The volume is co-edited by Philip Rupprecht, with colleagues Felix Woerner (University of Basel) and Ullrich Scheideler (Humboldt-University, Berlin), and features 15 new chapters by North American and European scholars. Tonality Since 1950 documents the debate surrounding one of the most basic technical and artistic resources of music in the later 20th century. The flourishing of tonality – a return to key, pitch center, and consonance – in recent decades… read more about Philip Rupprecht, new co-edited volume, "Tonality Since 1950" »
Scott Lee also won Symphony In C's 2016-17 Young Composers' Competition for Vicious Circles. It was performed by Symphony In C on January 28, 2017.Vicious Circles was read in March 2016 by the North Carolina Symphony as part of a year-long engagement between the Duke University Department of Music and the NCS, including symposia, concerts, visiting composers and conductors, and courses devoted to the large ensemble and its repertoire. The program was made possible in part by a gift from… read more about Graduate composer Scott Lee receives 2017 ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Award »
In 2016, Professor Bailey won the Judith Tick Fellowship from the Society for American Music for research in women in American music. She was also the recipient of a 2015-16 National Endowment for the Humanities Faculty Award.Candace Bailey is Professor of Music at North Carolina Central University. read more about Candace Bailey (Ph.D. 1992) has received the Hampsong Fellowship in American Song for her project "Music in Charleston's Historic Homes" »
Clara graduated from Duke in 2011 with a double major in Music (concentration in flute performance) and Biology. After college, she taught seventh grade science through Teach For America in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and was also a teaching artist with the Youth Orchestra of St. Luke’s and the New York Philharmonic, freelance flautist, and associate conductor of the Manhattan Wind Ensemble. Currently a student at Harvard Medical School, Clara is using her strengths in both music and medicine to advocate for equitable… read more about Clara Yang (T '11) receives Fulbright Graduate Degree Grant »
The Wiley Housewright Dissertation Award is designed to recognize a single dissertation on American music for its exceptional depth, clarity, significance, and overall contribution to the field. American music is interpreted in all its historical and contemporary styles and contexts, including, but not limited to art and popular musics, the musics of ethnic groups and minorities, and the full range of activities associated with music. "America" is understood here to embrace North America (Canada, The United States, and… read more about Darren Mueller (Ph.D. 2015) has been awarded the Wiley Housewright Dissertation Award by the Society for American Music »
"R. Larry Todd's engaging approach teaches students both how and why to listen, emphasizing the relevance of course content to students' lives and highlighting connections between music, history, and other art forms." -- Oxford University Press websiteR. Larry Todd is Arts & Sciences Professor of Music and former chair of the Music Department at Duke University. Among his books are Mendelssohn: A Life in Music (Oxford Univ. Press), named Best Biography of 2003 by the Association of American… read more about R. Larry Todd's new music textbook, "Discovering Music" »
In 2010, while a musicology graduate student at Duke, Angela Mace Christian obtained access to an original manuscript held in a private collection. She recognized Hensel's handwriting and musical style, but also that the pages she was holding were those missing from a volume of Hensel's works. Christian's discovery proved that the Easter Sonata was written by Hensel, rather than her brother, Felix, as had been previously thought. The presentation of the Easter Sonata under Hensel's name on International Women… read more about Royal College of Music performs Fanny Hensel's Easter Sonata, attributed to Hensel by Angela Mace Christian (Ph.D. musicology, 2013) »
Composer and Associate Professor John Supko (pictured with Provost Sally Kornbluth at the Langford luncheon on February 21) is one of three 2016-2017 winners of Duke's Thomas Langford Lectureship awards. He presented a lecture and selections from his compositions at the luncheon. MORE read more about John Supko receives a Thomas Langford Lectureship award »
Sid Richardson writes concert music that imbues modern idioms with emotional grit and cerebral wit. He has collaborated with ensembles such as The Da Capo Chamber Players, Ensemble Amarcord, and yMusic. He has engaged in projects with prominent soloists like saxophonists Susan Fancher and Branford Marsalis, violinist Jennifer Koh, and pianist Conrad Tao. His dissertation piece Red Wind sets the poetry of Nathaniel Mackey and features the poet himself along with soprano Mellissa Hughes and… read more about Sid Richardson receives Charles Ives Scholarship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters »
Carl Schimmel is Associate Professor of Music Theory and Composition at Illinois State University. Praised by The New York Times as “vivid and dramatic,” the music of Carl Schimmel is dense with literary and musical references, often humorous, and combines intensity of expression with a structural rigor which draws upon his mathematics background. Winner of the Bearns Prize and the Lee Ettelson Award, Schimmel has received honors and awards from many organizations, including MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, Copland… read more about Carl Schimmel (Ph.D. Composition, 2008) receives Goddard Lieberson Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters »
Though the musical settings of the Ordinarium missæ and of the Missa pro defunctis have been the subject of countless studies, the stylistic evolution of the polyphonic masses composed in France during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries has been neglected owing to the labor involved in creating scores from the surviving individual parts. Jean-Paul C. Montagnier has examined closely the printed, engraved and stenciled choirbooks containing this… read more about Jean-Paul Montagnier (Ph.D. 1994): "The Polyphonic Mass in France, 1600-1780" (Cambridge UP, May 2017) »
She also participated in Opera Workshop at Duke and was a member of the student a cappella group Something Borrowed Something Blue. While still a student, she won first place in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Mid-Atlantic Regional Classical Student Auditions. Ivy received her Master of Music in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College in May 2016. Since then, she has worked with the Princeton Festival, and most recently with Portland Opera To Go-- Portland… read more about Ivy Zhou (Trinity 2013) receives Encouragement Award in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions of the North Carolina District »
Dayton Kinney creates music that has won and has been recognized for numerous competitions at the international, national, and state levels. Performed in the U.S. and abroad, Dayton’s music has had notable performances by Deviant Septet, ICE, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Rela Percussion, Zodiac Trio, the Serpili Sisters, and at Pittsburgh Opera. Dayton’s eclectic style is inspired from neo-romantic-ideals, juxtapositions, and accessibility. Her current compositional obsession explores the… read more about Dayton Kinney wins 2nd Prize in the American Prize for Opera/Theater/Film in the student division for her opera "Cold Hands" »
From the News & Observer (Raleigh, NC), Jan. 3, 2017 by Stephen Jaffe North Carolinians busy with holidays and overwhelmed by the political events of 2016 may have missed news of the Dec. 14 passing of the prominent composer Karel Husa. He was 95. A United States citizen since 1959, Czech-born Karel Husa spent his last years in Apex. He was one of North Carolina’s — and one of the United States’— most recognized composers. Motivating his life and music are concerns that resonate especially… read more about Stephen Jaffe pays tribute to composer Karel Husa (1921-2016) »
Sid Richardson is a doctoral candidate in Composition in the Duke University Department of Music, studying with Stephen Jaffe and John Supko. The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts is located near Sweet Briar College in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in rural Virginia. Richardson will be among approximately 25 Fellows focusing on their own creative projects at this working two week residency for visual artists, writers and composers. Serving more than 350 artists a year (more than 4,… read more about Sid Richardson awarded fellowship by Virginia Center for the Creative Arts »
Mahler & Strauss: In Dialogue was released by Indiana University Press in September 2016. The book "reconstructs the 24-year relationship between Mahler and Strauss" using a wealth of documentary material. Charles Youmans's research deals with musical aesthetics in late nineteenth-century Germany and Austria. More information about Youmans and his work can be found on his Penn State website. read more about Alumnus Charles Youmans publishes "Mahler & Strauss: In Dialogue" »
In his 2014 novel Orfeo, National Book Award–winning author Richard Powers explores musical creation within the framework of the natural world-- what we know of energy, matter, and time-- through the character of Peter Els, erstwhile questing composer and “Biohacker Bach.” Jonathan Bagg, Professor of the Practice and a member of the Ciompi Quartet at Duke, found inspiration in Powers' meditations on musical imagination and creation. "When I read Orfeo I was struck both by its… read more about Project Orfeo: A concert of words and music inspired by Richard Powers’ novel Orfeo »
"Tokyo Aglow" is the second installment in Tierney's dissertation, at the CONFLUX, for his Ph.D. in composition at Duke. Tierney describes at the CONFLUX as "a time-lapse film in three parts that explores the rhythm of urban Japan and its people." All the filming was done by Tierney himself during two trips to Japan in 2014 and 2015. The first video, "Aerial Arterial," examines Tokyo from above, with Tierney beginning his filming at night atop the Tokyo Skytree, the world… read more about Ph.D. Composition student Justin Tierney wins 2016 LA Time-lapse Film Festival »
Led by violist and composer Ruccia, Cyanotype is an ever-shifting collective of improvisers who build complicated structures, melodies, and textures out of whatever personalities happen to be gathered. Fully improvised, "Two Silent Schnauzers" explores the timbral and sonic possibilities at play in the minds, bodies, and instruments of four improvisers who are attuned to deep listening, interaction, and risk taking. "Two Silent Schnauzers" runs the gamut in colors, textures, moods, and atmospheres. Chris… read more about Dan Ruccia's chamber improvisation ensemble Cyanotype releases its debut album, "Two Silent Schnauzers" »
George Lam (Ph.D. Composition, 2011) is one of the founding members of Rhymes With Opera, one of three exciting, young opera companies profiled in the August 2016 issue of Opera News. In addition to his work as co-artistic director of Rhymes With Opera, George is also an assistant professor at York College, The City University of New York. read more about Alumnus George Lam's Rhymes With Opera grabs the cover of Opera News »
Composer Scott Lee writes concert music infused with the visceral sounds of popular music. He has worked with musicians across genres, from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Portland Symphony Orchestra, Moravian Philharmonic, Da Capo Chamber Players, chatterbird, and ShoutHouse, to Ben Folds and yMusic. He has received commissions from loadbang, the Baltimore Classical Guitar Society, Occasional Symphony, and American Craft Council. Notable awards include a 2015 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer… read more about Scott Lee receives 2016 Charles Ives Scholarship »
The audience was thrilled with the Duke student musicians: "I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the Duke students’ performance. That first piece was quite intricate and required so much coordination. I was mesmerized as they performed it! The second number made my heart dance. What talent! Those young people are super stars." "The students who performed the classical music transported me to another place. It was incredibly beautiful. A few notes actually brought me to tears. Such beauty stirs the heart. It was an… read more about Chamber Music students perform for Duke Clinical Research Institute annual luncheon »
Music Graduation 2016 Undergraduate Degrees Conferred First Major Judner (Jay) AttysMichael Devito, High Distinction: Paper, “Modern Jazz: a Study in Composition and Performance”Adriana DickersonSophia Santore, Distinction: Composition, It Happened, and Senior Voice Recital Second Major Grace ChenChing Ying (Roman) LinMadison Spahn, Highest Distinction: Paper, “The… read more about 2016 Music Department Graduates »
Department of Music Awards The Ann-Marie Parsons Memorial Prize: Anderson Michael Speed This award was established in 1991 in memory of Ann-Marie Parsons (Trinity '92) and recognizes excellence in the field of jazz studies.The William Klenz Prize in Music Composition: Jamie Lee Keesecker for Into the Bends of Time, for chamber orchestra and electronicsThe Julia Wilkinson Prize for Excellence in Music: Jingwei (Jenny) Li… read more about 2016 Music Department Award Winners »
"Invès" by Yahn Wagner de Mello Pinto and "Vicious Circles" by Scott Lee were created especially for the orchestra. The rehearsal capped a year-long engagement between the Duke University Department of Music and the North Carolina Symphony, including symposia, concerts, visiting composers and conductors, and courses devoted to the large ensemble and its repertoire. The program was made possible in part by a gift from alumna Penka Kouneva (Ph.D. 1997). “Penka’s gift was originally imagined to honor my… read more about Duke composers meet the North Carolina Symphony »
David Kirkland Garner received his Ph.D. in Composition in 2014. Earlier this month, Mallarme Chamber Players premiered his new work for violin and piano, "The Sky Was Good for Flying," performed by Nicholas DiEugenio and Mimi Solomon. The work was commissioned by DiEugenio and Solomon, who will perform it in additional concerts in New York and North Carolina. Garner's article, "That Driving Sound: Use of Tempo in Traditional Cape Breton Fiddle Performanc" was also recently published in the … read more about David Kirkland Garner named to the faculty at the University of South Carolina »
In awarding the prize the committee writes: "Armstrong is the central figure in the creation of jazz, and Brothers’ Louis Armstrong: Master of Modernism is the first critical study to do him justice. This book follows Louis Armstrong through a crucial phase of his life, from his arrival in Chicago in 1922 through the early 1930s. It is a richly detailed biography, drawing on hundreds of interviews and previously overlooked items in black historical newspapers. It assesses not one, but two major style… read more about Thomas Brothers's "Louis Armstrong: Master of Modernism" receives Irving Lowens Book Award »
Marlissa Hudson received her formal training with Susan Dunn at Duke (T '99) and continued her vocal studies at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University. She earned awards for music at both schools, including a Peabody Career Development Grant. Described as a “superb lyric coloratura” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch), she made her professional debut while still a student, performing “Summertime” from Porgy and Bess with the Baltimore Symphony Pops Orchestra under the baton of… read more about Marlissa Hudson (T '99): Building a Career in Classical Music »
Wenjia Xu writes: "Despite our different interests in Economics, Engineering, and Medicine, our love for music brought the four of us together during our time as undergraduate students at Duke. As we were all involved in the Duke Symphony Orchestra and various chamber ensembles, it was inevitable for our musical paths to eventually merge. For us, chamber music meant taking a break from stressful academic coursework in order to create something beautiful, together. It meant feeding the artistic side of us… read more about Music alumni come together in NY to play chamber music »
The voice master class with Lucas Meachem took place on January 26, 2016 in the Nelson Music Room, East Duke Building. Students participating: Samantha Arten, Alex Brunson, Shafali Jalota, Cole Jenson, and Madison Spahn.Jennifer Koh's violin master class, presented in association with Duke Performances, took place on January 29, 2016 in the Nelson Music Room, East Duke Building. Students participating: Kiyoon Ko, Melody Lin, Jenny Li. Both master classes were presented in association with the… read more about Master Classes with Lucas Meachem and Jennifer Koh »