Raise Your Voice: A Social Justice Recital Exploring Violence Against Women Through the Ages

Date: 04/24/2013

Laura Hynes turns her D.M.A. recital into a unique performance titled Raise Your Voice, exploring issues of Violence Against Women through the ages via art song, text, dance and staging. The event was sponsored by a Community Engagement grant through the School of Music, and by the Aurora Center for Advocacy and Education.

Singers Laura Hynes, Beth Bayley, Elizabeth Windnagel, Sara Yoder, and Lauren Feider were joined by dancer Samantha Phillippi - the currently reigning Miss Minneapolis, guitarist Maja Radovanlija, and pianist Mijin Choi.

Repertoire includes songs by Libby Larsen, David Evan Thomas, William Bolcom, Kurt Weill, Leonard Bernstein, Germaine Tailleferre, Benjamin Britten, Jake Heggie, Aaron Copland, Ben Moore, and Reynaldo Hahn.

Listen to Laura Hynes (D.M.A candidate, voice, student of Adriana Zabala) discuss this event on Classical Minnesota Public Radio.

Students Engage Seniors Through Arts Connection!

This summer, some of the School of Music's graduate students will bring their talents to seniors. The goal of the Arts Connection Recitals is to bridge the gap between college-aged musicians and the elderly through two performance opportunities, increasing the quality of life for seniors through interpersonal relationships and live music performance and creating opportunities for students to study and perform additional repertoire, in the context of building relationships with senior citizens.

Building Connections with Cooperating Teachers

Dr. Keitha Hamann, Professor of Music Education, hosted a reception for cooperating K-12 music teachers who have worked with School of Music music education students. The event honored their contribution to the development of School of Music students, and offered an opportunity for both teachers and School of Music faculty to converse and work together to improve the student teaching experience.

La Vie Par La Melodie

On Monday, May 14th 2013 Professor Wendy Zaro-Mullin's French Vocal Literature class presented an interactive experience of French mélodie musical program centered around the life stories of the senior residents of Walker Methodist Health Center. Residents received a letter asking to share their life stories relating to four key romantic themes and a short explanation of each theme. During the program, each student shared a story pertaining to the Lied they have chosen to perform. This program offered students the opportunity to impart their knowledge of French mélodie and romantic themes to the residents, while the residents brought forth their life experiences to the students. In addition to enhancing the students' understanding of creating a musical experience for a unique audience outside of the School of Music, this project afforded students the opportunity to learn many of the logistical details required to execute a recital such as; reserving a venue, writing program notes and translations, collaborating with accompanists, and writing grants.

Cantus Residency

This new residency is an innovative collaboration with the School of Music that intersects the teaching artistry of Cantus with the University's instructional and community engagement initiatives. Our focus is to train and mentor future performers and music educators using the unique approach Cantus brings to collaborative music making.

We recognize the Cantus programming model as something that can benefit both performance and music education students in their growth as versatile teaching artists of the 21st Century. This exciting residency provides singers of all levels with meaningful opportunities for artistic growth and educational exchange. For more information about the Cantus Residency and related activities, please contact Kathy Romey.

Parables: A University of Minnesota School of Music Engagement Project

From April 19-22, 2012, University Opera Theatre will present Robert Aldridge's Parables for chorus and orchestra featuring librettist, Herschel Garfein. With text by Herschel Garfein, direction under David Walsh, and conducting by Kathy Salzman Romey, Parables aims to engage university, religious, civic, and school partners in community-building workshops centered on the backlash against non-Christian-based religions after the events of 9/11.

Interactive workshops and concerts will challenge participants to examine, explore, and reflect on their attitudes toward critical issues, as well as to encourage and promote thoughtful dialogue about our rich cultural heritage. An integral part of the project will be to showcase the positive role of the arts, particularly music, in expanding our imaginative response to religious and cultural difference - the 'other' - in our society.

Through a series of school-based lessons, performances, informal discussions, and a Parables Forum, this project is bound to make an important mark on engagement efforts around the Twin Cities metropolitan region. Partners in the critical and collaborative discussion include: high school partners, religious and ethnic cultural groups, and the University Opera Theatre, U of M School of Music, Department of Theatre Arts and Dance, Department of Art, Department of Anthropology, and the Department of Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature.

Those interested in being a part of this community engagement project may participate in a springtime forum slated to take place in early April as well as the performances. Visit music.umn.edu for complete details.

Contact
Kinh T. Vu, Assistant Project Director
kvu00001@umn.edu
David Walsh, Project Director
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Britten's War Requiem: An International Collaboration!

The School of Music is partnering with the Augustana College Choir, Quad City Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Boy Choir , Gutersloh Boy Choir, and the Detmold Hochschule fur Musick in Germany to perform Benjamin Britten's stirring War Requiem. Students are studying the work's historical and artistic relevance through their coursework, dialog, rehearsal, and performance. Performances will take place on February 18 and 19, 2012 in Detmold, Germany, March 1, 2012 at our own U of MN, and March 4, 2012 in the Quad Cities. Read more at War Requiem Handout v4.pdf