El Sistema Teaching
Challenges and opportunities teaching in an El Sistema-influenced music education program.
Harp Year in Review
Meghan reflects back on her year, from graduating from Rice University, performing with the Houston Symphony, driving across the country, and performing over 27 “47 Strings” outreach concerts. It was a fantastic year for freelancing with lots of great memories. Can’t wait to see what the next year holds!
www.meghancaulkett.com
facebook.com/47strings
Meghan Caulkett
Meghan Caulkett is a graduate student at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, where she studies with Houston Symphony Principal, Paula Page. Meghan has performed as principal harpist with numerous orchestras, in solo recitals, chamber recitals, and for people such as legendary film composer John Williams, Boston Symphony Orchestra conductor James Levine, and His Royal Highness Prince Charles. She received her Bachelor of Music Degree Summa Cum Laude from Boston University while studying with the principal harpist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Ann Hobson Pilot.
Originally from Tahoe City, California, she now freelances all over the greater Houston area and southeastern United States, while maintaining an active teaching studio of harp and piano students. Since November 2011, she has been the acting principal harpist of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and has recently been accepted to the Houston Symphony Substitute Musician list. This is in addition to performances with the Shepherd School of Music Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, and Symphony of Southeast Texas. Meghan was also a Da Camera of Houston Young Artist from 2011- 2012.
Recently, she founded “47 Strings”- an innovative and educational outreach program designed to bring harp recitals to 47 different charitable organizations and free community concerts within the next year. These performances include educational outreach programs for schools, hospitals, homes for the elderly, shelters for abused women and children, as well as community concerts open to the public.
Posted in
Its Been A Year – Thoughts and Reflections
Lauren Denney Wright
Dr. Lauren Denney Wright is the current Director of Wind Ensemble activities and Assistant Professor of Music at Berry College where she conducts the Wind Ensemble and teaches clarinet. Prior to her arrival at Berry College, Dr. Denney Wright was the Director of Bands, clarinet instructor, and taught Instrumental Music Education courses at Oklahoma Baptist University.
A native of Marietta, Ga., Dr. Denney Wright earned her bachelor of music degree in clarinet performance from Vanderbilt University, the master of music degree in clarinet performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and the bachelor of music degree in music education from Kennesaw State University. Dr. Denney Wright completed her doctoral studies in instrumental conducting at the University of Miami Frost School of Music under the mentorship of Gary Green, where she conducted the Frost Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Winds, Chamber Winds and Concert Band. In addition, she taught conducting courses, worked with the Band of the Hour marching band and ran the men and women’s basketball pep bands. Dr. Denney Wright has worked with such composers as John Corigliano, David Maslanka, Michael Daugherty, John Mackey and Steven Bryant. In addition, Dr. Denney Wright will be making her international debut conducting chamber music with members of the Berlin Philharmonic this summer in Aix-en-Provence, France.
Dr. Denney Wright holds professional memberships with College Band Directors National Association, College Music Society and Music Teachers National Association. In addition she is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, Tau Beta Sigma, a founding member of Sigma Alpha Iota at Vanderbilt University, and an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi.
Educational Background:
B.M., Vanderbilt University
M.M., University of North Carolina at Greensboro
B.M., Kennesaw State University
D.M.A., University of Miami Frost School of Music
A native of Marietta, Georgia, Dr. Denney Wright earned her Bachelor of Music degree in clarinet performance from Vanderbilt University, the Master of Music degree in clarinet performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and the Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from Kennesaw State University. Prior to her appointment at Oklahoma Baptist University, Dr. Denney Wright completed her doctoral studies in Instrumental Conducting at the University of Miami Frost School of Music under the mentorship of Gary Green, where she conducted the Frost Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Winds, Chamber Winds and Concert Band. In addition, she taught conducting courses, worked with the Band of the Hour marching band and ran the men and women's basketball pep bands. Dr. Denney Wright has worked with such composers as John Corigliano, David Maslanka, Michael Daugherty, John Mackey and Steven Bryant.
Dr. Denney Wright holds professional memberships with College Band Directors National Association, College Music Society and Music Teachers National Association. In addition she is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, Tau Beta Sigma, a founding member of Sigma Alpha Iota at Vanderbilt University, and an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi.
All posts from Lauren Denney Wright
Posted in
Jade’s Last Polyphonic Vlog: Don’t forget your power!
http://youtu.be/kKhUt14dFmc
Jade Simmons
Jade is committed to expanding the boundaries of Classical music and its presentation. From 2006-2010 she served as the inaugural New Music/New Places Fellow for the prestigious Concert Artist Guild organization. She offers a diverse mix of repertoire from the Classics to the cutting edge. Audiences have come to expect creative projects backed by riveting performances like her program Kandinsky and Scriabin: Hearing Color, Seeing Sound which focuses on links between visual art and music, as well as The Rhythm Project, an exploration of pieces that exploit the more percussive nature of the piano. Ms. Simmons, a Yamaha Artist, has toured the US extensively, highlighted by concerts on Ravinia’s Rising Stars series, the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC, the University of Washington World Series in Seattle, Merkin Hall and the Detroit Institute of Arts. In 2012, she will return to Ravinia’s Bennett Gordon Hall and will release Playing with Fire, an EP on her newly launched record label Superwoman Records.
Jade’s multiple talents make her a true Renaissance woman of the millennium taking her in the direction of arts presenter, writer, lecturer and creator of Emerge Already!, career-building platform for emerging artists including videos, blogs and books. Most recently, she has been invited to write for the Huffington Post’s Arts section and she has served as the webcast host for both the Van Cliburn and the Tchaikovsky International music competitions. An artist with a social conscience that moves her to action, Jade serves as an advocate for America’s youth, presenting arts outreach and addressing groups across the country on sensitive issues such as youth suicide prevention and mental health awareness. Jade has been recognized two years in a row by Symphony Magazine for her work on and away from the stage. In light of these achievements, she was listed as one of Ebony magazine’s Top 30 Leaders under 30 and was proclaimed Houston’s Best Arts Ambassador by the Houston Press.
All posts from Jade Simmons
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Music Outreach with Young Audiences
Meghan discusses her work with Young Audiences, a national organization that helps bring arts education to children. Her outreach concert series, 47 Strings, is a performer with Young Audiences of Houston. Learn more at www.fortysevenstrings.com and like it on facebook at facebook.com/47strings!
Meghan Caulkett
Meghan Caulkett is a graduate student at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, where she studies with Houston Symphony Principal, Paula Page. Meghan has performed as principal harpist with numerous orchestras, in solo recitals, chamber recitals, and for people such as legendary film composer John Williams, Boston Symphony Orchestra conductor James Levine, and His Royal Highness Prince Charles. She received her Bachelor of Music Degree Summa Cum Laude from Boston University while studying with the principal harpist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Ann Hobson Pilot.
Originally from Tahoe City, California, she now freelances all over the greater Houston area and southeastern United States, while maintaining an active teaching studio of harp and piano students. Since November 2011, she has been the acting principal harpist of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and has recently been accepted to the Houston Symphony Substitute Musician list. This is in addition to performances with the Shepherd School of Music Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, and Symphony of Southeast Texas. Meghan was also a Da Camera of Houston Young Artist from 2011- 2012.
Recently, she founded “47 Strings”- an innovative and educational outreach program designed to bring harp recitals to 47 different charitable organizations and free community concerts within the next year. These performances include educational outreach programs for schools, hospitals, homes for the elderly, shelters for abused women and children, as well as community concerts open to the public.
Posted in
Alfredo San Malo Festival Part Two
More from the Alfredo San Malo Festival in Panama, Panama
Catie Hickey
ALP alum Catie Hickey graduated from Eastman in 2007 with degrees in Trombone Performance and Jazz Studies. Catie’s professional experiences thus far span across the globe and cover a variety of musical genres. After completing her degrees at Eastman, Catie’s travels and adventures have included earning a Master’s degree in performance from Rice University in Houston, traveling to Africa for chamber music outreach, performing with a Mexican Orchestra and Canadian brass quintet, and teaching at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. One of the main goals of ALP is to increase the marketability of Eastman students in the professional music world. Catie’s post-Eastman career path demonstrates her awareness of a broad scope of musical opportunities and her ability to market her diversified strengths.
All posts from Catie Hickey
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Student and Teacher Preparation for Back to School!
Lauren Denney Wright
Dr. Lauren Denney Wright is the current Director of Wind Ensemble activities and Assistant Professor of Music at Berry College where she conducts the Wind Ensemble and teaches clarinet. Prior to her arrival at Berry College, Dr. Denney Wright was the Director of Bands, clarinet instructor, and taught Instrumental Music Education courses at Oklahoma Baptist University.
A native of Marietta, Ga., Dr. Denney Wright earned her bachelor of music degree in clarinet performance from Vanderbilt University, the master of music degree in clarinet performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and the bachelor of music degree in music education from Kennesaw State University. Dr. Denney Wright completed her doctoral studies in instrumental conducting at the University of Miami Frost School of Music under the mentorship of Gary Green, where she conducted the Frost Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Winds, Chamber Winds and Concert Band. In addition, she taught conducting courses, worked with the Band of the Hour marching band and ran the men and women’s basketball pep bands. Dr. Denney Wright has worked with such composers as John Corigliano, David Maslanka, Michael Daugherty, John Mackey and Steven Bryant. In addition, Dr. Denney Wright will be making her international debut conducting chamber music with members of the Berlin Philharmonic this summer in Aix-en-Provence, France.
Dr. Denney Wright holds professional memberships with College Band Directors National Association, College Music Society and Music Teachers National Association. In addition she is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, Tau Beta Sigma, a founding member of Sigma Alpha Iota at Vanderbilt University, and an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi.
Educational Background:
B.M., Vanderbilt University
M.M., University of North Carolina at Greensboro
B.M., Kennesaw State University
D.M.A., University of Miami Frost School of Music
A native of Marietta, Georgia, Dr. Denney Wright earned her Bachelor of Music degree in clarinet performance from Vanderbilt University, the Master of Music degree in clarinet performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and the Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from Kennesaw State University. Prior to her appointment at Oklahoma Baptist University, Dr. Denney Wright completed her doctoral studies in Instrumental Conducting at the University of Miami Frost School of Music under the mentorship of Gary Green, where she conducted the Frost Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Winds, Chamber Winds and Concert Band. In addition, she taught conducting courses, worked with the Band of the Hour marching band and ran the men and women's basketball pep bands. Dr. Denney Wright has worked with such composers as John Corigliano, David Maslanka, Michael Daugherty, John Mackey and Steven Bryant.
Dr. Denney Wright holds professional memberships with College Band Directors National Association, College Music Society and Music Teachers National Association. In addition she is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, Tau Beta Sigma, a founding member of Sigma Alpha Iota at Vanderbilt University, and an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi.
All posts from Lauren Denney Wright
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In this video blog, I discuss how both students AND teachers must prepare for the first day of classes.
A packed symphony concert?!?
Here Derek talks about a local symphony concert he recently attended in Dubuque, Iowa.
Derek Jenkins
Derek M. Jenkins (b. 1986, Frankfurt am Main, Germany) is an American composer with a particular interest in music for wind ensemble and its various subsets. His music has been performed throughout the U.S., Europe and in Canada with select performances include those by the U.S. Army Materiel Command Band, the Florida State Wind Orchestra, the UMKC, Arizona State, Iowa State, and Bethel College Wind Ensembles, the Tri-State Wind Symphony, 5th House Ensemble, the Carinthia and Saxophilia Saxophone Quartets, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Beattie, and saxophonists Randall Hall, Gilbert Sabitzer, and Joseph Wytko. In 2012, Jenkins's wind ensemble piece “Eosphorus: The Morning Star” was selected as a winner of the National Band Association's Young Composer Mentor Project. Jenkins has received recognition from MACRO, ASCAP, the Harry S. Truman Good Neighbor Award Foundation, and at conferences and festivals across the U.S. and abroad. He has received commissions from the Bethel College Wind Ensemble and Concert Choir, the Eleanor Roosevelt Middle School Concert Band [Dubuque, IA], and various individuals throughout the country.
Jenkins is currently a student at Rice University (MM, expected 2012) and holds degrees from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (BM, BM, 2010). Additionally, he has received further instruction at the Kärntner Landeskonservatorium and the Alpen-Adria Universität Klagenfurt. His primary teachers have included Karim Al-Zand, Chen Yi, Pierre Jalbert, Richard Lavenda, James Mobberley, Paul Rudy, and Zhou Long. He has also studied with Kathryn Alexander, Mark Camphouse, Carter Pann, and David Rakowski. In his spare time, Jenkins is an amateur scuba diver and daydreams of becoming an astronaut.
All posts from Derek Jenkins
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Special guest Alex Lapins! We talk performance prep!
Michael Flynn
Dr. Michael P. Flynn is the Director of Bands and Brass Instruction at Sheridan College in Sheridan, Wyoming. Teaching duties include conducting the Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble, teaching Music History and Music Appreciation, and performing as principal trumpet with the Sheridan College Brass Quintet. Dr. Flynn will also be active in the area performing with the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra (WY), and the Billings Symphony Orchestra (MT). This is a very exciting year for the Sheridan College Wind Ensemble as the group will be involved with the world premier of composer Steve Danyew's work for winds and film. The work will be performed as part of a consortium including the Eastman Wind Ensemble, The University of Miami Wind Ensemble, The Arkansas State Wind Ensemble, Keene State College Concert Band, and the Bethel College Wind Ensemble among others.
Current solo collaboration includes a recording project with 2011 International Acoustic Artist of the year, South African Roland Albertson. Communicating through digital media clips and videoconference, the two are planning the use of the trumpet in Albertson's newest demo CD and future recording projects.
Prior to joining the Sheridan College Faculty in 2012, Dr. Flynn was the Brass Teacher, Music Theory Instructor, Music History Instructor, Wind Ensemble Conductor, and a Performing Artist at the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. During his time in the Middle East, Dr. Flynn held the position of Principal Trumpet in the Palestine National Symphony Orchestra and the Edward Said National Conservatory Orchestra. Performing responsibilities also included a tour of Germany with the Israel Brass Quintet, and performances with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, and the Tel Aviv Opera.
Before joining the ESNCM faculty in 2010, Flynn was a Doctoral Teaching Assistant at the University of Miami (Florida, USA), where he earned his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Instrumental Performance and Conducting in 2010, and his Master of Music Degree in Instrumental Performance in 2007. Dr. Flynn also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from Mansfield University (Pennsylvania, USA).
Throughout the five years spent as a graduate student at the University of Miami, Dr. Flynn had the opportunity to study with Craig Morris, Naxos recording artist and former principal trumpet of the Chicago Symphony. In addition, Flynn’s teachers include Michael Sachs, principal trumpet with the Cleveland Orchestra, Allan Dean, former member of the New York Brass Quintet and professor at Yale University, Andrew McCandless, Principal Trumpet with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and Michael Galloway, former United States Marine Band member, and professor at Mansfield University.
Orchestra and Wind Ensemble Performance experience in Miami includes five years as a substitute with the New World Symphony, under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas, and positions with the Naples Philharmonic, Palm Beach Opera, Miami City Ballet, University of Miami Orchestra, and the University of Miami Wind Ensemble.
Significant premier performances include principal trumpet duties for John Corigliano’s Circus Maximus, Christopher Rouse’s Wolf Rounds, and Gary Green’s transcription for wind ensemble of Frank Ticheli’s Symphony No. 1.
Supplementing his classical study, Dr. Flynn performed and recorded with the University of Miami Studio Jazz Band, directed by Chuck Bergeron, former bass player for Buddy Rich, and studied privately with Alex Norris, now with the Village Vanguard Orchestra, and Greg Gisbert, member of the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra.
Dr. Flynn is a member of the International Trumpet Guild, and Pi Kappa Lambda.
All posts from Michael Flynn
Posted in
What’s up on Deck for Jade?
http://youtu.be/Nu6H8Ag5V2Q
Jade Simmons
Jade is committed to expanding the boundaries of Classical music and its presentation. From 2006-2010 she served as the inaugural New Music/New Places Fellow for the prestigious Concert Artist Guild organization. She offers a diverse mix of repertoire from the Classics to the cutting edge. Audiences have come to expect creative projects backed by riveting performances like her program Kandinsky and Scriabin: Hearing Color, Seeing Sound which focuses on links between visual art and music, as well as The Rhythm Project, an exploration of pieces that exploit the more percussive nature of the piano. Ms. Simmons, a Yamaha Artist, has toured the US extensively, highlighted by concerts on Ravinia’s Rising Stars series, the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC, the University of Washington World Series in Seattle, Merkin Hall and the Detroit Institute of Arts. In 2012, she will return to Ravinia’s Bennett Gordon Hall and will release Playing with Fire, an EP on her newly launched record label Superwoman Records.
Jade’s multiple talents make her a true Renaissance woman of the millennium taking her in the direction of arts presenter, writer, lecturer and creator of Emerge Already!, career-building platform for emerging artists including videos, blogs and books. Most recently, she has been invited to write for the Huffington Post’s Arts section and she has served as the webcast host for both the Van Cliburn and the Tchaikovsky International music competitions. An artist with a social conscience that moves her to action, Jade serves as an advocate for America’s youth, presenting arts outreach and addressing groups across the country on sensitive issues such as youth suicide prevention and mental health awareness. Jade has been recognized two years in a row by Symphony Magazine for her work on and away from the stage. In light of these achievements, she was listed as one of Ebony magazine’s Top 30 Leaders under 30 and was proclaimed Houston’s Best Arts Ambassador by the Houston Press.
All posts from Jade Simmons
Posted in
1
El Sistema Teaching
2
Harp Year in Review
3
Its Been A Year – Thoughts and Reflections
4
Jade’s Last Polyphonic Vlog: Don’t forget your power!
5
Music Outreach with Young Audiences
6
Alfredo San Malo Festival Part Two
7
Student and Teacher Preparation for Back to School!
8
A packed symphony concert?!?
9
Special guest Alex Lapins! We talk performance prep!
10
What’s up on Deck for Jade?