Tag Archive: School of Music

  1. Woo ’12 MUS ’13 awarded Gates Scholarship

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    Naomi Woo ’12 MUS’13 has been awarded the Gates Scholarship for postgraduate study, a prestigious award that will fully fund her pursuit of a M. Phil in music studies at Cambridge University.

    Woo’s will join two other Yalies, Matt Shafer ’13 and Rachel Kurchin ’13, who were announced as Gates Scholars last February. As a Canadian, Woo faced an even more selective application process than the American scholar applicants. Fifty international Gates Scholars are chosen from over 4,000 applications, compared to 40 Americans from just 800 applications.

    At Yale College, Woo majored in math/philosophy and music, and dedicated herself to classical music performance outside of class. She co-directed the experimental chamber music ensemble SIC InC and was the music director of the Berkeley College Orchestra. On her Gates Scholarship profile, Woo said that she hoped to enrich musicology through performance, and further unite the two disciplines.

    She also aims to broaden the reach of classical music and make it accessible to all people. At Yale, Woo taught in New Haven schools as a Teaching Artist for the Music in the School Initiative, and she has taught underprivileged children and performed at public concerts in her hometown of Vancouver.

  2. New endowment to fund School of Music fellow

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    A new endowment in honor of University President Richard Levin and DUS of Directed Studies Jane Levin will fund visiting artists looking to teach or support programs at the School of Music.

    In an effort to recognize the Levins’ dedication to the arts, the School of Music Board of Visitors has established an endowment supporting the “Jane and Richard Levin Music Fellow,” School of Music Dean Robert Blocker announced at a tribute concert to the Levins on Feb. 14.

    The Levin Fellow will be “a person of distinction,” such as a visiting conductor, Blocker said, citing visiting artists such as Speranza Scappucci, who conducted Yale Opera’s production of Vincenzo Bellini’s “I Capuleti e i Montecchi” at the Shubert Theater on Feb. 15, as an example.

    “The arts are a unique strength of Yale — as people who have been here for 43 years, [the arts are] something we’ve valued for our entire time here,” Richard Levin said. “I’ve always enjoyed the musical offerings in this community that Yale School of Music and undergraduates provide and the great work at the art gallery. It’s really nice that the art gallery and Music School have shown their appreciation; we’re very honored by this.”

    The endowment to fund visiting artists and scholars is not new to Yale: The School of Art funds a visiting artist program and the School of Architecture has several endowments to bring professional architects to teach Yalies, according to Levin.

     

  3. Alums raise $15k for experimental classical-music theater show

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    It was a Happy New Year for composer Stephen Feigenbaum MUS ’13, director Charlie Polinger ’13 and playwright Matthew George ’11. On New Year’s Eve, the three reached their Kickstarter fundraising goal of $15,000 to push forward an experimental classical-music theater show that will go up this February.

    The Kickstarter campaign raised $15,773 with 187 backers. The show — which was inspired by acts such as Stomp, Blue Man Group and Cirque du Soleil — aims to dramatize classical music to revitalize its live performance and explore its relationships to other performing arts, including theater and dance. Titled “Abyss,” the show will recount the story of the apocalypse with an ensemble of musicians, dancers and actors.

    Donors will receive gifts for their generosity, including dinner for pledges of $500 or more, an original song using the names of donors of $200 or more, signed copies of the show’s scripts and musical scores for $75 or more and an apocalyptic-themed voicemail for donors of $30 or more. The money will go to renting the performance space in or near downtown New Haven, collecting materials to integrate the various media, obtaining a professional sound system and designing the set.

    The hourlong show will have eight to 10 performances in late February.