Season 14 Programs
~ Programs and artists are subject to change without notice ~
June 3, 2018
"Vox Nova"
First Baptist Church of Columbia
2:45pm Pre-concert:
Sergei Prokofiev: from "Romeo & Juliet" Suite Op. 75
IV. Juliet as a Young Girl
Justin Hahm, piano
Anton Arensky (1861-1906): Piano Trio No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 32 (1894)
I. Allegro
Thornbrook Piano Trio
Sejoon Jun, violin
Ryan Choe, violoncello
Henry Huang, piano
3:00pm
Idumea arr. Richard Bjella
I am the Rose of Sharon William Billings
Not One Sparrow is Forgotten arr. William Hawley
Beautiful Morning John Wykoff
Psalm 67 Charles Ives
By & By arr. Carol Barnett
Autumn Jussi Chydenius
Frè O Sten Källman
Berusa Er! Sten Källman
Northern Lights Ola Gjeilo
Pseudo-Yoik Jaakko Mäntyjärvi
Intermission
Eternal, Fleeting: Our Souls Meeting Erin Hoerchler
Extase Hans Bridger Heruth
O vos angeli Paul Seitz
Ave Verum Corpus Ryan Hampton
Und fast ein Mädchen wars... Trey Makler
Te lucis ante terminum Levente Gyöngyösi
"Vox Nova"
First Baptist Church of Columbia
2:45pm Pre-concert:
Sergei Prokofiev: from "Romeo & Juliet" Suite Op. 75
IV. Juliet as a Young Girl
Justin Hahm, piano
Anton Arensky (1861-1906): Piano Trio No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 32 (1894)
I. Allegro
Thornbrook Piano Trio
Sejoon Jun, violin
Ryan Choe, violoncello
Henry Huang, piano
3:00pm
Idumea arr. Richard Bjella
I am the Rose of Sharon William Billings
Not One Sparrow is Forgotten arr. William Hawley
Beautiful Morning John Wykoff
Psalm 67 Charles Ives
By & By arr. Carol Barnett
Autumn Jussi Chydenius
Frè O Sten Källman
Berusa Er! Sten Källman
Northern Lights Ola Gjeilo
Pseudo-Yoik Jaakko Mäntyjärvi
Intermission
Eternal, Fleeting: Our Souls Meeting Erin Hoerchler
Extase Hans Bridger Heruth
O vos angeli Paul Seitz
Ave Verum Corpus Ryan Hampton
Und fast ein Mädchen wars... Trey Makler
Te lucis ante terminum Levente Gyöngyösi
Vox Nova (founded 2014) is a vocal chamber choral group based in Columbia, Missouri. The musicians in the ensemble are established music educators, conductors, and professional vocalists. Many of the members are winners of various vocal competitions, as well as perform with other professional choirs, prominent music festivals, and chamber opera and musical theatre companies, both locally and across the United States. Vox Nova is committed to choral excellence and to spreading choral music to listening audiences. In its upcoming seasons, Vox Nova will be collaborating with native Columbia chamber ensembles and composers. Vox Nova has appeared with the Odyssey Chamber Music Series, and have been selected as national semifinalists in the professional division of The American Prize in Choral Performance.
Robert Battle, originally from St. Louis, is glad to be returning for his fourth season with Vox Nova. He received his undergrad in music education from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance while also performing with the Kansas City Symphony Chorus. Battle is the Artistic Director of the Columbia Public Schools 5th Grade Honors Choir, sings with the Prometheus Vocal Consort, and is a member of the American Choral Directors Association, the National Association for Music Education, and the Barbershop Harmony Society. He received his master’s degree in public affairs from the University of Missouri. An active voice teacher and advocate for equal arts opportunities in urban areas, Battle spends most of his off time dancing, gardening, running, cooking, playing in the indie rock band, Dream Squeeze and fronting the neo-soul band, Certified Organic. Battle serves on boards for the Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, the Missouri Alliance for Arts Education, and the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture.
Emily Bennett has performed the roles of Morgana (Alcina), Countess Almaviva (Le nozze di Figaro), Miss Pinkerton (The Old Maid and the Thief), Tytania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Dido (Dido and Aeneas), and chorus roles with Michigan Opera Theatre and the Lyric Opera of Kansas City. As a concert soloist, she has performed with the Missouri Civic Orchestra and Choral Union, the Kalamazoo Bach Festival, the Rackham Symphony Choir, and the Tallahassee Community Chorus, performing: Bach’s B Minor Mass, St. John’s Passion, and Magnificat, Beethoven’s Mass in C and Choral Fantasia, Vivaldi’s Gloria and Magnificat, Mozart’s Requiem and Missa brevis in F, Richard Einhorn’s Voices of Light, and Orff’s Carmina Burana. Ms. Bennett holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Missouri and a Master of Music from Florida State University studying vocal performance with Ann Harrell and Stanford Olsen respectively, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Kansas, under Joyce Castle.
Betsy Jane Bledsoe, Kansas City native, graduated from the University of Missouri (BM) and Michigan State University (MM). Studying vocal performance, she performed several operatic roles, including Serpetta in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera and was a winner of the 2012 Missouri NATS competition. Betsy can be seen performing and directing music theater in the Kansas City area. Her favorite roles include Eliza Doolittle from My Fair Lady, Luisa from The Fantasticks, and Kate Monster from Avenue Q. An accomplished saxophonist, Betsy is a founding member of the Missing Pearl Saxophone Quartet and has performed in the band for shows at Musical Theater Heritage in Crown Center. In between music gigs Betsy directs and arranges music for the Asbury United Methodist Handbell Choir and works as a pharmacy technician at Children's Mercy Hospital.
Jacob Clifford graduated from the University of Missouri with a Classics degree. During his time at MU, Mr. Clifford was highly involved in several of the choral ensembles, performing with University Singers, Chamber Singers, and Mizzou’s male a cappella ensemble, Add 9. He made his opera debut with Show-Me Opera’s production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, singing the role of Sarastro. He has been a soloist for Columbia Chorale, and received vocal instruction from Christine Seitz. Jake and his wife, Karen, live in Columbia with their son Calvin, who was born last April.
Logan Contreras is a native of Fort Collins, Colorado. Upcoming performances include the alto soloist in Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with the Donald and Karen Bailey Choral Festival. Operatic performances this season have included the Witch (Hänsel und Gretel), Eduige (Rodelinda), and selections as Octavian from Der Rosenkavalier. Prior performances have included Mrs. Herring (Albert Herring), Mrs. Grose cover (Turn of the Screw), Zweite Dame (Die Zauberflöte), Mercedes and Carmen cover (Carmen), La tasse, La chatte, L'écureuil (L’enfant et les Sortileges), Alma March (Little Women), Serse (Serse), Dorabella (Così fan tutte), and Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro). Ms. Contreras holds a B.M. from the University of Northern Colorado and a M.M. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She is currently pursuing a D.M.A. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City where she has held a GTA since 2014, and serves as adjunct voice faculty at Rockhurst University in Kansas City.
Lacey Gladden, Fayette native, is in her fourth year of teaching K-12 Vocal Music in the Glasgow and New Franklin school districts. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance from Central Methodist University as well as a Master’s degree in Voice from the University of Kansas. She enjoys teaching private voice, flute, and piano to students in central Missouri. Lacey has been a featured soloist on several concerts and recitals throughout her career, and has performed many roles with the Opera Theatre at Central Methodist University and the University of Kansas, including Pamina in The Magic Flute, Yum-Yum in The Mikado, Patience in Patience, Lucy in The Telephone, Mabel in Pirates of Penzance, Mariane in Tartuffe, Rapunzel in Into the Woods, April in Company, Countess Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro,and Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte. Outside of teaching and singing, her most important job is being a mom to Clay David.
Darrell J. Jordan has been praised for his “shining, beautiful voice” (Broadway World), and his “classic farce performance” (Seattle Weekly). He holds a B.A. in both Psychology and Music and a M.M. in Voice Performance from the University of Missouri. He is currently pursuing his D.M.A. in Voice Performance at the University of Washington under the tutelage of Dr. Kari Ragan. Recent solo concert engagements have been with Amherst Early Music Festival, the Odyssey Chamber Music Series, Rolla Choral Arts Society, Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, the Missouri Symphony, the Southside Philharmonic Orchestra, the Toledo Symphony, and the Seattle Art Song Society. Opera credits include St. Louis Opera Collective, Haymarket Opera Company, Gateway Opera, the Institute for 17th Century Music, the Show-Me Opera, Lawrence Opera Theatre, the Puget Sound Concert Opera, Pacific NW Opera, Operamuse, and Seattle Opera. He can be heard as the baritone soloist on The St. Lawrence Psalter by Wolfgang Reisinger.
Ian Meyer comes from Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he teaches music at Sunrise Elementary. Originally from Missouri, he received a Bachelor's in Vocal Music Education and a Piano Pedagogy Certificate from the University of Missouri, where he was an active member of the University Singers, the Show-Me Opera, and performed with the Missouri Symphony as well as local chamber group Exit 128 to premier new music. Previous instruction has been with Steven Tharp, Dr. Natalia Bolshakova, and Dr. Paola Savvidou. His opera credits include Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi), Basillio (Le nozze di Figaro), John (Hatrack), and Dr. Blind (Die Fledermaus). He attended the Amherst Early Music Festival in New London, Connecticut, in 2015 and can be heard as the tenor soloist on The St. Lawrence Psalter by Wolfgang Reisinger. As a soloist and ensemble member, Ian has performed with the Jefferson City Symphony, early music group Pro-Arte of Saint Louis, and he maintains active membership in Vox Nova.
Mickey Miller is a native of Kansas City, Missouri. She recently completed her M.M. from Louisiana State University and earned her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Missouri in Columbia. Currently based in Louisiana, she performs regularly in concert, operatic, and recital settings. During her time at LSU, Miller performed several leading roles including Countess Almaviva, Anne Truelove, Yum-Yum, and Johanna (Sweeney Todd). As a resident artist with Opera Louisiane, she was involved in regular performances and outreach. In addition to her operatic work, Miller enjoys regular chamber and choral collaboration. She enthusiastically champions new works: recent performances include premieres of Nelson’s “The wanderer speaks to the moon” for soprano and chorus, Mitchell’s “Sleep Songs,” and Constantidines' "Mutability.” She can be seen this April as Baroness Angelina in Dinos Constantidines' opera Rosanna. Mickey serves as a marketing associate with Opera Louisiane and maintains a private voice studio.
Nollie Moore is director of the Columbia College Music Program has been director of the Jane Froman Singers since 1999. He holds both a B.S. and a M.M. in Music Education from the University of Missouri. Under his leadership, the Jane Froman Singers have established a tradition of successful collaborations with mid-Missouri arts organizations in acclaimed performances. Concert tours have taken members to New York City’s Carnegie Hall; the great cathedrals of Scotland, England, Austria, Ireland, Italy; and concert halls in China. Away from campus, Moore is active as a professional tenor singing regularly with the Missouri Symphony Orchestra, for which he has sung leading roles in Die Fledermaus, La Traviata, Madama Butterfly, and Carmen. He also maintains a private voice studio. Nollie lives in Columbia with Julia, his wife of 27 years. They have two sons, Logan and Carter, both studying Music Education at Columbia College.
Hugh Naughtin has a B.M. in Vocal Performance from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, where he studied with Patrice Michaels. Since graduating in 2007, Hugh has sung in the Chicago Symphony Chorus, the Grant Park Chorus, and the Chicago-based a cappella ensemble Bella Voce. He is currently in his 9th season with the Grammy Award-winning Kansas City Chorale. He works at the University of Kansas at the Center for Public Partnerships and Research. Hugh resides in Lawrence, Kansas, with his wife and fellow Vox-er, Rachel Naughtin.
Rachel Naughtin believes that teaching and performing go hand in hand. Since moving to Lawrence, Kansas, in 2013, Rachel has become an active performer and educator in the area. She currently teaches elementary general music and musical theatre classes in Lawrence while continuing to pursue a performance career and maintain a thriving private voice studio. Rachel has sung with Te Deum Chamber Choir, Lawrence Opera Theatre, Kansas City Opera Institute, and the Kansas City Chorale. In 2013, Rachel completed a M.M. in Vocal Performance at the University of Missouri. There, she had a voice teaching assistantship and performed the role of Despina in Mozart’s Così fan tutte, among other roles. Rachel earned her Bachelor of Music degree with majors in Vocal Performance & Choral/General Music Education from Lawrence University Conservatory of Music (2011). She has performed repertoire spanning five-centuries and welcomes the opportunity to explore new music.
Christine Jarquio Nichols is an active music educator, singer, conductor, and pianist in Columbia. She is in her fifth year of teaching middle school vocal music, with which she is completely in love. Christine co-directs the Columbia Public Schools 5th Grade Honors Choir, directs and accompanies various ensembles with the Columbia Youth Choirs, and maintains a private voice studio. She is a frequent vocal concert soloist in the mid-Missouri area. Her most memorable operatic role was singing the sassy Dorabella in Mozart’s Così fan tutte. Last year, she performed the role of Hänsel in Humperdinck’s Hänsel and Gretel with her own middle school students singing in the children’s chorus! Christine enjoys singing in professional choral ensembles Prometheus, Pro-Arte of St. Louis, and Vox Nova. She holds a dual Master of Music in Voice Performance and Choral Conducting, and a Bachelor of Science in Vocal Music Education, both from the University of Missouri in Columbia.
Christina Ray is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma at University of Missouri-Kansas City with Dr. Aidan Soder. She made her debut with UMKC Opera as Hänsel this fall in Humperdinck's Hänsel und Gretel. Ms. Ray completed the MM at LSU, and also holds a BM from the University of Missouri. Her leading roles include Zosha (Part One of Jake Heggie's Out of Darkness), Isabella (L'Italiana in Algeri), The Beggar Woman (Sweeney Todd), Katisha (The Mikado), and Béatrice (Béatrice et Bénédict). Ms. Ray has also participated in past summer programs such as Opera in the Ozarks and Opera Academy of California, where she portrayed title roles in La Cenerentola and Il Giasone. She was a recipient of the 2016 Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, in Little Rock, AR. Currently, she teaches private voice at Music/Arts Institute in Independence.
Catherine Sandstedt is soon to finish her M.M. in Vocal Performance at Stony Brook University, where she studies voice with Brenda Harris. Catherine has really enjoyed her time at Stony Brook so far, namely performing the role of Mélisande in the adaptation of Debussy’s opera Impressions de Pelléas. In addition, she has performed with the University Orchestra as a soloist for Handel’s Messiah; performed a duet from Derrick Wang’s new opera Scalia/Ginsburg, with the composer himself playing the piano; and performed the premiere of Nathan Heidelberger’s work, “Come il vento tra queste piante” with the Contemporary Chamber Players. Catherine has also had great pleasure singing with the Marble Church Choir in New York City. She performed Le nozze di Figaro (Susanna) and The Crucible (Mary Warren) while at the University of Missouri; as well as Almirena in Handel’s Rinaldo while at Opera NEO’s 2015 summer program.
Jared Smith is a second-year graduate student at the University of Missouri studying Music Education. As part of his assistantship, Jared works with Marching Mizzou and the concert bands, assists with the basic the conducting course, and performs and recruits with the Mizzou Brass Quintet. Prior to returning to the University to pursue a Master of Music degree, Jared taught for six years as an elementary music specialist for Columbia Public Schools and received his Bachelor of Music Education degree, also from the University of Missouri. Outside of Vox Nova, Jared plays bass trombone in the Columbia Jazz Orchestra and the Missouri Symphony Orchestra. He can be seen performing around Columbia and St. Louis in local band Saint Gnome, as well as other local ensembles throughout the Mid-Missouri area.
Jeremy Wagner is a senior pursuing degrees in both Vocal Performance and Vocal Music Education at the University of Missouri (Columbia) under the tutelage of Steven Tharp. He recently performed in the vocal competition hosted by the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and took second place. Jeremy will be singing the role of Sarastro in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte in March 2018, following a series of successful performances with the Show-Me Opera Workshop and Missouri Symphony Society. Jeremy was recently the Music Director at First Christian Church in Centralia, Missouri for the past three years and now performs at Broadway Christian Church in Columbia, Missouri. He is the President of the Student Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association at the University of Missouri and the President of the Music Student Advisory Council.
Jordan Blane Walker attended both Evangel University for his degree in Music Education (BM) and the University of Missouri where he worked on a M.M. in Choral Conducting with Dr. R. Paul Crabb. An active chorister and director, Mr. Walker has performed with and directed/assistant directed numerous choral ensembles including Vox Nova, the church choirs of First Presbyterian Church of Columbia and First Presbyterian Church in Fulton, and University Singers (UM). Mr. Walker has also performed the role of Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Barnaby Tucker in Hello, Dolly!, and Charlie Brown in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. He is currently an elementary music specialist in the Columbia Public School District and looks forward to fostering a culture of choral singing among younger singers, as well as nurturing a mindset of critical thinking, self-dependency, competence, and self-efficacy with students living in poverty.
Robert Battle, originally from St. Louis, is glad to be returning for his fourth season with Vox Nova. He received his undergrad in music education from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance while also performing with the Kansas City Symphony Chorus. Battle is the Artistic Director of the Columbia Public Schools 5th Grade Honors Choir, sings with the Prometheus Vocal Consort, and is a member of the American Choral Directors Association, the National Association for Music Education, and the Barbershop Harmony Society. He received his master’s degree in public affairs from the University of Missouri. An active voice teacher and advocate for equal arts opportunities in urban areas, Battle spends most of his off time dancing, gardening, running, cooking, playing in the indie rock band, Dream Squeeze and fronting the neo-soul band, Certified Organic. Battle serves on boards for the Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, the Missouri Alliance for Arts Education, and the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture.
Emily Bennett has performed the roles of Morgana (Alcina), Countess Almaviva (Le nozze di Figaro), Miss Pinkerton (The Old Maid and the Thief), Tytania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Dido (Dido and Aeneas), and chorus roles with Michigan Opera Theatre and the Lyric Opera of Kansas City. As a concert soloist, she has performed with the Missouri Civic Orchestra and Choral Union, the Kalamazoo Bach Festival, the Rackham Symphony Choir, and the Tallahassee Community Chorus, performing: Bach’s B Minor Mass, St. John’s Passion, and Magnificat, Beethoven’s Mass in C and Choral Fantasia, Vivaldi’s Gloria and Magnificat, Mozart’s Requiem and Missa brevis in F, Richard Einhorn’s Voices of Light, and Orff’s Carmina Burana. Ms. Bennett holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Missouri and a Master of Music from Florida State University studying vocal performance with Ann Harrell and Stanford Olsen respectively, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Kansas, under Joyce Castle.
Betsy Jane Bledsoe, Kansas City native, graduated from the University of Missouri (BM) and Michigan State University (MM). Studying vocal performance, she performed several operatic roles, including Serpetta in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera and was a winner of the 2012 Missouri NATS competition. Betsy can be seen performing and directing music theater in the Kansas City area. Her favorite roles include Eliza Doolittle from My Fair Lady, Luisa from The Fantasticks, and Kate Monster from Avenue Q. An accomplished saxophonist, Betsy is a founding member of the Missing Pearl Saxophone Quartet and has performed in the band for shows at Musical Theater Heritage in Crown Center. In between music gigs Betsy directs and arranges music for the Asbury United Methodist Handbell Choir and works as a pharmacy technician at Children's Mercy Hospital.
Jacob Clifford graduated from the University of Missouri with a Classics degree. During his time at MU, Mr. Clifford was highly involved in several of the choral ensembles, performing with University Singers, Chamber Singers, and Mizzou’s male a cappella ensemble, Add 9. He made his opera debut with Show-Me Opera’s production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, singing the role of Sarastro. He has been a soloist for Columbia Chorale, and received vocal instruction from Christine Seitz. Jake and his wife, Karen, live in Columbia with their son Calvin, who was born last April.
Logan Contreras is a native of Fort Collins, Colorado. Upcoming performances include the alto soloist in Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with the Donald and Karen Bailey Choral Festival. Operatic performances this season have included the Witch (Hänsel und Gretel), Eduige (Rodelinda), and selections as Octavian from Der Rosenkavalier. Prior performances have included Mrs. Herring (Albert Herring), Mrs. Grose cover (Turn of the Screw), Zweite Dame (Die Zauberflöte), Mercedes and Carmen cover (Carmen), La tasse, La chatte, L'écureuil (L’enfant et les Sortileges), Alma March (Little Women), Serse (Serse), Dorabella (Così fan tutte), and Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro). Ms. Contreras holds a B.M. from the University of Northern Colorado and a M.M. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She is currently pursuing a D.M.A. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City where she has held a GTA since 2014, and serves as adjunct voice faculty at Rockhurst University in Kansas City.
Lacey Gladden, Fayette native, is in her fourth year of teaching K-12 Vocal Music in the Glasgow and New Franklin school districts. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance from Central Methodist University as well as a Master’s degree in Voice from the University of Kansas. She enjoys teaching private voice, flute, and piano to students in central Missouri. Lacey has been a featured soloist on several concerts and recitals throughout her career, and has performed many roles with the Opera Theatre at Central Methodist University and the University of Kansas, including Pamina in The Magic Flute, Yum-Yum in The Mikado, Patience in Patience, Lucy in The Telephone, Mabel in Pirates of Penzance, Mariane in Tartuffe, Rapunzel in Into the Woods, April in Company, Countess Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro,and Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte. Outside of teaching and singing, her most important job is being a mom to Clay David.
Darrell J. Jordan has been praised for his “shining, beautiful voice” (Broadway World), and his “classic farce performance” (Seattle Weekly). He holds a B.A. in both Psychology and Music and a M.M. in Voice Performance from the University of Missouri. He is currently pursuing his D.M.A. in Voice Performance at the University of Washington under the tutelage of Dr. Kari Ragan. Recent solo concert engagements have been with Amherst Early Music Festival, the Odyssey Chamber Music Series, Rolla Choral Arts Society, Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, the Missouri Symphony, the Southside Philharmonic Orchestra, the Toledo Symphony, and the Seattle Art Song Society. Opera credits include St. Louis Opera Collective, Haymarket Opera Company, Gateway Opera, the Institute for 17th Century Music, the Show-Me Opera, Lawrence Opera Theatre, the Puget Sound Concert Opera, Pacific NW Opera, Operamuse, and Seattle Opera. He can be heard as the baritone soloist on The St. Lawrence Psalter by Wolfgang Reisinger.
Ian Meyer comes from Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he teaches music at Sunrise Elementary. Originally from Missouri, he received a Bachelor's in Vocal Music Education and a Piano Pedagogy Certificate from the University of Missouri, where he was an active member of the University Singers, the Show-Me Opera, and performed with the Missouri Symphony as well as local chamber group Exit 128 to premier new music. Previous instruction has been with Steven Tharp, Dr. Natalia Bolshakova, and Dr. Paola Savvidou. His opera credits include Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi), Basillio (Le nozze di Figaro), John (Hatrack), and Dr. Blind (Die Fledermaus). He attended the Amherst Early Music Festival in New London, Connecticut, in 2015 and can be heard as the tenor soloist on The St. Lawrence Psalter by Wolfgang Reisinger. As a soloist and ensemble member, Ian has performed with the Jefferson City Symphony, early music group Pro-Arte of Saint Louis, and he maintains active membership in Vox Nova.
Mickey Miller is a native of Kansas City, Missouri. She recently completed her M.M. from Louisiana State University and earned her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Missouri in Columbia. Currently based in Louisiana, she performs regularly in concert, operatic, and recital settings. During her time at LSU, Miller performed several leading roles including Countess Almaviva, Anne Truelove, Yum-Yum, and Johanna (Sweeney Todd). As a resident artist with Opera Louisiane, she was involved in regular performances and outreach. In addition to her operatic work, Miller enjoys regular chamber and choral collaboration. She enthusiastically champions new works: recent performances include premieres of Nelson’s “The wanderer speaks to the moon” for soprano and chorus, Mitchell’s “Sleep Songs,” and Constantidines' "Mutability.” She can be seen this April as Baroness Angelina in Dinos Constantidines' opera Rosanna. Mickey serves as a marketing associate with Opera Louisiane and maintains a private voice studio.
Nollie Moore is director of the Columbia College Music Program has been director of the Jane Froman Singers since 1999. He holds both a B.S. and a M.M. in Music Education from the University of Missouri. Under his leadership, the Jane Froman Singers have established a tradition of successful collaborations with mid-Missouri arts organizations in acclaimed performances. Concert tours have taken members to New York City’s Carnegie Hall; the great cathedrals of Scotland, England, Austria, Ireland, Italy; and concert halls in China. Away from campus, Moore is active as a professional tenor singing regularly with the Missouri Symphony Orchestra, for which he has sung leading roles in Die Fledermaus, La Traviata, Madama Butterfly, and Carmen. He also maintains a private voice studio. Nollie lives in Columbia with Julia, his wife of 27 years. They have two sons, Logan and Carter, both studying Music Education at Columbia College.
Hugh Naughtin has a B.M. in Vocal Performance from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, where he studied with Patrice Michaels. Since graduating in 2007, Hugh has sung in the Chicago Symphony Chorus, the Grant Park Chorus, and the Chicago-based a cappella ensemble Bella Voce. He is currently in his 9th season with the Grammy Award-winning Kansas City Chorale. He works at the University of Kansas at the Center for Public Partnerships and Research. Hugh resides in Lawrence, Kansas, with his wife and fellow Vox-er, Rachel Naughtin.
Rachel Naughtin believes that teaching and performing go hand in hand. Since moving to Lawrence, Kansas, in 2013, Rachel has become an active performer and educator in the area. She currently teaches elementary general music and musical theatre classes in Lawrence while continuing to pursue a performance career and maintain a thriving private voice studio. Rachel has sung with Te Deum Chamber Choir, Lawrence Opera Theatre, Kansas City Opera Institute, and the Kansas City Chorale. In 2013, Rachel completed a M.M. in Vocal Performance at the University of Missouri. There, she had a voice teaching assistantship and performed the role of Despina in Mozart’s Così fan tutte, among other roles. Rachel earned her Bachelor of Music degree with majors in Vocal Performance & Choral/General Music Education from Lawrence University Conservatory of Music (2011). She has performed repertoire spanning five-centuries and welcomes the opportunity to explore new music.
Christine Jarquio Nichols is an active music educator, singer, conductor, and pianist in Columbia. She is in her fifth year of teaching middle school vocal music, with which she is completely in love. Christine co-directs the Columbia Public Schools 5th Grade Honors Choir, directs and accompanies various ensembles with the Columbia Youth Choirs, and maintains a private voice studio. She is a frequent vocal concert soloist in the mid-Missouri area. Her most memorable operatic role was singing the sassy Dorabella in Mozart’s Così fan tutte. Last year, she performed the role of Hänsel in Humperdinck’s Hänsel and Gretel with her own middle school students singing in the children’s chorus! Christine enjoys singing in professional choral ensembles Prometheus, Pro-Arte of St. Louis, and Vox Nova. She holds a dual Master of Music in Voice Performance and Choral Conducting, and a Bachelor of Science in Vocal Music Education, both from the University of Missouri in Columbia.
Christina Ray is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma at University of Missouri-Kansas City with Dr. Aidan Soder. She made her debut with UMKC Opera as Hänsel this fall in Humperdinck's Hänsel und Gretel. Ms. Ray completed the MM at LSU, and also holds a BM from the University of Missouri. Her leading roles include Zosha (Part One of Jake Heggie's Out of Darkness), Isabella (L'Italiana in Algeri), The Beggar Woman (Sweeney Todd), Katisha (The Mikado), and Béatrice (Béatrice et Bénédict). Ms. Ray has also participated in past summer programs such as Opera in the Ozarks and Opera Academy of California, where she portrayed title roles in La Cenerentola and Il Giasone. She was a recipient of the 2016 Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, in Little Rock, AR. Currently, she teaches private voice at Music/Arts Institute in Independence.
Catherine Sandstedt is soon to finish her M.M. in Vocal Performance at Stony Brook University, where she studies voice with Brenda Harris. Catherine has really enjoyed her time at Stony Brook so far, namely performing the role of Mélisande in the adaptation of Debussy’s opera Impressions de Pelléas. In addition, she has performed with the University Orchestra as a soloist for Handel’s Messiah; performed a duet from Derrick Wang’s new opera Scalia/Ginsburg, with the composer himself playing the piano; and performed the premiere of Nathan Heidelberger’s work, “Come il vento tra queste piante” with the Contemporary Chamber Players. Catherine has also had great pleasure singing with the Marble Church Choir in New York City. She performed Le nozze di Figaro (Susanna) and The Crucible (Mary Warren) while at the University of Missouri; as well as Almirena in Handel’s Rinaldo while at Opera NEO’s 2015 summer program.
Jared Smith is a second-year graduate student at the University of Missouri studying Music Education. As part of his assistantship, Jared works with Marching Mizzou and the concert bands, assists with the basic the conducting course, and performs and recruits with the Mizzou Brass Quintet. Prior to returning to the University to pursue a Master of Music degree, Jared taught for six years as an elementary music specialist for Columbia Public Schools and received his Bachelor of Music Education degree, also from the University of Missouri. Outside of Vox Nova, Jared plays bass trombone in the Columbia Jazz Orchestra and the Missouri Symphony Orchestra. He can be seen performing around Columbia and St. Louis in local band Saint Gnome, as well as other local ensembles throughout the Mid-Missouri area.
Jeremy Wagner is a senior pursuing degrees in both Vocal Performance and Vocal Music Education at the University of Missouri (Columbia) under the tutelage of Steven Tharp. He recently performed in the vocal competition hosted by the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and took second place. Jeremy will be singing the role of Sarastro in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte in March 2018, following a series of successful performances with the Show-Me Opera Workshop and Missouri Symphony Society. Jeremy was recently the Music Director at First Christian Church in Centralia, Missouri for the past three years and now performs at Broadway Christian Church in Columbia, Missouri. He is the President of the Student Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association at the University of Missouri and the President of the Music Student Advisory Council.
Jordan Blane Walker attended both Evangel University for his degree in Music Education (BM) and the University of Missouri where he worked on a M.M. in Choral Conducting with Dr. R. Paul Crabb. An active chorister and director, Mr. Walker has performed with and directed/assistant directed numerous choral ensembles including Vox Nova, the church choirs of First Presbyterian Church of Columbia and First Presbyterian Church in Fulton, and University Singers (UM). Mr. Walker has also performed the role of Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Barnaby Tucker in Hello, Dolly!, and Charlie Brown in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. He is currently an elementary music specialist in the Columbia Public School District and looks forward to fostering a culture of choral singing among younger singers, as well as nurturing a mindset of critical thinking, self-dependency, competence, and self-efficacy with students living in poverty.
Odyssey Music @ Lenoir Woods
October 12 (Thu) 6pm Akropolis Reed Quintet
November 30 (Thu) 6pm Music of Maurice Ravel
February 22 (Thu) 6pm Students of Ayako Tsuruta
March 8 (Thu)* Cinderella for Two Pianos
* This event is postponed due to an in jury. Make-up date TBA!
May 3 (Thu) Life & Love: Liebeslieder
June, TBA (make-up for the Two Piano concert)
Programs and artists are subject to change without notice.
***** SAVE THE DATES *****
Odyssey Season 15: 2018-2019
2018
October 5 (Fri) 7pm* Date to be confirmed.
October 12 (Fri) 7pm
December 7 (Fri) 7pm
2019
January 12 (Snow date 19, Sat) 3pm
February 15 (Fri) 7pm
February 16 (Sat) 7pm in Jefferson City
March 21 (Thu) & March 22 (Fri)
The 9th Plowman Chamber Music Festival
Solo Piano & Violin/Piano Recitals by the Plowman Judges
March 23-24 (Sat-Sun) All day:
The 9th Plowman Chamber Music Competition
May 3 (Fri) 7pm
June 2 (Sun) 3pm
October 5 (Fri) 7pm* Date to be confirmed.
October 12 (Fri) 7pm
December 7 (Fri) 7pm
2019
January 12 (Snow date 19, Sat) 3pm
February 15 (Fri) 7pm
February 16 (Sat) 7pm in Jefferson City
March 21 (Thu) & March 22 (Fri)
The 9th Plowman Chamber Music Festival
Solo Piano & Violin/Piano Recitals by the Plowman Judges
March 23-24 (Sat-Sun) All day:
The 9th Plowman Chamber Music Competition
May 3 (Fri) 7pm
June 2 (Sun) 3pm
August 18, 2017 – Friday, 6:45pm / 7pm
First Baptist Church
Special: Solar Eclipse: A Celestial Celebration
Sponsored by Mizzou Advantage and Office of Cultural Affairs
6:45pm Pre-Concert
Camille Saint-Saëns: Danse macabre, arr. Greg Anderson for 5 pianos [12’00]
James Tucker, piano I
Peter Miyamoto, piano II
Priscilla Yuen, piano III
Ayako Tsuruta, piano IV
Brett Klaus, piano V
7:00pm Concert
Ian Clarke (b. 1964): Orange Dawn (1992) [6’18]
Alice K. Dade, flute
Peter Miyamoto, piano
Gerald Finzi (1901-1956): “As I lay in the early sun,” from Oh Fair to See, Op.13b No. 3 [1’50]
Sergei Prokofiev: from the Five Poems of Anna Akhmatova, Op. 27 (1916)
“Solntse komnatu napolnilo (The Sun has Filled the Room, Op. 27 No. 1) [1’10]
“Pamyat o solntse (Memory of the Sun, Op. 27 No. 3) [3’00]
G. Finzi: Fear No More the Heat o’ the Sun, from Five Shakespeare Songs, Op. 18 No. 3 (1921) [5’30]
Christine Seitz, soprano
Priscilla Yuen, piano
George Tsontakis (b. 1951): from Eclipse (1995)
II. Hyperactive [4’20]
III. Serene but disturbing [5’20]
Wesley Warnhoff, clarinet
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Emma Hoeft, violoncello
Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Nathan Daughtrey: Tangling Shadows (2006) [7:50]
DRAX
Leo Saguiguit, soprano saxophone
Megan Arns, percussion
Gustav Holst (1874-1934): The Planets, Op. 32 (1914-16), arr. Greg Anderson for 5 pianos [11’00]
James Tucker, piano II
Priscilla Yuen, piano III
Brett Klaus, piano IV
Ayako Tsuruta, piano V
Intermission
George Crumb: Music for a Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III) (1974) [37’00]
Ayako Tsuruta, piano II
Julia Gaines and Brian Tate, percussion
Reception will follow.
First Baptist Church
Special: Solar Eclipse: A Celestial Celebration
Sponsored by Mizzou Advantage and Office of Cultural Affairs
6:45pm Pre-Concert
Camille Saint-Saëns: Danse macabre, arr. Greg Anderson for 5 pianos [12’00]
James Tucker, piano I
Peter Miyamoto, piano II
Priscilla Yuen, piano III
Ayako Tsuruta, piano IV
Brett Klaus, piano V
7:00pm Concert
Ian Clarke (b. 1964): Orange Dawn (1992) [6’18]
Alice K. Dade, flute
Peter Miyamoto, piano
Gerald Finzi (1901-1956): “As I lay in the early sun,” from Oh Fair to See, Op.13b No. 3 [1’50]
Sergei Prokofiev: from the Five Poems of Anna Akhmatova, Op. 27 (1916)
“Solntse komnatu napolnilo (The Sun has Filled the Room, Op. 27 No. 1) [1’10]
“Pamyat o solntse (Memory of the Sun, Op. 27 No. 3) [3’00]
G. Finzi: Fear No More the Heat o’ the Sun, from Five Shakespeare Songs, Op. 18 No. 3 (1921) [5’30]
Christine Seitz, soprano
Priscilla Yuen, piano
George Tsontakis (b. 1951): from Eclipse (1995)
II. Hyperactive [4’20]
III. Serene but disturbing [5’20]
Wesley Warnhoff, clarinet
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Emma Hoeft, violoncello
Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Nathan Daughtrey: Tangling Shadows (2006) [7:50]
DRAX
Leo Saguiguit, soprano saxophone
Megan Arns, percussion
Gustav Holst (1874-1934): The Planets, Op. 32 (1914-16), arr. Greg Anderson for 5 pianos [11’00]
- Mars, The Bringer of War
- Neptune, The Mystic
- Jupiter, The Bringer of Jollity
James Tucker, piano II
Priscilla Yuen, piano III
Brett Klaus, piano IV
Ayako Tsuruta, piano V
Intermission
George Crumb: Music for a Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III) (1974) [37’00]
- Nocturnal Sounds (The Awakening)
- Wanderer-Fantasy
- The Advent (including Hymn for the Nativity of the Star-Child)
- Myth
- Music of the Starry Night
Ayako Tsuruta, piano II
Julia Gaines and Brian Tate, percussion
Reception will follow.
October 13, 2017 – Friday 6:45pm, First Baptist Church
Pre-concert:
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897): Sonata No. 2 in E-Flat Major. Op. 120 No. 2
I. Allegro amabile
II. Andante allegro appasionato
Andrew Mahonen, clarinet
Ayako Tsuruta, piano.
October 13, 2017 – Friday 7pm, First Baptist Church
Akropolis Reed Quintet
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs (1949) arr. John Romano [7'00]
Nico Muhly (1981): Look for Me (2015) [6'00]
George Gershwin (1898-1937): An American in Paris (1928) arr. Raaf Hekkema [18'0]
Intermission
Paul Seitz (b. 1951): Bright Promise from the Fire (2017) [20'00]
David Biedenbender (1984): Refraction (2015) [10'00]
Program Notes:
Akropolis Reed Quintet
Program: “Refraction”
Offered: 17/18 and 18/19
Program Description
In "Refraction", Akropolis presents classical music bearing a wide array of influences, from rock and electronic music to jazz, chant, folk songs, and even glass art and ceramics. Each work absorbs the characteristics of a different genre, style, or era, and then creates fresh, relevant music, reflecting upon the original and looking forward. Akropolis also explores their own influences as a reed quintet (their first concert given in 2009), as they build their ensemble's repertoire and re-visit their personal and collective inspirations by which they have forged their genre-bending identity.
Opening the concert is Leonard Bernstein's Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs. In the title alone, Bernstein points to a unification of jazz and classical styles, the Prelude and Fugue being classical music forms, and Riffs referring to Jazz improvisations, which in this piece, Bernstein has written out, rather than them being improvised by the performers. This work was originally written for Woody Herman's big band, but ultimately became re-scored for a small pit-style orchestra, and then arranged recently by John Romano for reed quintet. The brass and rhythm section originally performed the Prelude, and the Fugue was for a section of five saxophones, including bass saxophone (in this version, the Fugue begins with some percussive, repeating bass clarinet notes just before the saxophone quickly enters with the fugue’s theme). The Riffs were “for everyone”, and are a synthesis of all players that recalls the Dixieland mashup style while maintaining Bernstein’s well-choreographed rhythmic playfulness.
Nico Muhly’s Look for Me buries the melody of “Mother in the Graveyard”, a folk song created in the Vermont Appalachia, inside destabilizing, modernized textures and interjections. The resulting sound is as if we are hearing an original field recording, but the wax has been distorted, and we are listening to the original singer as he or she jumps through and is warped by the time travel to today. Through the well-planted organization of these textures and interjections, Muhly re-establishes the beauty of the original, simple field song in a modern context. The composer of the folk song, “Mother in the Graveyard”, is Margaret MacArthur, a renowned performer and archivist of American folk melodies. Originally a city-goer, she and her husband moved to a 200 year-old farmhouse in Marlboro, VT in 1951, where she preserved instruments and field recordings, living without electricity or running water for the first 6 years in the home. Here are two verses of "Mother in the Graveyard":
Mother in the graveyard and I'm on the land
Look for me
Mother in the graveyard and I'm on the land
And I want God's bosom to be my pillow
Hide me over in the rocks of ages
Look for me
Drive the chariot to my door
Look for me
Drive the chariot to my door
And I want God's bosom to be my pillow
Hide me over in the rocks of ages
Look for me
Closing the first set, Akropolis presents a work inspired not only by the popular music of the early 20th century, but marked by a special moment in music composition in which the concept of "acceptable" art music was beginning to rapidly evolve. In An American in Paris, Gershwin aimed to create one of his more serious works despite his natural affinity for frivolity. He consulted Ravel about this conundrum, who wisely instructed that if Gershwin was making more money than Ravel (which he was), he shouldn't change how he writes his music. He sought advice from Nadia Boulanger, the great teacher of Aaron Copland and others. She also wisely suggested to Gershwin try to be nobody but Gershwin. And so, using complex motivic development which is constantly modulating and changing form, Gershwin manages to create his most accessible, but simultaneously most complex piece of music. Among the challenges Dutch saxophonist Raaf Hekkema faced in arranging the work were how to convey these ideas with only 5 instruments. The listener might find Gershwin's ideas even easier to deduce in the chamber music format, and Hekkema brilliantly manages to maintain Gershwin's lush orchestrations by having all 5 members performing for nearly all of the arrangement. The continually repeating and evolving motives make for a challenging but thrilling performance which Akropolis is delighted to bring to the stage.
Intermission
Commissioned by the Odyssey Chamber Music Series and composed for Akropolis, Bright Promise from the Fire opens the second half of this program, and is paired with the closing work, David Biedenbender’s Refraction. Composer Paul Seitz has included these notes about the work, and each movement, which you may find enlighten your hearing of the piece:
“Bright Promise from the Fire is a celebration of all forms of kiln-formed art, with an awareness of all the metaphors about life that can be drawn from the practice of that art.
The creation of kiln-formed art is both ancient and quite central to human cultures everywhere. In researching this subject, I’ve learned that there is no absolute distinction between the production of glass art and ceramics. Although it’s reasonable to think first of clay (rather than glass) in connection with ceramic art, glass almost always plays a crucial role - as a component of the basic material as well as in glazing and elaboration. And many of the techniques for glazing and enameling of ceramics are important in production of glass art, as well.
Movements:
1 – “Earth, Revolving”
The basic materials for both glass and ceramics (sand and clay) are found in the earth. This movement is concerned with the process of creating ceramic art objects from (mostly) clay. The opening of this movement is inspired by the fluid, plastic, quality of clay – a blending of many natural materials - and the kneading and mixing done to prepare material for use as a medium for art. “Revolving” has two meanings: The living earth revolves, of course, but “revolving” also relates to the ancient and modern use of a revolving platform (wheel) in the shaping of ceramic objects, and also to those ceramics traditions that did not employ the wheel but created objects from coils of a single strand of clay formed into ascending circles of many revolutions from the bottom to the top of the object.
2 – “The Great Sand Sea”
This movement is concerned with the story of the earliest formation of clear glass on earth. The title refers to the vast desert in modern Egypt and Libya featuring sand of almost pure silica. It is traditionally believed that the first true glass was formed, many thousands of years ago, when some extraordinary event (possibly an explosion caused by a meteor) created intense heat and the raising of acres of pure silica sand high into the air, where the sand became liquid and formed random shaped globules of clear transparent glass as it fell back to earth (some remaining glass from that explosion can still be found today).
This movement also explores the paradox of the sand sea – the incredibly reductive nature of a desert in which countless tiny individual particles of similar size together form an enormous plastic collective mass that is constantly shifting and reforming. In tribute to that reductive quality this music is very abstract in its references to some of the elements (grains of sand, meteors, explosion, etc.) in the story of earth’s first glass.
3 – “Clarity”
Transparency – the ability to “see through” glass – is surely one of the most important features in the importance of glass in art and design. But the basic quality of glass is also mysterious, since it has all the mechanical properties of a solid while its atomic structure is close to that of ice (any supercooled liquid, below the freezing point). Nobel Laureate (Physics) P. W. Anderson has called the theory of the nature of glass and the glass transition (from liquid to amorphous solid) “the deepest and most interesting unsolved problem in solid state theory.”
This short movement explores some of the unique qualities of glass in its “frozen” state (as we usually find it) - that it is very rigid, has a very hard surface that is resistant to corrosion and impervious to liquid and, of course that it is transparent to visible light – it is “clear.” I have tried to evoke this sense of clarity in several ways: through music that is lucid and restful, through tightly conceived harmonies (as in the opening triad containing the pitches C-D-E) that are presented in textures that are “transparent” – with instruments voiced to be consistently far apart – all in service of the goal of creating music that is both “hard as glass” and also “clear.”
4 – “Luster”
The naturally formed “desert glass” (see “The Great Sand Sea”) was eventually discovered in the desert by the Egyptians and utilized as precious stones in jewelry and decorative objects. But soon, the Egyptians developed the technology for creating new glass and very sophisticated glass art objects, as well. Later, in Syria, additional scientific discoveries made it possible for both glass art and ceramic art to be glazed/enameled in a way that gave the objects the appearance of bright, shining, metal. This technique, called “luster” remains important in both ceramic and art glass production to the present day.
Although some general formal elements and accompaniment textures of traditional Syrian music are very broadly referenced in the early portion of this movement, out of great respect for the expressive virtuosity of the soloists featured in that tradition, I have avoided any reference to those expressive elements in this movement. Instead, I have built very simple melodies from alternating pitches – elaborations and variations on a simple trill. As the piece progresses, these trills gradually develop into a motive representing the metallic “shimmer” - the bright luster of these beautiful objects, ancient and modern.
5 – “Mirrors and Prisms”
Being an amorphous solid (like ice) the surface of glass is ordinarily microscopically smooth since it begins as hot liquid and, as it cools, the molecules can follow surface tension (like freezing water in an ice tray). This feature accounts for the reflective quality of glass. Although transparent to visible light, glass has a different “refractive index” than the environment which causes light shone through glass to bend, curve, and disperse light; this dispersion causes prisms and rainbows to divide white light into the colors of the spectrum. Objects viewed through glass may also appear to be inverted.
This movement explores, musically, the reflective and refractive qualities of glass, so important in the enduring magic of glass art.
6 – Earth, Still
All kiln-formed art begins with a process in which plastic material is shaped and, for a time, changes can be made in design and form. At a certain point, however, the possibility of making additional changes comes to an end. As the objects emerge from the kiln, they are always a bit changed from the form they had when they entered – in ways that are often impossible to predict. These may be “happy surprises” that are immediately embraced, or may require more consideration before finding the beauty in the result. But the artist must find a way to accept this product of all the previous steps; there is no longer any possibility of improving or repairing. All of that work must be done before the kiln – before it is too late. Many aspects of life parallel this process, of course. Even the earth continues to be re-formed from hot liquid material that cools and hardens into the place we are able to live and create. And, as a composer, I have learned to celebrate the fact that every musical performance differs from the printed score in many small, unpredictable, ways - this is the magic of live performance.
This movement opens with a return to the “revolving” music from the opening movement, then develops musical ideas related to the shifting sands of movement two in a new way - now depicting the gradual loss of plasticity to a final point of stillness in which we must try to find beauty, as one more meteor explodes.”
-----------------
In conclusion, Akropolis pairs Bright Promise with David Biedenbender’s boisterous work, Refraction, commissioned by Akropolis for its acclaimed third studio CD release, The Space Between Us. "Refraction" refers to the absorption and then splitting of light, or in the case of this piece, of musical influences. Sounds are almost taped and glued together, and at times they seem to pour out from the central texture of the piece. The composition melds several genres, including death metal and Gregorian chant, but never fully boxes them in. “Death Metal Chicken” is inspired by a popular YouTube video of a howling rooster with death metal music being played in the background. The “Kyrie” shimmers with ancient qualities. The final movement, “Goat Rodeo”, refers directly to a chaotic situation that might come to a resolution, but not willingly so. Biedenbender not only re-purposes various genres and combines them with brilliant colorations; he creates a fully-formed, new object which could never be as brilliant without the tatters and shreds which seem to be falling from it.
Pre-concert:
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897): Sonata No. 2 in E-Flat Major. Op. 120 No. 2
I. Allegro amabile
II. Andante allegro appasionato
Andrew Mahonen, clarinet
Ayako Tsuruta, piano.
October 13, 2017 – Friday 7pm, First Baptist Church
Akropolis Reed Quintet
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs (1949) arr. John Romano [7'00]
Nico Muhly (1981): Look for Me (2015) [6'00]
George Gershwin (1898-1937): An American in Paris (1928) arr. Raaf Hekkema [18'0]
Intermission
Paul Seitz (b. 1951): Bright Promise from the Fire (2017) [20'00]
- Earth, Revolving
- The Great Sand Sea
- Clarity
- Luster
- Mirrors and Prisms
- Earth, Still
David Biedenbender (1984): Refraction (2015) [10'00]
- Death Metal Chicken
- Kyrie for Machaut and Pӓrt
- Goat Rodeo
Program Notes:
Akropolis Reed Quintet
Program: “Refraction”
Offered: 17/18 and 18/19
Program Description
In "Refraction", Akropolis presents classical music bearing a wide array of influences, from rock and electronic music to jazz, chant, folk songs, and even glass art and ceramics. Each work absorbs the characteristics of a different genre, style, or era, and then creates fresh, relevant music, reflecting upon the original and looking forward. Akropolis also explores their own influences as a reed quintet (their first concert given in 2009), as they build their ensemble's repertoire and re-visit their personal and collective inspirations by which they have forged their genre-bending identity.
Opening the concert is Leonard Bernstein's Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs. In the title alone, Bernstein points to a unification of jazz and classical styles, the Prelude and Fugue being classical music forms, and Riffs referring to Jazz improvisations, which in this piece, Bernstein has written out, rather than them being improvised by the performers. This work was originally written for Woody Herman's big band, but ultimately became re-scored for a small pit-style orchestra, and then arranged recently by John Romano for reed quintet. The brass and rhythm section originally performed the Prelude, and the Fugue was for a section of five saxophones, including bass saxophone (in this version, the Fugue begins with some percussive, repeating bass clarinet notes just before the saxophone quickly enters with the fugue’s theme). The Riffs were “for everyone”, and are a synthesis of all players that recalls the Dixieland mashup style while maintaining Bernstein’s well-choreographed rhythmic playfulness.
Nico Muhly’s Look for Me buries the melody of “Mother in the Graveyard”, a folk song created in the Vermont Appalachia, inside destabilizing, modernized textures and interjections. The resulting sound is as if we are hearing an original field recording, but the wax has been distorted, and we are listening to the original singer as he or she jumps through and is warped by the time travel to today. Through the well-planted organization of these textures and interjections, Muhly re-establishes the beauty of the original, simple field song in a modern context. The composer of the folk song, “Mother in the Graveyard”, is Margaret MacArthur, a renowned performer and archivist of American folk melodies. Originally a city-goer, she and her husband moved to a 200 year-old farmhouse in Marlboro, VT in 1951, where she preserved instruments and field recordings, living without electricity or running water for the first 6 years in the home. Here are two verses of "Mother in the Graveyard":
Mother in the graveyard and I'm on the land
Look for me
Mother in the graveyard and I'm on the land
And I want God's bosom to be my pillow
Hide me over in the rocks of ages
Look for me
Drive the chariot to my door
Look for me
Drive the chariot to my door
And I want God's bosom to be my pillow
Hide me over in the rocks of ages
Look for me
Closing the first set, Akropolis presents a work inspired not only by the popular music of the early 20th century, but marked by a special moment in music composition in which the concept of "acceptable" art music was beginning to rapidly evolve. In An American in Paris, Gershwin aimed to create one of his more serious works despite his natural affinity for frivolity. He consulted Ravel about this conundrum, who wisely instructed that if Gershwin was making more money than Ravel (which he was), he shouldn't change how he writes his music. He sought advice from Nadia Boulanger, the great teacher of Aaron Copland and others. She also wisely suggested to Gershwin try to be nobody but Gershwin. And so, using complex motivic development which is constantly modulating and changing form, Gershwin manages to create his most accessible, but simultaneously most complex piece of music. Among the challenges Dutch saxophonist Raaf Hekkema faced in arranging the work were how to convey these ideas with only 5 instruments. The listener might find Gershwin's ideas even easier to deduce in the chamber music format, and Hekkema brilliantly manages to maintain Gershwin's lush orchestrations by having all 5 members performing for nearly all of the arrangement. The continually repeating and evolving motives make for a challenging but thrilling performance which Akropolis is delighted to bring to the stage.
Intermission
Commissioned by the Odyssey Chamber Music Series and composed for Akropolis, Bright Promise from the Fire opens the second half of this program, and is paired with the closing work, David Biedenbender’s Refraction. Composer Paul Seitz has included these notes about the work, and each movement, which you may find enlighten your hearing of the piece:
“Bright Promise from the Fire is a celebration of all forms of kiln-formed art, with an awareness of all the metaphors about life that can be drawn from the practice of that art.
The creation of kiln-formed art is both ancient and quite central to human cultures everywhere. In researching this subject, I’ve learned that there is no absolute distinction between the production of glass art and ceramics. Although it’s reasonable to think first of clay (rather than glass) in connection with ceramic art, glass almost always plays a crucial role - as a component of the basic material as well as in glazing and elaboration. And many of the techniques for glazing and enameling of ceramics are important in production of glass art, as well.
Movements:
1 – “Earth, Revolving”
The basic materials for both glass and ceramics (sand and clay) are found in the earth. This movement is concerned with the process of creating ceramic art objects from (mostly) clay. The opening of this movement is inspired by the fluid, plastic, quality of clay – a blending of many natural materials - and the kneading and mixing done to prepare material for use as a medium for art. “Revolving” has two meanings: The living earth revolves, of course, but “revolving” also relates to the ancient and modern use of a revolving platform (wheel) in the shaping of ceramic objects, and also to those ceramics traditions that did not employ the wheel but created objects from coils of a single strand of clay formed into ascending circles of many revolutions from the bottom to the top of the object.
2 – “The Great Sand Sea”
This movement is concerned with the story of the earliest formation of clear glass on earth. The title refers to the vast desert in modern Egypt and Libya featuring sand of almost pure silica. It is traditionally believed that the first true glass was formed, many thousands of years ago, when some extraordinary event (possibly an explosion caused by a meteor) created intense heat and the raising of acres of pure silica sand high into the air, where the sand became liquid and formed random shaped globules of clear transparent glass as it fell back to earth (some remaining glass from that explosion can still be found today).
This movement also explores the paradox of the sand sea – the incredibly reductive nature of a desert in which countless tiny individual particles of similar size together form an enormous plastic collective mass that is constantly shifting and reforming. In tribute to that reductive quality this music is very abstract in its references to some of the elements (grains of sand, meteors, explosion, etc.) in the story of earth’s first glass.
3 – “Clarity”
Transparency – the ability to “see through” glass – is surely one of the most important features in the importance of glass in art and design. But the basic quality of glass is also mysterious, since it has all the mechanical properties of a solid while its atomic structure is close to that of ice (any supercooled liquid, below the freezing point). Nobel Laureate (Physics) P. W. Anderson has called the theory of the nature of glass and the glass transition (from liquid to amorphous solid) “the deepest and most interesting unsolved problem in solid state theory.”
This short movement explores some of the unique qualities of glass in its “frozen” state (as we usually find it) - that it is very rigid, has a very hard surface that is resistant to corrosion and impervious to liquid and, of course that it is transparent to visible light – it is “clear.” I have tried to evoke this sense of clarity in several ways: through music that is lucid and restful, through tightly conceived harmonies (as in the opening triad containing the pitches C-D-E) that are presented in textures that are “transparent” – with instruments voiced to be consistently far apart – all in service of the goal of creating music that is both “hard as glass” and also “clear.”
4 – “Luster”
The naturally formed “desert glass” (see “The Great Sand Sea”) was eventually discovered in the desert by the Egyptians and utilized as precious stones in jewelry and decorative objects. But soon, the Egyptians developed the technology for creating new glass and very sophisticated glass art objects, as well. Later, in Syria, additional scientific discoveries made it possible for both glass art and ceramic art to be glazed/enameled in a way that gave the objects the appearance of bright, shining, metal. This technique, called “luster” remains important in both ceramic and art glass production to the present day.
Although some general formal elements and accompaniment textures of traditional Syrian music are very broadly referenced in the early portion of this movement, out of great respect for the expressive virtuosity of the soloists featured in that tradition, I have avoided any reference to those expressive elements in this movement. Instead, I have built very simple melodies from alternating pitches – elaborations and variations on a simple trill. As the piece progresses, these trills gradually develop into a motive representing the metallic “shimmer” - the bright luster of these beautiful objects, ancient and modern.
5 – “Mirrors and Prisms”
Being an amorphous solid (like ice) the surface of glass is ordinarily microscopically smooth since it begins as hot liquid and, as it cools, the molecules can follow surface tension (like freezing water in an ice tray). This feature accounts for the reflective quality of glass. Although transparent to visible light, glass has a different “refractive index” than the environment which causes light shone through glass to bend, curve, and disperse light; this dispersion causes prisms and rainbows to divide white light into the colors of the spectrum. Objects viewed through glass may also appear to be inverted.
This movement explores, musically, the reflective and refractive qualities of glass, so important in the enduring magic of glass art.
6 – Earth, Still
All kiln-formed art begins with a process in which plastic material is shaped and, for a time, changes can be made in design and form. At a certain point, however, the possibility of making additional changes comes to an end. As the objects emerge from the kiln, they are always a bit changed from the form they had when they entered – in ways that are often impossible to predict. These may be “happy surprises” that are immediately embraced, or may require more consideration before finding the beauty in the result. But the artist must find a way to accept this product of all the previous steps; there is no longer any possibility of improving or repairing. All of that work must be done before the kiln – before it is too late. Many aspects of life parallel this process, of course. Even the earth continues to be re-formed from hot liquid material that cools and hardens into the place we are able to live and create. And, as a composer, I have learned to celebrate the fact that every musical performance differs from the printed score in many small, unpredictable, ways - this is the magic of live performance.
This movement opens with a return to the “revolving” music from the opening movement, then develops musical ideas related to the shifting sands of movement two in a new way - now depicting the gradual loss of plasticity to a final point of stillness in which we must try to find beauty, as one more meteor explodes.”
-----------------
In conclusion, Akropolis pairs Bright Promise with David Biedenbender’s boisterous work, Refraction, commissioned by Akropolis for its acclaimed third studio CD release, The Space Between Us. "Refraction" refers to the absorption and then splitting of light, or in the case of this piece, of musical influences. Sounds are almost taped and glued together, and at times they seem to pour out from the central texture of the piece. The composition melds several genres, including death metal and Gregorian chant, but never fully boxes them in. “Death Metal Chicken” is inspired by a popular YouTube video of a howling rooster with death metal music being played in the background. The “Kyrie” shimmers with ancient qualities. The final movement, “Goat Rodeo”, refers directly to a chaotic situation that might come to a resolution, but not willingly so. Biedenbender not only re-purposes various genres and combines them with brilliant colorations; he creates a fully-formed, new object which could never be as brilliant without the tatters and shreds which seem to be falling from it.
December 1, 2017 – Friday, 6:40pm / 7pm
First Baptist Church
Joyeux Noël: French Chamber Music
* With regrets - Due to illness, Ms. Julia Bentley will not be performing at this concert.
6:40pm Pre-Concert
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): Piano Trio No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 1 No. 3 [10’00]
Sejoon Jun, violin / Ryan Choe, violoncello / Henry Huang, piano
7:00pm
Ravel: Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano (1923-27) [17’00]
I. Allegretto
II. Blues. Moderato
III. Perpetuum mobile. Allegro
Amy Appold, violin
Natalia Bolshakova, piano
Maurice Ravel (1835-1937): Les Chansons madecasses (1925-6) for soprano, flute, cello and piano [13’00]
I. Nahandove
II. Mefiez-vous des blancs
III. Il est doux de se coucher Christine Seitz, soprano
Alice K. Dade, flute
Eli Lara, cello
Peter Miyamoto, piano
Ravel: Piano Trio in A Minor (1914) [29’00]
I. Modéré
II. Pantoum. Assez vite
III. Passacaille. Très large
IV. Final. Animé
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Intermission
Gabriel Faure (1845-1925): Piano Quartet No. 1, Op. 15 (1876-9; rev. 1883) [ca. 33’00]
Leslie Perna, viola
Eli Lara, violoncello
Peter Miyamoto, piano
First Baptist Church
Joyeux Noël: French Chamber Music
* With regrets - Due to illness, Ms. Julia Bentley will not be performing at this concert.
6:40pm Pre-Concert
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): Piano Trio No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 1 No. 3 [10’00]
- Allegro con brio
- Molto allegro ed agitato
Sejoon Jun, violin / Ryan Choe, violoncello / Henry Huang, piano
7:00pm
Ravel: Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano (1923-27) [17’00]
I. Allegretto
II. Blues. Moderato
III. Perpetuum mobile. Allegro
Amy Appold, violin
Natalia Bolshakova, piano
Maurice Ravel (1835-1937): Les Chansons madecasses (1925-6) for soprano, flute, cello and piano [13’00]
I. Nahandove
II. Mefiez-vous des blancs
III. Il est doux de se coucher Christine Seitz, soprano
Alice K. Dade, flute
Eli Lara, cello
Peter Miyamoto, piano
Ravel: Piano Trio in A Minor (1914) [29’00]
I. Modéré
II. Pantoum. Assez vite
III. Passacaille. Très large
IV. Final. Animé
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Intermission
Gabriel Faure (1845-1925): Piano Quartet No. 1, Op. 15 (1876-9; rev. 1883) [ca. 33’00]
- Allegro molto moderato
- Scherzo: Allegro vivo
- Adagio
- Allegro molto
Leslie Perna, viola
Eli Lara, violoncello
Peter Miyamoto, piano
January 13, 2018 – Saturday 2pm, First Baptist Church
(Snow day Jan 20)
Kids@Heart - Instrumental Zoo!
Enjoy physically touching and hearing an array of different instruments. FREE balloons! Enter a raffle for a gorgeous Kalimba to take home with you.
January 13, 2018 – Saturday 3pm, First Baptist Church
(Snow day Jan 20)
“Kids@Heart: A Children’s Concert” – Tales Around the World
Collaboration with the Mid-Missouri Area Music Teachers Association
Ed Rollins, Narrator
Program
Part I:
Introduction:
CZECHOSLOVAKIA (CZECH REPUBLIC)
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904): Slavonic Dance in C Major, Op. 46 No. 1 (1878) [4’15]
Peter Miyamoto and Ayako Tsuruta, piano
BELGIUM / AUSTRIA/ HUNGARY
Gustave Michiels (1845-1911): Czardas No 6, Danse Styrienne (ca. 1903) [4'00]
Brooke Wagner and Hayley Conklin, piano
RUSSIA
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893): “Dance of the Flutes” from The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (1892) [2’30]
Audrey Mueller & Janelle Lutz, pianos
NORWAY
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907): Norwegian Dance in A Major, Op. 35 No. 2 (1881) [2’30]
Ayako Tsuruta and Peter Miyamoto, piano
RUSSIA
Alexander Glazunv (1865-1936): “Hail” from ballet, The Seasons, Op. 67 (1900)[1’30]
Anna Sophia Akhmadullina & Natalia Bolshakova, piano
JAPAN
Traditional: Sakura (Cherry blossom), arr. Ayako Tsuruta [2’30]
Lauren Miyamoto and Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Prelude:
FRANCE
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963): Prélude, from Sonata for four hands (1918) [2’00]
Benjamin Xu and Anne Manahan, piano
FRANCE / SPAIN
Georges Bizet (1838-1875): Transcription of "Habanera" from Carmen (1875) [2:00]
Nora Anderson and Lilly Crist, piano
ARGENTINA
Ástor Pantaleón Piazzolla (1921-1992): Oblivion (1982) arr. by Joe Burgstaller for Flugelhorn and Piano [4’30]
Iskander Akhmadullin, flugelhorn and Natalia Bolshakova, piano
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): “America” from The West Side Story (1957), arr. Derrison Duarte for piano, six hands [4’30]
Ayako Tsuruta, Natalia Bolshakova and Peter Miyamoto, piano
GREAT BRITAIN
Philip Sparke (b. 1951): Song and Dance for Cornet and Piano (1981) [4’00]
Iskander Akhmadullin, flugelhorn and Natalia Bolshakova, piano
Part II
The Raffle Result
FUSION: GREAT BRITAIN & ZIMBABWE
Tim Mocny (b. 1980) and Mike List (b. 1983): Optimism (2012) [4:20]
anna provo, mbira and Abby Rehard, marimba
ZIMBABWE
Shona Mbira, Traditional
Kuzanga
Chandasarira
anna provo and Abby Rehard, mbira
TRINIDAD
Calypso Medley, traditional
Day-o (the banana boat song)
Jamaica farewell
Baja
anna provo and Abby Rehard, steel pan
(Snow day Jan 20)
Kids@Heart - Instrumental Zoo!
Enjoy physically touching and hearing an array of different instruments. FREE balloons! Enter a raffle for a gorgeous Kalimba to take home with you.
January 13, 2018 – Saturday 3pm, First Baptist Church
(Snow day Jan 20)
“Kids@Heart: A Children’s Concert” – Tales Around the World
Collaboration with the Mid-Missouri Area Music Teachers Association
Ed Rollins, Narrator
Program
Part I:
Introduction:
CZECHOSLOVAKIA (CZECH REPUBLIC)
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904): Slavonic Dance in C Major, Op. 46 No. 1 (1878) [4’15]
Peter Miyamoto and Ayako Tsuruta, piano
BELGIUM / AUSTRIA/ HUNGARY
Gustave Michiels (1845-1911): Czardas No 6, Danse Styrienne (ca. 1903) [4'00]
Brooke Wagner and Hayley Conklin, piano
RUSSIA
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893): “Dance of the Flutes” from The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (1892) [2’30]
Audrey Mueller & Janelle Lutz, pianos
NORWAY
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907): Norwegian Dance in A Major, Op. 35 No. 2 (1881) [2’30]
Ayako Tsuruta and Peter Miyamoto, piano
RUSSIA
Alexander Glazunv (1865-1936): “Hail” from ballet, The Seasons, Op. 67 (1900)[1’30]
Anna Sophia Akhmadullina & Natalia Bolshakova, piano
JAPAN
Traditional: Sakura (Cherry blossom), arr. Ayako Tsuruta [2’30]
Lauren Miyamoto and Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Prelude:
FRANCE
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963): Prélude, from Sonata for four hands (1918) [2’00]
Benjamin Xu and Anne Manahan, piano
FRANCE / SPAIN
Georges Bizet (1838-1875): Transcription of "Habanera" from Carmen (1875) [2:00]
Nora Anderson and Lilly Crist, piano
ARGENTINA
Ástor Pantaleón Piazzolla (1921-1992): Oblivion (1982) arr. by Joe Burgstaller for Flugelhorn and Piano [4’30]
Iskander Akhmadullin, flugelhorn and Natalia Bolshakova, piano
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): “America” from The West Side Story (1957), arr. Derrison Duarte for piano, six hands [4’30]
Ayako Tsuruta, Natalia Bolshakova and Peter Miyamoto, piano
GREAT BRITAIN
Philip Sparke (b. 1951): Song and Dance for Cornet and Piano (1981) [4’00]
Iskander Akhmadullin, flugelhorn and Natalia Bolshakova, piano
Part II
The Raffle Result
FUSION: GREAT BRITAIN & ZIMBABWE
Tim Mocny (b. 1980) and Mike List (b. 1983): Optimism (2012) [4:20]
anna provo, mbira and Abby Rehard, marimba
ZIMBABWE
Shona Mbira, Traditional
Kuzanga
Chandasarira
anna provo and Abby Rehard, mbira
TRINIDAD
Calypso Medley, traditional
Day-o (the banana boat song)
Jamaica farewell
Baja
anna provo and Abby Rehard, steel pan
About the Performers:
Anya Akhmadullina, 10, has been studying violin since she was 4 with Siri Geenen then Amy Appold. Anya has been a Winner or Runner-Up of the Missouri Music Teachers Association state contest in her respective age division during the last 5 years. She also studies piano with her mother Natalia Bolshakova, and Anya has won Honorable Mentions or Runner-Up at the MMTA and superior ratings at the Piano Guild auditions the last six years. For many years, Anya has performed in Piano Showcase recitals, Boone County Historical Museum Concert Series, the Salvation Army Fundraising Concert, and Odyssey's Kids@Heart. Anya attends EEE and sings in the Columbia Public School's 5th Grade Honors Choir. She enjoys the arts, particularly drawing, and she is an avid reader, both in English and in Russian. Anya loves swimming, traveling, and playing with her friends.
Nora Anderson is an 8th grader at Smithton Middle School who has taken piano lessons since 1st grade. She is active in her church youth group, participates in choir, cross country and basketball at school, and loves babysitting and crafting.
Hayley Conklin is a 7th grader at Christian Fellowship School. Since 1st grade, she has competed in MMTA, NFMC, Missouri Theatre Showcase Auditions and MTNA. She has also performed on Blind Boone piano as well as Odyssey's Kids@Heart concerts. In addition to piano, Hayley loves singing in her school choir, playing ukulele, and volleyball.
Lilly Crist is a 7th grader at Gentry Middle School. She started playing piano in the first grade and enjoys playing all types of music, but especially likes learning to play movie themes. Lilly also plays the cello in the Gentry Middle School Orchestra, taught herself to play the ukulele, and hopes to learn to play guitar. She enjoys spending time outside, drawing and painting, and just about anything else that allows her to express her creativity.
Lauren Miyamoto won Honorable Mention at the 2017 MMTA state audition in 3rd Grade. From the first year she began studying the piano with Dr. Natalia Bolshakova, Lauren has participated in Federation, Guild, MMTA auditions and Piano Showcase concerts. She has also participated in many studio recitals and performances, including the 2017 Boone County Historical Society’s Concert Series. She takes ballet from Perlman-Stoy Ballet School, and loves reading, writing, swimming, and doing anything creative.
Audrey Mueller is a sophomore at Rock Bridge High School and has played piano for nine years. She loves to perform and is also involved in the Rock Bridge theatre program. In her time between homework and rehearsals, Audrey enjoys reading, writing, attempting to teach herself new skills (currently, juggling), making films, and braving the heat and cold to go for walks. A majority of the space on her phone is occupied by failed piano recordings, but rest assured that there are some successful ones, too.
Brooke Wagner is an eighth grader at Southern Boone Middle School. When she’s not at the piano she can be found strumming her Ukulele, playing clarinet, or singing. She also enjoys creative writing.
Benjamin Xu, 13, an 8th grader in Gentry middle school, has been learning piano for 7 years under Beverly Kyriakos and Anne Manahan. Ben enjoys playing piano in auditions and performances. In addition to piano, Ben also plays violin and sings pop music. At school, he enjoys science and computer coding, and is a young “mathematician.” At his spare time, Ben plays chess, shoots hoops, swims and is an inspiring soccer player.
Anya Akhmadullina, 10, has been studying violin since she was 4 with Siri Geenen then Amy Appold. Anya has been a Winner or Runner-Up of the Missouri Music Teachers Association state contest in her respective age division during the last 5 years. She also studies piano with her mother Natalia Bolshakova, and Anya has won Honorable Mentions or Runner-Up at the MMTA and superior ratings at the Piano Guild auditions the last six years. For many years, Anya has performed in Piano Showcase recitals, Boone County Historical Museum Concert Series, the Salvation Army Fundraising Concert, and Odyssey's Kids@Heart. Anya attends EEE and sings in the Columbia Public School's 5th Grade Honors Choir. She enjoys the arts, particularly drawing, and she is an avid reader, both in English and in Russian. Anya loves swimming, traveling, and playing with her friends.
Nora Anderson is an 8th grader at Smithton Middle School who has taken piano lessons since 1st grade. She is active in her church youth group, participates in choir, cross country and basketball at school, and loves babysitting and crafting.
Hayley Conklin is a 7th grader at Christian Fellowship School. Since 1st grade, she has competed in MMTA, NFMC, Missouri Theatre Showcase Auditions and MTNA. She has also performed on Blind Boone piano as well as Odyssey's Kids@Heart concerts. In addition to piano, Hayley loves singing in her school choir, playing ukulele, and volleyball.
Lilly Crist is a 7th grader at Gentry Middle School. She started playing piano in the first grade and enjoys playing all types of music, but especially likes learning to play movie themes. Lilly also plays the cello in the Gentry Middle School Orchestra, taught herself to play the ukulele, and hopes to learn to play guitar. She enjoys spending time outside, drawing and painting, and just about anything else that allows her to express her creativity.
Lauren Miyamoto won Honorable Mention at the 2017 MMTA state audition in 3rd Grade. From the first year she began studying the piano with Dr. Natalia Bolshakova, Lauren has participated in Federation, Guild, MMTA auditions and Piano Showcase concerts. She has also participated in many studio recitals and performances, including the 2017 Boone County Historical Society’s Concert Series. She takes ballet from Perlman-Stoy Ballet School, and loves reading, writing, swimming, and doing anything creative.
Audrey Mueller is a sophomore at Rock Bridge High School and has played piano for nine years. She loves to perform and is also involved in the Rock Bridge theatre program. In her time between homework and rehearsals, Audrey enjoys reading, writing, attempting to teach herself new skills (currently, juggling), making films, and braving the heat and cold to go for walks. A majority of the space on her phone is occupied by failed piano recordings, but rest assured that there are some successful ones, too.
Brooke Wagner is an eighth grader at Southern Boone Middle School. When she’s not at the piano she can be found strumming her Ukulele, playing clarinet, or singing. She also enjoys creative writing.
Benjamin Xu, 13, an 8th grader in Gentry middle school, has been learning piano for 7 years under Beverly Kyriakos and Anne Manahan. Ben enjoys playing piano in auditions and performances. In addition to piano, Ben also plays violin and sings pop music. At school, he enjoys science and computer coding, and is a young “mathematician.” At his spare time, Ben plays chess, shoots hoops, swims and is an inspiring soccer player.
February 16, 2018 - Friday 6:45pm, First Baptist Church
Pre-concert:
Due to illness, flutist Kristine Poulsen has withdrawn from the program. We are pleased to instead present Rosenfeld/Lara Duo tonight.
Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942): From Duo for Violin and Cello (1925)
I. Moderato
II. Zingaresca: Allegro giocoso
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
February 16, 2018 - Friday 7:00pm, First Baptist Church
“Baroque Concerto”
Odyssey’s annual Baroque presentation features MU’s Bach Collegium Choir and Odyssey Chamber Ensemble lead by director R. Paul Crabb to one of the magnificent masterworks by J.S. Bach.
This special event is generously sponsored by the Paul D. Higday Mozart Trust and the Mid-Missouri Area Music Teachers Association (MMAMTA).
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV1042 (ca. 1723)
I. Allegro (ca. 8 min)
Hazel Keithahn, violin
The Winner of the MMAMTA/Odyssey 2018 Pre-collegiate Concerto Competition
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): Symphony No. 29 in A Major, KV201 (1774) (ca. 35 min)
I.Allegro moderato
II.Andante
III.Menuetto: Allegretto – Trio
IV.Allegro con spirito
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Intermission
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Mass in F Major, BWV233 (1738) (ca. 24'00)
Bach Collegium Choir
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Bach Collegium Choir
(* = Soloists)
Soprano: Amanda Furtick; McKenna Ranfield; Aubrey Smith*; Kiernan Steiner; Bailey Wilkerson; Hannah Zizza
Alto: Martha Allen; Meaghan Neel; Kate Mosier; Keisha Rush; Samantha Stokes; Samantha Walker
Tenor: Josh Chism; Savon Hayes; David Fazekas; David Peana; James Shemwell; Holt Skinner*
Bass: Patrick Graham*; Hans Bridger Heruth; Marques Ruff; Jacob Stone; Jeremy Wagner; Ben Worley
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Oboe I: Dan Willett
Oboe II: Alison Robuck
Bassoon: Kassandra Ormsby
Horn I: Marcia Spence
Horn II: Michael Hill
Violin I: Siri Geenen, Erik Hassell, Carolina Neves Merritt
Violin II: Amy Appold, Solveig Geenen, Clara Day
Viola: Dustin Frieda, Grant Broadshaw, Morgan Owen
Violoncello: Eli Lara, Mary Manulik, Daniel Keeler
Double Bass: Meyer Neel
Organ: Colleen Ostercamp
Pre-concert:
Due to illness, flutist Kristine Poulsen has withdrawn from the program. We are pleased to instead present Rosenfeld/Lara Duo tonight.
Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942): From Duo for Violin and Cello (1925)
I. Moderato
II. Zingaresca: Allegro giocoso
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
February 16, 2018 - Friday 7:00pm, First Baptist Church
“Baroque Concerto”
Odyssey’s annual Baroque presentation features MU’s Bach Collegium Choir and Odyssey Chamber Ensemble lead by director R. Paul Crabb to one of the magnificent masterworks by J.S. Bach.
This special event is generously sponsored by the Paul D. Higday Mozart Trust and the Mid-Missouri Area Music Teachers Association (MMAMTA).
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV1042 (ca. 1723)
I. Allegro (ca. 8 min)
Hazel Keithahn, violin
The Winner of the MMAMTA/Odyssey 2018 Pre-collegiate Concerto Competition
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): Symphony No. 29 in A Major, KV201 (1774) (ca. 35 min)
I.Allegro moderato
II.Andante
III.Menuetto: Allegretto – Trio
IV.Allegro con spirito
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Intermission
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Mass in F Major, BWV233 (1738) (ca. 24'00)
- Kyrie eleison
- Gloria in excelsis
- Domine Deus
- Qui tollis
- Quoniam
- Cum sancto Spiritu’
Bach Collegium Choir
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Bach Collegium Choir
(* = Soloists)
Soprano: Amanda Furtick; McKenna Ranfield; Aubrey Smith*; Kiernan Steiner; Bailey Wilkerson; Hannah Zizza
Alto: Martha Allen; Meaghan Neel; Kate Mosier; Keisha Rush; Samantha Stokes; Samantha Walker
Tenor: Josh Chism; Savon Hayes; David Fazekas; David Peana; James Shemwell; Holt Skinner*
Bass: Patrick Graham*; Hans Bridger Heruth; Marques Ruff; Jacob Stone; Jeremy Wagner; Ben Worley
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Oboe I: Dan Willett
Oboe II: Alison Robuck
Bassoon: Kassandra Ormsby
Horn I: Marcia Spence
Horn II: Michael Hill
Violin I: Siri Geenen, Erik Hassell, Carolina Neves Merritt
Violin II: Amy Appold, Solveig Geenen, Clara Day
Viola: Dustin Frieda, Grant Broadshaw, Morgan Owen
Violoncello: Eli Lara, Mary Manulik, Daniel Keeler
Double Bass: Meyer Neel
Organ: Colleen Ostercamp
February 23, 2018 -
Southside Philharmonic Orchestra Series:
Baroque Concerto Encore
Central United Church of Christ in Jefferson City
$12 Admission / $6 Students
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809): String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 1, Hob. III:75 (1796-7) (ca. 23'00)
I. Allegro con spirito
II. Adagio sostenuto
III. Menuetto. Presto
IV. Allegro ma non troppo
The Southside String Quartet
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV1042 (1723)
I. Allegro (ca. 8 min)
Hazel Keithahn, violin
The Winner of the MMAMTA/Odyssey 2018 Pre-collegiate Concerto Competition
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Brief Intermission
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1757-1797): Symphony in A Major, KV201 (1774) (ca. 35 min)
I.Allegro moderato
II.Andante
III.Menuetto: Allegretto – Trio
IV.Allegro con spirito
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble with Southside Philharmonic Orchestra members:
Oboe I: Dan Willett
Oboe II: Alison Robuck
Bassoon: Kassandra Ormsby
Horn I: Marcia Spence
Horn II: Michael Hill
Violin I: Siri Geenen, Erik Hassell
Violin II: Solveig Geenen, Clara Dey
Viola: Dustin Frieda, Grant Broadshaw, Morgan Owen
Violoncello: Mary Manulik, Daniel Keeler
Double Bass: Maura Higgins
Southside Philharmonic Orchestra Series:
Baroque Concerto Encore
Central United Church of Christ in Jefferson City
$12 Admission / $6 Students
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809): String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 1, Hob. III:75 (1796-7) (ca. 23'00)
I. Allegro con spirito
II. Adagio sostenuto
III. Menuetto. Presto
IV. Allegro ma non troppo
The Southside String Quartet
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV1042 (1723)
I. Allegro (ca. 8 min)
Hazel Keithahn, violin
The Winner of the MMAMTA/Odyssey 2018 Pre-collegiate Concerto Competition
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Brief Intermission
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1757-1797): Symphony in A Major, KV201 (1774) (ca. 35 min)
I.Allegro moderato
II.Andante
III.Menuetto: Allegretto – Trio
IV.Allegro con spirito
Patrick Clark, conductor
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble
Odyssey Chamber Ensemble with Southside Philharmonic Orchestra members:
Oboe I: Dan Willett
Oboe II: Alison Robuck
Bassoon: Kassandra Ormsby
Horn I: Marcia Spence
Horn II: Michael Hill
Violin I: Siri Geenen, Erik Hassell
Violin II: Solveig Geenen, Clara Dey
Viola: Dustin Frieda, Grant Broadshaw, Morgan Owen
Violoncello: Mary Manulik, Daniel Keeler
Double Bass: Maura Higgins
March 2, 2018
“M-Odyssey : Scenémagic"
“M-Odyssey” will continue the 2015 initiative to mentor and give real work experience in music administration to young professionals. One or two outstanding musicians will have the opportunity to create and produce their own Odyssey concert, with guidance from the Artistic Director and a supervising Board Member. The title reflects the more modern, “MOD” Odyssey for younger directors, while the capitalization pays homage to our state. * Early arrival is recommended.
This concert is financially sponsored by the Mizzou New Music Initiative and Phi Mu Alpha.
6:45pm Pre-Concert
Pre Concert
MU Women’s Choir
Conducted by: Meaghan Neel
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901): Witches’ chorus
Words and Music by Fran Walsh, Howard Shore, Annie Lennox: Into the West (from the motion picture “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”), arr. Alan Billingsley
Appalachian folksong: Banjo Pickin’ Girl, arr. Tim Sharp & Andrea Ramsey
Banjo: Marty Oetting
Double Bass: Meyer Neel
Percussion: Brianna Trainor
7:00pm Concert
Jorge Montilla (b. 1970): Clarimba (2013)
Andrew Mahonen, clarinet
Brianna Trainor, marimba
Libby Larsen (b. 1950): Yellow Jersey (2004)
Andrew Mahonen and Victoria Hargrove, clarinets
Michael Webster (b. 1944): Magic Flute Fantasy (1997)
Ryan Koesterer, flute/piccolo
Andrew Mahonen, clarinet
Sarah Amos, piano
intermission
Music and lyrics by Angela Parrish: “On the Side”
Justin Hurwitz: “City of Stars” from La La Land
Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
arr. Angela Parrish
Justin Hurwitz: “Another Day of Sun” from La La Land
Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
arr. Angela Parrish
Andrew Linn (b. 1988): “The Meaning of Living"
Written for Hitt Street Harmony featuring Angela Parrish
~ Funded by the Mizzou New Music Initiative ~
I. Prism Dance, Lyrics by Greg Lapine
Feat. Angela Parrish and Meaghan Neel
II. The Meaning of living, Lyrics by Angela Parrish
Feat. Angela Parrish and Savon Hayes
Angela Parrish, vocals
Hitt Street Harmony
Kiernan Steiner, conductor
with
Austin Walker, trumpet
Alex Jones, tenor saxophone
Caleb Alexander, guitar
Ross Dryer, piano
Christopher Fusco, drums
Meyer Neel, double bass
Special thanks to the Sigma Alpha Iota for their assistance.
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MU Women’s Choir
Director: Emily Edgington Andrews
Assistant Director: Meaghan Neel
Accompanist: Amanda Furtick
Soprano I: Morgan Alexander, Larissa Babiak, Anna Huynh, Amanda Leventhal, Madi Myers, Ashley Rolf, Chloe Shoemaker, Aubrey Smith, Denise Weigand, Emma Wickland, Amanda Furtick
Soprano II: Hannah Bond, Regan Brown, Angie Busby, Olivia Jackson, Victoria Klemm, Mariah Messenger, Anna Preuss, Sydney Robertson, Kaitlin Rohlfing, Kiernan Steiner, Olivia Stricklin, Zoe Tyler, Olivia Wilson
Alto I: Brittany Badding, Kelsey Draeger, Monica Dunn, Maggie Herwig, Amanda Huffman, Taylor Jennings, Hannah Robertson, Valeria Schwent, Bailey Wilkerson
Alto II: Maddie Douglass, Devon Lynch, Mikella Vermaire, Paige Wakefield, Madi Winfield, Anna Yannessa, Victoria Zeyen
Hitt Street Harmony
Kiernan Steiner, director
Soprano: Hannah Hall; Samantha Walker; Bailey Wilkerson
Alto: Bailee Dougherty; Olivia Henderson; Keisha Rush; Anna Yannessa
Tenor: Joshua Chism; Ross Dryer; Savon Hayes; Jacob Moscovitch
Bass: Matt Ahn; Lafe Arens; Truman Butler; Jonathan Crader
“M-Odyssey : Scenémagic"
“M-Odyssey” will continue the 2015 initiative to mentor and give real work experience in music administration to young professionals. One or two outstanding musicians will have the opportunity to create and produce their own Odyssey concert, with guidance from the Artistic Director and a supervising Board Member. The title reflects the more modern, “MOD” Odyssey for younger directors, while the capitalization pays homage to our state. * Early arrival is recommended.
This concert is financially sponsored by the Mizzou New Music Initiative and Phi Mu Alpha.
6:45pm Pre-Concert
Pre Concert
MU Women’s Choir
Conducted by: Meaghan Neel
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901): Witches’ chorus
Words and Music by Fran Walsh, Howard Shore, Annie Lennox: Into the West (from the motion picture “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”), arr. Alan Billingsley
Appalachian folksong: Banjo Pickin’ Girl, arr. Tim Sharp & Andrea Ramsey
Banjo: Marty Oetting
Double Bass: Meyer Neel
Percussion: Brianna Trainor
7:00pm Concert
Jorge Montilla (b. 1970): Clarimba (2013)
Andrew Mahonen, clarinet
Brianna Trainor, marimba
Libby Larsen (b. 1950): Yellow Jersey (2004)
Andrew Mahonen and Victoria Hargrove, clarinets
Michael Webster (b. 1944): Magic Flute Fantasy (1997)
Ryan Koesterer, flute/piccolo
Andrew Mahonen, clarinet
Sarah Amos, piano
intermission
Music and lyrics by Angela Parrish: “On the Side”
Justin Hurwitz: “City of Stars” from La La Land
Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
arr. Angela Parrish
Justin Hurwitz: “Another Day of Sun” from La La Land
Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
arr. Angela Parrish
Andrew Linn (b. 1988): “The Meaning of Living"
Written for Hitt Street Harmony featuring Angela Parrish
~ Funded by the Mizzou New Music Initiative ~
I. Prism Dance, Lyrics by Greg Lapine
Feat. Angela Parrish and Meaghan Neel
II. The Meaning of living, Lyrics by Angela Parrish
Feat. Angela Parrish and Savon Hayes
Angela Parrish, vocals
Hitt Street Harmony
Kiernan Steiner, conductor
with
Austin Walker, trumpet
Alex Jones, tenor saxophone
Caleb Alexander, guitar
Ross Dryer, piano
Christopher Fusco, drums
Meyer Neel, double bass
Special thanks to the Sigma Alpha Iota for their assistance.
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MU Women’s Choir
Director: Emily Edgington Andrews
Assistant Director: Meaghan Neel
Accompanist: Amanda Furtick
Soprano I: Morgan Alexander, Larissa Babiak, Anna Huynh, Amanda Leventhal, Madi Myers, Ashley Rolf, Chloe Shoemaker, Aubrey Smith, Denise Weigand, Emma Wickland, Amanda Furtick
Soprano II: Hannah Bond, Regan Brown, Angie Busby, Olivia Jackson, Victoria Klemm, Mariah Messenger, Anna Preuss, Sydney Robertson, Kaitlin Rohlfing, Kiernan Steiner, Olivia Stricklin, Zoe Tyler, Olivia Wilson
Alto I: Brittany Badding, Kelsey Draeger, Monica Dunn, Maggie Herwig, Amanda Huffman, Taylor Jennings, Hannah Robertson, Valeria Schwent, Bailey Wilkerson
Alto II: Maddie Douglass, Devon Lynch, Mikella Vermaire, Paige Wakefield, Madi Winfield, Anna Yannessa, Victoria Zeyen
Hitt Street Harmony
Kiernan Steiner, director
Soprano: Hannah Hall; Samantha Walker; Bailey Wilkerson
Alto: Bailee Dougherty; Olivia Henderson; Keisha Rush; Anna Yannessa
Tenor: Joshua Chism; Ross Dryer; Savon Hayes; Jacob Moscovitch
Bass: Matt Ahn; Lafe Arens; Truman Butler; Jonathan Crader
Sarah Amos is a graduate student at the University of Missouri pursing a MM in Collaborative Piano. A Michigan native, Ms. Amos began her musical studies in piano and organ at the Flint Institute of Music with Dr. Donald Kaye. In 2016, she completed a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Western Michigan University and received the Service Playing Certification from the American Guild of Organists. Since beginning her masters program at MU, Sarah has enjoyed serving as a pianist for Show-Me Opera, accompanying rehearsals for Choral Union, and performing with fellow music majors in student recitals. An accomplished church musician, Sarah has acted as the music director and organist at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Watervliet, MI, and currently is the organist for the United Methodist Church of Centralia, MO. Her primary instructors have included Dr. Silvia Roederer, Lori Sims, Dr. Karl Schrock, and Dr. Janice Wenger.
Emily Edgington Andrews Long an advocate for quality musical arts in the community, Emily Edgington Andrews is extremely active in Columbia, working with children and adults at every level of their musical development. Emily is on the choral faculty at the University of Missouri, conducting the Women's Choir, co-directing the Concert Chorale, and teaching Basic Conducting and Score Reading, and is the Director of Community Music Outreach, serving as a community liaison for the MU School of Music. In 2013 Emily was appointed Artistic Director for the Columbia Chorale, and under her baton has helped to expand the organization, now in its 39th season, to include 12 choral ensembles. Under its new umbrella title Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, the organization offers exceptional choral experiences accessible to everyone from youth to adults. Emily also serves as the Assistant Conductor for CAAM’s permanent professional Artists-in-Residence, Prometheus: An American Vocal Consort, managing the ensemble and assisting in conducting the highly sought-after ensemble. Emily teaches adjunct at Stephens College, working with the young women in the Performance Arts School. In addition to her work at the collegiate level, Emily enters her ninth year as one of the vocal music teachers at Columbia Independent School, the city’s only non-sectarian college preparatory campus, conducting two of the six ensembles, an Honor Choir for students in grades 4-5 and a select vocal jazz ensemble for 8th-12th graders.This year marks Emily’s twelfth as conductor at the historic Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Columbia, MO, where she maintains a thriving music program, conducting the 45-member Adult Choir of volunteer and paid musicians. Emily regularly serves as a guest clinician and adjudicator, and is an active member of the American Choral Directors Association and the National Association for Music Education. Emily received her degrees in Music at Truman State University, Kirksville, Missouri (B.A.; M.A.) and at the University of Missouri (M.M.).
American clarinetist and bass clarinetist Victoria Hargrove is an avid performer, researcher, and pedagogue. She has performed internationally and throughout the United States. Her research and pedagogical instruction has reached individuals of all ages and levels of education. Victoria is actively performing with the Mizzou New Music Ensemble as the Clarinet/ Bass Clarinet Graduate Assistant with whom she has premiered many new works. Victoria has performed as a guest soloist with the Missouri Symphony and often as guest bass clarinetist with the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra (GA). Internationally, she has been featured as a soloist and chamber musician in Belgium and Quebec. Her pedagogical research has been referenced in other academic writings such as theses and university research papers. Victoria's pedagogical techniques nurture her studio's success with some students being accepted into undergraduate performance programs. Victoria holds a Bachelor’s in Music Performance from Columbus State University and is currently completing her Master's of Music Performance at the University of Missouri. Her principal instructors are Dr. Lisa Oberlander and Dr. Wesley Warnhoff.
Ryan Koesterer is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in music performance at the University of Missouri, studying with Professor Alice K. Dade. As a senior, Ryan actively performs in the University Philharmonic Orchestra, university Wind Ensemble, Columbia Civic Orchestra, the Missouri Symphony Orchestra, and the 312th Army Band and Woodwind Quintet. He also is the woodwind coach for the Missouri Symphony Conservatory, teaches private lessons, and serves as president of the Missouri Flute Society. Recently, Ryan participated in the Eastern Music Festival, Oh My Ears Contemporary Music Festival, and competed in the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) competition, where he won the State auditions and received Honorable Mention at the West Central Division in Denver, Colorado. Ryan is a collegiate member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and will graduate in May 2018. After graduation, Ryan will continue his education pursuing a master's degree in music performance.
Clarinetist Andrew Mahonen is an avid performer, researcher, and educator. Recently, he has been invited to perform at ClarinetFest 2018 in Ostend, Belgium with the Mizzou Clarinet Quartet, and is working with the Odyssey Chamber Music Series as a Performing Fellow. Being an advocate for music education, Andrew has taught students of all ages privately. Additionally, he held the position of music mentor at Duluth Denfeld High School where he taught lessons and masterclasses, helped students prepare for music contest, and presented lectures on various topics in music. Andrew was awarded a research grant to survey the general music knowledge of high school and college students and hopes to continue this research. He has used his findings from this to develop a method of teaching that views music as a diverse art. Andrew has appeared as a soloist numerous times around Northern Minnesota. He has also performed in several orchestras including the Duluth/Superior Symphony Orchestra, the Lyric Opera of the North, and the Minnesota Ballet Orchestra. Having a passion for chamber music, he was the clarinetist and coordinator for the Northern Winds Quintet, he attended the Madeline Island Intensive Wind Quintet Camp, and he was featured at the Minnesota Music Educator’s Association’s mid-winter clinic with the University of Minnesota Duluth Chamber Winds. Andrew is currently pursuing his Masters of Music degree in clarinet performance at the University of Missouri, and he holds his Bachelors of Music in clarinet performance from the University of Minnesota Duluth. His is primary teachers have been Theodore Schoen and Wesley Warnhoff.
Kiernan Steiner is a second year Master’s student in the Choral Conducting program University of Missouri. Her musical experiences growing up in the Driftless region of Wisconsin encouraged her to pursue higher education in Vocal Music, and in 2014, Kiernan completed her Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Music Education from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. From 2014-2016, Kiernan taught private voice and directed the choral program at Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, Wisconsin. Currently, she is working as a Choral Teaching Assistant and directing Hitt Street Harmony at the University of Missouri.
Brianna Trainor is a passionate percussionist in the Midwestern United States. A diverse performer, she stays active in a variety of classical, contemporary, and world music scenes. She currently performs with the Mizzou New Music Ensemble, the graduate ensemble in residence at the University of Missouri. She has previously performed with the Columbia Civic Orchestra, Central Wisconsin Symphony Orchestra, Monteverdi Master Chorale, Morton Feldman Chamber Players, and Ayodele Drum and Dance. She has performed in masterclasses for Dame Evelyn Glennie, Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, Third Coast Percussion, the U.S. Air Force Band, Ivan Treviño, Bolokada Conde, and others. Recent performance venues include Millennium Park and Constellation in Chicago, Ayodele African Dance Conference, and the Wisconsin Percussive Arts Society Days of Percussion. Brianna will be traveling to Ghana, Africa this summer to study with renown musicians Nani Agbeli and Bernard Woma.
Emily Edgington Andrews Long an advocate for quality musical arts in the community, Emily Edgington Andrews is extremely active in Columbia, working with children and adults at every level of their musical development. Emily is on the choral faculty at the University of Missouri, conducting the Women's Choir, co-directing the Concert Chorale, and teaching Basic Conducting and Score Reading, and is the Director of Community Music Outreach, serving as a community liaison for the MU School of Music. In 2013 Emily was appointed Artistic Director for the Columbia Chorale, and under her baton has helped to expand the organization, now in its 39th season, to include 12 choral ensembles. Under its new umbrella title Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, the organization offers exceptional choral experiences accessible to everyone from youth to adults. Emily also serves as the Assistant Conductor for CAAM’s permanent professional Artists-in-Residence, Prometheus: An American Vocal Consort, managing the ensemble and assisting in conducting the highly sought-after ensemble. Emily teaches adjunct at Stephens College, working with the young women in the Performance Arts School. In addition to her work at the collegiate level, Emily enters her ninth year as one of the vocal music teachers at Columbia Independent School, the city’s only non-sectarian college preparatory campus, conducting two of the six ensembles, an Honor Choir for students in grades 4-5 and a select vocal jazz ensemble for 8th-12th graders.This year marks Emily’s twelfth as conductor at the historic Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Columbia, MO, where she maintains a thriving music program, conducting the 45-member Adult Choir of volunteer and paid musicians. Emily regularly serves as a guest clinician and adjudicator, and is an active member of the American Choral Directors Association and the National Association for Music Education. Emily received her degrees in Music at Truman State University, Kirksville, Missouri (B.A.; M.A.) and at the University of Missouri (M.M.).
American clarinetist and bass clarinetist Victoria Hargrove is an avid performer, researcher, and pedagogue. She has performed internationally and throughout the United States. Her research and pedagogical instruction has reached individuals of all ages and levels of education. Victoria is actively performing with the Mizzou New Music Ensemble as the Clarinet/ Bass Clarinet Graduate Assistant with whom she has premiered many new works. Victoria has performed as a guest soloist with the Missouri Symphony and often as guest bass clarinetist with the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra (GA). Internationally, she has been featured as a soloist and chamber musician in Belgium and Quebec. Her pedagogical research has been referenced in other academic writings such as theses and university research papers. Victoria's pedagogical techniques nurture her studio's success with some students being accepted into undergraduate performance programs. Victoria holds a Bachelor’s in Music Performance from Columbus State University and is currently completing her Master's of Music Performance at the University of Missouri. Her principal instructors are Dr. Lisa Oberlander and Dr. Wesley Warnhoff.
Ryan Koesterer is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in music performance at the University of Missouri, studying with Professor Alice K. Dade. As a senior, Ryan actively performs in the University Philharmonic Orchestra, university Wind Ensemble, Columbia Civic Orchestra, the Missouri Symphony Orchestra, and the 312th Army Band and Woodwind Quintet. He also is the woodwind coach for the Missouri Symphony Conservatory, teaches private lessons, and serves as president of the Missouri Flute Society. Recently, Ryan participated in the Eastern Music Festival, Oh My Ears Contemporary Music Festival, and competed in the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) competition, where he won the State auditions and received Honorable Mention at the West Central Division in Denver, Colorado. Ryan is a collegiate member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and will graduate in May 2018. After graduation, Ryan will continue his education pursuing a master's degree in music performance.
Clarinetist Andrew Mahonen is an avid performer, researcher, and educator. Recently, he has been invited to perform at ClarinetFest 2018 in Ostend, Belgium with the Mizzou Clarinet Quartet, and is working with the Odyssey Chamber Music Series as a Performing Fellow. Being an advocate for music education, Andrew has taught students of all ages privately. Additionally, he held the position of music mentor at Duluth Denfeld High School where he taught lessons and masterclasses, helped students prepare for music contest, and presented lectures on various topics in music. Andrew was awarded a research grant to survey the general music knowledge of high school and college students and hopes to continue this research. He has used his findings from this to develop a method of teaching that views music as a diverse art. Andrew has appeared as a soloist numerous times around Northern Minnesota. He has also performed in several orchestras including the Duluth/Superior Symphony Orchestra, the Lyric Opera of the North, and the Minnesota Ballet Orchestra. Having a passion for chamber music, he was the clarinetist and coordinator for the Northern Winds Quintet, he attended the Madeline Island Intensive Wind Quintet Camp, and he was featured at the Minnesota Music Educator’s Association’s mid-winter clinic with the University of Minnesota Duluth Chamber Winds. Andrew is currently pursuing his Masters of Music degree in clarinet performance at the University of Missouri, and he holds his Bachelors of Music in clarinet performance from the University of Minnesota Duluth. His is primary teachers have been Theodore Schoen and Wesley Warnhoff.
Kiernan Steiner is a second year Master’s student in the Choral Conducting program University of Missouri. Her musical experiences growing up in the Driftless region of Wisconsin encouraged her to pursue higher education in Vocal Music, and in 2014, Kiernan completed her Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Music Education from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. From 2014-2016, Kiernan taught private voice and directed the choral program at Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, Wisconsin. Currently, she is working as a Choral Teaching Assistant and directing Hitt Street Harmony at the University of Missouri.
Brianna Trainor is a passionate percussionist in the Midwestern United States. A diverse performer, she stays active in a variety of classical, contemporary, and world music scenes. She currently performs with the Mizzou New Music Ensemble, the graduate ensemble in residence at the University of Missouri. She has previously performed with the Columbia Civic Orchestra, Central Wisconsin Symphony Orchestra, Monteverdi Master Chorale, Morton Feldman Chamber Players, and Ayodele Drum and Dance. She has performed in masterclasses for Dame Evelyn Glennie, Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, Third Coast Percussion, the U.S. Air Force Band, Ivan Treviño, Bolokada Conde, and others. Recent performance venues include Millennium Park and Constellation in Chicago, Ayodele African Dance Conference, and the Wisconsin Percussive Arts Society Days of Percussion. Brianna will be traveling to Ghana, Africa this summer to study with renown musicians Nani Agbeli and Bernard Woma.
March 16 & 17, 2018 – Friday & Saturday 7pm, Missouri Theatre
“Missouri Contemporary Ballet presents Cinderella.”
Fugitive Ground (2018)
Island Moving Company
Choreography: Danielle Genest
Music: John Tavener
Costumes: Eileen Stoops
Dancers: Vincent Brewer, Brooke Di Francesco, Shane Farrell, Lauren Di Fede, Tara Gragg, Timur Kan, Glen Lewis, Katie Moorhead, Christine Sandorfi
Duo for Violin and Cello (1925)
II. ZINGARESCA: Allegro giocoso
Composer: Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942)
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
Layered (2017)
Commissioned by Elizabeth Paszkiewicz
Missouri Contemporary Ballet & Island Moving Company
Choreography: Karen Mareck Grundy
Composer: Molly Healey
Costume Design: Alex J Gordon
Dancers: Nicole Bell, Vincent Brewer, Brooke Di Francesco, Elise Mosbacher, Lauren Di Fede, Tara Gragg, Timur Kan, Glen Lewis, Katie Moorhead, Fernando Rodriguez, Christine Sandorfi Anthony Sigler, Caitlin Sloan, José Soares, Meredith Green Soares, Alice Wells, Kay Whitney
Duo for Violin and Cello (1925)
IV. FINALE: Moderato - Allegro deciso – Presto
Composer: Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942)
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
Flirting (2018)
Island Moving Company
Choreography: Kevin Jenkins
Music: Ludwig Von Beethoven, Edward Grieg
Costumes: Eileen Stoops
Dancers: Vincent Brewer, Brooke Di Francesco, Shane Farrell, Lauren Di Fede, Tara Gragg, Timur Kan, Glen Lewis, Katie Moorhead
15 minute intermission
Cinderella (2018)
Choreography: Karen Mareck Grundy & Fernando Rodriguez
Music: Suite from Cinderella, Op. 87 for two pianos, arr. M. Pletnev
Composer: Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)
I.Introduction. Andante dolce
II.Quarrel. Allegretto
III.Winter. Adagio
IV.Spring. Vivace con brio
V.Cinderella's Waltz. Andante – Allegretto
VI.Gavotte. Allegretto
VII.Gallop. Presto
VIII.Valse lente. Adagio
IX.Finale. Allegro moderato
Costumes: Deborah Green
Ayako Tsuruto, piano I
Peter Miyamoto, piano II
Casting (In Order of Appearance)
Godmother: Kay Whitney
Stepmother: Elise Mosbacher
Stepsisters: Nicole Bell & Caitlin Sloan
Cinderella: Meredith Green Soares
Design Team
Dress: Alice Wells
Hair: José Soares
Shoes: Fernando Rodriguez
Eligible Bachelor: Anthony Sigler
Gala Attendees: Island Moving Company
“Missouri Contemporary Ballet presents Cinderella.”
Fugitive Ground (2018)
Island Moving Company
Choreography: Danielle Genest
Music: John Tavener
Costumes: Eileen Stoops
Dancers: Vincent Brewer, Brooke Di Francesco, Shane Farrell, Lauren Di Fede, Tara Gragg, Timur Kan, Glen Lewis, Katie Moorhead, Christine Sandorfi
Duo for Violin and Cello (1925)
II. ZINGARESCA: Allegro giocoso
Composer: Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942)
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
Layered (2017)
Commissioned by Elizabeth Paszkiewicz
Missouri Contemporary Ballet & Island Moving Company
Choreography: Karen Mareck Grundy
Composer: Molly Healey
Costume Design: Alex J Gordon
Dancers: Nicole Bell, Vincent Brewer, Brooke Di Francesco, Elise Mosbacher, Lauren Di Fede, Tara Gragg, Timur Kan, Glen Lewis, Katie Moorhead, Fernando Rodriguez, Christine Sandorfi Anthony Sigler, Caitlin Sloan, José Soares, Meredith Green Soares, Alice Wells, Kay Whitney
Duo for Violin and Cello (1925)
IV. FINALE: Moderato - Allegro deciso – Presto
Composer: Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942)
Julie Rosenfeld, violin
Eli Lara, violoncello
Flirting (2018)
Island Moving Company
Choreography: Kevin Jenkins
Music: Ludwig Von Beethoven, Edward Grieg
Costumes: Eileen Stoops
Dancers: Vincent Brewer, Brooke Di Francesco, Shane Farrell, Lauren Di Fede, Tara Gragg, Timur Kan, Glen Lewis, Katie Moorhead
15 minute intermission
Cinderella (2018)
Choreography: Karen Mareck Grundy & Fernando Rodriguez
Music: Suite from Cinderella, Op. 87 for two pianos, arr. M. Pletnev
Composer: Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)
I.Introduction. Andante dolce
II.Quarrel. Allegretto
III.Winter. Adagio
IV.Spring. Vivace con brio
V.Cinderella's Waltz. Andante – Allegretto
VI.Gavotte. Allegretto
VII.Gallop. Presto
VIII.Valse lente. Adagio
IX.Finale. Allegro moderato
Costumes: Deborah Green
Ayako Tsuruto, piano I
Peter Miyamoto, piano II
Casting (In Order of Appearance)
Godmother: Kay Whitney
Stepmother: Elise Mosbacher
Stepsisters: Nicole Bell & Caitlin Sloan
Cinderella: Meredith Green Soares
Design Team
Dress: Alice Wells
Hair: José Soares
Shoes: Fernando Rodriguez
Eligible Bachelor: Anthony Sigler
Gala Attendees: Island Moving Company
April 30, 2018 (Mon), 7pm: DBRL Lecture Series
Join oboist Dr. Alison Robuck in Odyssey's FREE Pre-concert Lecture Series!
On Monday, April 30 from 7:00-7:45 in the Friends Room at the Daniel Boone Regional Library, Dr. Robuck will speak about Mendelssohn and Schumann. Learn about these musicians and enhance your enjoyment to the live concerts that much more. Free Admission to the Monday night lecture.
*Bonus* There will also be a drawing for a free pair of concert tickets.
Hope to see you there!
On Monday, April 30 from 7:00-7:45 in the Friends Room at the Daniel Boone Regional Library, Dr. Robuck will speak about Mendelssohn and Schumann. Learn about these musicians and enhance your enjoyment to the live concerts that much more. Free Admission to the Monday night lecture.
*Bonus* There will also be a drawing for a free pair of concert tickets.
Hope to see you there!
May 4, 2018 (Fri), 6:45pm Pre-Concert,
and 7:00pm "Life & Love: Liebeslieder"
| 2018.05.04_odyssey_program_final.pdf |
May 4, 2018
"Life & Love: Liebeslieder"
6:45pm Pre-concert:
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937):
Piano Concerto in G Major (1929-1931)
I. Allegramente
Holly Quist, soloist
Ross Dryer, orchestral accompaniment
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809):
Sonata in E Minor, Hob. XVI: 34 (ca. 1783)
I. Presto
Benedetto Colagvianni, piano
7:00pm
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847): Overture, from "The Midsummer Night's Dream" Op. 21 (1826) for four hands [12'00]
Peter Miyamoto and Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Robert Schumann: Frauenliebe und Leben, Op. 42 (1830) [25'30]
Text by Adelbert von Chamisso
"Seit ich ihn gesehen" ("Since I Saw Him")
"Er, der Herrlichste von allen" ("He, the Noblest of All")
"Ich kann's nicht fassen, nicht glauben" ("I Cannot Grasp or Believe It")
"Du Ring an meinem Finger" ("You Ring Upon My Finger")
"Helft mir, ihr Schwestern" ("Help Me, Sisters")
"Süßer Freund, du blickest mich verwundert an" ("Sweet Friend, You Gaze")
"An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust" ("At My Heart, At My Breast")
"Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz getan" ("Now You Have Caused Me Pain for the First Time")
Julia Bentley, mezzo-soprano
Peter Miyamoto, piano
Intermission
F. Mendelssohn: Piano Sextet, Op. 110 (1824) [37’00]
I. Allegro vivace
II. Adagio
III. Menuetto: Agitato
IV. Allegro vivace
Eva Szekely, violin
Leslie Perna and Julie Rosenfeld, viola
Eli Lara, violoncello
Sue Stubbs, double bass
Ayako Tsuruta, piano
"Life & Love: Liebeslieder"
6:45pm Pre-concert:
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937):
Piano Concerto in G Major (1929-1931)
I. Allegramente
Holly Quist, soloist
Ross Dryer, orchestral accompaniment
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809):
Sonata in E Minor, Hob. XVI: 34 (ca. 1783)
I. Presto
Benedetto Colagvianni, piano
7:00pm
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847): Overture, from "The Midsummer Night's Dream" Op. 21 (1826) for four hands [12'00]
Peter Miyamoto and Ayako Tsuruta, piano
Robert Schumann: Frauenliebe und Leben, Op. 42 (1830) [25'30]
Text by Adelbert von Chamisso
"Seit ich ihn gesehen" ("Since I Saw Him")
"Er, der Herrlichste von allen" ("He, the Noblest of All")
"Ich kann's nicht fassen, nicht glauben" ("I Cannot Grasp or Believe It")
"Du Ring an meinem Finger" ("You Ring Upon My Finger")
"Helft mir, ihr Schwestern" ("Help Me, Sisters")
"Süßer Freund, du blickest mich verwundert an" ("Sweet Friend, You Gaze")
"An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust" ("At My Heart, At My Breast")
"Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz getan" ("Now You Have Caused Me Pain for the First Time")
Julia Bentley, mezzo-soprano
Peter Miyamoto, piano
Intermission
F. Mendelssohn: Piano Sextet, Op. 110 (1824) [37’00]
I. Allegro vivace
II. Adagio
III. Menuetto: Agitato
IV. Allegro vivace
Eva Szekely, violin
Leslie Perna and Julie Rosenfeld, viola
Eli Lara, violoncello
Sue Stubbs, double bass
Ayako Tsuruta, piano