Dear Mason School of Music Family,
I hope each of you enjoyed a wonderful holiday season with family and friends. My husband and I were thrilled to celebrate the new year in Spain--our daughter has a Fulbright award grant in Spain for this academic year, so we had the perfect excuse for a European new year's holiday. And of course, we experienced memorable Spanish music, art, and culture in Logrono, Barcelona, and Madrid!
Our Mason students and faculty have been involved in many performances during the winter break. Special kudos to
Dr. Darden Purcell
and our Mason Jazz Vocal Ensemble for their recent outstanding performance at the Jazz Educators' Network Conference in Dallas, Texas.
Warm regards,
Dr. Linda Apple Monson
Director, School of Music
Email: lmonson@gmu.edu
Web: music.gmu.edu
|
|
Spring 2018 Faculty Artist Series
|
|
Join us for our annual Faculty Artist Series featuring School of Music faculty. Our first recital of the series kicks off soon!
|
|
Mason Jazz at Jazz Education Network in Dallas
|
|
The
Mason Jazz Vocal Ensemble
had the privilege of being a featured collegiate group at the 9th annual Jazz Education Network (JEN) Conference in Dallas, TX. Part music festival, part networking, part education and all inspiration, the annual conference hosts thousands of people from around the globe.
Mason Jazz Studies traveled with 25 people to Dallas, Texas, January 3 - 6, 2018. The Mason Jazz Vocal Ensemble performed Thursday afternoon to a packed house, with wonderful audience reviews. Special guest artists with the MJVE were Jazz faculty, Shawn Purcell and Doc Severinsen drummer, Stockton Helbing! Jazz faculty Matt Niess directed the National Jazz Workshop All-Stars in a featured performance on Friday afternoon with guest artist, Charlie Young. The NJW All-Stars rehearse at Mason throughout the year.
Friday evening, Darden Purcell and Shawn Purcell performed at Dallas's hippest Jazz club, the Kitchen Cafe, with Dallas musicians, Stockton Helbing, Josh Hanlon and James Driscoll.
"Jazz 4 Justice" founder, Ed Weiner and Mason Jazz alumni and J4J manager, Shannon Gunn represented "Jazz 4 Justice" in the exhibit hall and will be writing an article for an upcoming JEN publication!
It was an wonderful week of Jazz performances and education and we are very thankful to to our Mason School of Music and the Jazz Education Network for this incredible opportunity for our students!
|
|
The Mason Vocal Jazz Ensemble performing at JEN. Photo: Suzette Niess
|
|
Welcome to New Applied Musical Theater Adjunct Faculty
|
|
|
|
Prof. Van Slyke is a nationally recognized vocal coach and performing artist with successful studios in the Washington DC area and New York City. He has taught applied voice-musical theater at Ithaca College, The Catholic University of America, and Shenandoah University. Prof. Van Slyke is in high demand as a teacher, clinician, and guest speaker and has been endorsed by the Johns Hopkins University Department of Otolaryngology and other renowned otolaryngologists.
|
|
School of Music Student Featured in
University News
|
|
Carlehr Swanson, jazz studies major, developed a program called Music is Unity that she shares in nursing homes and schools. Photo: Evan Cantwell
|
|
Carlehr Swanson has been singing all her life. The George Mason University jazz studies major with a concentration in voice was crowned Miss State Fair of Virginia in October. Just as important as the title, though, is the opportunity Swanson said it provides for her to promote “Music is Unity,” an initiative she created that is dedicated to bringing music to others.
|
|
Faculty Conference Presentation
|
|
Dr. Greg Robinson, music faculty,
presented his research at the annual meeting of the Society for Ethnomusicology on a panel titled, “Music in/as Borderlands: Beyond Mexico-U.S. Framings,” which was dedicated to understanding how social groups in Latin America invoke musical practice to define themselves, others, and the national, regional, and cultural borders that separate them. His presentation, “Transnationalism, Counterpublicity, and Musical Intimacy in Chilean Patagonia,” drew on his fieldwork in southern Chile and engaged with research from the fields of ethnomusicology, anthropology, sociology, and cultural studies to argue that within this region, the bonds of intimacy that emerge between and among individuals at musical events shape the ways in which people understand their own regional and national senses of belonging.
|
|
Green Machine Stays Active Over Winter Break
|
|
While winter break is a vacation for some, it remains busy for The Green Machine. The band supported Mason's men’s and women’s basketball teams by performing at 11 games since December 10. A highlight from the break was performing with Isabella Nicola,
who has a remarkable story
. Isabella was born without a left hand, and had a special arm made for her by Mason bioengineering students so that Isabella can grip her violin. Stay up-to-date with The Green Machine by visiting
greenmachine.gmu.edu
.
|
|
Isabella Nicola with her pink prosthetic arm used to play her violin, or "vio-arm."
|
|
Mason Winter 2017 Graduation
|
|
Dr. Nathan St. Pierre received his PhD in Music Education degree at Mason's Winter Graduation on December 21. Congratulations to all our graduates!
|
|
Remembering Dr. Thomas Hill
|
|
One of our former music faculty members, Dr. Thomas Hill, passed away on December 16th in Springfield, Virginia. Dr. Hill was an Associate Professor of Music at George Mason University for 23 years. A memorial service was held on December 21.
Read the obituary here
.
|
|
See what's happening on our social sites:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
