November 4, 2024

EagleEye

A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff

Experiencing Art & Music of French Impressionism, April 3

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“The Melody of a Mood: Experiencing Art & Music of French Impressionism”

Enjoy the sights and sounds of 19th-century France and experience the artistry that isImpressionism.

A classically trained singer and illustrator of fine arts, Margeaux Ducoing will perform a 30-minute presentation showcasing the French Impressionistic movement through the art and music of the period. Ducoing will demonstrate vocal performances by Claude Debussy along with accompanied Impressionistic artwork. A small reception is to follow. The event will take place on Saturday, April 3, at 4 p.m. in Room 304, Pollard Hall.

Seminar Poster

Margeaux Ducoing is a fifth-year senior who double majors in Music and Studio Art with
a minor in Museum Studies. Combining her two artistic passions, Ducoing will showcase
the illustrative worlds of the Impressionist composers and painters.
The UMW Department of Music invites you to come, enjoy and learn more about this
famous French art style. Audiences will gain a greater appreciation about Impressionism
and will walk away with their own memorable experience.

UMW Philharmonic Receives National Endowment

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The University of Mary Washington Philharmonic has received a $2,850 grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts that will bring the Richmond Ballet to Fredericksburg after more than 20 years.   Richmond Ballet dancers in Ancient Airs and Dances by Stoner Winslett. Richmond Ballet. All rights reserved. A joint concert featuring Richmond’s professional ballet company and the UMW Philharmonic will be held April 24, 2015. The event will feature the ballet’s performance of “Ancient Airs and Dances,” by Respighi at 7:30 p.m. in George Washington Hall’s Dodd Auditorium on the Fredericksburg campus. “We are excited to be collaborating with the Philharmonic,” said Brett Bonda, managing director of the ballet. “I recall dancing with the ballet in Dodd Auditorium in the early 90’s. It will be great to be back because I know that Fredericksburg is a terrific arts town.” The collaboration will result in multiple performances in the coming years. The UMW Philharmonic has already traveled to Richmond to attend a ballet performance and will return again in December for a special performance of the Nutcracker and in April for rehearsals with the ballet. In 1984, Richmond Ballet became the first professional ballet company in Virginia and was designated the State Ballet of Virginia in 1990, by then Gov. Douglas Wilder. The UMW Philharmonic, in its 44th season, is comprised of both UMW students as well as talented community musicians. The orchestra, under the direction of Kevin Bartram, achieved national acclaim in 2009 with the American Prize, an award given to the top nine collegiate orchestras in the nation. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit philharmonic.umw.edu or call (540) 654-1324.

Book Donation is Music to UMW’s Ears

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A definitive book of Russian music has been donated to the University of Mary Washington. The work “The Beauty of Belaieff,” which includes over 100 full color plates of first editions of Russian music and individual biographies, is now available in Simpson Library. UMW Piano Instructor Andrew Kraus holding “The Beauty of Belaieff.” “It will be a wonderful resource for our students and faculty to use when researching Russian music history and its composers,” said Special Collections Librarian Carolyn Parsons. “The volume is not only an excellent work on the history of Belaieff’s Russian music publishing house, but it is also a beautiful book with 144 color reproductions showcasing the works of many Russian composers of the late 19th and early 20th century.” The book donation is the product of a friendship between UMW Piano Instructor Andrew Kraus and Gillian Davis, the widow of the book’s author Richard Beattie Davis, who was an avid collector of first and early editions of Western and Russian music, including the works of Adolph Von Henselt. The friendship developed after Davis discovered that Kraus is one of a few pianists in the world who play Adolph Von Henselt’s music. Henselt, a German who worked in Russia in the 1800s, is known as a founder of the Russian school of pianism. “I’m thrilled to get [this book] for UMW and to have it in the library,” said Kraus. “Not every library will have it, and it could be used as a spring board for other artistic events.” Kraus plans to play a concert in the spring, “Henselt in Context” to commemorate the donation. Click here to view the embedded video.

UMW Philharmonic Performs Sold-Out Show with Itzhak Perlman

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Legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman performed with the University of Mary Washington Philharmonic Orchestra at a sold-out concert on Saturday, March 29. Nearly 1,300 people packed Dodd Auditorium for the concert, which was part of the Philharmonic’s annual William M. Anderson Celebrity Series.

Itzhak Perlman performed with the UMW Philharmonic on Saturday, March 29.

Itzhak Perlman performed with the UMW Philharmonic on Saturday, March 29.

The UMW Philharmonic, conducted by Kevin Bartram, is comprised of both UMW students and community musicians. Since 2004, the orchestra has performed with famous artists such as Marvin Hamlisch, Judy Collins, Kenny Rogers, flutist Sir James Galway and the Canadian Brass.

“The audience was astonished at the sound he got from [his 1714 Stradivarius],” said Kevin Bartram, maestro of the UMW Philharmonic. “Even professional violinists are stunned by his capacity to achieve such a sound. The experience of performing such a demanding work with a living legend will live with us the rest of our lives.”

Perlman, a violin virtuoso, enjoys superstar status rarely afforded a classical musician. He is treasured by audiences throughout the world who respond to his artistry and his irrepressible joy for making music.

Perlman performed the Beethoven Violin Concerto with the Philharmonic. Perlman has performed the work hundreds of times, but admits, “I could play that forever and never get tired of it. It’s an amazing piece,” he said.

Perlman has been honored with four Emmy Awards, most recently for the PBS documentary, “Fiddling for the Future,” a film about Perlman’s work as a teacher and conductor for the Perlman Music Program. During the 78th Annual Academy Awards in 2006, he performed a live medley from the five film scores nominated in the category of Best Original Score for a worldwide audience. Perlman also collaborated with film composer John Williams in Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-winning film “Schindler’s List” in which he performed the violin solos.

Itzhak Perlman. Photo by Lisa Marie Mazzucco.

Itzhak Perlman. Photo by Lisa Marie Mazzucco.

In 2008, Itzhak Perlman was honored with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for excellence in the recording arts. His recordings regularly appear on the best-seller charts and have earned him 15 Grammy Awards. In 1986, President Ronald Reagan honored Perlman with a Medal of Liberty and in 2000 President Bill Clinton awarded Perlman the National Medal of Arts.

The UMW Philharmonic achieved national acclaim in 2009 with the American Prize, an award given to the top nine collegiate orchestras in the nation. In 2012, the group was featured on a national PBS fundraising show, “A Fiddler’s Holiday.”

For information about upcoming concerts or to become a Friend of the Philharmonic, contact 540-654-1324 or email philharmonic@umw.edu.

UMW Philharmonic Starts Season with Masterworks Concert, Oct. 19

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The University of Mary Washington Philharmonic Orchestra will begin its season of orchestral music on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 7:30 p.m. with a Halloween “Masterworks” concert entitled “Classical Music’s Bad Boys.” The concert will showcase the work of composers infamous for their personal escapes, including works from Wagner, Mussorgsky, Berlioz, Offenbach and Stravinsky.

The UMW Philharmonic Orchestra will kick off its 2013-2014 season on Saturday, Oct. 19.

The UMW Philharmonic Orchestra will kick off its 2013-2014 season on Saturday, Oct. 19.

The Fiddlestix Instrument Petting Zoo will precede the concert at 5:30 p.m., which will give children an opportunity to meet the musicians and try their instruments. The concert also will include a children’s costume parade to complete the Philharmonic’s first Halloween-themed event.

“We are dedicated to delighting our audiences both young and old with quality music and a little fun,” said Kevin Bartram, director of the 92-member orchestra.

The Philharmonic will continue its season with the holiday pops concerts on Thursday, Dec. 5 and Friday, Dec. 6, featuring for the first time, Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9 Ode to Joy.” UMW choirs will join the Philharmonic in the piece.

On March 29, 2014, the Philharmonic will feature Itzhak Perlman, the famous composer and violinist who performed at the inauguration of President Barack Obama. Tickets for the celebrity series performance featuring Perlman are available to Philharmonic donors online beginning on Oct. 25 at 9 a.m. Tickets are available to the public on Nov. 15.

The Philharmonic will perform in its final appearance of the season on Friday, April 25 for its spring concert. The concert will feature Philharmonic soloists and music well known for its endings, like Bizet’s “Farandole,” Shostakovich’s “Symphony No. 5,” and Strauss’ “Champagne Polka.”

Advance tickets for the October, December and April concerts are currently available online at philharmonic.umw.edu. All concerts are held in George Washington Hall’s Dodd Auditorium and cost $10 general admission and $2 for UMW students.

UMW Philharmonic Performs Eighth Annual Independence Day Spectacular

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The University of Mary Washington Philharmonic Orchestra performed its eighth annual Independence Day Spectacular concert on Thursday, July 4. The concert and fireworks show was held in Stafford County’s Pratt Park.

The UMW Philharmonic Orchestra will perform its eighth annual Independence Day concert on Thursday, July 4.

The concert capped a full day of activities at downtown Frederickburg’s Heritage Festival. Last year, more than 6,000 people attended the event.

This year’s concert will include performances by the U.S. Marine Band from Quantico and actors from Riverside Dinner Theater. The Marine Band will perform from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and will be joined by the UMW Eagle Pipe Band and Philharmonic violinist Lavar Edmonds in a selection from “Riverdance.” The cast of “Les Miserables” from Riverside will perform songs from the musical at 7 p.m. The UMW Philharmonic, under the direction of conductor Kevin Bartram, will take the stage at 8 p.m. for patriotic music and crowd favorites. At approximately 9:15, the Philharmonic will kick off the fireworks show and will continue playing music to the display.

This year, the Philharmonic welcomed back Miss America 2010 Caressa Cameron, a past Celebrity Series Artist and a contestant in UMW’s upcoming “Dancing with the Fredericksburg Stars” event. Cameron’s songs, produced exclusively for her and the UMW Philharmonic, include “One Night Only” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” Other featured songs include “Stars and Stripes Forever,” “Over the Rainbow” and “God Bless the USA.”

 

Mark Snyder’s Nature Boy Explorer EP Release

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Assistant Professor of Music Mark Snyder’s CD release for Nature Boy Explorer will be held this Saturday, September 8 at 909 Saloon in Fredericksburg, Va . The EP contains four songs that were recorded from March to April of 2012. UMW students and alums, Becky Brown, Hunter Wooten, Paige Naylor, Katherine Preseren and Natasha Smoot performed on the CD as well.

Nature Boy Explorer makes music about love, lobotomies, death, dirty politicians and concrete deities with an energetic and emotional blend of rock/pop that puts on no airs.

The show starts at 8:30 and will also feature Paul Ivey and the Rubes from Richmond and The Crypts from Fredericksburg.