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TUSCALOOSA, AL – Several piano students at The University of Alabama School of Music were honored recently by winning top awards at area competitions.

The Birmingham Music Club Guild’s Scholarship Competition was held on Friday, March 26, at Birmingham-Southern College. A panel of Judges selected winners from the auditions of 35 college students from schools across Alabama.  Scholarships were given in four categories; piano, voice, instrumental, and organ.  The Walter Sechriest Best Overall Performance prize was also awarded.  Laryne Williford, a student of Amanda Penick, was awarded the Mildred Volentine Green Piano Scholarhsip for $1,000 for winning second place in the competition.

The Alabama Federation of Music Clubs recently gave four awards in piano at their competition. Second place was awarded to Laryne Williford, third place was awarded to Jennifer Lee, and fourth place was awarded to Jon Roberts. Williford and Lee are students of Amanda Penick. Roberts is a student of Noel Engebretson.

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Tuscaloosa, AL – Dr. Carl Hancock, Assistant Professor of Music Education of the University of Alabama School of Music, was elected to the southern board of the College Music Society in the area of music education. The College Music Society is an international association of college, conservatory, university and independent musicians and scholars interested in all disciplines of music. The Society provides leadership and serves as an agent of change by addressing concerns facing music in higher education.

“I am honored to represent such a distinguished and prestigious group of southern scholars and performers who are so important to the training and professional development of many of our nation’s finest university and public school music teachers. The College Music Society plays a critical role in promoting the exchange of ideas among university faculty through conferences and other professional activities. I am most pleased to serve on the board in the area of music education” said Hancock.

Over 1,056 members of the College Music Society in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Puerto Rico and Tennessee from all music disciplines were eligible to participate in the election. Dr. Hancock will serve on the board from 2010 to 2012.

Hancock teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in the psychology of music, sociology of music education, classroom management, instrumental methods, and supervises student teachers. He joined the University faculty in 2005. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education, Masters in Music Education with conducting emphasis, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Music Education with a Certificate in College Teaching from the Florida State University.

Hancock presently serves as chair of the Learning and Development Special Research Interest Group for the Society for Research in Music Education. He serves as a member of the editorial committee for The Journal of Teacher Recruitment and Retention which will be published by the American Association for Employment in Education and the Southeastern Teacher Education Journal. He has also served as a guest reviewer for the Journal of Teacher Education. Hancock serves on the governing board of the Alabama Music Educators Association and is the research chair for the Alabama Bandmasters Association State Assessment Committee.

He is a member of The National Association for Music Education, Society for Music Teacher Education, International Society for Music Education, American Education Research Association, College Music Society, Pi Kappa Lambda, Kappa Kappa Psi, and was inducted as an honorary member of Tau Beta Sigma.

Hancock was previously a member of the faculty of the University of Arizona and directed high school bands in Florida. Concert and marching bands under his direction received national, regional, and state awards throughout his public school career which began in 1992.

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TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University of Alabama School of Music’s Voice area student recently competed in several events, with many of them garnering awards for their talent.

Jennifer Bryant, DMA student, was the winner of the 2010 Alabama NATS Artist Award (NATSAA) held February 22 at the University of South Alabama in Mobile.  As the Alabama winner, Ms. Bryant advanced to the regional NATSAA competition held at Stetson University in Florida where she was awarded first alternate. She is a student of Dr. Jennifer Cowgill.

Leslie Procter won second place and a $1000 award in the Birmingham Music Club Guild competition held at Birmingham-Southern College on March 26.  She is a student of Mr. Doff Procter.

Several students also participated in the NATS Statewide Auditions held at the University of South Alabama, February 23 and 24.

Robert Palmer won first place in the freshmen men division and second place in the freshmen men musical theater division; Amy Todhunter won first place in the junior women musical theater division; Hollie Tkacik won first place in the sophomore women musical theater division; Lawson Daves won third place in the freshmen men division.  These students are from the studio of Dr. Jennifer Cowgill.

Perry Harper and Jarrod Demming won first and second place respectively in the advanced men category. They are students of Mr. Paul Houghtaling.

Zacc Kimbrell, a student of Mr. Doff Procter, won first place in the junior men music theatre division.

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TUSCALOOSA, AL – Two conducting students of The University of Alabama School of Music, Caleb Young and Norman Huyhn, have been accepted into the Advanced Conducting Academy, a summer conducting institute in Bacau, Romania.  Only 12 conductors from around the world are accepted into this Academy.

“I am extremely proud of these two young men, their passion, and their commitment to learning,” said John Ratledge, the students’ professor.

The Advanced Conducting Academy is an intensive two-week course for emerging professional conductors and advanced student conductors. During the first week, participants choose from a concentration on the standard repertoire for Classical sized orchestras or The Conductor as Accompanist, a program that focuses on the vital skills and techniques every conductor needs to become an effective accompanist.  All participants spend the second week of the Academy working on the orchestral repertoire for larger Romantic orchestras  Students are guaranteed a minimum of one hour per day with a professional orchestra, in addition to private coachings from the resident conductor.

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TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University of Alabama School of Music presents the Alabama Jazz Band and Combo in concert on Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building. UA Instructor of Drums Mark Lanter will direct the Jazz Band, and Ledama Tajeu, a graduate student in Jazz Studies, will direct the Jazz Combo. The Jazz Combo will perform “All Blues” by Miles Davis, “Blue Room” by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart, “April Joy” by Pat Metheny, and “Sidewinder” by Lee Morgan. The Jazz Band will perform “Moti Mo” by King Sunny Ade, “Road Song” by Wes Montgomery, “When Sunny Gets Blue” by Fisher and Segal, “Oakland” by Charlie Hunter, “Little Sunflower” by Freddie Hubbard, and “Sinister Minister” by Bela Fleck. The concert is FREE and open to the public. For more information call 205-348-7111.

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Tuscaloosa, AL – The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents the Alabama Percussion Ensemble in concert on Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. The concert will feature “Stained Glass,” “Rochambeaux,” “Super Mario Brothers,” “Drum Set Concerto,” “Malaguenua,” “Stick Schtick,” and many other exciting pieces. The event will also include a special appearance by Big Al, the University of Alabama mascot. Beth Gottlieb, Intructor of Percussion, will conduct the ensemble. This event is FREE and open to the public. For more information visit: http://www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 348-7111.

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TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University of Alabama School of Music will host a piano weekend March 27 and 28 with several events. The weekend will begin with a competition and recital in celebration of the life and works of Robert Schumann and Frederic Chopin on the 200^th anniversary of their birth. The area competition for young pianists will be on Saturday, March 27 from 1:30 to 5:00 p.m. in the Recital Hall of the Moody Music Building on the campus of The University of Alabama. There will be 11 contestants from all over the country that are in grades 7 through 12. Winners will receive cash prizes and scholarships to attend Crimson Music Camp this summer.

In addition to the competition, guests will be treated to a recital of both students and faculty of the School of Music at 5:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building. Undergraduate and graduate students will play “Carnaval, Op. 9” by Robert Schumann, and UA Professor of Piano Noel Engebretson will also play several selections. This event is free and open to the public.

The weekend will continue with the next Celebrity Series concert featuring pianist Spencer Myer at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 28. A graduate of The Julliard School and well-known supporter of education among young musicians, Myer will perform “Suite No. 2 in F Major” by George Frederic Handel, “Sonata 1.X.1905” by Leos Janacek, “Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Major” by Ludwig van Beethoven, “Four Impromptus” by Franz Schubert, and selections from Goyescas by Enrique Granados. Tickets are $22 or $15 for general admission and student tickets are $7. Tickets can be purchased by calling the School of Music Box Office at 348-7111. They will also be available for sale starting one hour prior to the concert.

The piano weekend will conclude with a master class taught by Myer on Monday, March 29 at 10 a.m. in the Concert Hall. This event is free and open to the public.

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TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University of Alabama School of Music presents the Alabama Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Standards Combo in concert on Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody music Building. UA Director of Jazz Studies Chris Kozak is the director. The program will include pieces by Kenny Wheeler, including “Smatter,” “5 for Six,” “Sweet Time Suite,” “Sophie,” “Gentle Piece,” and “Onmo.” The concert is FREE and open to the public. For more information call 205-348-7111.

Although resident in England since 1952 and often thought to be an English musician, Kenny Wheeler was born in Canada in 1930. He began playing in his hometown of St. Catherines, encouraged by his father, a trombonist. His formal studies include composition with Rodney Bennett and William Russo.

His earliest influences included Buck Clayton and Roy Eldrige but, by the time he left for London, he was looking towards bebop, Miles Davis and Fats Navarro particularly.

After his arrival in London, Wheeler balanced commercial dance band work with gigs alongside modernists like Joe Harriott and Ronnie Scott, and in 1959 joined the Johnny Dankworth band in time for their breakthrough Newport Jazz Festival appearance. He consequently came to be one of the major solo voices in the Dankworth orchestra, and during the end of his stay recorded his first album as a leader Windmill Tilter (Fontana), which featured compositions for big band based on Cervantes’ Don Quixote stories.

In 1966, a chance encounter with drummer John Stevens at the Little Theatre Club in London set Wheeler on a new course. To the surprise of many musicians of his generation, the trumpeter became deeply involved in free music and joined both Stevens’ Spontaneous Music Ensemble and the Tony Oxley group. Through saxophonist Evan Parker and guitarist Derek Bailey, Kenny was initiated into the Globe Unity Orchestra, the German-based big band led by the pianist Alexander von Schlippenback. His membership continues – he is prominently featured on the three albums the Globe Unity Orchestra has recorded for JAPO/ECM.

In 1971, Anthony Braxton, impressed by Wheeler’s abilities to play the demanding charts on the session for The Complete Braxton (Freedom), invited him to join his group. Braxton’s music became Wheeler’s priority until 1976, when the difficulties of commuting between London and New York became overwhelming, but in between he found time to record Song For Someone (Incus), a record that juxtaposed free and jazz elements (and which became Melody Maker Album Of The Year in 1975), and Gnu High (ECM 1069) a still very fresh album with Keith Jarrett, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette. Critics agreed that the ECM album marked a new high both for Wheeler and for the label: Quintessential (Stereo Review), Unbeatable (Melody Maker), Supert (Jazz Forum), Miraculous (Time Out) and so on. The same critics, however, have tended to be less vocal in their support for the trio Azimuth (Wheeler, John Taylor and Norma Winstone) whose ECM albums are distinguished by their subtlety and require repeated close listening for full appreciation.

Wheeler’s second ECM date was the 1977 recording Deer Wan (ECM 1102), which featured Jan Garbarek, John Abercrombie, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette and Ralph Towner. The album was viewed, at the time of its release, as the most complete statement of Wheeler’s musical intentions, and said one writer: “Garbarek may very well be the trumpeter’s ideal front-line partner…a kind of asceticism informs their playing; when they are heard in tandem its impact is redoubled”. The recording Double, Double You (ECM 1262) dates from 1983 sessions and features Michael Brecker, John Taylor, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette. Critics were enthusiastic for their release as this excerpt from Fanfare indicates: “Wheeler is one of the more fascinating trumpeters around. For this latest album, he utilizes the prolific tenor saxophone of Mike Brecker to add even greater strength to the front-line. John Taylor, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette provide a powerful rhythm section which is sensitive and tasteful while also offering incredible individual power…Highly recommended”.

Kenny is an active music educator as shown by his presence on the faculty at the Canadian Banff Workshop and by his involvement in international seminars. In spite of his severe self-criticism and his almost legendary aversion to recognition, Kenny Wheeler remains one of Europe’s most sought-after trumpet and flugelhorn players.

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Tuscaloosa, AL—The University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences School of Music presents oboist Rebecca Henderson in concert with guitarist Alan Goldspiel on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building. The program will include “Sonatine” by Karl Pilss, “Sonetto Quasi Una Notturna” by Jospeh Landers, “Elogio de la Danza” by Leo Brouwer, “Consolation, Romance sans paroles” by Napoleon Coste, “Aspects of Cassiopeia” by Joseph Landers, “Tale of the Bird Mound” by Alan Goldspiel, “Atardecer” by Frederic Costantino, and :Aldodao Doce” by Celso Machado. The event is FREE and open to the public. For more information, call 205-348-7111.

A prize winner in the 1995 New York International Competition for Solo Oboists and in the 1988 Lucarelli International Solo Oboe Competition,  Rebecca Henderson has performed as Acting Principal Oboist with the National Symphony and Colorado Symphony orchestras, as Guest Principal

Oboist with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Oregon Symphony Orchestra, and the Rochester Philharmonic, and has been a member of the Colorado Symphony and the Santa Fe Opera Orchestras. She has performed as concerto soloist with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the National Symphony of Ecuador, and the Philharmonia Northwest Chamber Orchestra in Seattle. Festival performances include the Aspen,

Cabrillo, Bellingham, and Boulder Bach Festivals, and she is currently on the faculty of the International Festival Institute at Round Top in Texas. She has been featured on numerous film scores, including Imax films such as “Everest” and “Olympic Glory,” as well as feature films and network television mini-series. As a soloist and chamber musician she has recorded for the Boston Records, Centaur, RCA Masterworks, and RCWinds labels. Her solo CD, ”…is but a dream,” has been hailed by

critics as “exquisite…a CD that you will play over and over” (Gramophone), and “superb…a wonderfully vibrant, almost luscious sound” (American Record Guide). Ms Henderson holds degrees from the Oberlin Conservatory and the Eastman School of Music, where she was also awarded the distinguished “Performer’s Certificate.” Her teachers include Richard Henderson, James Caldwell, Richard Killmer, John Mack, John de Lancie, and Grover Schiltz. Ms. Henderson serves on the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin, where she has been an Associate Professor since the fall of 2001.

As a solo and chamber music performer, classical guitarist Alan Goldspiel has concertized throughout the United States and in the Caribbean and Europe. He has given the world premieres of From Faraway Nearby for guitar duo at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall and Rhapsody for solo guitar at New York’s CAMI Hall, and has been featured on KQED (CA) radio, WNYC (NY) radio, KEDM (LA) radio, and (NY) television’s News 12 Long Island. He has been a soloist with the Chamber Orchestra Kremlin, Monroe Symphony Orchestra, Vermont Philharmonic, Sinfonie-by-the-Sea, and served as an Artist-in-Residence for North Carolina’s prestigious Visiting Artists Program, presenting over eighty concerts throughout that state. ??Dr. Goldspiel was the first and only guitarist to be honored with the Marshall Dodge Award from the Performing Artists Associates of New England. He was selected for the Louisiana State Artist Roster and Touring Directory, and accepted as a touring artist on the rosters of the New England Foundation for the Arts and the Connecticut Commission on the Arts. His four CDs with Richard Provost have been favorably reviewed by Fanfare, Soundboard, Classical Guitar Magazine and the American Record Guide.??At Louisiana Tech University (1995-2008), he was the 2006 recipient of the James Alvey Smith Endowed Professorship for excellence in teaching, the 2002 recipient of Louisiana Tech’s University Senate Chair Award for excellence in teaching, research, and service, and given the Louisiana State Arts Council’s 2004-2005 Artist Fellowship Award for artistic excellence. ??Currently, he is Professor of Music and Chair, Department of Music at the University of Montevallo. He has also been a faculty member of the International Guitar Festival held each summer at The Hartt School, University of Hartford. ??This past year, Dr. Goldspiel recorded a fifth duo CD entitled Latin Magic, gave the world premieres of his Day at the Beach for clarinet and guitar and From Birds to the Flying Machine for soprano and guitar, and a read his paper “Background Structure, Syntax, and Idiomatic Device in the Solo Music of Heitor Villa-Lobos” at the International Villa-Lobos Conference.??In 1994, he was awarded the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The Hartt School, University of Hartford. His unique research involved contemporary analysis and the solo guitar music of Heitor Villa-Lobos. He received his Master of Music degree in 1984 from Yale University’s School of Music. In 1981, he graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor’s degree from the Hartt School of Music where he was honored with the title “University Scholar” for his performance of and published research on the guitar music of Heitor Villa-Lobos.

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The University of Alabama School of Music presents the Alabama Trombone Choir in concert Tuesday, March 2, 2010 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. UA Assistant Professor of Trombone Jonathan Whitaker is the director. Peter Elleson and Sim Flora are the guest soloists. The program will feature “Intrada” by Paul Shahan, “Sanctus” by Giuseppe Verdi, a world premiere of “Invisible Light” by Anthony Barfield, a world premiere of “On the Continental Divide” by Drew Worthen, “Suite for Trombone Ensemble” by Michael Hennigan, “Ave Maria from Vespers, Op. 37, No. 6” by Sergei Rachmaninoff, “Stars Fell on Alabama” by Frank Perkins, and “Slidework” by Urbie Green. This event is FREE and open to the public. For more information visit www.music.ua.edu/calendar or call 205-348-7111.

Peter Ellefson enjoys a career of teaching at the finest institutions and performing with the finest ensembles. He holds the rank of Professor of Music at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana in addition to Lecturer and Artist-in-Residence positions at Northwestern University and Roosevelt University. He has performed, recorded and toured with the Chicago Symphony and the New York Philharmonic, orchestras that he plays with frequently.

In 2002, Prof. Ellefson moved to Bloomington from Seattle where he had been a member of the Seattle Symphony since 1992. During his decade in Seattle, he made dozens of recordings with the orchestra, playing trombone, euphonium and bass trumpet and served as principal trombone for Seattle Opera’s renowned productions of Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen. Mr. Ellefson has participated in hundreds of recording sessions for motion pictures, IMAX, television and video games, working with such composers as Elmer Bernstein, Michael Giacchino, James Newton Howard, Michael Kamen, Basil Poledouris and Bill Conti. He has also backed entertainers as diverse as Linda Ronstadt, Burt Bacharach, Frank Sinatra Jr., Ray Charles, James Taylor, Manhattan Transfer and Yes.

Over the past 25 years, Prof. Ellefson has been fortunate to have studied with many of the finest low brass teachers including Joseph Alessi, Frank Crisafulli, Edward Kleinhammer, Jay Friedman, Arnold Jacobs, Mark Lawrence and M. Dee Stewart. His initial study was with Warren Baker at Linfield College, in McMinnville, Oregon, from which Mr. Ellefson graduated cum laude in 1984. Mr. Ellefson also holds a Master of Music degree from Northwestern University.

Peter Ellefson has a keen interest in chamber music and solo literature and has given concerto performances of works by such composers as Bloch, Bourgeois, Deemer, Dorsey, Grondahl, Guilmant, Larsson, Maslanka, Pryor, Pugh, Serocki, Tomasi, Rimsky-Korsakov and Rouse. He has extensive knowledge in the repertoire of both orchestral and chamber music and is also well versed in the commercial and jazz idioms. His chamber music credits include the Canadian Brass, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Chicago Brass Quintet, Fulcrum Point New Music Project, New York Philharmonic Brass Quintet, Proteus 7 and Tower Brass of Chicago.

In addition to Indiana, Northwestern and Roosevelt Universities, Prof. Ellefson has also taught at the University of Costa Rica and the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, California and currently serves on the Board of Advisors for the International Trombone Association.

Sim Flora grew up in the small Southern Illinois town of Du Quoin. Public school band director and part time church musician Melvin Seiner influenced him early in his musical life. Sim credits the accessibility and use of hymnbooks as his major source of learning the fundamentals of harmony and part writing.

While attending Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, he studied with Gene Stiman, a Benny Goodman alumnus who provided an exceptional model for Sim and other trombone students in the region. During this time he played gigs in local bands, honing the skills and paying the necessary dues to become a professional player. Graduation in 1969 brought a three-year public school teaching stint and a very high draft number. Both influenced Sim and his new wife, Rosemary, to leave teaching and try life on the road with a show band. A year of hotels and restaurant food made settling down in a city like Los Angeles seem like a rational idea. The providential move to L.A. put Sim in touch with Roy Main, who Sim says is the finest trombone teacher I’ve ever seen. It was Roy’s positive approach to a balanced practice routine, heavy on fundamentals and repetition that allowed Sim to move toward his full potential as a trombonist.

The difficult decision to move back to the Midwest proved to be a wise musical choice. During the next ten years Sim freelanced as a trombonist, began to compose and arrange, and spent seven years as musical director at Six Flags St. Louis. He and Rosemary also saw the birth of their two sons during their stay in St. Louis.

In 1983, Sim decided a career change was necessary and looked toward college teaching. Knowing he would need more schooling and hoping to teach in Christian higher education, he chose to do graduate work in music education at Ouachita Baptist University. Ouachita’s masters program provided Sim with teaching opportunities as a graduate assistant and confirmed his desire to teach in Christian higher education. However, the road home went through Norman, Oklahoma, where, at age 40, Sim pursued a doctorate and studied under another master teacher, this time in the field of music theory and aural skills. Three years as a teaching assistant with Dr. Michael R. Rogers provided Sim with vision and practical skills that would serve him the rest of his teaching career.

Accepting a position at Oklahoma Baptist University in 1988 allowed Sim to begin his teaching career in Christian higher education, and at the same time, remain close to O.U. in order to complete his Ph.D. in music education. Early in 1990, the offer came from Ouachita Baptist to be a part of an outstanding instrumental team in a place Sim and his family loved. Sim finished the degree in March of that year, walked through graduation in June, and immediately moved to Arkadelphia, Arkansas, where he currently serves as the Chairman of the Theory and Composition Department, teaching music theory, aural skills, and music technology courses.

Most recently, Sim has finished Sound Doctrine, a collection of American hymns arranged for trombone and flute. The CD includes a variety of styles and is available at this web site. In addition to playing solo performances of Sound Doctrine material, Sim is still an active jazz educator, serving public schools and colleges by conducting clinics, workshops, and performing as a guest artist.

Anthony Barfield, a native of Collinsville, MS, is a Masters student of Dr. Per Brevig at Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Barfield began his trombone studies at the age of 12.  He received his BA from The Juilliard School in 2008 as a student of Joseph Alessi.  Prior to Juilliard, Mr. Barfield was a student at The University of Alabama while studying with Daniel Drill.  As an active freelancer, he has performed with numerous groups throughout the northeast and has frequently performed in prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall and Alice Tully Hall. Mr. Barfield is a member of Mark Gould’s Pink Baby Monster, and Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra. (Philadelphia, PA)  He has performed with The Alabama Symphony, Mobile Symphony, and Park Avenue Chamber Symphony.  Mr. Barfield can be heard on Donnie McClurkin’s CD entitled We Are All One (Live), Demondrae Thurman’s CD entitled Soliloquies with The University Of Alabama Wind Ensemble, Lisa McClendon’s CD entitled Live at The House of Blues and others.

Upon arrival to New York City, Mr. Barfield quickly emerged as a composer.  Recognized for his extremely lyrical writing style of brass music, his compositions have been premiered and performed throughout the United States and Europe.  Mr. Barfield’s trombone choir work Reflections (ASCAP) had its European premiere at the 2008 Alessi Seminar in Fossano, Italy.  Trombonists such as Joseph Alessi, Principal Trombonist of The New York Philharmonic, Steven Lange, Assistant Principal Trombonist of The St. Louis Symphony, The Manhattan School of Music Brass Orchestra and others, have commissioned Mr. Barfield.  His new work Elements of Earth for Band, is scheduled to be premiered on Long Island, New York this spring.  He has also written works for chamber groups such as Stentorian Consort, The University of Alabama Trombone Choir, and The Juilliard Trombone Choir. Mr. Barfield has worked with composition coaches C.P. First, Avner Dorman, Thomas Cabaniss, and Nils Vigeland.

Originally from Pine Bluff Arkansas, Drew Worthen became involved in music early on in life. At the age of 6, he began studying piano and music theory full time with David Moon, Brenda Rushing and others, and by age thirteen was appointed the full time pianist of Liberty Baptist Church in Pine Bluff, where he resided until moving to Arkadelphia to attend Henderson State University to pursue the first of hopefully many years of education in the field of Music Composition.

Drew has traveled and performed concerts throughout Europe and the United States pursuing a deeper understanding and passion for the music that he performs and composes.  Most of his musical profession has been based in church settings, which has led to many opportunities to appear as full time pianist and organist in numerous churches throughout the area.  He is currently the pianist at Mnt. Caramel United Methodist Church in Rison Arkansas whilst still attending Henderson State University.

Since arriving at Henderson State University in 2006 he has had the wonderful privilege of playing in numerous ensembles in countless venues on piano, organ, tuba and voice.  Drew has a great love for jazz piano and currently plays for the Henderson jazz ensemble “NuFusion.” Drew has had several pieces commissioned and premiered by students and faculty at Henderson as well as other universities around the country.  Recently his tuba quartet “Convalescence” was premiered by the Henderson State University Tuba Choir at the International Tuba Euphonium Association conference in Corpus Christi Texas.  Since then the piece has gone on to be performed at the University of North Texas and Gustavus Adolphus College by the professional ‘Sweet Thunder’ Tuba Quartet.  Recently Drew has also received a commission from the University of Alabama Trombone Choir for a piece to be premiered at the Eastern Trombone Workshop in 2010.

In 2008 he began working with Dr. Phillip Schroeder and J. Michael Henson on a venturous project as pianist, narrator, and engineer.  This venture has given rise to touring and performing the music of Dr. Phillip Schroeder in several venues, including the Delta Music Institute’s Electroacoustic Juke Joint Festival and the 2009 Region VI Society of Composers Conference in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Drew’s current applied subjects include composition, under  Dr. Phillip Schroeder, as well as piano and organ with Dr. Hee-Kyung Juhn at Henderson.  Former teachers included Dr. Jonathan Whitaker and Jamie Lipton on tuba and Dr. Ann B. Rye on piano.  Drew is a member of Society of Composers Inc. and is licensed with ASCAP.  Compositional influences include: Phillip Schroeder, Gustav Mahler, Claude Debussy, Richard Strauss, Ottorino Respighi, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Emerson Lake & Palmer and others.