THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS SCHOOL OF MUSIC
Faculty NEWS Dylan Bassett, a lecturer in percussion, directed the AllState Percussion Ensemble at the Kansas Percussive Arts Society’s Day of Percussion on April 7 at Friends University in Wichita. Abbey Dvor ak, assistant professor of music therapy and music education, received the American Music Therapy Association Midwestern Region 2018 Research Award for outstanding research contributions to the field of music therapy. Dvorak also presented “A Conceptual Framework for the Use of Music in Mindfulness Practice” and “Outcomes of a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) for Music Therapy and Music Education Students” at the AMTA Midwestern Regional Conference in Iowa City, Iowa. The KU Women’s Chorale, conducted by Mariana Far ah, associate
May 2018
director of choral activities, traveled to Oklahoma City to perform a concert at the American Choral Directors Association’s Southwestern Division Conference on March 8. Bryan Kip Ha aheim, professor of music composition, was part of the April 6 show Avian Conspiracy Theory, which opened at the Wallace Engineering
Gallery in Kansas City. The show was a collaboration between visual artists Steve Huey and Crystal Huey, sculptor Kenn Peters, and Haaheim as an audio artist. Three of Haaheim’s students Emma Piazza, Maddie Bert and Allison Sheldon contributed significantly to the project. Debr a Hedden, professor and director of music education, presented research at the National Association for Music Education Research Conference in Atlanta in late March. Her study, “Teaching Children Songs in General Music Classes,” reported
Cover Photo: On April 29, the KU Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble I gave their debut performance at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. The Wind Ensemble, conducted by Paul Popiel, premiered Kevin Walczyk’s Symphony No. 5 Freedom From Fear: Images from the Shoreline, featuring soloists soprano Gretchen Pille and boy soprano Ashton Rapp. Pictured Above: The Jazz Ensemble I, directed by Dan Gailey, performed Palos Nuevos, a work composed by Gailey and choregraphed by Michelle Heffner Hayes, chair of theater and dance. The piece featured Steve Leisring, professor of trumpet, Brandon Draper, percussion lecturer and guitarist Beau Bledsoe. The concert was sponsored by Reach Out Kansas, Inc., Jim Zakoura, Lee Smithyman and the Law Office of Smithyman & Zakoura.
QuickNotes - May 2018 - music.ku.edu
particular strategies and teaching sequences from three general music teachers. One was in an urban setting, one in a suburban school and one in a rural classroom. She is using the results to better inform undergraduate music majors about pedagogy in teaching children to sing. Paul Laird, professor of musicology, published his biography of Leonard Bernstein in the series Critical Lives from Reaktion Books, a British concern. It is Laird’s fourth book on Bernstein, a consideration of the man’s life and work approximately 50,000 words, intended as a brief look at the man’s eventful career. Laird also took part in Bernstein in Chichester, a year-long celebration of the composer’s association with the city in southern England related to the centenary year of Bernstein’s birth. Bernstein wrote the choral work Chichester Psalms for performance in the city’s cathedral, a piece on which Laird has published another book. He gave a lecture on April 20 on the piece’s conception and its music during a symposium on Walter Hussey, who commissioned many pieces from modern artists and that work from Bernstein while he was dean of Chichester Cathedral. Laird also took part in a panel discussion at the University of Chichester the next day on Bernstein and music education. On April 25, Laird presented the paper “Genre and Stylistic Expectations in the Musical Theater of Leonard Bernstein” at the International Conference: Genres of Musical Theatre Across Labels in Madrid, Spain, and on April 26 he presented the lecture “’Somewhere’: El Teatro Musical de Leonard Bernstein” at the Real Escuela Superior de Artes Dramáticas in Madrid, an event sponsored by the Asociación Cultural de Teatro Musical de Madrid. On March 24, Scott Murphy, professor of music theory, led the graduate-student workshop “Theorizing Categorically: Film Music and Beyond” for the 2018 meeting of the SouthCentral Society for Music Theory in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Enrollees included students from Yale University and Louisiana State University. Also, both solo piano and vocal arrangements of his KPR Fugue, a Bach-style composition whose subject is based upon the pledge drive phone number, were played on Kansas Public Radio at least ten times during the second week of April for the station’s spring fund drive. Sydney Williams, Audrey Morel and Will Simpson performed and recorded the vocal parts. Martin Nedbal, assistant professor of musicology, has published an article on Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Le nozze di Figaro in the journal 19thCentury Music. He was also awarded a summer research grant from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) to travel to Karlsruhe and Donaueschingen to study performing
materials of Prague origin in the former opera archive of the Fürstenberg family. In April, he presented a paper about Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito at a Czech Studies Workshop, hosted by the Harriman Institute at Columbia University in New York. Br ad Osborn, assistant professor of music theory, received a $5,000 KU Open Educational Resource grant to develop a free textbook and accompanying course materials for his Fall 2018 course on music videos. Students, as well as the general public, will be able to access materials at no cost through an open-access website. Roberta Freunda Schwartz, associate professor of musicology, presented the paper “‘Louie Louie,’ the FBI, and the Genesis of a Rock Classic” at the annual meeting of the Popular Culture Association in Indianapolis. She also presented the paper “Royal Ambitions: The Musical and Artistic World of the Viceregal Court of Valencia” at the annual meeting of the South Central Renaissance Society. Assistant Professor of Music Composition Ingrid Stölzel’s composition The Gorgeous Nothings for Soprano, Flute, Oboe and Piano was awarded the first prize in the prestigious 2018 Suzanne and Lee Ettelson Composer’s Competition. The composition was also selected as a winner of the LunART Festival 2018 Call for Scores. Her music was presented at the 2018 Society of Composers National Conference and the Southwest ACDA 2018 Regional Conference in March. Eric Stomberg, professor of bassoon, gave master classes in April at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, the Eastman School of Music and the University of Iowa, where he also performed a guest artist recital.
On February 23, the KU Symphonic Band, under the direction of Matt Smith, associate professor of bands, performed at the Friday Night Showcase Concert at the Kansas Music Educators In-Service Workshop in Wichita. The concert also featured Steve Leisring, trumpet professor, and Ronald Romm, formerly of the Canadian Brass in a duet, and Sharon Toulouse, assistant director of bands.
QuickNotes - May 2018 - music.ku.edu
In March, Smith presented a session on “The Conductor’s Guide to Teaching Wind Band History” at the Southwestern Division conference of the College Band Director’s National Association in Houston. And, Smith conducted the Lawrence Community Orchestra in performances accompanying silent film comedies in February at Liberty Hall in downtown Lawrence, and Elgar’s Enigma Variations in April.
as the chair of the Program Committee for the conference, while Roust, Assistant Professor Martin Nedbal, and Associate Professor Roberta Freund Schwartz all served on the Local Arrangements Committee.
Pictured above are Christy Miller, Dorothy Glick Maglione, Colin Roust and Justin Sextro. The KU Chamber Singers, directed by Paul Tucker, director of choral activities, traveled to San José, Costa Rica to celebrate the University of Kansas’ 60 years of academic partnership with the University of Costa Rica. Other faculty participating in the trip included Dean Robert Walzel, Ketty Wong, associate professor of ethnomusicology, Hannah Collins, assistant professor of cello and Ellen Sommer, collaborative piano lecturer. Ketty Wong, associate professor of ethnomusicology, presented a conference entitled “Luis Humberto Salgado: Un Quijote de la Música” at the Casa de la Música in Quito, Ecuador, on March 12.
2018 FACULTY AWARDS 2018 OUTSTANDING FACULTY TEACHING AWARD paul Popiel 2018 OUTSTANDING FACULTY RESEARCH AWARD Ingrid Stölzel
STAFF NEWS
Stephanie Zelnick, associate professor of clarinet, taught at festivals throughout Ontario, including the University of Windsor and the Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec Clarinet Festival. In April, Zelnick’s duo, AdZel, released its self-titled album, which includes works by Jason Barabba, Anne Guzzo, Bernhard Henrik Crusell and Mohammed Fairouz.
Leslie O’Neil, band office manager, was named a 2018 KU Employee of the Year at an Employee Recognition Ceremony on May 9. She was one of two staff members across the university who was recognized with the award. The nomination for O’Neil noted that while her title is band office manager, she is also the nurse, mom, recruiter, counselor, helper and solver of problems, big and small, for the band office and an important part in making music happen at KU. O’Neil is pictured accepting the award with Chancellor Douglas Girod.
The Musicology Division was well represented at the Society for American Music’s Annual Meeting, held this year in Kansas City. Assistant Professor Colin Roust gave a paper on the daily life of a bandsman in the American Expeditionary Forces. Spencer Huston, PhD ‘17 in musicology, presented a poster on the American piano virtuoso Sebastian Bach Mills. Three doctoral students presented their work: Dorothy Glick Maglione presented a poster on music at Ellis Island; Christy Miller gave a paper on American roots music used as wartime propaganda on the BBC; and Justin Sextro gave a paper on the musical relationship between Leontyne Price and Samuel Barber. Professor Paul Laird served
Rita Riley, director of undergraduate services, was one of 18 professional academic advisors at KU nominated for Academic Advisor of the Year and recognized in a ceremony in May held by the KU Advising Network, with support from the Undergraduate Studies office. Riley (center) is pictured with DeAngela Burns-Wallace, vice provost for undergraduate studies, and Chancellor Douglas Girod.
QuickNotes - May 2018 - music.ku.edu
STUDENT NEWS Nathan Dame, a doctoral student in music education with an emphasis in choral pedagogy, was named the American Choral Directors Association’s national repertoire and resource chair for junior high and middle school choirs. Dame has taught choral music for 11 years and is the director of choirs at Burnett Junior High School in Wylie, Texas. He earned his music education degree from KU and holds a master’s degree in music education from Texas Women’s University. He is also working toward a minor in leadership and administration at KU. Guangyu Dong, DMA candidate in trumpet performance, was selected to play Stravinsky’s A Soldier Tale with the Intimacy of Creativity, a new music festival in Hong Kong. Guangyu was selected for this honor by MacCarthur Genius Award Winner, Bright Sheng, Distinguished Professor at the University of Michigan. Dong will perform with members of the Israeli Chamber Project. Emily Foltz, a doctoral student in oboe performance, was awarded an honorable mention in April in the KU Libraries’ 62nd Annual Snyder Book Collecting Contest for her collection “The Oboe: Its Past, Performance, and Pedagogy.”
Jennifer Potter, a doctoral student in music education, presented the research poster “The Impact of Teaching Experience and School Setting on Elementary General Music Teachers’ Sense of Self-Efficacy for Classroom Management” at the National Association for Music Education Music Research and Teacher Education National Conference in Atlanta in March. Justin Sextro, PhD student in musicology, presented a paper on Leontyne Price and Samuel Barber to the Great Plains Chapter of the College Music Society, hosted by Wartburg College.
Darius Sheppard, undergraduate voice major, joined students from the University of Michigan, Villanova University and Loyola University Chicago to sing the national anthem at the NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four in San Antonio on March 31. Their performance before the start of the Michigan-Loyola game was broadcast on national television. Photo credit: Chris Steppig.
Kylie Hansen, junior bassoon performance major, won first prize in the Midwest Double Reed Society Young Artist Competition held in Colombia, Missouri on April 21. Shuo Li, doctoral bassoon student, played with both the Kansas City Symphony and Charleston (South Carolina) Symphony Orchestra. In addition, she has been invited to audition for the principal bassoon position with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York City. Sar a McClure, a doctoral student in musicology, received a 2017-2018 KU Graduate Research Competition Award in April for her paper “Francis Poulenc and the Renouveau Catholique.” The competition is a campus-wide event sponsored by the KU Office of Graduate Studies. KU MUSIC ALUMNI - SEND US YOUR NEWS Land a new job or finish that Ph.D? We want to hear about the great work our alumni are doing in the world of music. Send your music related news to musicnews@ku.edu.
Han Wang, a doctoral student in piano performance and student of Steven Spooner, earned two first-place finishes and one third-place finish at international competitions this spring. In early February, Wang was awarded the top prize in the Fourth Annual United States Virtuoso Artists International Piano Competition at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Later in February, Wang won a grand prize at the Seventh Metropolitan International Piano Competition in New York City. As the grand prize winner, Wang was a featured artist at the Metropolitan International Music
QuickNotes - May 2018 - music.ku.edu
Festival’s Gala Concert held at Lincoln Center’s Bruno Walter Auditorium. In March, Wang was awarded the third prize at the Ninth Chopin International Piano Competition in Hartford, Connecticut.
2018 STUDENT AWARDS E. THAYER GASTON AWARD Elizabeth VanSant Allison L. Nocita MARCUS E. HAHN AWARD megan bricks CARL AND FRANCES HAVEN PREYER AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING GRADUATING PIANIST tristan Greeno CARL AND FRANCES HAVEN PREYER AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING GRADUATING VOCALIST noelle olson
In March, Xiaolai Zhou, a doctoral student in cello performance, was selected to take a master class from legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma. As part of the Kansas City Symphony’s Charles and Virginia Clark Inside Music Series, Ma instructed two college cellists in Helzberg Hall at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The public was invited to attend. Afterward Ma, Kansas City Symphony Music Director Michael Stern and Kansas City Mayor Sly James held a discussion on the importance of arts in the community. Photo credit: Eric T. Williams
2018 ANTHONY CIUS AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING STUDENT COMPOSER bonnie McLarty GEORGE LAWNER PRIZE FOR AN ORCHESTRAL WORK BY A KU STUDENT COMPOSER Ben Justis EUGENE AND MARY MINGLE SCHOLARSHIP AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING UNDERGRADUATE MUSIC THEORY & MUSIC COMPOSITION STUDENT Shelby Scott Emma Piazza SANDRA KELLER DAUGHERTY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING GRADUATE CHORAL CONDUCTING joshua donaldson EDWARD AND NANCY MATTILA ELECTRONIC MUSIC COMPOSITION AWARD Emma Piazza
On May 11, the Kappa Chapter of the Pi Kappa Lambda Honor Society inducted 19 new members. They are pictured with faculty (left to right) Front Row: Megan Bricks, Irena Jasperson, Allison Nocita, Professor Julia Broxholm and Caitlin Teters. Second Row: Associate Professor Jacob Dakon, Andrew Powell, Kevin Fullerton, Tonya Mitchell, Brooke Humfeld, Eugenia Hernandez Ruiz, Xu Zheng, Anthony Messina, Assistant Professor Ingrid Stozel and Dean Robert Walzel. Third Row: Crystal Buck, Geoffrey Wilcken, R affaele Cipriano, Trent Warbis, Jordan Davis and Assistant Professor Colin Roust. Inductees not pictured are Benjamin Dominguez, Mik ayla Schmitz and Julia Taylor.
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JAZZ STUDIES COMPOSITION AWARD Chuck Mackinnon DICK WRIGHT JAZZ AWARD Murphy Smith UNIVERSITY HONORS PROGRAM mariah Nicole Black Megan E. Bricks Chloe Elise Gilligan Justin Robert Kline Nicholas Andrew Shaheed
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ALUMNI NEWS Ethan Bartley, BM ’14 in trumpet performance, was commissioned with the U.S. Navy Band in Washington, D.C., and has already performed at the White House several times this spring. The novel The Futility Expert written by Margaret Broucek, MCF-BM ‘84 in music composition, won the Nicholas Schaffner Award for Music in Literature. The book, published by Schaffner Press, will be released in June. Broucek is a Maine filmmaker and playwright whose works have appeared Off-Broadway and in film festivals throughout the U.S. and Europe. Melissa Cummins, PHD ’17 in musicology, presented a paper on operettas by Delphine Ugalde and Germaine Tailleferre at the Music by Women Festival, hosted by the Mississippi University for Women.
In March, Nathan Jones, DMA ’16 in music composition, had several new works recorded and premiered. Two new works for concert band which will be available from Southern Music Publishing were recorded by the Lone Star Wind Orchestra in McKinney, Texas. His new pieces, Afternoon on a Hill, and Cloths of Heaven, both for adult treble choir, were premiered by the commissioning ensemble, the Mount Holyoke College Glee Club in South Hadley, Massachusetts, on March 24. Jones was in residence and participated in a public forum following the concert. Erik Mahon, DMA ‘18 in trumpet performance, was selected for a tenure track position as director of jazz at Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa. Christopher Nichols, DMA ’11 in clarinet performance and assistant professor at the University of Delaware, was elected secretary of the International Clarinet Association. Nita Pons, MM ‘07 and DMA ’15 in trumpet performance, was appointed as director of bands at the University of Puerto Rico, Ponce Campus.
Etta Fung, DMA ‘15 in voice performance, sang as Serpina and Susanna in an Italian comic double bill of La Serva Pardrona and Il segreto di Susanna in Macau at the Dom Pedro V Theatre.
Gunyong Lee, DMA ‘16 in trombone performance, was appointed to the music faculty of Jeju National University, South Korea. Marina Hague, BM ’14 in trumpet performance, was promoted to a position working for an under secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce with the Office of Space Commerce in Washington D.C.
Kristee Haney, DMA ’14 in voice performance, sang in-house concerts of Carmen with the New York City Opera in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Earlier, Haney sang five performances in the role of Carmen for a semistage production of Carmen with the Billings Symphony Orchestra. QuickNotes - May 2018 - music.ku.edu
Br ad Walker, MM ‘13 in voice performance, was a semi-finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Auditions in New York City in April.
Ryan Woodhouse, DMA ’12 in music composition had his piece for piano trio, Taured, selected as the winner of the Second City Chamber Series Young Composers Contest. In October he was invited to Tacoma, Washington to hear the work performed by the Volta Trio. He also gave a presentation to student composers at Pacific Lutheran University.