Community News Joe Kennedy III ’99 Receives Distinguished Alumni/ae Award
BB&N Student Composer Garners High Honors
BB&N Head of School Rebecca T. Upham and Distinguished Alumni/ae Awards Committee Chair Todd Harrison ’77, P’13, ’17 led the proceedings at a reception and dinner to celebrate the Honorable Joseph P. “Joe” Kennedy III ’99 as the 2017 BB&N Distinguished Young Alumnus on March 2nd at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Cambridge. Congressman Kennedy received this year’s award “in recognition of his outstanding professional achievements, his service to his country, and his active demonstration of the values that characterize a BB&N graduate.” During his remarks, Kennedy thanked many members of the BB&N community, delivering an eloquent and passionate tribute to the value and importance of teachers and mentors.
Avik Sarkar ‘19 began playing the piano at age 8, surprisingly late for a high-caliber classical musician. However, Sarkar also began composing music at age 10, surprisingly early...and he hasn’t slowed down since. Sarkar was recently named a 2017 YoungArts National Competition Winner by the National YoungArts Foundation, a group that “seeks out, identifies, and recognizes emerging young artistic talent.” It’s not the first time Sarkar has been recognized for his talents, and after hearing several of his compositions, it’s safe to say it won’t be the last time.
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At a recent student forum organized by Upper School chamber music and orchestra teacher Brian Reasoner, students and faculty listened to several of Sarkar’s pieces and had a chance to talk about music with the young composer. Sarkar discussed two pieces in particular: “polarity,” a string quartet piece that explores the interplay of two seemingly incompatible scales (B-flat major and E-major), and “Purvi,” a piece exploring Indian music themes in a Western orchestral style written for and performed by a 60-piece orchestra.
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x 1 x Joe Kennedy III ’99 listens as Todd Harrison ’77 P’13, ‘17, Chair of the Distinguished Alumni/ae Awards Committee, and Rebecca T. Upham, Head of School, read the award citation being presented. x 2 x Kennedy greets his former teacher, Bob O’Brien, Faculty Emeritus, while Lauren Birchfield Kennedy (left) and Michaela Casey, Faculty Emerita (right), look on. x 3 x John Scanlan P’18, Laura Hodges Taylor ‘17, ’74, ‘08, Former Chair, Board of Trustees, Agnes Bundy Scanlan P’18, Trustee, at the event x 4 x Joe Kennedy III ’99, 2017 Distinguished Young Alumnus, Rebecca T. Upham, Head of School, Brace Young P’14, ‘14, ‘17, Chair, Board of Trustees x 5 x Kennedy greets Stevie Olson, Trustee and LS Faculty.
“Although I definitely enjoy all parts of the composition process, my favorite part, and the most gratifying part, too, is definitely getting to hear a piece performed,” says Sarkar. “It’s a really amazing experience to hear music you’ve written played live, one that always gives you something to learn from.” Sarkar, who also plays the cello, is no stranger to accolades; his compositions have received awards from the ASCAP Morton Gould, Robert Avalon International, Tribeca, National Young Composers competitions, and the Carlos Surinach BMI student composer prize—awarded to the youngest of nine winners chosen from over 700 composers under the age of 28. As a pianist, Sarkar has performed in recitals at Cadogan Hall in London, Symphony Hall in Boston, Carnegie Hall in New York City, and, of course, BB&N.
2 3 2 5 Girls Varsity Hockey Team Plays at Fenway Park It was the opportunity of a lifetime for this year’s BB&N girls varsity hockey team—gliding along a rink mid-field beneath the quintessence of New England sports iconography, the “Green Monster”—and it didn’t disappoint.
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BB&N squared off against Noble and Greenough in early January in a game at Fenway Park as part of Capital One’s Frozen Fenway Women’s and Girls’ Hockey Day. Despite recording a spirited 4-1 defeat in the contest, there were no losers beneath the lights. The occasion took on added meaning as all players on both teams wore special number 24 jerseys in recognition of Denna Laing, the Nobles alumna who sustained a significant spinal cord injury during the October Women’s Classic at Gillette Stadium in 2015. Net proceeds from the event benefitted the Denna Laing Fund. Congratulations to all of the athletes who competed! 5