April & May 2024 College News

MUSIC Music, Music Studies, Per formance, & Sound Recording Technolog y FACULTY ACCOLADES Christopher Besch sang the role of Samuel in Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance with Opera San Antonio. Mary Ellen Cavitt served as the Honor Band Guest Conductor for the Association for Music in International Schools All-Latin America MS/HS Honor Band Festival at the Colegio Nueva Granada in Bogota, Colombia, on May 22-26, 2024. Ian Davidson served as guest principal oboe of the Mid-Texas Symphony for a performance of works by Bach, Vivaldi, and Handel. The concert was held at the historic BraunTex Theater in New Braunfels before a sold-out audience. Alex Klein , Principal Oboe Emeritus of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. recently performed Ian Davidson ’s work Tableaux del Norte as part of a Faculty Recital at DePaul University. The concert of works for oboe by oboists included works spanning three centuries. Davidson performed a pair of concerts as part of the Salon Concert Series in Austin. The chamber music series brings together musicians from around Texas to present works in an intimate setting. The program included works by Wagner, Bach, and Austin-based composer Kathryn Mishell. Cynthia I. Gonzales is completing almost a decade of service to national and regional organizations. This spring, she completes a three-year's term on the College Board Music Theory AP Test Development Committee. Last fall, Gonzales concluded her three-year term on the International Society for Music Theory Executive Board. Before that, she served the Texas Society for Music Theory for six years as president-elect, president, and past president. Daris Hale and Ian Davidson gave a performance Daris Hale and Ian Davidson gave a peformance in London at the Royal Academy of Music Daveda Karanas performed the opera The Passenger The Apollo Saxophone Quartet performed at the Spencer/Lockett Salon 1 2 3 in London at the Royal Academy of Music as part of their concert outreach series. They shared the stage with Harold Emert, former principal oboe of the National Orchestra of Brazil; Richard Meek, bassoon professor from Texas Tech University; and Adam Shapiro from Cambridge University. The performance celebrated works written by Brazilian composers or composer influenced by the music of Brazil and featured a pair of new works written by Davidson: Copacabana and Pão de Açúcar. [1] Daveda Karanas recently delivered a commanding performance as Liese in Mieczysław Weinberg’s monumental opera, The Passenger (La Pasajera), at Madrid’s illustrious Teatro Real, renowned as one of Europe’s premier opera houses. With a career marked by stellar portrayals of Liese across esteemed venues like the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Detroit Opera, Florida Grand Opera, and The Israeli Opera, her Spanish debut showcased her unparalleled artistry in this emotionally charged role. As Karanas continues to mesmerize audiences with her exceptional talent and artistry, her portrayal of Liese in The Passenger stands as a testament to her extraordinary abilities as a performer and her profound understanding of the operatic form. [2] Dimitar Ninov received the Most Inspiring Teacher award by the Sigma Alpha Iota Theta Omega Chapter at Texas State University. He was a judge at the First International Student Conference for Music Research, a collaboration between Texas State University and the University of Mainz in Germany. Ninov also delivered an invited scholarly presentation at the University of Arkansas, Fort Smith, and saw the performances of his wind quintet by Adelante Winds in San Antonio, where two of his piano pieces were performed as well. His paper “The Intricacies of Harmonic Dictation” has been accepted to the First Summit on Music Literacy sponsored by the Society of Music Analysis and held at the University of Cambridge, UK. Todd Oxford was selected as an adjudication panelist for the 10th ENKOR International Winds and Percussion Competition in London, United Kingdom. Thomas Rinn presented his research, “The Relationship Between Musical Self-Efficacy and Achievement: at the International Symposium for Research in Choral Singing in Chicago on April 25-26, 2024. His research study “‘The Children Are Not Okay’: Choir Teachers Perceptions of Students Post Covid-19 Shutdowns” was recently published in the Journal of Music Teacher Education . Alec Scherer was elected co-facilitator of the ASPA group in the Society for Music Teacher Education, focusing on music education curricula’s structure, milestones, and collaborations. STUDENT ACCOLADES The Apollo Saxophone Quartet ( Tomas Hinojosa , Jaime Fernandez , Miles Avelar , Emma Hallett ) were selected to perform at the Spencer/Lockett Salon in the Wittliff Collections at Alkek Library. [3] Emma Hallett , undergraduate saxophonist and music studies major, was selected as Drum Major for the 2024- 2025 Bobcat Marching Band. ALUMNI ACCOLADES Peyton Grover , Saxophone Studio alumnus, was named the new Director of Bands at Lockhart High School. Ziqing Guan, (MM-2018) a recent Doctor of Musical Arts graduate from the University of South Carolina, has won multiple Young Artist competitions and was a quarterfinalist in the 2022 NFA Young Artist Competition. Recently named a Haynes Flute Young Artist, she also runs her own business as a personal trainer for musicians, leading workshops at various events. Two TXST alumni from the flute studio in the School of Music have been chosen to be Program Chairs for the National Flute Association Convention in 2026 in Portland, OR. Daniel Pardo (BM-2010) is currently Assistant Professor of Flute at Prairie View A&M, a Yamaha performing artist, and presenter at international and national conferences. Hilary Janysek Piña (BM- 2011) is Assistant Professor of Flute at Southwestern University and Mary-Hardin Baylor, past President of the Austin Flute Society, and Chair of the Flute Clubs committee for the National Flute Association. 18 | April & May 2024 | College News College of Fine Arts and Communication | 19