DISTINGUISHED GUESTS NEWS 2022-23

The Hugh Hodgson School of Music consistently provides access for students and audiences alike to world-renowned guest artists. This article features just a few, with a full list of 35 guest speakers and performers from the 2023 spring semester on the opposite page.

JANUARY: The semester began with master classes with the Emerson Quartet as an extension of their farewell performance at the UGA Performing Arts Center. Later in January, one of the leading composers of new and experimental music and sound, Natasha Barrett, gave a weekend residency and performance.

FEBRUARY: In addition to the guests who performed by the UGA Wind Ensemble during the CBDNA concert (see page 30), February featured a number of artists in cello, piano, and saxophone performance and composition. Soprano Angela Brown was UGA’s Delta Visiting Chair for Global Understanding. In addition to working with four graduate and undergraduate vocal performance majors, Brown gave a sold-out recital which included a performance where she sang with the African American Choral Ensemble.

MARCH: Considered a trailblazer for civil rights at UGA, Mary Frances Early spoke to the students during a special Wednesday Common Hour lecture. She shared her perspective of being the first AfricanAmerican graduate of UGA, earning a Master in Music Education. She spoke of the challenges she faced and the hardships she endured to complete her degree. March also included a week-long residency with violist and composer Kenji Bunch that featured a workshop with the UGA Symphony Orchestra as they prepared one of Bunch’s piece “Time In” for their March concert and an improv collaboration with the UGA Department of Dance.

APRIL: Another collaboration with the Department of Dance was the “Middle Eastern Rhythm and Dance” master class with Karim Nagi. This class preceded Nagi’s guest performance with the new UGA Middle East Music Ensemble that same day. The School of Music also co-hosted a recital and conversation with Mikhail Voskresensky. This master pianist’s sixty year career includes having played the European premiere of Shostakovich’s Second Piano Concerto at the Prague Spring Festival in the presence of the composer himself. This speaker was co-hosted by the UGA Russian Flagship Program.

2023-24: The UGA HHSOM faculty is working to enrich the student experience by collaborating with excellent guest artists.

Already in the works for the coming year is a Faculty concert with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra violinist, Kenn Wagner; a recital by Francesca Anderegg, violin; and a recital by Linda Chatterton, flute and Maja Radovanlija, guitar. Often, these guests grow out of collaborations with the UGA Performing Arts Center, Atlanta Symphony, or other professional venues and organizations.

The Hugh Hodgson School of Music will continue to announce guest artists in local media and online at music.uga.edu throughout the year. These opportunities are always updating, so the best way to learn more about these amazing performers is to visit the website at music.uga.edu/special-guests.

Spring 2023

Recent Guest Artists

The sheer number of amazing guests to visit the Hugh Hodgson School of Music in a year is incredible. Here are a list of 35 world-class artists who visited us during this last semester.

Joseph Alessi, trombone

Julio Ribeiro Alves, guitar

Natasha Barrett, composer

Paul Brantley, cello

Angela Brown, soprano

Kenji Bunch, viola and composition

Eric Chasalow, composer

Cheri Prough DeVol, set/lighting design

Double Reed Trio

Ann DuHamel, piano

Mary Frances Early, music education

Emerson String Quartet

Raphael Feuillatre, guitar

Benjamin Fingland, clarinet

Linqua Franqa, hip-hop artist

Mei Han, musicology

Paul Hanson, bassoon

Steven Hough, piano

Lio Kuok-Wai, piano

Badie Khaleghian, composer

William Lang, trombone

Thomas Leleu, saxophone

Joe Lovano, jazz saxophone

Chris Martin, trumpet

J. G. Miller, horn

Kevin Michael Murphy, CCM voice

Karim Nagi, Middle East music and dance

Eric Ohlsson, bassoon

Caroline Owen, performance artist

Jeremy Siskind, piano

Hanna Lisa Stefansson, composer

Catherine Van Handel, bassoon

Mikhail Voskresensky, piano

Sheona White, English horn

Shanshan Yao, violin

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:

Kenji Bunch, viola, with Nina Nagarajan; Joe Lovano, jazz saxophone with UGA Faculty James Weidman, jazz piano; Karim Nagi; Composer Natasha Barrett (center) with Daniel Karcher, UGA Faculty Peter Lane, Michael Flynn, Francisco Cardoso de Araujo, and Jared Tubbs; Shanshan Yao, violin; and Mary Frances Early, music education.

Story by Shaun Baer