THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY College of Music presents
Guest Artist Lecture
“A Celebration of the Life and Work of William Levi Dawson” Mark Hugh Malone, Lecturer/Piano Marcía Porter, Soprano
Friday, October 20, 2023 7:30 p.m. | Longmire Recital Hall
PROGRAM “A Celebration of the Life and Work ofWilliam Levi Dawson” Introduction Dawson’s Early Years Dawson’s First Teaching Experiences Forever Thine (1922)
William Levi Dawson (1899–1990) Marcía Porter, soprano
Dawson’s First Significant Publication Jump Back Honey, Jump Back (1923)
William Levi Dawson
Marcía Porter, soprano Bachelor’s Degree and “Negro Folk Songs” Talk About A Child That Do Love Jesus (1927)
William Levi Dawson
Marcía Porter, soprano Master’s Degree; Dawson and Cornella in Chicago Out in the Fields (1929)
William Levi Dawson Marcía Porter, soprano
Return to Tuskegee The Early Accomplishments of the Tuskegee Choir Negro Folk Symphony My Lord What A Mourning (1927) Marcía Porter, soprano
William Levi Dawson
Dawson in Africa Dawson on Lyrics of African American Spirituals The Indefatigable Dawson in Retirement Final Words There is a Balm in Gilead (1939)
William Levi Dawson
Marcía Porter, soprano
ABOUT THE ARTISTS Florida native Dr. Mark Hugh Malone is a veteran music educator with over 46 years of classroom experience in a variety of settings with students of all ages who has been a frequent presenter at the National Association for Music Education National Convention, MS Music Educators State Convention, Louisiana Music Educators Association, Mississippi Whole Schools Initiative Summer and Winter Institutes, choral clinics for students and conductors, as well as organizer of professional development workshops for teachers. Malone has experience in elementary and high school music programs, was choral director at Pearl River Community College (MS), Coordinator of Music Education at William Carey University (MS), and was Visiting Professor of Music Education at The University of Southern Mississippi. Malone holds the following degrees: Bachelor of Science in Social Studies Education from Florida State University, Bachelor of Arts in Humanities from Rollins College, Master of Music Education and the Ph.D. in Music Education from Florida State University. In addition, Malone has Orff Level Three Certification in music for children, and completed post-doctoral work in Choral Conducting at Westminster Choir College. As curriculum designer for the Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC), Malone has written three arts-integration curricula: The Mississippi Blues Trail and Beyond, (2012), MS History Through the Arts: A Bicentennial Journey (2017), and Footprints in the Dust: The Natchez Trace (2019). All three can be accessed at www.arts.ms.gov (click on Resources, Tools for Educators). Malone has also written arts-integration curricula for the City of Laurel (2017), MS, Mississippi Cultural Crossroads (2020), and for the Catholic Diocese of Jackson (2020). Three new S.T.E.A.M. curricula are due to be published in 2023 by MAC. An expert in sight-reading, Malone has written sight-singing materials for several states, presented workshops for students, and offered pedagogical insights through professional development for teachers. Malone serves as liaison with Festival Music Press to promote exercises for adjudicated assessment of music performance for Mississippi Middle Schools and High Schools. As a member of the Advisory Committee for adoption of the National Standards for Music Education in the State of Mississippi, head of the committee to develop a guide to the National Standards for instrumental directors, a frequent presenter of Professional Development Workshops explaining the Standards, and an evaluator of Whole
Schools Arts Integration programs, Malone has extensive experience in the understanding and use of the current music standards in use in the United States. Malone’s manuscript, William Levi Dawson: American Music Educator was published in March, 2023 by The University Press of Mississippi. Award-winning soprano Marcía Porter made her New York solo recital debut in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in 2005. An active recitalist, the soprano has performed in numerous venues throughout the United States, Italy, Brazil, and the Czech Republic. Porter has sung at such prestigious international festivals as the Prague Proms, Piccolo Spoleto Festival, the Ravinia Festival, and the Ameropa International Chamber Music Festival. She has performed with such national and international organizations as the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, Beijing International Symphony Orchestra (Beijing, China) and the Camerata Filarmonica Bohemia (Prague, Czech Republic). Porter has also performed with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Chautauqua Opera, Dayton Opera, and Chicago Opera Theatre. Porter’s discography includes the 2011 world premier recording of Requiem für Mozart, works for soprano and orchestra by Antonio Rosetti, which was released by the German record label Ars Produktion and the 2013 recording, Open Thine Heart, a recording of contemporary American vocal works, which was released by Albany Records. A Fulbright Scholar and Rotary International Cultural Ambassadorial Scholar, Porter has won several other awards and honors including the 2004 National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) Artist Award Competition, the NATS Intern program, finalist in the Metropolitan Opera Central Regional Competition, Jessye Norman Graduate Fellowship in Voice, Opera Carolina Young Artist Recital Program Award, and the Farwell Award. In 2011-2012 Porter was a Fulbright Scholar to Brazil. Her research was entitled “Bridging boundaries through musical collaboration and cultural exchange: a lecture and recital series of contemporary classical Brazilian and African American vocal literature.” During her residency at the Universidade de São Paulo, she presented numerous recitals, lectures and masterclasses in cities throughout Brazil including São Paulo, Campinas, Alphaville, Ribeirão Preto and Brasilia. Porter is a Professor of Voice at the Florida State University College of Music. She is a much sought after clinician and has presented masterclasses throughout the mid-western and southeastern US. She has served on the faculty of Ameropa International Chamber Music Festival in Prague, Czech Republic and as a visiting Professor of Voice at Universidade de São Paulo. Porter, a graduate of the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, received the Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in voice performance from Northwestern University. Porter earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in performance from The Universityof Michigan, where she studied with world-renowned Metropolitan Opera singer Shirley Verrett. Previous teachers include Margaret Harshaw, Carmen Mehta, and Kathleen Kaun.