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December 2001
V I O L A S P E A K Chapter of the American Viola Society RECENT EVENTS November 17, 2001: Metropolitan State College-Denver hosts RMVS Pre-College Competition and Master Class Eight pre-college students performed in a competition hosted by Metropolitan State College-Denver on Saturday, November 17th. Four students were selected to perform that afternoon in a master class for guest artist Jesse Levine, professor of viola at Yale University: Laura Seay (student of Basil Vendryes) performed the first movement of the Walton Concerto; Peter Anderson-Sprecher (student of James Przygocki) performed the Rhapsodie of Bloch's Suite Hebraique; Eric Mote (student of Barbara Hamilton) performed the 3rd movement of the Cassadesus/Handel Concerto; and Kyle Rupley (student of Margaret Miller) performed the Prelude of J. S. Bach's 5th Cello Suite. Eighth-grader Kasey Crosby (student of Katherine Mason) received honorable mention for her performance of the Vivaldi D Minor Concerto. Adjudicators included Colorado Symphony violist Martin Sher and University of Northern Colorado faculty violist Juliet White-Smith. The master class also featured two Metro viola students: Mattie Kaiser performed the Prelude to J. S. Bach's C Major Cello Suite and Kirsten Patzer, accompanied by Boulder area pianist Tamara Goldstein, performed the first movement of Shostakovich's Op. 147 Sonata for Viola and Piano. Special thanks to Metropolitan State College-Denver, the Colorado Chamber Players and Barbara Hamilton (faculty violist at MCSD and Artistic Director of the Colorado Chamber Players) for their generous support of Professor Levine's visit and for hosting this wonderful event. April 14, 2001: Viva la Viola!
Over seventy violists gathered on the campus of Front Range Community College in Fort Collins, Colorado to participate in "Viva la Viola," a workshop for viola students of all levels. The day began with rehearsal sessions of literature for multiple violas. Five student ensembles, which ranged from a beginner group to a college-age group, were coached by local and visiting clinicians, including AVS past-president Thomas Tatton and area clinicians Luana Bramham, Katherine Mason, Ellen Ravnan and Greg Hurley. The college and advanced high school students, who performed selected movements of Gordon Jacob's Suite for Eight Violas, served as mentors for the younger groups. Following lunch was a master class in which five advanced high school and college students performed for the younger students and were instructed by Cleveland Orchestra violist and Cleveland Institute of Music faculty member Mark Jackobs. The event culminated with a recital of the ensemble pieces rehearsed earlier and included works by Telemann, arrangements of simpler tunes for young players, and selected movements from Gordon Jacob's Suite for Eight Violas. The event was a successful attempt at integrating elements of previous "mini-congresses" with more participation on the part of students. The format was so well received and the turnout so large that plans are underway to make it an annual event.
Dr. Juliet White-Smith, Assoc. Prof./Viola and Chamber Music |
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