Student Blogs
This blog post is Emily Schweich, a sophomore Broadcast Journalism major.
From France to India and Japan to Spain, the audience was musically transported around the globe in Exotic Voices, the latest installment of the “Music in Mind” series held in Gildenhorn Recital Hall on October 20. Featuring faculty artists and School of Music (SOM) alumni, the concert highlighted rare works for voice and chamber ensembles from around the world.
Influenced by the sounds of other lands and by their own musical nationalism, many of the prolific composers featured in the concert were able to create a unique taste of the exotic through their lesser-known chamber music.
This post is by Lisa Driscoll, a Junior Vocal Performance and Broadcast Journalism double major. You can read more of her writing on her blog
The Kronos Quartet celebrated its 40th anniversary on October 24 at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center with a vast variety of musical styles and an East Coast premiere of Philip Glass’ String Quartet No. 6, which was co-commissioned by the Center for the occasion. The performance was also the Center debut of new member and cellist Sunny Yang.
Sim Sholom by Alter Yechiel Karniol was probably my favorite piece of the evening, as it showed how expressive the quartet is as a whole, but particularly Yang. Her dynamics and virtuoso musicianship were stunning.
This post is by Lisa Driscoll, a Junior Vocal Performance and Broadcast Journalism double major. You can read more of her writing on her blog.
The Kogod Theatre transformed into the likes of a D.C. lounge to host the Pedrito Martinez Group on October 18. It was a night of colorful and percussive music and dancing, an experience that brought several classical music students like myself out of our shells and onto the dance floor.
All four members of the group come from unique musical backgrounds and together produce a lively fusion of Latin sounds. Pedrito Martinez, a world-renowned percussionist, and Ariacne Trujillo, pianist and vocalist, both come from Havana, Cuba; bassist Alvaro Benavides is from Caracas, Venezuela; and percussionist Jhair Sala is from Lima, Peru.
It was truly a unique experience to venture out of a classical music setting into such a lively, relaxed atmosphere where we were warmly welcomed into the Rumba de la Isla.