FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents the Alabama Symphonic Band in concert on Thursday, October 1, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, AL.  The program will include “Armenian Dances, Part I” by Alfred Reed, “Children’s March” by Percy Grainger, “Down A Country Lane” by Aaron Copland, “The Free Lance March” by John Philip Sousa, and “Give Us This Day” by David Maslanka. UA Assistant Director of Bands Randall O. Coleman is the conductor. The concert is FREE and open to the public. For more information visit www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 205-348-7111.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuscaloosa, AL – The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents a faculty recital featuring Stephen Cary, tenor on Sunday, October 4, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. in the Recital Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. He will perform “Non lo dirò col labbro” from Tolomeo by George Frederic Handel; “O del mio dolce ardor” by Christoph Willibald von Gluck; Handel’s “Tutta raccolta ancor” from Scipione; “Nichts,” “Zueignung,” and “Allerseelen” by Richard Strauss; “Traum durch die Dämmerung” by Otto Julius Bierbaum; “Music, when soft voices die” and “Parting” by Ernest Gold, “Loveliest of Trees” by John Duke; “Sento nel core” and “O del mio amato ben” by Stefano Donaudy; and Malìa” and “L’Ultima canzone” by Paolo Tosti. The concert is FREE and open to the public.  For more information visit: www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 348-7111.

Stephen Cary received his DMA, MM, and BM degrees from the University of Illinois.  He has appeared nationally as tenor soloist in, among others, Requiems of Lloyd Webber, Dvorák, and Mozart, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Bach’s Magnificat and Christmas Oratorio, Haydn’s Nelson Mass, Paukenmesse, and Creation, Vaughan Williams’ Hodie, Handel’s Israel in Egypt and Messiah, Liszt’s Psalm Thirteen, Respighi’s Laud to the Nativity, and Orff’s Carmina Burana.  Among his opera roles are Rodolfo (La Boheme), Tamino (The Magic Flute), Alfredo (La Traviata), and the title role in Britten’s Albert Herring.

Professor Cary has recently recorded on the MSR Classics label a compact disc of Schumann’s Dichterliebe and songs of Beethoven, including An die ferne Geliebte, Adelaide, and Andenken, with pianist Dennis Helmrich.  Professor Cary was a three-time Regional Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera Auditions in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Texas.

Among Professor Cary’s teachers have been Frances Crawford, Evelyn Reynolds, Ronald Hedlund, John Wustman, Eric Dalheim, and Gerard Souzay. He currently serves as Professor of Voice at The University of Alabama School of Music.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents a faculty recital featuring Faythe Freese, organ on Thursday, October 15, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. This recital is in memory of the late H. William “Bill” Ahrenholz, a supporter and benefactor of the School of Music for more than 50 years. The program will include the “Comes Autumn Time” by Leo Sowerby, “Concertante” by Daniel Pinkham, “Passacaglia on Bach” by Pamela Decker, “Agnus Dei” by Georges Bizet, “From Elijah” by  Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, “Musique du Soir” by P?teris Vasks, and “To Call My True Love to My Dance” by Naji Hakim. The performance will also feature UA Professors John Ratledge, Eric Yates, Jonathan Whitaker, Stephen Cary, and Charles “Skip” Snead. Other performers include Brittany Hendricks, Andy Cherolis, Beth Gottlieb, and Brian Radock. The concert is FREE and open to the public. There will be a reception following the concert at Alumni Hall. For more information visit: www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 348-7111.  Gifts to the Gladys L. and H. William Ahrenholz Endowed Organ Scholarship may be made by contacting University of Alabama Development Office at 205-348-8663.

Dr. Faythe Freese, Associate Professor of Music at The University of Alabama School of Music, holds degrees in organ performance and church music from Indiana University. Her organ teachers have included Marilyn Keiser, Robert Rayfield, William Eifrig and Phillip Gehring. As a Fulbright scholar and an Indiana University/Kiel Ausstausch Programme participant, she studied the works of Jean Langlais with the composer in France, and the works of Max Reger with Heinz Wunderlich in Germany.

With performances described as “powerful…masterful…impressive…brilliant,” Dr. Freese is in demand as a recitalist throughout the United States, Germany, Denmark, South Korea and Singapore.  In addition to continuing her concert career, Dr. Freese recruits and teaches undergraduate and graduate organ students majoring in Organ Performance and Church Music at the UA School of Music.

Dr. Freese has held faculty positions at Indiana University, Concordia University in Austin, University of North Dakota-Williston, and Andrew College. Dr. Freese has also held church music and symphony orchestra positions in Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, North Dakota, Texas and Ohio.

H. William “Bill” Ahrenholz was born in 1916 and passed away in Tuscaloosa in April 2009 at the age of 92. He was married to Gladys Ahrenholz for 62 years. Gladys and Bill were supporters and benefactors of The University of Alabama School of Music for more than 50 years. They established a lasting legacy through the Gladys L. and H. William Ahrenholz Endowed Organ Scholarship to promote the continuing education of Organ Music Students at the Capstone.

In addition to a love of music, Bill had a passion for mining. He earned several degrees and also taught in the field. In 1957, Bill moved to The University of Alabama as the Head of the School of Mines. During this time, Bill started taking organ lessons from Warren Hutton and he became a member of the American Guild of Organists Birmingham Chapter. After spending nearly a decade with Paul Weir Company, where the couple spent time in Zonguldak, Turkey and Columbia, South America, they moved back to Tuscaloosa in 1982 where he continued to pursue his interests: studying pipe organ with Dr. Freese, and even at the age of 90, exploring underground mines in Odgensburg, NJ.

September 8, 2009 – Faculty Recital:  Tuscaloosa, AL; Shelton State Community College “Terrific Tuesday” series; Tuesday, September 8 at 1:15 p.m.; Dr. Susan Fleming, mezzo-soprano, and Dr. Jennifer Cowgill, soprano; works of Heggie and Hoiby

September 22, 2009 – Doctoral Recital:  Tuscaloosa, AL; Recital Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; Tuesday, September 22 at 5:30 p.m.; Jeanette Fontaine, mezzo-soprano with Kevin Chance, pianist; works of Larsen, Mahler, Debussy, Mozart, and Handel.

September 23, 2009 – Doctoral Recital: Tuscaloosa, AL; Recital Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; Wednesday, September 23 at 5:30 p.m.; James Seay, tenor with Kevin Chance, pianist, and guest artist, Skip Snead; works of Weber, Mahler, Strauss, and Britten.

September 25, 2009 – Faculty Voice Recital:  Birmingham, AL; Cathedral Church of the Advent Mid-Day Music Series; Friday, September 25 at Noon; Paul Houghtaling, bass-baritone with Kevin Chance, pianist; works of Bach, Duparc and Gilbert & Sullivan.

September 29, 2009 – Faculty/Guest Recital: Tuscaloosa, AL; Alabama Power Concert Hall/Shelton State Community College; Tuesday September 29 at 1:15 p.m.; Stephen Cary, tenor with Kevin Chance, pianist

October 4, 2009 – Faculty Recital: Tuscaloosa, AL; Recital Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; Stephen Cary, tenor; Sunday, October 4 at 2:00 p.m.

October 9, 2009 – Recital: Mobile, AL; The Mobile Music Teachers Association presents Paul Houghtaling, bass-baritone, and Kevin T. Chance, piano, in recital at the University of Mobile, Martin Hall, 7:30 p.m

October 13, 2009 – Doctoral Recital: Tuscaloosa, AL; Recital Hall at the University of Alabama; Tuesday, October 13 at 5:30 p.m.; Jennifer Bryant, soprano with Kevin Chance, pianist; works by Larsen, Poulenc, Zemlinsky, Rameau, and Donizetti.

October 16, 2009 – Recital: Columbus, MS; The Mississippi University for Women; Friday, October 16 at 7:30 p.m.; Dr. Susan Fleming, mezzo-soprano, Dr. Jennifer Cowgill, soprano, and Paul Houghtaling, bass-baritone, with Kevin Chance, pianist; works of Thomson, Heggie and Hoiby.

October 22, 2009 Faculty/Doctoral Concert: College Music Society National Conference, Portland OR; “A Mountain of Funny Foam”: The Abstract Expressionism of Virgil Thomson.  UA Faculty Paul Houghtaling, bass-baritone and lead pressenter, Stephen Cary,  tenor, and Jennifer Cowgill, soprano; UA doctoral candidates Christopher O’Rear, baritone, and James Seay, tenor. 

October 30, 2009 – Opera: The University of Alabama Opera Theatre: “Masque: Music that Haunts;” Choral/Opera Room at the University of Alabama; Friday, October 30 at 7:30 p.m.; scenes and arias by Strauss, Mozart, Bizet, Sondheim, Dvorak, Verdi, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Donizetti, and Schwartz.

November 1, 2009 – Opera: The University of Alabama Opera Theatre: “Masque: Music that Haunts;” Choral/Opera Room at the University of Alabama; Sunday November 1 at 3:00 p.m.; scenes and arias by Strauss, Mozart, Bizet, Sondheim, Dvorak, Verdi, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Donizetti, and Schwartz.

November 14, 2009 – Doctoral Recital:  Tuscaloosa, AL; Recital Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; November 14 at 6:00 p.m.; Dawn Neely, soprano; Saturday; works by Melani, Wolf, Poulenc, Larsen, and Moore.

November 12, 2009 – University Singers: Tuscaloosa, AL; Concert Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; Tuesday, November 12 at 7:30 p.m.; John Ratledge, conductor.

November 19, 2009 – University Chorus: Tuscaloosa, AL; Concert Hall at the University of Alabama; .; Marvin Latimer, Conductor, Rutter’s Mass of the Children; soloist, Paul Houghtaling, bass-baritone, and Dr. Jennifer Cowgill, soprano.

November 22, 2009 – Senior Recital:  Tuscaloosa, AL; Recital Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; Sunday, November 22 at 2:00 p.m.; Katherine Gates, soprano.

November 22, 2009 – Graduate Recital:  Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Recital Hall/Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama; Sunday, November 22 at 4:00 p.m.; Andrew Head, baritone (MM candidate); works by Bach, Barber, Respighi, Duparc, and Sondheim.

November 24, 2009 – Contemporary Ensemble:  Doctoral student Dawn Neely, soprano; faculty artists Paul Houghtaling, bass; UA Contemporary Ensemble, conducted by Marvin Johnson; works of Crumb and Westergaard; Concert Hall/Moody Music Building; 7:30 p.m.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Tuscaloosa, AL)-The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents the Alabama Wind Ensemble on Thursday, September 14, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, AL.  The program will include “Symphony No. 3 (Slavyanskaya)” by Boris Kozhevnikov, “Harrison’s Dream” by Peter Graham, “Serenade No. 1 for 10 Winds” by Vincent Persichetti and “Gagarin” by Nigel Clarke. UA Professor and Director of Bands Kenneth Ozzello and Assistant Director of Bands Randall Coleman are the conductors of the Alabama Wind Ensemble. The concert is free and open to the public. For more information visit: http://www.music.ua.edu/calendaror call 205-348-7111.

The ALABAMA WIND ENSEMBLE is a select group of the finest wind players and percussionists from within the University Band Program and the School of Music.  The ensemble has been invited to perform at prestigious events such as the College Band Directors National Association Convention, the Southern Division of the Music Educators’ National Conference and the Alabama Music Educators’ State In-service Conference.  The Alabama Wind Ensemble has been active in commissioning and premiering new works for wind band over the past several years and has worked with numerous outstanding composers including Ira Hearshen, Donald Grantham, Richard Saucedo, and Nigel Clarke. In 2008, the ensemble completed its first commercial compact disc recording for the Naxos label which includes the music of Ira Hearshen.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuscaloosa, AL – The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents the Huxford Symphony Orchestra on Monday, September 21, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. The program will include the “Symphony No. 40 in G Minor” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and “Ma Mère l’Oye” by Maurice Ravel. Carlton McCreery, UA Professor of Orchestra Studies is the director of the orchestra. The concert is FREE and open to the public.  For more information visit: http://www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 348-7111.

Carlton McCreery maintains an active career as both cellist and conductor.  In addition to performing with the internationally acclaimed ­Cadek Trio, Mr. McCreery serves as Director of Orchestral Studies at The University of Alabama. Mr. McCreery has studied with such noted cellists as Gregor Piatigorsky, Antonio Janigro and Lynn Harrell. Mr. McCreery’s conducting teachers include Elizabeth A. H. Green and Karl Melles at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. He has served as a member of the Artist-Faculty of the Brevard Music Center. He has collaborated with such noted artists as Aaron Copland, Pierre Boulez, Robert Shaw, David Schiffrin, and William Prencil.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Starting Wednesday, September 16, from 7:00-9:00 pm, the Jazz Studies program & the University Union will provide live jazz performances in the Ferguson Center Game Room. Additional fall dates will include October 7 and November 18.

In fall 2008, the Jazz Faculty and Jazz Standards Combos performed in the newly renovated Ferguson Center Game Room. This initial performance paved the way for Jazz Studies students to perform on a recurring basis in the Game Room. Wednesday, September 16, will be the first “Live Jazz Night” of the fall 2009 semester.

The Live Jazz Nights give Jazz Studies majors and other non-majors an opportunity to perform for an audience in a fun and laid back environment.

The Jazz Studies Program, a Bachelor of Music curriculum, is a program dedicated to the detailed study of jazz performance and arranging/composition. This new degree, established on the firm foundation of the Arranging Program developed by Professor Steve Sample, is on the cutting edge of the curricula needed by versatile musicians.

For more information on the Jazz Studies program please contact Chris Kozak at ckozak@music.ua.edu<mailto:ckozak@music.ua.edu. For information on the University Union at the Ferguson Center please visit http://ferguson.ua.edu<http://ferguson.ua.edu/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuscaloosa, AL – The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents a faculty recital featuring Diane Boyd Schultz, flute on Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. The program will include the “Sonata in A Major” by François Devienne, “Danzas Argentinas” by Alberto E. Ginastera, “L’Isle joyeuse” by Claude Debussy, “Six Pieces for Flute and Piano” by Fikret Amirov, and “Sicilienne et Burlesque” by Alfredo Casella. The performance will also feature guest artist Steele Moegle on piano. The concert is FREE and open to the public.  For more information visit: www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 348-7111.

Flutist and piccoloist Diane Boyd Schultz has established her career through solo and chamber performances in the United States, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Romania, and Austria. She has performed as flutist and piccoloist of the Dallas Bach Society, Terre Haute Symphony, Shreveport Symphony, and Richardson Symphony Orchestras. She is a prizewinner of several national and international competitions, including the Mu Phi Epsilon International Competition and the National Federation of Music Clubs Orchestral Winds Competition. Her festival appearances include Interlochen and Blue Lake Fine Arts Camps, the British Flute Society, National Flute Association, Mid-South Flute Festival, Florida Flute Association, and the Flute Society of St. Louis, and performances have been broadcast on Red River Radio and Blue Lake Public Radio. She has also recorded for the Emmy award-winning documentary Weathered Secrets and for incidental music to the play Death of A Salesman.

She has presented masterclasses and clinics in England, Québec, Michigan, Missouri, Illinois, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arizona, Texas, Ohio, Colorado, New York, Oklahoma, and Florida. A Rotary International Scholar, she studied at McGill University in Montréal, and she has received grants to pursue her interest in studying and commissioning new works for flute and piccolo by American composers. She commissioned Robert Frank’s Rhapsody and Allegro (piccolo and harp) and Stephen Lias’s Sonata (flute and piano) and premièred these works at festivals in Orlando and Columbus, OH. Her articles have appeared in Flute Talk, Pan, and Instrumentalist.

Schultz joined the faculty of the School of Music of The University of Alabama in 2005 and was previously on the faculties of Stephen F. Austin and Eastern Illinois Universities. She is a Yamaha Performing Artist.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music has collaborated with the College of Human Environmental Sciences and Creative Campus to host a special guest recital featuring Korean pianist Meehyun Ahn on Friday, September 25, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. The program will include Beethoven’s Sonata No. 7, Prokofiev’s Sonata No.7, Wagner- Liszt “Tannheuser”, and Scriabin’s Preludes from Op.11. Ahn will also conduct a master class on Thursday, September 24, 2009 in the Recital Hall.

Ahn is the daughter of UA alum Sookja Lim, who studied at the College of Human Environmental Sciences in the late 1960s. Since Ahn’s piano career took off, it has always been Lim’s dream that one day her daughter come back and perform at The University of Alabama. The caliber of Ahn’s playing is not unlike the many Celebrity Series guests that will come to Tuscaloosa later this year, but this concert is a FREE event to kick off the 2009-2010 performance season at the University of Alabama. For more information about any of our School of Music events, please visit: www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 348-7111.

Ahn has performed in such famous venues as the Wigmore Hall in London, Salle Gaveau in Paris, The United Nations in Geneva, Santa Cecilia Sala Accademia in Rome, Boshoi Hall in Moscow, Marmor Saal of the Mirabell Palace in Salzburg, the Morse Recital Hall at Yale University and the Concert Hall of Seoul Art Center, KBS Hall in Seoul. She has also performed with numerous orchestras such as the KBS Symphony, Moscow Philharmonic, St. Petersburg Symphony, Samara Philharmonic, Kharkov Philharmonic, Rumania Philharmonic, Kauno Symphony, Kaohsiung Symphony, and the Korean Symphony. She has earned a solid reputation in chamber music by playing frequently with the Salzburg Solisten, Voces Quartet, and Luz Leskowitz at the Schloss Mirabell in Salzburg, and playing duos with world-famous violinist Victor Danchenko in Seoul. As a 2004 cultural envoy of the Republic of Korea, she made a major contribution to elevating the musical stature of Korea by playing in special concerts held in Rome, Milan, Paris, Lyon and the United Nations in Geneva.

She has been described as one of the leading pianists of her generation, and has been influenced by the traditional Russian school of pianism. She is now performing extensively on world stages in Russia, Europe, the United States and Asia after completing her studies at the Moscow State Conservatory under Professor S. Dorensky. Her solid and confident technique, which was honed in Russia, has been further polished by the Italian school of pianism following her studies at the renowned Imola International Piano Academy in Italy under Professor Lazar Berman.

Ahn’s artistry has been recognized with the awarding of prizes in the Viotti-Valsesia Music Competition, Leschetizky Piano Competition, and the Asian Youth Music Competition. In 1991, she was awarded The “Best Music Prize” by Seoul Arts School as the best performing student in the School, and also the second “Woonpa Music Prize,” given to the most promising young music student in Korea. She was chosen as a “Kumho Artist” in 2004 and “KBS Artist of 2005.”

She has recorded two CDs: Scriabin Piano Concerto and Chopin Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Moscow Orchestra conducted by Mikael Avetisyan, and 10 solo pieces-Prokofiev Sonata 3, Scriabin Sonata 10, Chopin Scherzo 2 and others.

Currently, she is an Adjunct Professor at the University of New Haven and was recently appointed as a Visiting Professor at Sungshin University.