Music

Emily Howard is one of the finest young composers at work in Britain today. A graduate of Oxford, she won critical acclaim for her first piece, Magnetite, which debuted at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in 2008. Most recently, she won vast accolades for a concerto that was featured at the BBC Proms in 2016. It was described the TIMES as “visionary” and “one of this year’s finest new works” by The Guardian. Her opera called Zatopek! appeared in London to huge acclaim in 2012.

Pre-concert talk by Rebecca Mitchell, Assistant Professor of History at Middlebury College. Mitchell holds advanced degrees in Piano Performance. Her special interest is the intersection of music, poetics and identity in history. Her monograph, Nietzsche’s Orphans: Music, Metaphysics and the Twilight of the Russian Empire is to be published in January 2016 by Yale University Press. Sponsored by the Department of Music and Vermont Public Radio. Free

Hannah Johnston ‘15.5 performs an evening of vocal music as partial fulfillment of the requirements of an independent study. The program includes a mix of classical and musical theater repertoire in four languages, and features guest artists Erica Furgiuele ‘15 and Mike McCann ‘15, as well as piano accompaniment by Cynthia Huard. Sponsored by the Department of Music. Free

Come listen to students of varying levels showcase their talent on the Chinese zither, an instrument with over 2,500 years of history and one of the most popular Chinese instruments today. The repertoire will include both modern and traditional pieces. Sponsored by the Department of Music.

Two piano students of Diana Fanning’s – Gloria Breck and Junya Iwata come together in a piano performance celebrating works by Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Tan Dun, and others. Sponsored by the Department of Music. Free

Artistic director Laurel Ann Maurer and Middlebury College affiliate artist Anne Janson are joined by six other flutists to perform music by Bach, Holst, Gluck, Fucik, Chopin, Drake, and Vermont composers David Gunn and Derrik Jordon. Featuring Melissa Meilens, Heidi Baxter, Hilary Goldblatt, Robin Cameron Phillips, and Norman Thibodeau, who is featured as soloist on his contra bass flute. Sponsored by the Department of Music. Free

Fiona Sze-Lorrain is a poet, translator, editor, and classical guzheng musician who has performed worldwide at such prestigious venues as Merkin Concert Hall, Carnegie Hall, Maison des cultures du monde, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, and the Musée Cernuschi. In this presentation, she discusses the history of the guzheng and guzheng music, and plays representative pieces, joined for some of the session by Middlebury College students. In English and Chinese with translation.

Don’t miss our Field Guide for Music Majors! Take this opportunity to hear how music alumni have applied their major and learning in a diverse array of careers. Alumni will be on campus to share their paths and professional lives with students in order to help them think broadly about music, and to demonstrate what possibilities exist for current music majors.

Despard, affiliate artist of classical guitar, plays a concert celebrating contemporary solo and chamber music of Norway and America. Cellist Michael G. Ronstadt and accordionist Rocco Jerry join him to premiere new works by Norwegian composer Bjorn Bolstad Skjelbred, and American composer Conrad Kehn. The program includes additional pieces by Norwegian composers Magnar Am and Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen. Sponsored by the Department of Music. Free