March_CollegeNews_25

14 | March | College News College of Fine Arts and Communication | 15 MUSIC Music, Music Studies, Per formance, & Sound Recording Technolog y FACULTY ACCOLADES Ian Davidson traveled to Mexico City to give a pair of oboe masterclasses and a performance of his new work, Sentinels , for oboe solo. Performing in the classes were students representing the Escuela Superior de Música, Escuela de Música Vida y Movimientos – Ollin Yolizli, and the Conservatorio Nacional de Música, who performed works by Poulenc, Haydn, Hindemith, Telemann, Bach, and Nielsen. • Davidson also presented a solo performance and masterclass at Trinity Laban School for the Performing Arts in London. [1] Hank Hehmsoth’s composition “Blu-Escape” has been selected as the “Song of the Day” by All About Jazz, the world’s leading jazz music website. Featured on March 14, 2025, this recognition highlights Hehmsoth’s innovative approach to contemporary jazz and his ongoing contri- butions as a pianist, composer, and visual artist. From the album Blu-Escape (2024, Time Space Fabrics), the title track exemplifies Hehmsoth’s signature fusion of jazz and abstract visual art, creating a synesthetic experience where audiences can see the music and hear the art. Blu-Escape is a journey through sound and color, where each composition represents a unique sonic landscape. The album showcases Hehmsoth’s compositional depth and improvisational mastery, blending rich harmonies, rhythmic exploration, and evocative story- telling. Lynn Ledbetter performed as Concertmaster of the Ar- lington (VA) Philharmonic Association for its February 23, 2025, concert, featuring music of Brahms and Barber. 1 2 Ian Davidson presented a solo performance and masterclass at Trinity Laban School for the Performing Arts in London Gilbert Elorreaga had four students compete in the high school solo division of the National Trumpet Competition Jorge Santos was named one of the 2024-2025 Educators of the Year at Rawlinson Middle School in Northside ISD 3 Alec D. Scherer —along with colleagues from Kansas State University, Oklahoma University, and the University of Missouri—published a paper entitled “Understanding Music Students’ Self-Reports of Conducting Anxiety in Introductory Conducting Courses” in the tier-1 Journal of Research in Music Education (JRME). Nico Schüler was invited to present an international online lecture, hosted by the University of Göttingen in Germany, in February on the topic “Music & Data: On the History of Digital Music Research.” • At the Modern Languages Association National Confer- ence held in January in New Orleans, Schüler presented a paper on “Musical Adaptation of Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe: On Early African-American Musi- cal Theatre.” Holly Wissler was featured in a TXST Newsroom article on her recent trip to Nepal (TXST faculty presents high altitude indigenous culture research in Nepal : Newsroom : Texas State University) , where she presented research on high-altitude indigenous music cultures. Congratulations to the following School of Music faculty who received department and college achievement awards: Presidential Distinction Awards: Ames Asbell —Service Department Achievement Awards: Michael Ippolito —Teaching Alec Scherer —Service Ron Ulen —Scholarly/Creative Activity STUDENT ACCOLADES Bobby Harris oboist, has won a position at the Miami Music Festival. This five-week festival in Miami Beach brings together young artists from around the world to form an orchestra that performs symphonic and operatic masterworks. This summer, the orchestra will present Mozart’s Symphony No. 36, Franck’s Symphony, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10, Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, Holst’s The Planets , Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro , Dvořák’s Rusalka , and Corigliano’s The Ghost of Versailles . ALUMNI ACCOLADES Gilbert Elorreaga had four students compete in the high school solo division of the National Trumpet Competition: one advanced to the semifinals.  [2] Jorge Santos was named one of the 2024-2025 Educators of the Year at Rawlinson Middle School in Northside ISD. Santos received the award during his first year of teaching at Rawlinson, where he is an assistant band director. [3] Jeremy Spicer and Gilbert Elorreaga coached a high-school trumpet ensemble comprised of students from Cedar Park schools that won this year’s high school ensemble division at the National Trumpet Competition. Alex Szabo had two students compete in the junior solo division of the National Trumpet Competition.  At the recent National Trumpet Competition, Natalia Vela , a second-year teaching assistant at Michigan State University, received second place in the Mock Military Band auditions, advanced to the semifinals in the grad- uate solo division, and advanced to the semifinals in the small ensemble division with her trumpet ensemble from Michigan State.