Accolades
TWO HARP STUDENTS - NUKIO WADDEN AND CATHERINE BARRETT '00 - RECEIVE NATIONAL HONORS
Two
students of professor of harp Yolanda Kondonassis, - sophomore harp
performance major Nuiko Wadden (Willmette, Illinois) and senior Catherine
Barrett (North Egremont, Massachusetts)-were awarded top prizes at two
noted national competitions. In mid-May, Wadden won the Senior Harp
Division of the American String Teachers Association (ASTA) Competition.
Catherine Barrett '00 took first prize in the Elizabeth Harper Vaungh
Concerto Competition. Earlier this year Barrett also was awarded first
prize in the String Division of the Ohio Federation of Music Club's
2000 Statewide Competition.
"I'm very proud of the studio," says Kondonassis. "Students like Nuiko and Catherine give me great satisfaction as a teacher, not only because they have limitless potential as harpists; they both have that magical combination of talent and incredibly strong work ethics."
SOPRANO
RHIANNON GIDDENS AND PIANIST SPENCER MYER
WIN VARN COMPETITION
Soprano
Rhiannon Giddens, a masters student from Greensboro, North Carolina,
studying with associate
professor of singing Marlene Rosen, and pianist Spencer Myer '00 from
North Ridgeville, Ohio, studying with professor of pianoforte Peter
Takács, won the VARN (Vocal Arts Resource Network) competition,
an annual competition offered by the Columbus-based organization that
rewards three winning singer/pianist teams. In addition to a cash award,
Giddens and Myer performed a spring recital in Cincinnati and participated
in a three-hour coaching session with Ken Griffiths, a prominent vocal/piano
coach in Cincinnati and at the Tanglewood Center.
SENIOR
CATHRYN LAI WINS SECOND PRIZE IN THE 49TH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL WIDEMAN
PIANO COMPETITION
IN SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA
Conservatory senior pianist Cathryn Lai recently was awarded second prize in the 49th annual International Wideman Piano Competition held in Shreveport, Louisiana. Lai, who hails from Greensboro, North Carolina, was chosen from a field of 54 contestants from top conservatories and prestigious studios. Six pianists representing institutions including the Juilliard School, the Cleveland Institute of Music and the University of Southern California were chosen to compete in the finals, from which group Lai was selected as the Silver Medalist.
Lai,
who chose to play the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra by Samuel Barber,
was initially unsure about her decision to compete with a twentieth-century
concerto: "The majority of the contestants played the biggies, like
Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky, Brahms and Saint-Saens. And there I was
playing the Barber, next to all these loud, romantic,
traditional competition-winning works. When they announced that I was
one of the six finalists, I was shocked. I didn't think the Barber could
compete with all the Rach 3's and Tchaik's."
Clearly, it could. After
the final round, which took place in the form of a public concert open
to the Shreveport community, Lai was awarded the Rice Family Silver
Medal Award, a cash prize of $1,500, and a performance at the Phillips
Gallery in Washington, D.C., for the 2000-01 season. Lai's performance
of the Barber also won her a hotly-contested spot in the 1999-2000 Oberlin
Concerto Competition's winning roster. She performed the work with the
Oberlin Orchestra under the direction of Paul Polivnick in April in
Finney Chapel.
From
TIMARA to Country Music to MTV: Matt Hubbard Diversifies in Austin
by Emily Manzo '02
When Matt Hubbard '94 says, "Music is part of the fabric of my life," he's not kidding. The TIMARA/English double-degree major (with a concentration in Drama/Film), is a producer, recording engineer, studio musician, bandleader and sideman who has worked with artists including Willie Nelson, Paula Nelson, Merle Haggard and Kimmie Rhodes. One recent compositional effort included writing music for MTV's website (http://www.mtv.com). Matt now resides in Austin, Texas, with his fiancee, Martha, and their brand new baby boy, Dean Hubbard.
Matt credits his studies in English and TIMARA with his success after Oberlin. And networking with other Obie alums also proved beneficial. "I was visiting my twin sister, Cristin Hubbard '94 (Voice and Theater), in New York and I went to see my good friend and former MTV News employee David Anderson '94 (Politics), at his office in the big MTV building at Times Square. Another Obie Jeff Rabb '94 (Composition), just happens to work there too. Jeff is in the new MTV Interactive Department compiling original compositions for use on the website, among other things. I said I was interested in contributing, and Jeff made it possible for me to submit a CD of my music to audition for the gig. The higher-ups liked what they heard and now I have my music on the site!"
MATT
AND MARTHA'S NEWEST PRODUCTION:
DEAN HUBBARD
His music for the MTV project has already reaped benefits. "A couple of weeks ago I got an unexpected email from Thomas Dolby, '80s synth/pop pioneer whose music video for 'She Blinded Me with Science' was an early MTV classic. Now, Mr. Dolby is the main force behind Beatnik (http://www.beatnik.com), an Internet music company. He heard my music on the MTV website and wants me to write music that I could license out through his company for use by other websites. This is an exciting venue for my music, and I am currently working on new material. It is also an honor to be noticed by Thomas Dolby because his 'Science' single was one the first records I ever bought way back in 6th grade."
Hubbard foresees an exciting future in the changing face of the music industry, in light of the recent explosion of music on the Internet. "I think the Internet is an excellent dispersion tool for music, and composers or ensembles who wish to develop an audience should take advantage of it. You don't have to wait around for a recording contract or your so-called 'big break' to start creating and distributing."
Hubbard's notable activities have included co-producing, recording and arranging an album for Austin singer/songwriter Paula Nelson, whose father, Willie Nelson, funded the production and also played guitar on several tracks. "The album, entitled Coming Home, was recorded and produced on my own equipment," says Hubbard, "so I had my work cut out for me. I also played keyboards, trombone, bass, and sang on the album. I performed with the Paula Nelson Band during 1998-99, playing many venues and opening for and playing with Willie."
Hubbard has recently rejoined Kimmie's Rhodes' band with performances scheduled at Willie Nelson's Fourth of July Picnic, the Edmonton Folk Festival in Alberta, Canada, and a European tour scheduled in August. His own self-produced album, scheduled for a late-summer 2000 release, will feature his vocals and instrumentals.
"It is mostly influenced by all the great popular vocal music from around the world that I have heard over the years. Ben Prince '94 and I are also putting together a compilation of all the music we have written and recorded in the 90s along with some new tunes. These songs are quite diverse in nature, often edgy or humorous," Hubbard adds.
While he hopes his future in Austin offers more singing and acting, he has garnered some impressive credits. He worked Tony-nominee and Greater Tuna co-author and actor Joe Sears, and with Grammy award-winner and Texas musician, Joe Ely, in the country musical, 'Small Town Girl.' Hubbard was briefly the lead singer in the now-defunct Austin band called Ichabod Fever, and sang the national anthem at an Austin Ice Bats pro-hockey game.
Hubbard sends his regards to all his fellow alums. E-mail: mwhubbard@earthlink.net.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF CONDUCTING ROBERT SPANO '84 NAMED MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE ATLANTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Robert
Spano '84, most recently seen on campus when he conducted the fall '99
Opera Theater production of Massenet's "Manon," was named
music director of The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) in February 2000.
Spano will share the position with Donald Runnicles, music director
of the San Francisco Opera. Spano will also retain his current position.
In a February 9 article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Wendell Brock wrote, "By recruiting a critics' darling with a knack for contemporary programming, the ASO is positioning itself for greater recognition and record sales."
ASO president Allison Vulgamore '80 is an Oberlin alumna and a member of the Oberlin College's Board of Trustees. In the Journal-Constitution article she said, "I think Robert is going to be very hot with that young (professional) market. We've done something very big here by stealing him.