{"id":211745,"date":"2022-02-25T12:57:56","date_gmt":"2022-02-25T17:57:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/john-j-cali-school-of-music\/?p=211745"},"modified":"2022-02-25T12:59:55","modified_gmt":"2022-02-25T17:59:55","slug":"cali-residencies-hit-a-high-note","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/john-j-cali-school-of-music\/2022\/02\/25\/cali-residencies-hit-a-high-note\/","title":{"rendered":"Cali Residencies Hit a High Note"},"content":{"rendered":"

It would have been understandable if Gavin Ard was nervous the day he played for legendary trumpeter and composer Wynton Marsalis. \u201cOh man, it\u2019s the guy<\/em>,\u201d he recalled thinking during a master class. But he kept his cool, attuned to the way Marsalis was connecting with everyone around him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI immediately got the vibe that his focus was more about being with people through music than being with musicians. He was focused on the humanity aspect of everything,\u201d says Ard, a senior Music Performance major from St. Petersburg, Florida. \u201cHe\u2019d put his hand on your shoulder and say, \u2018You just played, we\u2019ll talk about it, but let\u2019s remind ourselves we\u2019re not just trumpet players, we\u2019re people.\u2019 It was a big thing with Wynton. I played a classical piece and all of his comments were based on things not on the page.\u201d<\/p>\n

The opportunities to learn from masters like Marsalis are hitting a high note for Ard and other students at the John J. Cali School of Music, where ensembles and solo artists are rotating through a series of professional residencies.<\/p>\n

The visiting musicians<\/a> cross boundaries and a variety of genres, from a classical rock-star duo to a vocal band evoking emotional sound palettes to an experimental string quartet. The spring roster<\/a>includes an evening of immersive music with Grammy-winner James Blachly conducting the Experiential Orchestra and Montclair State University Symphony Orchestra. (This free public event<\/a> on Saturday, March 26 will allow the audience to experience the sound with creative seating among the orchestra).<\/p>\n

\"Kamala
Composer and soprano Kamala Sankaram performs her newest work Crescent<\/em> for solo voice and electronics during a public event on February 17 in Leshowitz Recital Hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve tried to keep the artists diverse in every possible way,\u201d says Anthony Mazzocchi, director of the Cali School. \u201cIt\u2019s important that students from all walks of life see a part of themselves up on stage, and at the same time to have students exposed to musicians who play a genre that they never thought of, has opened up a lot of eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nick Scafuto, a lead tenor with the University Singers, recently had the opportunity to workshop with composer, vocalist, playwright and actress Kamala Sankaram on an a cappella commission, Let My Country Awake<\/em>, based on the poetry of Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore. \u201cIt\u2019s extremely evocative,\u201d Scafuto says of the piece. \u201cBeing able to work with interesting meter changes and tonalities is not something you see in the choral space.\u201d<\/p>\n

During her residency, Sankaram showcased a variety of creative events, culminating in a performance at Merkin Concert Hall in New York City. \u201cIt\u2019s one of those things where you\u2019ve been seeing these people on YouTube videos with millions of views and in different kinds of spaces and then to actually have them in front of you is wild,\u201d says Scafuto, a senior Music Education major from Bridgewater, New Jersey.An open rehearsal in early February with the Harlem Quartet, Montclair\u2019s quartet-in-residence, pulled back the curtain on the ensemble\u2019s creative process as they worked through String Quartet in C Major<\/em> K. 465 \u201cDissonance\u201d by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, a piece they will perform this spring.<\/p>\n

The musicians worked on tempo, \u201cleaving room to breathe\u201d between notes, creating space for their imaginations to come through. \u201cWe have a plan, but we change and react in the moment,\u201d Harlem Quartet cellist Felix Umansky explained.<\/p>\n

Ard says he takes those lessons on interpretation to heart. \u201cSlowing down, pushing through, dynamics that aren\u2019t on the page, there\u2019s a part of me as a young musician that thinks that\u2019s not what the composer said, when in reality that\u2019s what separates incredible musicians from people who play just what\u2019s on the page.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Members
The Harlem Quartet, from left, Ilmar Gavil\u00e1n, Melissa White, Felix Umansky and Jaime Amador, discuss the score of \u201cDissonance\u201d during an open rehearsal at the John J. Cali School of Music.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ard is preparing for a residency pairing percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie and composer Michael Daugherty. The week will culminate on Friday, March 4 in the world premiere performance<\/a> of the wind band version of Daugherty\u2019s Dreamachine<\/em> by the MSU Wind Symphony with Glennie as soloist.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s incredible that we get to work with the musicians and evolve with them,\u201d says Ard, who plays with the University\u2019s Wind Symphony and Jazz Band. \u201cIt reminds us why we\u2019re artists and why we\u2019re musicians, to see these people who are out there doing what we want to do at the very highest levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

See the full list of performances and classes at Cali Immersive Residency<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Photo Gallery<\/h2>\n
\"\"
Violinist Melissa White makes notes on the score of \u201cDissonance\u201d during an open rehearsal of the Harlem Quartet, which performs at New York\u2019s Merkin Concert Hall on March 12, 2022, and on March 14 at Montclair\u2019s Leshowitz Recital Hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Montclair
The Montclair Wind Symphony rehearses for a March 4 world premiere of Michael Daugherty\u2019s Dreamachine<\/em> in the Kasser Theater.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Musicians
Cali musicians applaud Kamala Sankaram following the Montclair performance. The program featured students in the composer\u2019s works Ololyga, The Far Shore and Eight Phases of Luna.<\/em> Shown from left are Taylor Amato, William Hobbs, Courtney San Martin, Jason Zacher, GaDa Lambert and Seungchan Hong.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Story by Staff Writer Marilyn Joyce Lehren<\/a>. Photos by University Photographer Mike Peters.<\/a><\/p>\n

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