Here are some select recent clippings showing the variety of hits/mentions identifying musicians and scholars as Eastman School of Music alumni, faculty or students. (Note: Some links may have expired.)
Classical music crisis: Author says schools today aren’t building audiences
(Pittsburgh Tribune Review © 09/15/2014)
In his new book “The Crisis of Classical Music in America, Lessons From a Life in the Education of Musicians” (Rowman and Littlefield), Freeman says schools are giving intense instruction to classical-music students but are not building an audience for the music.
Many big issues, such as financial distress and attendance problems for orchestras and opera companies, are seen through the lens of music education — and not only what it means for music students.
Freeman, 78, who was director of the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester (N.Y.) for 24 years and now teaches at the University of Texas in Austin, is a longtime opponent of overspecialization. He says it’s natural for kids to fall in love with music and that gifted children should be encouraged by their parents.
Arrangement lands Roxbury resident on Seth Meyers’ show
(Newark Star-Ledger © 09/18/2014)
Roxbury High School alumna and bassoonist Liz Rosa is a big fan of comedian Seth Meyers and she was thrilled when the former “Saturday Night Live” cast member became a late night television host.
Rosa, a sophomore bassoon performance and music education double major at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., has attended two live tapings of “Late Night with Seth Meyers” and has taken “a liking to the sound of their house band, the 8G Band.”
So, while home on vacation this summer, she decided to try her hand at rearranging the show’s theme song for the bassoon; actually for four bassoons, to be played by her and three of her friends.
RPO, Kilbourn series open seasons this week
(Rochester Democrat & Chronicle © 09/15/2014)
Also this week, the Kilbourn Concert Series opens with Christian Tetzlaff at 8 p.m. Tuesday. The German violinist has been getting rave reviews for the Bach Sonatas and Partitas program that he is bringing to Eastman School of Music’s Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St. Earlier this month, he opened the prestigious 92nd Street Y concert series in New York City, and this season will perform across the country in concerts like the one this week and with the Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra and other full ensembles. Tickets are $17 to $27. Call (585) 454-2100 or go to eastmantheatre.org.
The Eastman Faculty Artist Series continues at 8 p.m. Monday with pianist Alison d’Amato, and guests tenor Robert Swensen and baritone Aaron Engebreth. The History of Babar, the little elephant will be narrated in English by Eastman Opera director Stephen Carr. Also on the program are Benjamin Britten’s Winter Words and Libby Larsen’s The Peculiar Case of Dr. H.H. Holmes. The recital will be in Eastman School of Music’s Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs St.
On the Fringe: Sound Exchange
(WHEC TV 10/18/2014)
Are you unsure what to go see at The 2014 First Niagara Rochester Fringe Festival? Try the Sound Exchange. It’s a string ensemble made of Eastman School of Music students. (Also reported by Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, City)
Corbin returns to Mineral Wells for performance of ‘Buffalo Altar’
(Mineral Wells Index 09/14.2014)
“Buffalo Altar: A Texas Symphony” is a collaboration between composer J. Todd Frazier and writer Stephen Harrigan that was commissioned by The Institute of American Music at The Eastman School of Music and The University of Texas at Austin.
(Rochester City Newspaper 09/17/2014)
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better deal in town than the many free concert offerings at the Eastman School of Music. In particular, take in world-class music from the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra and the Eastman Philharmonia beginning on Saturday, September 27, at Kodak Hall.
While we’re on the subject of visitors bringing their great talents to our city, Grammy Award-winning trumpeter Arturo Sandoval will perform at Kodak Hall on Sunday, November 2, as part of the Eastman School’s Eastman Presents artist series.
The Rochester Chamber Orchestra will give two performances this fall, the first being a tribute to the late Jan DeGaetani, renowned concert artist and professor of voice at the Eastman School.
For fans of storytelling in musical form, the Eastman Opera Theatre will stage a production of Benjamin Britten’s “Albert Herring” on November 6 through November 9. If you’re looking to take in vocal music in a more choral setting, the Eastman Chorale will bring Bach Cantatas to Reformation Lutheran Church on three separate occasions this fall: September 21, October 19, and November 16. In addition, the Eastman-Rochester Chorus will join the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra for a stirring concert on December 5 that includes Poulenc’s “Gloria.”
2014-2015 Cultural Arts Preview
(Rochester Democrat & Chronicle 09/21/2014)
The Rochester Chamber Orchestra also has a new music director in Gerald Floriano, a State University College at Geneseo professor and founder of the Finger Lakes Opera Festival. In his first concert, he will conduct a program of women composers that celebrates the life of great Eastman School of Music professor Jan DeGaetani, who died 25 years ago (Oct. 12, Hochstein Performance Hall).
Rochester draws early music heavyweights, led by Eastman professor and Grammy winner Paul O’Dette. O’Dette has partnered with the Pegasus Early Music organization to perform the Monteverdi Vespers of 1610, with 24 musicians (April 19, Hochstein Performance Hall). The Pegasus series, led by Deborah Fox, opens with “Io Vidi in Terra” (Oct. 12, Downtown United Presbyterian Church) and also includes a concert of Bach’s Goldberg Variations (Dec. 7, Downtown United Presbyterian Church).
Fall’s palette
(Rochester City Newspaper © 09/17/2014)
The various University of Rochester libraries offer fascinating exhibits year-round, drawing from a variety of materials and concerning a vast array of subjects. Visit the Reference/Circulation department of Rush Rhees Library (University of Rochester River Campus) October 1-24 to take in “Oscar Wilde’s Salome,” an exhibit of illustrated editions of Wilde’s play. The show is held in conjunction with “The Veils of Salome,” a symposium the university will hold October 8-10, which will include performances of Strauss’ opera by Table Top Opera, dance performances, films, and an interview of comic book artist P. Craig Russell, who adapted Wilde’s play for the graphic novel medium.
(Note: Table Top Opera is a chamber ensemble of Eastman School of Music faculty, alumni, and friends.)
Schedule for first weekend of Fringe
(Rochester Democrat & Chronicle 09/16/2014)
Rochester Laptop Orchestra: University of Rochester and Eastman School of Music students have created compositions controlled by Wiimotes, Kinect sensors, genetic sequences and other custom sensors. For all ages. 6 p.m. Xerox Auditorium.
A kind deed results in a present of Bach
(Rochester Democrat & Chronicle © 09/17/2014)
I shall never forget my encounter with a young Asian student struggling to maintain a strenuous master’s degree schedule while earning money to afford his studies at the Eastman School of Music with the ambitious goal of remaining in this country to direct and teach music. I had the privilege to become acquainted with David Chin through the Eastman Rochester Community Chorus. We often shared our individual financial problems — I being an elderly woman living on a low income and him a student.
(Anderson, 77, lives in Webster. David Chin is now director of choral studies at Robert Wesleyan College and a doctoral candidate at Eastman School of Music. Chin is conducting the Bach cantatas in a