Listen up, New Paltz.
Beginning in September, the fall 2013 semester will be filled with concerts and showcases that highlight the musically inclined students and faculty members.
The concert series begins with a night of jazz and classical music performed by faculty members of the Department of Music, with several shows taking place until early December all over campus in the Dorsky, Studley Theatre and the Shephard Recital Hall.
Faculty members are not the only people eagerly preparing for these performances. Students are also hard at work, as participating in these showcases provides them with an opportunity to demonstrate their musical abilities. Second-year music performance and elementary education double-major Erica Yu said the large audiences attending the events are encouraging from the “musically inclined” campus.
“I know students practice hard all semester to prepare for these performances,” Yu said. “The emotion and expression put into the concert series performances, not to mention the courage to perform onstage, is what makes the music come alive.”
Carole Cowan, former Chair of the Music Department and conductor of the College-Youth Symphony Orchestra said students in the Introduction to Music class are also required to attend a showcase every Tuesday night to view their fellow peers and mentors performances.
“I want to build a bridge between student and professor outside of class, and see what they’re learning about in the classroom put on stage,” Cowan said.
Cowan said the easiest way to bridge that gap is to have students interact with the perofrmers.
“It’s one thing to learn about the subject and another to see it as a live performance,” Cowan said.
Faculty members performing have been working together for years, Assistant Music Professor Joel Evans said, and being onstage is almost second nature, an integral part of who they are as people.
“There is such a wide spectrum of different kinds of music and that’s really what makes these showcases so interesting and thought-provoking,” Evans said. “There is something for everyone. This also gives us a chance to show what we’re about.”