MSU Chorale performed Carmina Burana with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra and Moscow Conservatory Student Chorus— November 2008
The 150 voice MSU Chorale (Heather J. Buchanan, director) sang Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra and Moscow Conservatory Student Chorus, with Jacques Lacombe (conductor), Sarah Coburn (soprano), Vale Rideout (tenor) and Stephen Powell (bass). The performances took place November 7-9 at Prudential Hall, NJPAC, Newark and the Community Theater, Morristown. Read Bradley Bamberger's review in the Newark Star Ledger  For the full article click here

 

MSU’s Harry Partch Ensemble Performed Two World Premieres at the Annual Beatrice Crawford Memorial Concert
MSU’s Harry Partch Ensemble presented world premieres of Elizabeth Brown's Seahorse and Mathew Rosenblum's Yonah's Dream,. Harry Partch's Eleven Intrusions & O Frabjous Day! and Dean Drummond's MS Genitron at Kasser Theater. This concert, planned over a two year period, was made possible by a generous grant from the Keating Crawford Foundation. The free Crawford Concert is an annual event presented at Montclair State University in memory of Beatrice Crawford, a Montclair musician who was the director of two choral groups, “The Madrigals” and “The Choraliers.”

 

 

BRIAN ABRAMS joins MSU as a member of the Music Therapy faculty in the Cali School of Music. He served on the faculty at Utah State University from 2001-2004, and at Immaculata University from 2004-2008. He has published and presented internationally on a wide range of topics such as music therapy in cancer care, music psychotherapy, and music therapy research. Currently, he is serving as President of the Mid-Atlantic Region of the American Music Therapy Association (2007-2009).

 

MICHAEL ALBAUGH recently served as the Director of Music at Interlochen Center for the Arts.  Serving in this role from 2001 to 2008, he oversaw all musical and educational programming for the Interlochen Arts Academy and the Interlochen Arts Camp, as well as teaching composition and music theory.   He received the National Teacher Recognition Award in 2005 from the National Foundation for the Advancement in the Arts on behalf of the United States Department of Education.  A ProMusica International Grant recipient, Dr. Albaugh has also conducted field research in West Africa, studying Ewe music and culture in Kopeyia, Ghana.

 

Professor and former Director of Bands MARY ANN CRAIG will be retiring at the end of spring semester. Since 1996, Dr. Craig has conducted the MSU Symphonic Band, founded the MSU Wind Symphony, and taught applied euphonium and conducting classes. During her years at MSU, Dr. Craig was active conducting locally, nationally and internationally, most frequently in Russia. Her conducting in Moscow, and the associations she developed there, laid the groundwork for the relationship MSU now has with the famed Moscow Conservatory. Dr. Craig will be retiring to her new home in Western Pennsylvania.

 

Music Education professor LISA DELORENZO is working with Cali School alumna ROBBIN GORDON-CARTIER (’93, MA ‘09) at the Cicely Tyson School of Performing and Fine Arts in East Orange to identify promising minority music students and prepare them for admission to a college music education program. Minority music teachers make up a small number of music teaching forces in an era of increasingly diversified classrooms, so the goal of this project is to serve as a "bridge program" for underserved high school students who have the potential for teaching music.

 

JEFFREY KUNKEL(Music Education, Jazz Studies) was honored by the New Jersey Association of Jazz Educators with their 2008 NJ Jazz Achievement Award.

 

In fall 2008, Director of Orchestra Studies PAUL HOSTETTER conducted the Colonial Symphony (Morristown, NJ) in a concert featuring works by Strauss, Handel, Mozart, Anderson, and a world premiere by composition contest winner and MSU student MICHAEL MAHADEEN (’09). He also ran a program on behalf of the Colonial Symphony, entitled Listening is Healing at the Carol G. Simon Cancer Center in partnership with MSU alumna LEAH OSWANSKI (’01), presenting weekly concerts for patients. In December, Prof. Hostetter conducted the Sequitur Ensemble at the Library of Congress as part of Elliott Carter's 100th Birthday celebration. He also conducted performances with the Westchester Symphony Orchestra, the New Jersey Regions II and the NJ Youth Symphony, and served as Artistic Advisor to the Music Mondays series in New York City that runs September through May.

 

Student JONATHAN GROSZEW (’12) won an honorable mention out of the 12 musicians in finals for the Pearl and Julius Young Rising Stars music competition sponsored by the Baroque Orchestra of NJ. He studies French horn with visiting professor NANCY BILLMANN.

 

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Alumni

 

GREGORY PERKINS (B.A., MusicTherapy '08,) has accepted a full-time position at Methany Medical and Education Center, Peapack, NJ.

 

BASSOONIST JEREMY FRIEDLAND (B.Mus., Performance '08), a student of Harry Searing, was accepted with a full scholarship to Yale University to study for a Masters Degree with Frank Morelli in performance.

 

The Messian series performed by alumna and renowned organist GAIL ARCHER (’73), was hailed as One of the "Best Classical Moments of 2008" -Time Out New York, December 18, 2008. 

Our 2007-08 Music Education graduates are teaching throughout the state…

KRISTEN BUNGERT– K-8 instrumental / general; Spring Lake Heights Public Schools

KRISTEN CIAMBRONE– Strings; Frelinghuysen Middle School, Morristown Public Schools

ASHLEY DAVIDSON–Newark Public Schools

JOE EVELAND – Newark Public Schools

MEG FRANK– P-3 general music; Memorial School, Maywood Public Schools

TIM GALAN– Elementary Instrumental; Newark Public Schools

LA’TOYA GREEN– McKinley Elementary School, Newark Public Schools

RAUL HUAMAN– Guitar and strings; JFK High School, Paterson Public Schools

ELLIS JASENOVIC– High school instrumental; JFK High School, Paterson Public Schools

JON KINNE– High school instrumental; Rutherford Public Schools

JEANNINE MURRAY– General music, Englewood on the Palisades Charter School

ARIEL OCASIO– Instrumental; Eastside HS, Newark Public Schools

ANDREA REIMAN– Elementary general music; Rahway Public Schools

JASMIN YOO– General music; Westwood Public Schools