The Well-Tempered Ear

Classical music: This weekend brings annual holiday concerts at the UW-Madison and Edgewood College

December 3, 2019
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By Jacob Stockinger

As the semester comes to a close and the holidays approach, vocal and choral music is always the order of the day – or week – at both the University of Wisconsin-Madison Mead Witter School of Music and Edgewood College.

UW-MADISON WINTER CONCERTS

On this coming Sunday afternoon, Dec. 8, at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., the remaining six choirs from the UW-Madison choral program will present their annual winter concerts at Luther Memorial Church (below), 1021 University Avenue, in Madison.

The one-hour concert features individual pieces from Chorale and the Madrigal Singers (Bruce Gladstone conductor); the University Chorus (Andrew Voth, conductor); Women’s Chorus (below, Michael Johnson, conductor); Masters Singers (Andrew Voth and Michael Johnson co-conductors); and the Concert Choir (Beverly Taylor conductor).

There are two pieces in which all choirs sing.

Plus, the audience is invited to join in some seasonal carols.

The concerts are FREE and no tickets are required.

A free-will offering is accepted at the end of the program with proceeds after expenses donated to “The Road Home,” an organization that provides housing and food to homeless families.

Says Beverly Taylor, the director of choral activities at the UW-Madison who will retire this spring: “The program is designed as a concert and not a service. Seats go fast!”

For more information, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/choral-concerts-at-luther-memorial-church/2019-12-08/

EDGEWOOD COLLEGE CHRISTMAS CONCERT

This Saturday night, Dec. 7, at 7 p.m., Edgewood College will present its 92nd annual Christmas Concert.

The concert will take place in the college’s new McKinley Performing Arts Center (below and at bottom), 2219 Monroe Street., in  Madison.

This yearly tradition features the Edgewood College choirs and Concert Band, along with audience sing-alongs, the Guitar Ensemble, and a post-concert reception featuring the Jazz Ensemble.

Tickets are $10, and seating is limited for this very popular annual event. Please purchase tickets online in advance.

All proceeds from this performance benefit students at Edgewood College through the Edward Walters Music Scholarship Fund. 

Tickets are available online until noon on Thursday, Dec. 5, or until the performance sells out.


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Classical music: Friday night, the UW Concert Choir marks the assassination of JFK and the opening of Hamel Music Center. Plus, WYSO gives a Wisconsin premiere with a returning alumna as soloist

November 21, 2019
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ALERT: This Friday night, Nov. 22, at 7 p.m. in Mills Hall, the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Youth Orchestra, under conductor Kyle Knox, will present a concert with two guest artists performing the Wisconsin premiere of the Double Concerto for Clarinet and Bassoon composed for them by American composer Jonathan Leshnoff, who is known for his lyricism. (Sorry, there is no word about other works on the program.) Tickets are $10, $5 for 18 years and under, and are available at the door starting at 6:15 p.m.)

The two soloists are principals with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. The bassoonist is Nancy Goeres, a Lodi native who is a returning WYSO alumna. If you want to read an interview with her and get more background, you can’t do better for a preview than the piece by Greg Hettmansberger for Madison Magazine and Channel 3000. Here is a link: https://www.channel3000.com/madison-magazine/arts-and-culture/wisconsin-youth-symphony-welcomes-two-special-guests/1143372727

By Jacob Stockinger

At 8 p.m. this Friday, Nov. 22, in the Mead Witter Foundation Concert Hall, the UW-Madison Concert Choir (below) will perform its first solo concert in the new Hamel Music Center.

Conductor Beverly Taylor (below), the director of choral activities at the UW-Madison who will retire at the end of this academic year, sent the following announcement:

“The a cappella program is entitled “Fall Favorites: Houses and Homecomings.”

“This year I’m particularly picking some of the pieces I like the best from my years here, although I’ll still add a few new things.

“The “Houses” part is primarily “Behold I Build an House” by American composer Lukas Foss (below), which was written for the dedication of Marsh Chapel at Boston University, and which I thought was a good piece for the opening of the Hamel Music Center.

“We’re also performing the wonderful -and difficult —“Take Him, Earth, for Cherishing,” which British composer Herbert Howells (below top) wrote in memory of John F. Kennedy (below bottom). You’ll notice our concert is also on Nov. 22, the same day in 1963 when JFK was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. (You can hear the Howells work in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

“Besides these two big works are wonderful motets by Orlando di Lasso, Maurice Duruflé, Heinrich Schütz and Melchior Vulpius, plus some African, American and African-American folk songs.”

 


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Classical music: The gala opening this weekend of the UW-Madison’s new Hamel Music Center is SOLD OUT. What do you think of the building, the music and the event? Plus, veteran music critic John W. Barker has died

October 25, 2019
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ALERT: Word arrived late last night that the respected longtime music critic John W. Barker, a retired UW-Madison professor of medieval history, died Thursday morning. He wrote locally for Isthmus, The Capital Times and this blog. Details will be shared when they are known. 

By Jacob Stockinger

This weekend, Oct. 25-27, marks the official gala opening of the new Hamel Music Center (below, in a photo by Bryce Richter for University Communications) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Mead Witter School of Music. It is located at 740 University Ave., next to the new wing of the Chazen Museum of Art, which has a special exhibit relating to the new music center.

The impressive $58-million structure, which has taken many years to fund  (completely privately) and then to build, will celebrate its opening tonight, Saturday night (while the 14th annual Halloween FreakFest on State Street is happening) and Sunday afternoon.

The performers will include distinguished alumni, faculty members and students.

Here is a link to an overall schedule as published on the School of Music’s home website: https://www.music.wisc.edu/hamel-music-center-opening-schedule/

Thanks to an astute reader who found what The Ear couldn’t find, here is a complete schedule — long, varied and impressive — of works and performers: https://www.music.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/20191025-Hamel-Music-Center-Opening-Weekend.pdf

And here is a link to the official UW-Madison press release with more background and details about the building: https://news.wisc.edu/mead-witter-school-of-musics-hamel-music-center-opening-this-fall/

UW-Madison composer Laura Schwendinger (below) has been commissioned to write a Fanfare that will receive its world premiere tonight.

The opening promises to be a success, complete with receptions at the end of each performance.

In fact, the public has signed on enough that the FREE tickets to all events are SOLD OUT, according to the School of Music’s home website.

Taste is personal and varies, and The Ear has heard mixed reviews of the new building. (For the special occasion, you can hear “The Consecration of the House” Overture by Beethoven, performed by the La Scala opera house orchestra in Milan under Riccardo Muti, in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

Basically, people seem to agree that the acoustics are much improved over Mills Hall and Morphy Recital Hall in the old Humanities Building.

But public opinion seems more divided over other aspects, from the overall external architecture and interior design to the smaller size of the big hall, the seats and seating layout, and the restrooms.

So if you go – or have already gone – let the rest of us know what you think about those various aspects of the new building and about the various performers and programs.

As a warm-up preview, here are photos of the main halls or spaces, all taken by Bryce Richter for University Communications:

Here is the 660-seat Mead Witter Concert Hall:

Here is the 300-seat Collins Recital Hall:

And here is the Lee/Kaufman Rehearsal Hall:

But what do you say? You be the critic.

The Ear and others hope to see COMMENTS from listeners and especially performers. What is it like to perform there? Or to sit and listen?

What does the public think of the new building and concert halls? Are you satisfied? What do you like and what don’t you like?

Should some things have been done – or not done – in your opinion?

Does the building and do the concert halls live up to the expectations and hype?

The Ear wants to hear.


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Classical music: UW-Madison’s first countertenor Gerrod Pagenkopf returns to perform on Sunday night as a member of the acclaimed choral group Chanticleer. Here’s how he got from here to there. Part 1 of 2 

September 30, 2019
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ALERT: Madison Symphony Orchestra organist Greg Zelek did not announce his encore after he received a standing ovation at the MSO concert Sunday afternoon. It was the final movement from the Organ Symphony No. 1 by Louis Vierne.

By Jacob Stockinger

This coming Sunday night, Oct. 6, at 7:30 p.m. in the inaugural  concert in the new Hamel Music Center’s main concert hall, the critically acclaimed a cappella singing group Chanticleer (below) will kick off the centennial anniversary celebration of the Concert Series at the Wisconsin Union Theater.

Tickets are $45 for the public; $40 for faculty staff and Union members; and $10 for students. For more information about the performers and the “Trade Winds” program, go to: https://union.wisc.edu/events-and-activities/event-calendar/event/chanticleer/

Among the 12 members of the San-Francisco-based Chanticleer is Gerrod Pagenkopf, who is in his fifth year with the group as both a countertenor and the assistant music director. (You can hear Pagenkopf singing music by Henry Purcell in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

For a biography of Gerrod Pagenkopf, go to: https://www.chanticleer.org/gerrod-pagenkopf

Pagenkopf (below) is a graduate of the UW-Madison. When he performed here as a student, his high, clear countertenor voice was a new experience and made those of us who heard him sit bolt upright and take notice. “He is going places,” we said to each other. And so he has.

But Pagenkopf’s story is not only about him. It is also about the rediscovery of countertenors, about the changing public acceptance of them, and about the challenges that young musicians often face in establishing a professional performing career. So today and tomorrow, The Ear is offering a longer-than-usual, two-part interview with Pagenkopf.

Here is Part 1:

When were you at the UW-Madison?

I was a student at the UW-Madison from the fall of 1997 until I graduated in May of 2002. Although I received a bachelor’s degree in music education, performing ended up being a huge part of my last few semesters.

Growing up in rural Wisconsin about 30 miles north of Green Bay, I always thought that if you liked music and were good at it, you were supposed to be a teacher. It wasn’t until I was a junior that my voice teacher, the late Ilona Kombrink, and I discovered that I had a viable solo voice. Although I received the music education degree, embarking on a solo career became more important to me.

What did you do and how well did your studies and performances here prepare you for the life of a professional musician?

I was very lucky to have ample opportunities for performing during my time at the UW. Singing in choirs was very important to me. For many years I sang in the Concert Choir under Beverly Taylor (below top) as well as in the Madrigal Singers under Bruce Gladstone (below bottom,, in a photo by Katrin Talbot). I think there was one semester where I sang in just about every auditioned choir.

Beverly Taylor also gave me a lot of solo opportunities in the large-scale works that the Choral Union performed: Bach’s “St. John” and “St. Matthew” Passions, and Handel’s “Israel in Egypt.” For a 23-year-old to have those masterworks, along with the B Minor Mass and “Messiah,” on his resume was very impressive.

I was also lucky enough to perform with University Opera, singing in the chorus at first, but then singing a solo role in Handel’s “Xerxes” my final semester, and then returning as an alumni artist to sing Public Opinion in Offenbach’s “Orpheus in the Underworld” and several years later Polinesso in Handel’s “Ariodante.” Director Bill Farlow took a lot of chances on my young, “raw” countertenor voice and gave me several opportunities to succeed.

I should also note the importance of the guidance and mentorship of Professor Mimmi Fulmer (below, performing at Frank Loyd Wright’s Hillside Theater at Taliesin in Spring Green) after I graduated from UW. She afforded me the opportunity to sing in recital with her numerous times — usually Brahms and Mendelssohn duets. But she also was a catalyst in bringing me back to Madison several years later to sing with the Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble. Our continued relationship is actually the primary reason Chanticleer is singing in Madison this fall.

How do you feel about returning to perform at your alma mater with Chanticleer?

I’m over the moon about it. It still feels like a dream that I’m singing in Chanticleer. To be able to bring a group that I’m so proud to be a part of back to Madison feels like a great personal triumph. And to be the opening performance in the new Hamel Center (below) is such an honor!

Throughout my studies at UW-Madison, I was torn between the solo performance track and the choral career. I managed to straddle both, but my dream was always to make ensemble singing my career. Way back in the early 2000s, I heard Chanticleer sing at Luther Memorial Church, and I thought, “That’s what I want to do!”

I went down several other paths since that concert — mostly in the realm of solo, operatic singing — but it’s incredibly rewarding to be able to say I achieved my dream, and I’m coming back to place where the seed of that dream was planted almost 20 years ago.

Tomorrow: How countertenors re-emerged and were treated, the “Trade Winds” program and Pagenkopf’s future plans


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Classical music: Here is a year-long list of concerts at the University of Wisconsin Mead Witter School of Music. They start Tuesday night with the 40th annual Karp Family Labor Day Concert

September 1, 2019
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By Jacob Stockinger

Get out your datebooks and calendars.

Here is a complete listing for major concerts and events at the University of Wisconsin Mead Witter School of Music during the new 2019-20 season.

The calendar starts with the FREE season-opening 40th annual Karp Family Labor Day Concert this coming Tuesday night, Sept. 3, at 7:30 p.m. in Mills Hall. The program features chamber music by Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann and Dvorak. For more information about the program and performers, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/40th-karp-family-concert/

Using the search engine on this blog, you could also consult whenever individual or group you want. You could print it out and have it in hand instead of the usual brochure, which will not be printed this year. See a previous blog post: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2019/08/19/classical-music-the-uw-madison-school-of-music-will-not-have-a-complete-brochure-for-the-new-season-go-to-the-website-and-sign-up-for-an-email-newsletter-the-30th-karp-family-labor-day-concert-is-s/

Most concerts this season will take place in the new Hamel Music Center (below), which has a three-day opening celebration Oct. 25-27.

Please note that just a few programs are listed. For other programs, and for information about any admission charge, you can go to the School of Music’s home website closer to the event and click on Concerts and Events: https://www.music.wisc.edu/events/

Tuesday, Sep 3, 2019

Karp Family Concert

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7:30 PM

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Mills Hall

Sunday, September 29, 2019,

Jessica Martin & John O’Brien – Nordic song recital

4:00 PM

Morphy Hall

Monday, Sept. 30, 2019

Beth Wiese, Tuba, Guest Artist Recital

7:30 PM

Morphy Hall

Friday, October 4, 2019

Pro Arte Quartet

8:00 PM

Mills Hall

Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019

Chanticleer

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2019

Wind Ensemble

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Friday, October 11, 2019

UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sunday, October 13, 2019

University Bands

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Contemporary Jazz & Blue Note Ensemble

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Wisconsin Brass Quintet – Faculty Concert Series

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Thursday, October 17

Jazz Faculty Quintet with special guest Michael Dudley, trumpet

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Monday, October 21, 2019

Afro-Cuban Jazz Ensemble and UW Jazz Orchestra

7:30 PM

Play Circle

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Concert Band

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Wed, October 23, 2019

Jazz Composers Group & Jazz Standards

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Thu, October 24, 2019

Parry Karp with Eli Kalman, piano

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Friday, October 25, 2019

Opening Celebration Weekend: Hamel Music Center. Please check our website for details.

All Day

740 University Avenue

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Opening Celebration Weekend: Hamel Music Center. Please check our website for details.

All Day

740 University Avenue

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Opening Celebration Weekend: Hamel Music Center. Featured Event: Collins Fellows Concert

1:00 PM

Collins Recital Hall, Hamel Music Center

Wed, October 30, 2019

Master Class with Violist Nobuko Imai

6:30 PM

Collins Hall

Thu, October 31, 2019

Violist Nobuko Imai with Pro Arte Quartet

12:00 PM

Collins Hall

Fri, November 1, 2019

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Madrigal Singers

8:00 PM

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Mead Witter Hall

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Sat, November 2, 2019

Alicia Lee, faculty clarinet

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8:00 PM

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Collins Hall

Sun, November 3, 2019

Wind Ensemble

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Fri, November 8, 2019

Wingra Wind Quintet

8:00 PM

Collins Hall

Sat, November 9, 2019

UW Chorale

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Thu, November 14, 2019

UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Fri, November 15, 2019

University Opera: Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Sun, November 17, 2019

University Opera: Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

2:00 PM

Music Hall

Tue, November 19, 2019

University Opera: Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Sat, November 16, 2019

Low Brass Ensemble

4:00 PM

Collins Hall

Sat, November 16, 2019

Combined Choirs

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, November 16, 2019

Timothy Hagen, faculty flute

8:00 PM

Collins Hall

Fri, November 22, 2019

UW Concert Choir

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Fri, November 22, 2019

Pro Arte Quartet

8:00 PM

Collins Hall

Fri, November 22, 2019

UW Jazz Orchestra

5:00-7:00 PM

Rathskeller

Saturday, Nov 23, 2019

Undergrad Audition Day

All day

Sat, November 23, 2019

World Percussion Ensemble

12:00 PM

Music Hall

Sat, November 23, 2019

Brass Ensembles

1:00 PM

??

Sun, November 24, 2019

UW Concert Band with Winds of Wisconsin

5:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Mon, November 25, 2019

Chamber Percussion Ensemble

7:30 PM

Mills Hall

Tue, November 26, 2019

Opera Scenes

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Mon, December 2, 2019

Piano Studio Recital

6:30 PM

Collins Hall

Tue, December 3, 2019

Jazz Composers & Contemporary Jazz Ensembles

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Wed, December 4, 2019

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Jazz Standards Ensemble & Afro-Cuban Jazz

7:30 PM

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Collins Hall

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Thu, December 5, 2019

UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra & UW Wind Ensemble

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7:30 PM

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Mead Witter Hall

Fri, December 6, 2019

Saxophonist Greg Ward with the Blue Note Ensemble and UW jazz faculty

8:00 PM

Collins Hall

Sat, December 7, 2019

UW & Madison Metropolitan Jazz Festival

Final Concert, 3:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, December 7, 2019

Choral Union: Ralph Vaughan Williams’s “A Sea Symphony”

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, December 8, 2019

University Bands

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, December 8, 2019

Choral Concerts at Luther Memorial Church

2:00 PM

Luther Memorial Church

Sun, December 8, 2019

Choral Concerts at Luther Memorial Church

4:00 PM

Luther Memorial Church

Sun, December 8, 2019

All-University Strings

4:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

BEGIN 2020

Sun, January 26, 2020

Annual Schubertiade

3:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, February 1, 2020

Christopher Taylor and Friends — Beethoven Symphony Extravaganza

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Wed, February 5, 2020

Daniel Grabois, horn

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Thu, February 6, 2020

UW Symphony Orchestra

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, February 8, 2020

The Knights

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, February 16, 2020

UW Wind Ensemble

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Monday, February 17, 2020

Chamber Percussion Ensemble

7:30 PM

Mills Hall

Tue, February 18, 2020

Concert Band

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Thu, February 20, 2020

Parry Karp, faculty recital

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Fri, February 21, 2020

Marc Vallon & Friends

8:00 PM

Collins Hall

Sunday, Feb 23, 2020

Les Thimmig, faculty recital

2:00 PM

Collins Hall

Sat, April 18, 2020

Low Brass Ensemble

4:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Fri, February 28, 2020

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Pro Arte Quartet

8:00 PM

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Collins Hall

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Sat, February 29, 2020

Wingra Wind Quintet

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8:00 PM

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Collins Hall

Fri, February 28, 2020,

University Opera – Mozart’s Così fan tutte

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Sun, March 1, 2020

University Opera – Mozart’s Così fan tutte

2:00 PM

Music Hall

Tue, March 3, 2020

University Opera – Mozart’s Così fan tutte

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Sun, March 1, 2020

Winds of Wisconsin

5:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Wed, March 4, 2020

Afro-Cuban Jazz Ensemble & Jazz Composers Group

7:30

Collins Hall

Thu, March 5, 2020

Blue Note Ensemble & Jazz Standards Ensemble

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Sat, March 7, 2020

UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra with guest pianist Wu Han

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, March 8, 2020

University Bands

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Tue, March 10, 2020

Percussion Department Recital

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Weds March 11, 2020

UW Jazz Orchestra

7:30 PM

Play Circle

Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Wisconsin Brass Quintet – Faculty Concert Series

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Thu, March 12, 2020

UW Wind Ensemble

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Fri, March 27, 2020

Le Domaine Musicale with Marc Vallon and Friends

8:00 PM

Collins Hall

Sun, March 29, 2020

Concert Band

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, April 5, 2020

Beethoven Competition Winners’ Recital

3:30 PM

Collins Hall

Sun, April 5, 2020

“Symphony Showcase” Concerto Winners’ Solo Concert

7:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, April 11, 2020

Chorale

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Fri, April 12, 2019

Perlman Trio Chamber Concert

3:00 PM

Collins Hall

Tue, April 14, 2020

Opera Scenes

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Wed, April 15, 2020

Contested Homes: Migrant Liberation Movement Suite

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Thu, April 16, 2020

Pro Arte Quartet

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Fri, April 17, 2020

Combined Choirs

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, April 18, 2020

Low Brass Ensemble

4:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, April 18, 2020

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UW-Madison Choral Reunion concert featuring Concert Choir, Madrigals and alumni

8:00 PM

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Mead Witter Hall

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Mon, April 20, 2020

Afro-Cuban Jazz Ensemble & Blue Note Ensemble

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7:30 PM

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Collins Hall

Tue, April 21, 2020

Jazz Standards Ensemble & Jazz Composers Group

7:30 PM

Collins Hall

Wed, April 22, 2020

Chamber Percussion Ensemble

7:30 PM

Mills Hall

Thu, April 23, 2020

UW Jazz Orchestra with the UW Honors Jazz Band

7:30 PM

Music Hall

Fri, April 24, 2020

Concert Band and Wind Ensemble

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, April 25, 2020

All-University Strings

2:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sat, April 25, 2020

Choral Union: Giuseppe Verdi’s “Requiem”

8:00 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, April 26, 2020

Choral Union: Giuseppe Verdi’s “Requiem”

7:30 PM

Mead Witter Hall

Sun, April 26, 2020

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University Bands 2 PM Mead Witter Hall

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Classical music: Saturday brings percussion music, chamber music and choral music, much of it free

April 5, 2019
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By Jacob Stockinger

As you can tell from earlier posts this week, this weekend will be very busy with music.

But Saturday is especially, offering percussion music, chamber music and vocal music, much of it FREE.

PERCUSSION MUSIC

At 1:30 p.m. in Mills Hall, the Percussion Ensemble of the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras will perform its 18th annual Percussion Extravaganza.

It features the world premiere of “Common Mind” by composer and WYSO alumnus Jon D. Nelson (below). For more a bout Nelson and his music, go to: http://jondnelson.com

More than 150 performers – instrumentalists, singers and dancers – will be featured.

Here is a link to details about the event, including ticket prices:

https://www.wysomusic.org/wyso-percussion-ensemble-to-present-the-2019-percussion-extravaganza/

CHAMBER MUSIC

At 3:30 p.m. in Morphy Hall, the Perlman Piano Trio plus two guest artists will give a FREE concert.

The program is the “Kakadu”Variations in G major, Op. 121a, by Ludwig van Beethoven; the Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 49, by Felix Mendelssohn; and the Piano Quintet in F minor by Cesar Franck. (You can her the first movement of the Mendelssohn Trio performed in the YouTube vide at the bottom, by pianist Emanuel Ax, violinist Itzhak Perlman and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.)

Members of the quintet, based on an annual student piano trio supported by Kato Perlman (below), are: Kangwoo Jin, piano; Mercedes Cullen, violin; Micah Cheng, cello; Maynie Bradley, violin; and Luke Valmadrid, viola.

A reception will follow the concert.

CHORAL MUSIC

At 8 p.m. in Mills Hall, the UW-Madison Concert Choir (below top) will perform a FREE concert under conductor Beverly Taylor (below bottom), who is the director of choral activities at the university.

AN UPDATE: Conductor Beverly Taylor has sent the following update about the program:

“I’m happy to update our Saturday, April 6, free concert at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall:

“The Concert Choir is singing a program called “Half a Bach and other good things.”

“We’re singing just half of the B Minor Mass: the Kyrie and Gloria (12 movements), which were what Bach originally wrote and sent off for his job interview!

We have a small orchestra and a mixture of student and professional soloists: Julia Rottmayer, Matthew Chastain, Wesley Dunnagan, Miranda Kettlewell, Kathleen Otterson, Elisheva Pront and Madeleine Trewin.

The remaining third of the concert is an eclectic mix of modern composers (Petr Eben’s “De circuitu eternal,” Gerald Finzi’s “My Spirit Sang All Day”), Renaissance music (Orlando Gibbons’ “O Clap your Hands”), spirituals and gospel.


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Classical music: Two performances of the UW-Madison’s popular Winter Choral Concert takes place this Sunday afternoon. On Friday, composer Melinda Wagner gives a free public master class

November 29, 2018
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ALERT: On Friday, Nov. 30, from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Morphy Hall, the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Melinda Wagner will discuss her music in a master class, which is FREE and open to both students and the public. (You can hear an interview with her in the YouTube video at th bottom.)

For more information about the acclaimed composer, including a video interview, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/guest-artist-master-class-melinda-wagner-composer/

By Jacob Stockinger

On this Sunday afternoon, Dec. 2, one of the most popular FREE and PUBLIC events at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music will take place.

Two FREE performances of the annual Winter Concert, which always draws full houses, will take place at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. at the Luther Memorial Church (below), 1021 University Avenue.

Six of seven UW-Madison choirs — Chorale, Concert Choir (below top), Madrigal Singers, University Chorus, Women’s Chorus (below bottom) and Masters Singers — will perform in the charity concert.

Choirs will perform choral works both as individual ensembles and jointly.

Holiday carols are part of the program, and concert-goers are invited to sing along.

Professors and graduate students Beverly Taylor (below top), Bruce Gladstone, Michael Johnson and Andrew Voth will conduct, and UW Professor John Chappell Stowe (below bottom) will play the organ.

A free-will offering is accepted at the end of the program. Proceeds after expenses will be donated to “The Road Home,” an organization that provides housing and food to homeless families.

For more information, and a list of the complete and lengthy eclectic program – which includes works by Johann Sebastian Bach and Ralph Vaughan Williams as well as traditional music, jazz, pop music and a piece by UW-Madison alumnus Scott Gendel — go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/two-winter-concerts-at-luther-memorial-church/2018-12-02/


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Classical music: A busy week at the UW-Madison brings an early opera and an all-Bernstein brass and winds program plus orchestral and choral concerts that will be LIVE-STREAMED

November 14, 2018
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By Jacob Stockinger

A busy week brings an early opera plus orchestral and choral concerts with live streaming to the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music.

Here are details:

On Thursday and Saturday nights, the UW-Madison Mead Witter School of Music will LIVE STREAM concerts by the UW Symphony Orchestra and the UW Concert Choir.

“We plan to do more live streaming of ensemble groups,  especially large ones, and of non-ticketed events,” says concert manager Katherine Esposito. “It is more and more becoming the norm for music schools.”

Here is the all-purpose Live Streaming link where you can see what events will be live-streamed: https://www.music.wisc.edu/video/

At 7:30 p.m. on Thursday night, Nov. 15, in Mills Hall, the UW Symphony Orchestra (below top) will perform a FREE concert under director Chad Hutchinson (below bottom).

The program is American composer Jennifer Higdon’s “Blue Cathedral” and the Symphony No. 5 by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

For information about the program and the concert, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/uw-madison-symphony-orchestra-2/

On Saturday night, Nov. 17,  at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall, the Concert Choir (below) will perform a FREE concert featuring the “Hymn to St. Cecilia” by British composer Benjamin Britten and “Lamentations of the Prophet Jeremiah” by Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera as well as works by several other composers.

Conductors will be Beverly Taylor (below), the director of choral activities at the UW-Madison, and graduate student Michael Johnson.

For details about the program and individual performers, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/uw-concert-choir-2/

On Friday night, Nov. 16, at 7:30 p.m. in Music Hall there is the first of three performances by the University Opera of Italian baroque composer Claudio Monteverdi’s “The Coronation of Poppea,” directed by David Ronis (below, in a photo by Luke Delalio).

Other performances are on Sunday afternoon, Nov. 18,  at 2 p.m. and Tuesday night, Nov. 20, at 7:30 in Music Hall. (Sorry, no photos of the UW production. But you can hear a famous duet from another professional production in the YouTube video below.)

Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and $10 for students.

Chad Hutchinson will conduct the orchestra.

For more information about the plot of the opera, comments by the two singers playing Emperor Nero, the production and tickets, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/university-opera-monteverdis-the-coronation-of-poppea/

And here is a link to a press release about the opera: https://www.music.wisc.edu/2018/10/09/university-opera-poppea2018/

On Sunday night, Nov. 18, at 7 p.m. in Mills Hall, the UW Brass Ensemble and the Winds of Wisconsin join forces under conductor Scott Teeple for an FREE all-Leonard Bernstein (below) program. For details, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/uw-wind-ensemble-and-winds-of-wisconsin-joint-concert/


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Classical music: This Sunday, Beverly Taylor retires as associate conductor of the Madison Symphony Orchestra. Kyle Knox will succeed Taylor starting this fall.

June 29, 2018
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By Jacob Stockinger

The Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) has announced that Associate Conductor Beverly Taylor (below) will retire from her current position after 22 years, effective this Sunday, July 1.

Taylor will continue to serve as Director of the Madison Symphony Chorus (below, in a  photo by Greg Anderson).

She will also continue as the Director of Choral Activities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music, where she conducts many groups including the Choral Union (below) and the Concert Choir.

Kyle Knox (below) will become the MSO’s new Associate Conductor, effective in the 2018–2019 season.

“I am delighted that Beverly will continue to work with the Madison Symphony Chorus. The chorus has improved steadily under her direction and will sing some very difficult music in the coming seasons,” said MSO music director John DeMain (below, in a photo by Prasad). “I also want to thank Beverly for the outstanding help she has given me in the preparation of our concerts over the years.”

“I’ve loved my time as associate conductor of the symphony, and will continue as chorus director,” says Taylor. “But I’m looking forward to more time for guest conducting, visiting friends and family and finishing the two books I’m at work on. I also have a grant to write a basic conducting textbook, and I’m finishing a handbook on how to develop a musical interpretation.”

John DeMain says he looks forward to Knox joining the MSO. “I think Kyle Knox is a natural to step into the associate conductor position. He has distinguished himself in the past few years with his work at the University of Wisconsin, Madison Opera and the Middleton Community Orchestra (below, in a photo by John W. Barker). He also successfully led the MSO in last year’s Concert on the Green.

“His recent appointment as Music Director of the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (WYSO) is a testament to his brilliant talent and will dovetail easily with his duties with the MSO. I so look forward to our working together and welcome him to our Madison Symphony Orchestra family.”

Knox is also very pleased with his appointment.

“My history with the MSO goes back a few years and I have long admired the work of Maestro DeMain and this wonderful group of musicians,” he says. “It is an honor to have been selected for this opportunity and I look forward to happy years of service and collaboration.”

BACKGROUND BIOGRAPHIES

Beverly Taylor has been the Associate Conductor of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and Director of the Madison Symphony Chorus since 1996 and Director of Choral Activities at UW-Madison since 1995.

Prior roles include conductor of the Boston Bar Association Orchestra, Music Director of the Back Bay Chorale, and Associate Director of Choral Activities at Harvard University.

Taylor has been a guest conductor at the Arthur Rubinstein Philharmonic Orchestra in Poland, the St. Louis Symphony Chorus, the Vermont Symphony, the Harvard Chamber Orchestra, the Madison Opera, the U.S. Air Force Band and Orchestra, the Harvard Radcliffe Collegium Musicum, and the Wellesley Chamber Singers.

She graduated from the University of Delaware and Boston University School for the Arts and received a fellowship with Chorus America and an orchestral fellowship at Aspen.

Kyle Knox will take over the dual positions of Music Director of WYSO and Associate Conductor of the Madison Symphony Orchestra beginning in the 2018–2019 season.

Past and upcoming conducting credits include Mark Adamo’s Little Women with the Madison Opera; Benjamin Britten’s Albert Herring and The Turn of the Screw, and Transformations; with UW-Madison’s University Opera; the Madison Symphony Orchestra’s 2017 Concert on the Green; Johann Strauss Jr.’s Die Fledermaus and Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers and H.M.S. Pinafore with the Madison Savoyards; as well as UW Music Clinic’s High School Honors Orchestra.

Other concerts include Carousel, Sunday in the Park with George, and Sweeney Todd (2018) with Middleton Players Theatre, Jon Deak’s The Passion of Scrooge with Oakwood Chamber Players, as well as regular appearances with the Middleton Community Orchestra.

He was formerly a clarinetist with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, the Santa Fe Opera and Philadelphia Orchestras, and was on the faculty at UW-Milwaukee. Festivals credits include Tanglewood, Spoleto (Italy), Santa Fe Chamber Music, and Bowdoin College, among others. His debut album, the first commercial recording of Conrad Susa’s chamber opera Transformations, will be released in the summer of 2018 on iTunes. He holds degrees from Juilliard School and the UW-Madison. He  is married to MSO concertmaster Naha Greenholtz. 


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