July 30, 1998
Middlebury College’s German for Singers Group
to Perform Finale Concert on Aug. 8
On Saturday, Aug. 8 at 8 p.m. the German for Singers
program-a special component of the Middlebury College German School-will
present its second annual Finale Concert in the Concert Hall of
the Middlebury College Center for the Arts on South Main Street
(Route 30). The public is invited to this free event which will
be followed by a reception in the lobby.
Renowned violinist Hilary Hahn will be assisting
the German for Singers. Hahn has performed with the Philadelphia
Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, with the major orchestras of Berlin,
Paris, Munich, Rotterdam, and in recital throughout the United
States and Europe. The music for the evening includes opera arias,
duets, quartettes, and Lieder-German poems set to music-sung by
Alisa Grundmann, Aaron Guckian, Areli Miranda, Freya Pappas, Ethan
Sperry, and Jeanette Squires. Accompanying the singers on piano
is Helen Yorke, who has studied at the Royal Academy of Music,
coached at the Juillard School and the Manhattan School of Music,
and performed all over the world.
The concert, as well as the German for Singers program,
is directed by Brenda Smith, director of vocal studies at Manatee
Community College. Smith received a D.M.A. from the University
of Maryland. Ronald Burrichter, professor of music at Florida
University, teaches vocal performance for the German for Singers
program, and also performs with the group.
The German School introduced language immersion at
Middlebury more than 80 years ago. Since then, seven additional
schools have been added to Middlebury’s summer language session:
Arabic, Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish.
In 1997, the German School’s offerings expanded to
include the German for Singers program for the training, in German,
of young singers with professional ambitions. The program integrates
the study of German literature, culture, and language with music
history, vocal pedagogy, and performance.
For more information, contact the coordinator of
the German School, Lynn Lewis at (802) 443-5203.