LUKE VILLAVICENCIO
Special to The Leader
Here we are, another semester nearly finished.
While I’d love nothing more than to move on to the potentially restful break, I figured it would be nice to take a second to reminisce about this concert-filled fall.
After seeing everyone and their mother’s dog’s cousin post their Spotify Wrapped recently, I decided to take it upon myself to start a “Wrapped” that’s much more local to Fredonia. So let’s cozy up near the fire in Starbucks with a grande cup of sugary nut milk and our favorite instruments and take a look at the very first Rosch Wrapped (Fall 2023).
(Note: performances that are included are not limited to just Rosch Recital Hall, I just like alliteration.)
We started off the semester with the electrifying presence of Brittain Ashford, known for her role in the original cast of Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812.
She helped inspire music and theater students alike with her solo concert on Sept. 9 in Rosch. Ashford, as a visiting artist, was very fitting because her residence was eventually followed by our campus’ very own rendition of the Great Comet of 1812.
Fredonia’s version was performed in the Marvel Theatre on the weekend of Oct. 21. I found myself unable to get away from hearing other student’s five-star reviews throughout the weeks after, which is what solidified its place in this year’s Rosch Wrapped.
Earlier in the month of October, the first Student Composers Concert of the semester took place.
After hearing all the great music written by Fredonia students, to the surprise of everyone in the audience, the head of the Composition, Music Theory and History Department and the Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance, Rob Deemer, came on stage.
“This is my 17th year teaching here at Fredonia, and I’ve heard a hell of a lot of Student Composer Concerts,” said Deemer. “That was the best first Student Composers’ Concert I’ve ever heard, and probably one of the best I’ve ever heard since I’ve been here at Fredonia.”
We then saw the wonderfully talented Valerie Coleman, who was brought as this academic year’s Claudette Sorel Visiting Artist. As shown last year with the equally delightful Chen Yi, this series of events were smash hits––the recital halls were packed with professors and students who came to welcome the sound of Coleman’s beautiful music.
This visit began on Oct. 12 with the enlightening Women in Music roundtable discussion featuring Coleman, Emily Schaad and conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic, JoAnn Falleta.
It was a wonderful experience in and of itself and I highly encourage anyone interested to watch the recording of the talk. This was followed by a lecture and composition masterclass given by Coleman.
A collection of Coleman’s chamber works were performed by Fredonia professors in Rosch Recital Hall. Her piece “Umoja, An Anthem of Unity” was played by the Fredonia Symphony Orchestra in King Concert Hall that Saturday.
We then arrived at the second Student Composers Concert, which took place on the night of Halloween. This concert in particular has always been a blast for students—everyone dressed in wacky outfits and came together to listen to their friends and peers perform student works.
Now, we’ve had some great visiting artists and student performances, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention all of our prestigious faculty performances and recitals. Here are a few in particular to note:
Professors David Rose and Sean Duggan put on a wonderful showing of the viola paired with different keyboard instruments. The Faculty Composers Concert consisted of electrifying works by Andrew Martin Smith, Rob Deemer, Paul Coleman, and a new addition to the composition, Emily Joy Sullivan, among others.
Distinguished Professor James Piorkowski played beautifully through many of his original solo works for the classical guitar. A lovely violin and piano recital featured professors Jessica Tong, Isabel Ong and I-Fei Chen. The Ekstasis Duo performed, with Natasha Farny playing cello and Eliran Avni playing piano. Glenn Einschlag put on an inspired concert on his bassoon.
Let’s also not forget the recital “Sophisticated Lady” put on by Natasha Farny, Barry Crawford, I-Fei Chen and Laura Koepke. This performance exclusively included works by female composers and will be performed this January at Merkin Hall in New York City!
So many performances in what seemed like so little time!
I unfortunately had to skip over some but I’d like to put out a poll towards the end of next semester to see what everyone’s favorite performances were next time around!
But for now, we must conclude the first ever Rosch Wrapped.
Thank you to everyone for all the amazing performances and, as our own Andrew Martin Smith would say, do great musical things! See you all next time!