UGA MIDDLE EAST MUSIC ENSEMBLE
TUESDAY APRIL 22, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
RAMSEY
CONCERT HALL
JARED HOLTON, director
UGA MIDDLE EAST MUSIC ENSEMBLE
Tuesday, April 22, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Ramsey Concert Hall, UGA Performing Arts Center
UGA Middle Eastern Music Ensemble
Jared Holton, Director with Ali Jihad Racy
Levon Ambartsumian
Lilly Anayeh
PROGRAM
Bashraf Sama‘i Isba‘in
Longa Nahawand
Ahwak
Kamancha
Nubar Nubar
Tamzara
Tunisian maluf
Ali Jihad Racy
Muhammad ‘Abd al-Wahhab (1902-1991), composer Husayn al-Sayyid (1916-1983), lyricist Sung by ‘Abd al-Halim Hafiz (1929-1977)
Sayat Nova (1712-1795) arr. Tovmas Poghosyan
Trad. Armenian Song
Trad. Armenian Dance
Krunk Komitas Vardapet (1869-1935) arr. Sergei Aslamazyan (1897-1978)
Sa’altek Habibi
‘Atini al-Nay wa-Ghanni
Assi Rahbani (1923–1986) and Mansour Rahbani (1925–2009), composers Sung by Fairuz (b. 1935)
Assi Rahbani (1923–1986) and Mansour Rahbani (1925–2009), composers Najib Hankash (1899–1979), lyricist Poem by Khalil Gibran (1883-1931)
Sung by Fairuz (b. 1935)
For more detailed program notes, lyrics, and translations, please scan the QR code.
‘Ud (lute)
Jon Hollis (duduk)
MIDDLE EAST MUSIC ENSEMBLE
Jared Holton, Director
Jared Holton (qanun, vocals)
Malek Mushref (buzuq)
Avery Pate (e. guitar)
Nay (reed flute)
Kristi Kiene (oboe)
Ella Ma (flute)
Natalie Smith (flute)
Violin
Andreea Barca
Surya Blasiole
Anna Hu
Kennedi Scales
Molly Schneider
Ali Jihad Racy
Viola
Adam Starks
Double Bass
Bianca Wilson
Percussion (tabla, riqq, daff, ghaval)
Javier Agredo
Nderitu Kiragu
David MacPherson
Robert Moser
Aryan Thakur
The UGA Middle East Ensemble is an extension of the Musicology/Ethnomusicology program in the Hugh Hodgson School of Music, and serves as a forum for research and performance.
Ali Jihad Racy is an internationally renowned performer, composer, author, and expert on Arab music traditions. As Distinguished Professor of Ethnomusicology, Dr. Racy taught for over forty years in the Herb Alpert School of Music at the University of California, Los Angeles, and has trained generations of musicians, music educators, and scholars. Among his many accomplishments are the composition Ecstasy that was composed for and premiered by the prestigious Kronos Quartet (Kronos Caravan, 2000), and the award-winning book, Making Music in the Arab World: The Culture and Artistry of Tarab (Cambridge University Press, 2003). He has received numerous honors and is a master of multiple traditional instruments including the nay, a reed flute, and buzuq, a long-necked fretted lute.
Levon Ambartsumian, Franklin and Regent’s Professor of Violin at the University of Georgia, and formerly professor at the Moscow Conservatory (1978-1993) and Indiana University (1993-1995), is an internationally acclaimed violinist, winner of the 1977 International Violin Competition in Zagreb, the 1979 Montreal International Competition, and of the Soviet Violin Competition in 1981. Ambartsumian is a Merited Artist of Armenia and of the Russian Federation. He is the founder, conductor, and artistic director of the ARCO Chamber Orchestra, now based at the University of Georgia in Athens, USA. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, he continues to perform and present master classes around the world. More than fifty compact discs have been released under different recording labels in the USA and Russia.
Lilly Anayeh is a singer, actor, piano and voice teacher, and choreographer, originally from Jacksonville, Florida. Lilly earned a BFA in Musical Theatre with studies in choreography from The University of Alabama at Birmingham. She was a resident performer and choreographer at Barter Theatre in Abingdon, VA for two seasons. Currently, Lilly teaches through City Springs Theatre Company and Aurora Theatre and is an Adjunct Professor of Voice at Brenau University. Lilly participated in the 2024 Arabic Music Retreat, and, as a proud Palestinian-American, is honored to further invest in her culture through Middle Eastern music.
Jared Holton is Assistant Professor of Musicology and Ethnomusicology at the University of Georgia, where he teaches classes that interrelate musical theory and practice; global studies; sound studies; and cultural theory. His research explores the musical modes of North Africa and how they relate to non-musical objects and expressions, such as identity, corporeality, nonhuman beings, and the cosmos. He has past and upcoming publications in the Asian–European Music Research Journal, Mashriq & Mahjar, The Opera Quarterly, and Maghrib in the Past and Present podcast series. He was co-chair of the international Society for Arab Music Research and is a disciple of musicians and scholars from Libya, Tunisia, and the University of California in Santa Barbara.
Scholarships and Graduate assistantships funded by donations to the Thursday Scholarship Fund make it possible for students to learn and pursue their passions at the Hugh Hodgson School of Music. Please consider a taxdeductible gift to the Thursday Scholarship Fund so we may continue to support our students and make their education possible. Scan the QR code now or reach out to Melissa Roberts at roberts@uga.edu or 706-254-2111.
SUPPORT INDIVIDUAL AREAS OF THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC
In addition to our primary Support and Scholarship Funds, many specialized areas of interest, including our orchestra and choral programs, have support and scholarship funds you can contribute to directly. You can now learn more about all the ways and areas you can support the Hugh Hodgson School of Music. Scan the QR code or visit music.uga.edu/giving-and-alumni to the support the Hugh Hodgson School of Music area of your choice.
JOIN THE DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE
Gifts of all amounts are greatly appreciated. However, annual giving at the $1,500 level and higher provides membership in the Director’s Circle, our Hugh Hodgson School of Music Honor Roll. Director’s Circle members are invited to exclusive events and performances throughout the academic year.
For large gifts, please contact Melissa Roberts at roberts@uga.edu or 706-254-2111.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA HUGH HODGSON SCHOOL OF MUSIC.
UGA SUMMER MARCHING BAND CAMP
UGA’s Summer Marching Band Camp is an intensive five-day experience designed to help young marching band performers expand their skillsets. Our experts provide the personal level of attention required to help you master your specialty as drum majors, color guard members, and marching percussionists.
• Drum Major & Leadership Academy
Develop and refine your conducting and leadership skills under former and current drum majors of UGA’s acclaimed Redcoat Band. Learn to be an effective communicator both musically and through band leadership
• Color Guard
This camp serves students of all ability levels, from those who hope to audition into their high school guard, to drum corps and winter guard veterans. Students who wish to begin work or desire advanced instruction on rifle or sabre may have that opportunity at the discretion of the staff.
• Marching Percussion
Students audition into a camp drumline based on current ability level, and will learn and perform with this group. The curriculum will include technique, performance practice, along with performance and rehearsal repertoire appropriate for the student’s current demonstrated performance ability.
THURS 4/24
2 p.m.
Edge Concert Hall FREE CONCERT
ImaginePossibilities the
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA STRING AREA CHAMBER RECITAL
Edge is located in the Hugh Hodgson School of Music, 250 River Road, Athens GA
TUES 4/1
THURS 4/24
7:30 p.m.
7:30 p.m.
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA WIND ENSEMBLE - “SHAPESHIFTER”
Hodgson Concert Hall
Hodgson Concert Hall
$15 - Adult
$3 - Child/Student
$15 - Adult
$3 - Child/Student
FRI 4/25
6 p.m.
Dancz Center for New Music FREE CONCERT
MON 4/28
3:30 p.m.
Ramsey Concert Hall FREE CONCERT
MON 4/28
7:30 p.m.
Hodgson Concert Hall FREE CONCERT
SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND COMBINED CHOIRS - GUSTAV MAHLER’S SYMPHONY No. 2
Thursday Scholarship Series Performance
Don’t miss the biggest concert of the year, featuring over 300 student musicians. The University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra, Hodgson Singers, University Chorus, and Men’s and Women’s Glee Clubs will perform Symphony No. 2 in C minor by Gustav Mahler. UGA Voice Faculty Elizabeth Johnson Knight, mezzo-soprano, and Amy Petrongelli, soprano, will be the featured soloists for the evening.
Known as the Resurrection Symphony, it was written between 1888 and 1894, and first performed in 1895. This symphony was one of Mahler’s most popular and successful works during his lifetime.
COMPOSITION AREA: NEW WORKS RECITAL #4
The Dancz Center for New Music is located in room 246 in the Hugh Hodgson School of Music.
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA REPRETORY SINGERS
The Repertory Singers is a mixed chamber choir directed by graduate student conductors. Its format offers laboratory rehearsal and performance experience for conductors and singers alike. This group provides students with the opportunity to build knowledge and skill in the areas of sight-reading, conducting gesture, rehearsal techniques, and choral repertoire.
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
PHILHARMONIA
As one of the Hugh Hodgson School of Music’s large orchestral ensembles, the University Philharmonia offers an outlet for musical expression to all string players at the University of Georgia. The University Philharmonia is under the supervision of Mark Cedel. The ensemble is also conducted by graduate students majoring in orchestral conducting.