Arts & Events

Romantic “Wind and Voice” combination in next Jacobsen

As October comes to campus we can expect falling leaves, a drop in temperature and also the melodious sound of classical music filtering through Puget Sound. On Oct. 22 in Schneebeck Concert hall at 7:30 p.m. the third Jacobsen concert of the musical season kicks off. The theme of this Jacobsen concert is “Wind and Voice”. Tickets are available for $8.50 for students and $10 for the general public at the info center and at the door.

“The concept for this particular Jacobsen Concert was conceived by the wind faculty at Puget Sound,” Director of the School of Music vocal studies Dr. Dawn Padula said.  “Some of them had several ideas for a collaboration between the vocal and wind departments, as there are several pieces written for these combinations of instruments.”

The pieces to be performed in this concert, like most Jacobsen concerts, come from a classical repertoire.  These works will come from several classical musical eras such as the Renaissance, the Romantic era and contemporary pieces of the 20th century. The works chosen are from composers Brahms, Ravel, Strauss, Schütz and Cooke.

Pieces were chosen to evoke strong emotional ties to the music. Combinations of wind, string, brass and piano accompanied with the voices of students and faculty help to give life to the intensely vivid imagery the music invokes.

Especially vivid are the works in Ravel’s song cycle “Chanson Madécasses” (“Songs of Madagascar”). These songs, while beautifully written, were highly controversial when first preformed in Paris in 1926 because of their extremely evocative images of love, and they depicted Ravel’s highly opinionated and openly vocal views of the evils of colonization. The songs of Ravel, along with the works of Brahms, Strauss, Schütz and Cooke, promise to captivate and engage the audience in the beautiful collaboration between voice and instrument.

While most Jacobsen concerts do not focus on student performances, this concert includes many student/faculty collaborations. The “Wind and Voice” performance will include a women’s chamber ensemble which consists of nine female voice majors from Puget Sound accompanying faculty members and guest artists in singing Johannes Brahms’ “Vier Gesänge.”  This specific piece is performed by a women’s choir, two horns and a harp and will be conducted by Dr. Anne Lyman, the School of Music’s director of Chorale and Dorian Singers.  There is also a piece featuring woodwind and brass performers.

“One of the great things about the School of Music is the faculty’s commitment to giving students amazing opportunities to perform and to collaborate. The School of Music is incredibly dedicated to the development of its students,” junior Vocal Performance major Rhiannon Guevin said. “I cannot say enough good things about the School of Music and the wonderful experiences that I have had there.”

This Jacobsen concert is a part of Tacoma’s Arts Crush initiative, which is a month-long festival of the arts with the goal of connecting artists with audiences in a variety of artistic mediums.

Puget Sound can look forward to more works of musical collaboration coming in November, with the fourth Jacobsen concert and four more concerts next semester. The School of Music will also be hosting the “Serious About Singing” workshop on Nov. 20 as well as end-of-semester concerts for all of the student ensembles.