The program featured contrabassist, Craig Butterfield and guitarist, Matt Slotkin. It was a fascinating program for this unique combination of instruments. There were all sorts of connections for me with the performers and the repertoire. Mr. Slotkin heads the guitar program at Bloomsburg State University in PA, which is about eleven miles from where I spent the first 18 years of my life, and where VSU president, Dr. Patrick Schloss was recently employed! Additionally, one of the commissioned pieces on the program was composed by John Orfe who is on the faculty at Bradley University in Peoria, IL, which happens to be my alma mater for my undergraduate degree. Of course, the fact that I graduated in 1970 and Professor Orfe was born in 1976 means that our paths never crossed! Anyway, it was a skillful and enjoyable presentation and set the bar high for future performances.
Tonight, the program features hornist, Bernhard Scully, who will be accompanied by his father, VSU music professor Dr. Larry Scully. Scully, the younger, is an outstanding international performer having spent time as the horn player in the Canadian Brass ensemble. The program is at 7:30 in Whitehead Auditorium. Don't let the rain keep you away.
Then, on Friday, our own contrabassist, Dr. Tod Leavitt, will present his faculty recital. Tod's recitals are always interesting, often including what might be described as "performance art!" This time, he has commissioned a unique theatre piece where, in addition to playing the bass, he will take on the roles of three characters from the Sherlock Holmes stories. All this simultaneously. I hope that you are intrigued enough to come to Whitehead Auditorium tomorrow night to be amazed at the variety of skills on the stage.
I want to take this opportunity to welcome to our faculty, Ms. Elizabeth Jones, our new adjunct instructor in tuba and euphonium. Betsy will be here on Thursdays and Fridays putting our students through their paces. She has the distinct (and possibly dubious) honor of receiving her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan and her Masters degree from Michigan State! Whatever colors she wears, she is Red & Black now and we welcome her to our family.
Last Saturday, I had the honor to accompany the VSU Marching Band, the Blazin' Brigade, to Jacksonville, FL where they performed at half-time for the NFL game between the Jaguars and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I've included a few photos below:
Look at those beautiful NEW Sousaphones!
Thank you, Dr. Schloss.
And we can't forget about the new drum line equipment from Conn-Selmer! I love the red shells with the black heads -- very classy!
And finally, our fearless leader -- here's Professor Eric Bradshaw, during dinner at Jacksonvile Landing, indicating that we had better be back on the bus in five minutes! Yes, sir!!!
The students of the Brigade were excellent representatives of our university and the show was outstanding--sounding and looking terrific! Congratulations to all. By the way, you can catch the show this Saturday evening at 7:00 pm when the Blazers open the season by taking on Newberry at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium.
I think that's plenty for now. With school on, perhaps I can be a little more frequent posting to this blog. Please encourage your friends and family to click all over this site to find out about all the excitement within the Department of Music as we start the 2009-2010 academic year. Cheers! -Jim
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Good afternoon, everyone!
As July comes to a close, it's time to prepare for the excitement of the upcoming semester and there are some important items to relate concerning our department.
Dr. Lyle Indergaard completed a very successful summer as head of the music department for the Georgia Governor's Honor's Program which is in residence each summer at VSU.
Dr. Joe Brashier also completed a very successful season as music director for the three musicals presented by Peach State Summer Theatre.
Sadly, adjunct instructor in voice, Karen Esquivel will not be returning to the department. Karen's talented husband has been offered an assistantship in opera coaching at Indiana University and she will be going there with him. Karen was an outstanding vocal instructor for us and she will be missed by students and faculty alike.
On the horizon . . .
Dr. Paul Neal and the VSU Chamber Singers have successfully auditioned and been invited to be featured performers at the 2010 Georgia Music Educators Conference in Savannah in late January. This is a worthy honor and kudos to Paul and the Singers!
Ms. Shannon Lowe (rhymes with "how") will be joining our faculty as temporary, full-time instructor of bassoon. Shannon is a delightful person who will teach the bassoon studio as well as freshman music theory, music in film, and be principal bassoon with the VSO. She is on the verge of completing her DMA in Bassoon Performance at SUNY-Stony Brook.
The Valdosta Symphony Orchestra has announced its Twentieth Anniversary Season, the first under the baton of new Maestro Howard Hsu. Click on the link in the upper right column of this page to peruse all the details, and get your tickets today!
Under the guidance of Mr. Eric Bradshaw, Band Camp for the VSU Blazin' Brigade begins in about two weeks as the band prepares for six home games and a special trip to a Jacksonville Jaguars game.
And finally . . .
Lots of new information is now available at the various links on this page. New information is available at the departmental web site, the VSO site, and, soon at the music calendar site. Click around and share in the excitement of a new academic year!
And on a personal note . . .
This fall, Colla Voce is going to publish my "On Christmas Night." This will be the third piece of mine included in their catalog. I'm honored to be a part of it.
Both of our opera singing children have been home for the past ten days and now Alek is back on his way to San Francisco Opera, while tomorrow, Dorothy returns to Princeton for "Gretel" in Hansel and Gretel. We had a wonderful time and now we must save the pennies to go see their various performances.
Find some great music to celebrate the start of the new year! Cheers. -Jim
As July comes to a close, it's time to prepare for the excitement of the upcoming semester and there are some important items to relate concerning our department.
Dr. Lyle Indergaard completed a very successful summer as head of the music department for the Georgia Governor's Honor's Program which is in residence each summer at VSU.
Dr. Joe Brashier also completed a very successful season as music director for the three musicals presented by Peach State Summer Theatre.
Sadly, adjunct instructor in voice, Karen Esquivel will not be returning to the department. Karen's talented husband has been offered an assistantship in opera coaching at Indiana University and she will be going there with him. Karen was an outstanding vocal instructor for us and she will be missed by students and faculty alike.
On the horizon . . .
Dr. Paul Neal and the VSU Chamber Singers have successfully auditioned and been invited to be featured performers at the 2010 Georgia Music Educators Conference in Savannah in late January. This is a worthy honor and kudos to Paul and the Singers!
Ms. Shannon Lowe (rhymes with "how") will be joining our faculty as temporary, full-time instructor of bassoon. Shannon is a delightful person who will teach the bassoon studio as well as freshman music theory, music in film, and be principal bassoon with the VSO. She is on the verge of completing her DMA in Bassoon Performance at SUNY-Stony Brook.
The Valdosta Symphony Orchestra has announced its Twentieth Anniversary Season, the first under the baton of new Maestro Howard Hsu. Click on the link in the upper right column of this page to peruse all the details, and get your tickets today!
Under the guidance of Mr. Eric Bradshaw, Band Camp for the VSU Blazin' Brigade begins in about two weeks as the band prepares for six home games and a special trip to a Jacksonville Jaguars game.
And finally . . .
Lots of new information is now available at the various links on this page. New information is available at the departmental web site, the VSO site, and, soon at the music calendar site. Click around and share in the excitement of a new academic year!
And on a personal note . . .
This fall, Colla Voce is going to publish my "On Christmas Night." This will be the third piece of mine included in their catalog. I'm honored to be a part of it.
Both of our opera singing children have been home for the past ten days and now Alek is back on his way to San Francisco Opera, while tomorrow, Dorothy returns to Princeton for "Gretel" in Hansel and Gretel. We had a wonderful time and now we must save the pennies to go see their various performances.
Find some great music to celebrate the start of the new year! Cheers. -Jim
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Greetings everyone!
As June comes to a close, so does the summer orientation/registration/enrollment process. We finished these sessions yesterday. Since last January, the faculty of the Department of Music has been working diligently to attain a goal of recruiting sixty new music majors for the 2009-2010 academic year. We discussed this goal as part of the annual faculty evaluation process and everyone accepted the challenge. I'm overjoyed to report that at the close of the session yesterday, we have registered 59 new music majors! Since we have two more sessions in August just before classes begin, I have no doubt that we will exceed our goal. I am grateful for and proud of the energy and enthusiasm with which our faculty has met this challenge. What is even more important and significant is that we are attracting high quality students to the department. So many times in higher education, growth is determined by quantity alone. I'm pleased to say that this year's class has some of the highest quality students that have joined our family for quite some time. My philosophy is that high quality students will attract other high quality students. With this year's class, it looks like we're on the right path!
My appreciation certainly extends to summer music faculty Joe Brashier, Eric Bradshaw, Paul Neal, Joren Cain, and Tod Leavitt for advising these new students during the orientation sessions.
I note, with regret, the resignation of Associate Professor of Bassoon, Scott Pool, who will be leaving us to join the faculty at the University of Texas at Arlington. Dr. Pool has been a stalwart music faculty member for several years and we will certainly miss him. At the same time, we wish him all the best in his new position. Aside from his outstanding performing abilities as a soloist and principal bassoon of the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra, he was a solid academicican teaching classes in music theory, music technology, and music appreciation. The quest to find another bassoonist is already underway and we have identified three excellent candidates who will be examined by a summer ad hoc committee consisting of Director of Orchestra Studies, Howard Hsu, VSO Executive Director, Doug Farwell, Woodwind Area Chair, Susan Eischeid, Music Theory Area Chair, Elizabeth Goode, and woodwind faculty member, Joren Cain. I expect to make an announcement by mid-July.
Congratulations to Drs. Howard Hsu and Tamara Hardesty who both recently completed their terminal degrees at the University of Connecticut. Howard is joining our faculty as Director of Orchestra Studies, as well as Music Director of the VSO, while Tamara will be an adjunct instructor in voice. They are the proud parents of the effervescent three-year-old, Hudson.
Director of Athletic Bands, Eric Bradshaw, reports that the VSU marching band, The Blazin' Brigade, has been invited to perform during halftime of a Jacksonville Jaguars pro football game in late August. Congratulations to the Brigade and I hope there are some places for chaperones, particularly the department head!!!
Professor of Trumpet, Kenneth Kirk, spent part of the summer teaching classes in Florence, Italy. I will have an article on Ken's adventures later in this series. It will also appear in the fall department newsletter.
On a note of personal news, Colla Voce music publishers has agreed to publish my choral piece "Trust in Me," which is my setting of a Shaker tune from 1876.
And finally, referring to the previous post, we've returned from a week in St. Louis where we attended two performances of Mozart's Il re pastore starring Heidi Stober, Maureen McCay, Daniela Mack, Alek Shrader, and Paul Appleby. The musical values of the piece were extremely high and the singing was incredible! Of course, I have no bias . . . This was our fifth summer visit to OTSL and I'm convinced that they have discovered the secret of successful operatic presentation. A beautiful, pastoral setting for pre-opera picnics, an intimate theater with the entire audience right on top of the action, a deep orchestra pit that drops down under the stage eliminating any balance problems at all, a post-show celebration where audience members have an opportunity to meet and greet the cast, first-class administrative and production teams, a great community support base, and patrons who are more than financial contributors, but understand opera and take an active part in its presentation. Unfortunately, we probably won't go again next year because Alek will be singing Albert Herring in Santa Fe, so we'll be heading further West. Of course, that's another famous summer opera company, so it will be interesting to make some comparisons.
I think that's plenty for now, and the BlazerMuse pool is calling my name! Cheers. -Jim
As June comes to a close, so does the summer orientation/registration/enrollment process. We finished these sessions yesterday. Since last January, the faculty of the Department of Music has been working diligently to attain a goal of recruiting sixty new music majors for the 2009-2010 academic year. We discussed this goal as part of the annual faculty evaluation process and everyone accepted the challenge. I'm overjoyed to report that at the close of the session yesterday, we have registered 59 new music majors! Since we have two more sessions in August just before classes begin, I have no doubt that we will exceed our goal. I am grateful for and proud of the energy and enthusiasm with which our faculty has met this challenge. What is even more important and significant is that we are attracting high quality students to the department. So many times in higher education, growth is determined by quantity alone. I'm pleased to say that this year's class has some of the highest quality students that have joined our family for quite some time. My philosophy is that high quality students will attract other high quality students. With this year's class, it looks like we're on the right path!
My appreciation certainly extends to summer music faculty Joe Brashier, Eric Bradshaw, Paul Neal, Joren Cain, and Tod Leavitt for advising these new students during the orientation sessions.
I note, with regret, the resignation of Associate Professor of Bassoon, Scott Pool, who will be leaving us to join the faculty at the University of Texas at Arlington. Dr. Pool has been a stalwart music faculty member for several years and we will certainly miss him. At the same time, we wish him all the best in his new position. Aside from his outstanding performing abilities as a soloist and principal bassoon of the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra, he was a solid academicican teaching classes in music theory, music technology, and music appreciation. The quest to find another bassoonist is already underway and we have identified three excellent candidates who will be examined by a summer ad hoc committee consisting of Director of Orchestra Studies, Howard Hsu, VSO Executive Director, Doug Farwell, Woodwind Area Chair, Susan Eischeid, Music Theory Area Chair, Elizabeth Goode, and woodwind faculty member, Joren Cain. I expect to make an announcement by mid-July.
Congratulations to Drs. Howard Hsu and Tamara Hardesty who both recently completed their terminal degrees at the University of Connecticut. Howard is joining our faculty as Director of Orchestra Studies, as well as Music Director of the VSO, while Tamara will be an adjunct instructor in voice. They are the proud parents of the effervescent three-year-old, Hudson.
Director of Athletic Bands, Eric Bradshaw, reports that the VSU marching band, The Blazin' Brigade, has been invited to perform during halftime of a Jacksonville Jaguars pro football game in late August. Congratulations to the Brigade and I hope there are some places for chaperones, particularly the department head!!!
Professor of Trumpet, Kenneth Kirk, spent part of the summer teaching classes in Florence, Italy. I will have an article on Ken's adventures later in this series. It will also appear in the fall department newsletter.
On a note of personal news, Colla Voce music publishers has agreed to publish my choral piece "Trust in Me," which is my setting of a Shaker tune from 1876.
And finally, referring to the previous post, we've returned from a week in St. Louis where we attended two performances of Mozart's Il re pastore starring Heidi Stober, Maureen McCay, Daniela Mack, Alek Shrader, and Paul Appleby. The musical values of the piece were extremely high and the singing was incredible! Of course, I have no bias . . . This was our fifth summer visit to OTSL and I'm convinced that they have discovered the secret of successful operatic presentation. A beautiful, pastoral setting for pre-opera picnics, an intimate theater with the entire audience right on top of the action, a deep orchestra pit that drops down under the stage eliminating any balance problems at all, a post-show celebration where audience members have an opportunity to meet and greet the cast, first-class administrative and production teams, a great community support base, and patrons who are more than financial contributors, but understand opera and take an active part in its presentation. Unfortunately, we probably won't go again next year because Alek will be singing Albert Herring in Santa Fe, so we'll be heading further West. Of course, that's another famous summer opera company, so it will be interesting to make some comparisons.
I think that's plenty for now, and the BlazerMuse pool is calling my name! Cheers. -Jim
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
