NovDec2021_CollegeNews

MUSIC Music, Music Studies, Per formance, & Sound Recording Technolog y FACULTY ACCOLADES Daris Hale (bassoon) and Ian Davidson (oboe) recorded tracks for the documentary film Simple as Water that was released on HBO November 16. [1] The film, nominated for best documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival, explores the impact of war, separation, and displacement, the film takes audiences into Syrian families’ quests for normalcy and building a new life. Filmed over the course of five years in five countries including Turkey, Greece, Germany, Syria and the US, Simple As Water highlights the universal importance of family. Richard D. Hall , Senior Lecturer of Music, recently performed at two modern dance festivals. Richard created the music and performed mandolin and live electronics on the dance piece “ToMAYto/ ToMAHto.” The work was a collaboration with dancers/choreographers Michelle Nance , director of Texas State University Dance program and Catherine Solaas, Department Chair for Dance at Austin Community College. The work was featured in the Austin Dance Festival at Pioneer Farms in Austin. Richard was also sound engineer for the SemillaFest in San Marcos, featuring performances by Theatre students and Merge Dance Company. The festival celebrated the artistic voices of traditionally underrepresented peoples from the African, Hispanic, and Latin American diasporas. The two-day festival was performed at the city plaza outdoor stage. During the festival, Richard collaborated on a soundscape for actress Nadine Mozon, wrote and performed live music for a dance piece by Ana Baer and composed original music for guests Claudia Fragoso from Morelia, Mexico. This festival was funded by the Texas State University College of Fine Arts and Communication, the Department of Theatre and Dance, and the City of San Marcos Arts Commission. Boston-based ensemble Hub New Music [2] released a digital album of Michael Ippolito's Capriccio , a HBO's documentary film Simple as Water featuring music by Daris Hale and Ian Davidson Boston-based ensemble, Hub New Music Grammy nominated Choral group, Conspirare, directed by Craig Hella Johnson 16 | November & December | College News 1 2 3 25-minute work that responds to paintings by the German-American artist Hans Hofmann. The album is currently available on Bandcamp and will be released on streaming services in the coming weeks. Dr. Lynn Ledbetter performed with the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 on November 12. She will perform with the Abilene Philharmonic on December 4 and will serve as concertmaster for the Arlington Philharmonic in Washington, D.C. on December 12. GRAMMY NOMINATION College of Fine Arts and Communication | 17 Artist in Residence, Dr. Craig Hella Johnson , and his Austin- based vocal ensemble Conspirare [3] received their tenth GRAMMY® nomination in the Best Choral Performance category for their new album The Singing Guitar ahead of the 64th annual GRAMMY® awards. The Singing Guitar , released under the Delos label, features works by composers Reena Esmail, Nico Muhly, Kyle Smith, and Craig Hella Johnson inspired by Native American and Non- Native pioneer women. Conspirare collaborated with the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, Texas Guitar Quartet, Austin Guitar Quartet, and cellist Douglas Harvey for this performance. Conspirare was awarded the GRAMMY® for Best Choral Performance in 2015.