Overtones: Spring 2016

Vol. XXXX, No. 2
Spring 2016
Singers in
the Orchestra
Berio’s Sinfonia Realized
PAGE 16
Reunion 2015
Alumni Come Home to Curtis
PAGE 13
“Utopian Community”
90 Years of Student Life
PAGE 22

Fall 2015 at Curtis
The Curtis Opera Theatre opened the 2015–16 performance
season with a concert production of Puccini’s immortal tale
of young love, La bohème (above right), with bohemians
DOĞUKAN KURAN, ASHLEY ROBILLARD, KIRSTEN MacKINNON, JEAN-MICHEL
RICHER, TYLER ZIMMERMAN, and JOHNATHAN McCULLOUGH. The
November opera production set Massenet’s Manon in a postapocalyptic
netherworld (at left). Featured were ASHLEY MILANESE
in the title role and ROY HAGE as the Chevalier des Grieux.
PHOTOS: KARLI CADEL, CORY WEAVER
In October Philadelphia Orchestra music director and Curtis
mentor conductor YANNICK NÉZET-SÉGUIN (below right) led the
Curtis Symphony Orchestra in Debussy’s sweeping La Mer
and Prokofiev’s monumental Symphony No. 5. Mezzo-soprano
LAUREN EBERWEIN joined the orchestra for Ravel’s Shéhérazade
(below left), with conducting fellow CONNER GRAY COVINGTON
on the podium in his Curtis debut; and conducting fellow
EDWARD POLL led Stravinsky’s Symphonies of Wind Instruments.
PHOTOS: DAVID DEBALKO
More Online
Watch and listen to musical highlights at www.curtis.edu/Multimedia

CONTENTS
Vol. XXXX, No. 2
Spring 2016
FALL 2015 AT CURTIS
Opposite
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT 2
An alumni network emerges.
7
NOTEWORTHY 3
A new board chair, an Amadeus Affair, and memorial tributes
to beloved faculty members.
OVERTONES
Overtones is the semiannual publication
of the Curtis Institute of Music.
1726 Locust Street
Philadelphia, Pa. 19103
Telephone: (215) 893-5252
www.curtis.edu
Roberto Díaz, president and CEO
Nina von Maltzahn President’s Chair
EDITOR
Melinda Whiting
EDITORIAL ADVISORY GROUP
Kathryn Bezella
Paul Bryan
Lourdes Demers
Roberto Díaz
Mikael Eliasen
Kristen Loden
David Ludwig
Jeanne McGinn
CONTRIBUTORS
Matthew Barker
Kendra Broom
Conner Covington
Caroline Meline
Zachary Mowitz
Susan Nowicki
Laura Sancken
Helene van Rossum
GRAPHIC DESIGN
art270, Inc.
ISSN: 0887-6800
Copyright © 2016
by Curtis Institute of Music
THIS SPRING AT CURTIS 20
On stage and online
“A NEAR-UTOPIAN COMMUNITY…” 22
An archival exhibit focuses on student life through
the decades. Helene van Rossum shares photos and memories
from alumni and faculty.
THE COMPLEAT MUSICIAN 27
Liberal arts faculty member Caroline Meline
considers teaching philosophy in the conservatory.
FIRST PERSON 28
Viola graduate Jessica Chang weaves a fulfilling
artistic life from multiple strands.
MEET THE STUDENTS 7
Having grown up at Curtis, Daniel Hsu’s time has come,
writes Matthew Barker.
MEET THE FACULTY 10
Curtis double bassists develop their varied strengths under
the guidance of Harold Hall Robinson. Dave Allen reports.
ALUMNI HOMECOMING 13
Curtis hosted graduates from the 1930s to the 2010s
at a September reunion. Laura Sancken looks back on
the weekend.
A SINFONIA DIARY 16
Presenting Luciano Berio’s kaleidoscopic, whirling Sinfonia
was a six-month team effort. Coaches and performers
reflect on the journey.
10
3 5
28
31
MEET THE ALUMNI 31
For organ virtuoso Paul Jacobs, advocacy and artistry go hand in hand. William Robin reports.
13
NOTATIONS
Alumni 34
Faculty 39
Students 39
Recordings and Publications 40
ON THE COVER: Eight singers from the Curtis
Opera Theatre, fitted with microphones, joined
the Curtis Symphony Orchestra in performances
of Luciano Berio’s monumental Sinfonia this winter.
Here mezzo-soprano Kendra Broom is pictured
in a rehearsal. Her reflections on the work’s
complex preparation are part of the Sinfonia Diary
beginning on page 16. COVER PHOTO: PETE CHECCHIA
13
CURTIS FACULTY AND
STUDENTS IN NEW LONDON,
CONN., 1929 Back cover
OVERTONES SPRING 2016
1

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Network of Connections
the applause was thunderous. As our
Curtis Symphony Orchestra and singers
from the Curtis Opera theatre stood on
the stage of Carnegie Hall on February 1,
the cheers from the audience washed over
them, bringing broad smiles to their faces
and immense pride to those of us who
see them daily at school.
they had just offered an exhilarating
performance of Luciano Berio’s complex,
kaleidoscopic Sinfonia. Most of the students
had never performed on that legendary
stage before, and they reveled in the
experience. reliving the thrill with them
were dozens of New York-based Curtis
alumni in the audience, who had reconnected
with one another earlier in the evening at
a reception for alumni and parents. Other
alumni had already engaged with Curtis
long-distance, through the paradoxical
intimacy of social media: A group of Seattle
Symphony members with Curtis ties sent a
congratulatory pre-performance message to
our students and to the Seattle Symphony’s
music director, Ludovic Morlot, who led
the Carnegie performance.
Standing in the hall, clapping and
cheering with the rest of the audience,
i found myself thinking once again what
so many students and alumni and faculty
have said over the years: You never really
leave Curtis. And Curtis alumni carry the
school with them to every musical corner
of the globe.
i know from my own travels that Curtis
alumni are literally everywhere. this has
happened in Spain, in Brazil, in Hong
Kong: if i play a concerto engagement,
orchestra members who are alumni will
come up to me after rehearsal. if i appear
on a chamber music series, alumni in the
audience will come backstage. if i teach
a master class at a music school, almost
inevitably i run into Curtis alumni who
are on the faculty. We have an instant bond,
no matter what year we graduated.
More Online
Learn how Curtis is reinforcing alumni
connections at
www.curtis.edu/AlumniNetwork
Alumni from the Seattle Symphony sent this photo-message of congratulations and support to Curtis
students before the Carnegie Hall performance on February 1. The Seattle Symphony’s music director,
Ludovic Morlot, conducted the concert.
the life cycle of a Curtis musician
forms one of the central tenets of the
strategic direction we instituted in 2015.
How a musician moves through that
cycle—from applicant to student, from
student to graduate, from graduate to
thriving artist—has always been an
important consideration for the school.
today, in a rapidly changing musical
landscape, it is gaining in urgency. We are
preparing each of our young musicians to
enter this new world; we also aim to support
our alumni as they navigate its shifts.
Last fall at the alumni reunion, we
unveiled a concept for an alumni network
that acknowledges the broad life cycle of a
Curtis musician. this network will engage
and empower alumni, build contact among
alumni and students, and ensure that
alumni regard Curtis—and one another—
as helpful resources at every stage of their
lives. Alumni are an important resource
for Curtis, too, with knowledge and skills
that can inform our operating framework.
An alumni network activation committee is
hard at work, developing ways to reinforce
this web of connections. in recent weeks,
open conference calls of alumni have
provided a forum to brainstorm ideas for
mentoring, professional development, and
regional events. these inspiring conversations
will ultimately help Curtis to serve and
engage our alumni, wherever they may
be around the world.
As we continue to gather information
and lay this foundation, i am continually
impressed by how Curtis as a whole is
strengthened by its unique body of alumni.
Alumni are our ambassadors, bringing new
students and friends to the school by the
simple force of their artistry and influence
as teachers, artists, and human beings.
Many are on our faculty; hundreds more
support the school in countless ways. As
an alumnus who is committed to nurturing
the next generation of Curtis musicians,
i am honored to share every day in this
inspiring exchange.
roberto Díaz
president
2 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

NOteWOrtHY
Curtis Appoints New Board Chairman
The Curtis Institute of Music’s board of trustees has elected MARK E. RUBENSTEIN as
its new chairman effective June 1. He succeeds NINA BARONESS VON MALTZAHN, who
will remain on the board of trustees upon completing a two-year tenure marked by
an expansion of worldwide touring and international exposure for the school.
“Mark is a highly respected trustee whose dedication to Curtis has already impacted
our community in significant ways,” said Curtis President ROBERTO DÍAZ in announcing
the election. “His energy, demonstrated leadership, and experience building successful
organizations from the ground up have served the school well during a time when we
have expanded our facilities, grown our programs, and engaged new audiences through
global touring and online initiatives.”
Mr. Rubenstein is a passionate and influential supporter of the school who played
a crucial role in Curtis’s two recent major real estate acquisitions: the purchase and
construction of Lenfest Hall and the purchase and renovation of the Rubenstein Centre
at 1620 Locust Street to house the school’s expanding advancement offices. He and his
wife, Robin, have funded a student fellowship; hosted numerous Curtis on Tour programs
in Nantucket and Florida; and chaired special events in Philadelphia, including Curtis’s
2013 Season Finale Gala honoring Marguerite and H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest. Mr. Rubenstein
has long been a leader in the commercial real estate industry. In 1969 he founded The
Rubenstein Company, a full-service real estate company which he sold in 2004. Now
retired, he is special senior advisor to Rubenstein Partners.
Having served as an active trustee since 2009, Mr. Rubenstein is uniquely qualified
to continue the work begun by Nina von Maltzahn. During her tenure as board chair,
the trustees approved and began implementation of a new strategic direction pointing
toward the school’s centenary in 2024. Baroness von Maltzahn’s leadership during the
90th-anniversary season was further distinguished by expansion of Curtis on Tour;
performances featuring renowned artists and world premieres; and exceptional student,
faculty, and alumni achievements.
“It has been an extraordinary honor to lead
a school that develops such remarkable young
artists,” said Baroness von Maltzahn. “As I
continue to champion the unparalleled musicmaking
that happens here, I am thrilled to have
a successor like Mark who cares as deeply about
our students as I do. I look forward to working
side-by-side with him in the years to come.”
Mark Rubenstein PHOTO: JOHNS HOPKINS MEDICINE
Mr. Rubinstein and the recipient of his
fellowship, Julian Tello Jr. PHOTO: KELLY
AND MASSA
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
3

NOteWOrtHY
FACULTY
ANNIVERSARIES
Curtis thanks the entire faculty,
with a nod to those celebrating landmark
anniversaries in 2016.
80 years
ELEANOR SOKOLOFF (Piano ’38)
35 years
AARON ROSAND (Violin ’48)
30 years
MIKAEL ELIASEN
MARLENA MALAS (Voice ’60)
DANIELLE ORLANDO
25 years
ROBERT CUCKSON
CARLA PUPPIN
20 years
PAMELA FRANK (Violin ’89)
JOAN PATENAUDE-YARNELL
STEVEN TENENBOM (Viola ’79)
PETER WILEY (Cello ’74)
15 years
ELENA JIVAEVA
ROLANDO MORALES-MATOS
SCOTT ROBINSON
10 years
MISHA AMORY
PETER GAFFNEY
5 years
THOMAS APPLE
JONATHAN BISS (Piano ’01)
HSIN-YUN HUANG (Viola ’92)
MEI LU
CHAS RADER-SHIEBER
ULRIKE SHAPIRO
GREG SHARROW
DAVID STAROBIN
JASON VIEAUX
Above and below: Participants in the 2015 Young Artist Summer Program PHOTOS: DAVID SWANSON
Curtis Summerfest 2016
Curtis Summerfest has opened online registration for its 2016 summer season.
Summerfest programs allow music enthusiasts of all ages and backgrounds to study
with leading artists, including Curtis faculty and alumni, and to experience Curtis’s
signature “learn by doing” philosophy. There are special programs for adult chamber
musicians and soloists, including the JEFFREY KHANER Flute Class and the new
ELIZABETH HAINEN Harp Colony. Also on offer are the popular Young Artist Summer
Program, a three-week residential experience for high school and college-age
instrumentalists, composers
and conductors; and the Young
Artist Voice Program, launched
in 2015, which offers a two-week
residential course of lessons,
coachings, and performances
to college-age vocalists.
More Online
Apply for Curtis Summerfest programs at
www.curtis.edu/Summerfest
ALUMNI NETWORK TAKES SHAPE
This spring a committee of alumni, led by STANFORD THOMPSON (Trumpet ’09)
and MARSHA HUNTER (Voice ’76), will be working to develop a global network of
Curtis musicians.
Curtis’s Alumni Network will include all alumni in a flexible, volunteer-driven model
that aims to keep alumni connected to one another and to current students, keep them
invested in Curtis, and help them to be global ambassadors for music. Similarly, the
network will serve alumni by linking more directly to their experiences and objectives.
Initial goals include creating a mentorship program and other professional development
resources; involving alumni in Curtis’s digital initiatives; and creating regional
programming to help connect alumni in the communities where they live and work.
Alumni interested in learning more or getting involved may contact Laura Sancken,
director of alumni and parent relations, at laura.sancken@curtis.edu or (215) 717-3128.
4 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

NOteWOrtHY
Friday Night Live
Curtis Performs has launched its first-ever series of live-streamed concerts, bringing
the school’s performances to homes around the world in high-definition, broadcastquality
video. Since October, Friday-night recitals in the school’s renowned Field
Concert Hall have been streamed live each week at www.curtis.edu/CurtisPerforms,
supplemented by additional concerts on other nights throughout the year.
Featured events include graduation recitals of students in their final year at
Curtis, vocal recitals, residency recitals with the Aizuri Quartet and acclaimed
guests, and special concerts by the Curtis 20/21 Ensemble. All live streams begin
at 8 p.m. (ET), and video remains live for 72
hours following the performance. The Curtis More Online
Performs live stream can be viewed on any Watch live streams and additional
mobile device, laptop, or desktop computer. high-definition videos at
www.curtis.edu/CurtisPerforms
The Curtis 20/21 Ensemble was featured in a recital that was streamed live in November.
Mikael Eliasen, artistic director of the Curtis Opera
Theatre and Hirsig Family Dean of Vocal Studies
PHOTO: DARIO ACOSTA
AMADEUS AFFAIR
CELEBRATES
MIKAEL ELIASEN
In 1986 a young Danish-born vocal coach
and accompanist arrived at Curtis to join
the vocal studies faculty. Soon he was
restructuring Curtis’s voice and opera
training in his own unique way, laying the
groundwork for the renowned and highly
respected vocal studies program that has
nurtured young singers ever since.
In a trademark of the Curtis program
under MIKAEL ELIASEN’s leadership, all of
Curtis’s 25 voice and opera students are
cast repeatedly each season, receiving
a rare level of performance experience.
As a result, Curtis graduates trained under
his direction have sung with leading opera
companies around the globe, including
La Scala, Covent Garden, the Vienna
Staatsoper, Houston Grand Opera, the
San Francisco Opera, and the Metropolitan
Opera, among others.
On May 6 Curtis will honor Mr. Eliasen’s
30-year legacy and irrepressible spirit
with a celebration preceding the Curtis
Opera Theatre’s performance of Le nozze
de figaro at the Kimmel Center’s Perelman
Theater. Proceeds from the event will
support Curtis’s mission to educate and
train exceptionally gifted young musicians
to engage a local and global community
through the highest level of artistry.
More Online
Information about this special celebration is at
www.curtis.edu/AmadeusAffair
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
5

NOteWOrtHY
in Memoriam
In November Curtis lost two beloved, longtime members of its faculty. The school
extends heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, colleagues, and students of these
distinguished teachers.
Seymour Lipkin
SEYMOUR LIPKIN (Piano ’47) passed away on November 16 at age 88. A legendary artist,
during the course of his career he played with all of the major United States orchestras
and earned particular acclaim for his Beethoven cycles.
Mr. Lipkin was associated with Curtis for nearly 70 years. He entered at age 11,
and over the next eight years studied with Rudolf Serkin, Mieczyslaw Horszowski,
and David Saperton. While still a student, he accompanied Jascha Heifetz on a recital
tour of the European war zone in the spring of 1945. Just one year after his graduation
at the age of 19, Mr. Lipkin won the Rachmaninoff Competition.
Beyond his numerous accomplishments as a pianist, Mr. Lipkin also studied
conducting at Tanglewood with Serge Koussevitzky and was apprentice conductor
of the Cleveland Orchestra under George Szell. His conducting career included
engagements at the New York City Opera, New York Philharmonic, Joffrey Ballet,
and Long Island Symphony. He was artistic director of the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music
Festival in Blue Hill, Maine, and served as artistic director of the International Piano
Festival and William Kapell Competition at the University of Maryland.
Mr. Lipkin joined the Curtis faculty in 1969 and also taught at the Juilliard School.
He won the Curtis Alumni Award in 2008. “His artistry and his great spirit have impacted
generations of our students and faculty,” remarked Curtis President Roberto Díaz.
“The many wonderful recordings he leaves behind will help us all to continue to
celebrate his many gifts. He will be deeply, deeply missed.”
Joseph Silverstein PHOTO: PETE CHECCHIA
Contributors to Noteworthy include Jennifer
Kallend, Daniel McDougall, Laura Sancken,
and Melinda Whiting.
JOSEPH SILVERSTEIN (Violin ’50) died on November 22 at age 83. He was a revered
violinist, conductor and chamber musician who, in the words of President Díaz,
“perfectly exemplified the type of artist we wish to develop here at Curtis—he had
the kind of multidimensional career that we hope all of our students will embrace.”
A 1950 Curtis graduate, Mr. Silverstein studied with Efrem Zimbalist and Veda
Reynolds. He then held positions with the orchestras of Houston, Philadelphia, and
Denver before joining the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1955. Two years later he
was appointed the orchestra’s concertmaster, and he became its assistant conductor
in 1971. He was music director of the Utah Symphony for fifteen years and was named
its conductor laureate in 1998.
Mr. Silverstein joined the Curtis faculty in 2000, and held the Aaron Rosand
Chair in Violin Studies. He also taught at Yale and Boston universities, New England
Conservatory, and Tanglewood Music Center. Though his considerable musical gifts
earned him individual recognition, he
was deeply committed to collaboration.
“One of the most important facets of
playing professionally, both in orchestras
and in chamber music, is learning how
to enjoy the act of merging with other
personalities,” Mr. Silverstein said in a
2002 overtones interview. “This is not
a sacrifice of creativity. However, it is
using creativity in a slightly different way:
to be part of a performance rather than
the dominating force in a performance.”
Joseph Silverstein at the Alumni Reunion in
Fall 2015, with Meng-Chieh Liu (Piano ’93) and
Desiree Ruhstrat (Violin ’91) PHOTO: DAVID SWANSON
6 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

MEET THE STUDENTS
“i want to be here,” a
ten-year-old Daniel earnestly
said to his father in 2008
upon entering the warm
environment of the
graffman Common room.
Family Values
HAVING GROWN UP AT CURTIS, DANIEL HSU’S TIME HAS COME.
Daniel Hsu is the
Richard A. Doran Fellow.
PHOTO: CHRIS McGUIRE
BY MATTHEW BARKER
“that thing that we can’t name, he has it,” remarks Curtis piano faculty eleanor Sokoloff
of her student Daniel Hsu. For the past eight years she’s helped cultivate Daniel’s “it”
factor, which is fast becoming widely known. Last year he was announced as one of two
gilmore Young Artist Award winners (the other was also a Curtis student pianist, Micah
McLaurin). He captured the top prize at the 2015 Concert Artists guild Victor elmaleh
Competition in New York, and then the bronze medal at the Hamamatsu international
piano Competition in Japan. (He was the youngest finalist in both events.) it was a major
year that signaled not only the arrival of a significant artist, but also the long-expected
fulfillment of potential from a pupil who only recently turned eighteen.
Modest, articulate, and bright, Daniel is also exceptional in coming across as utterly normal.
When he’s not probing the depths of late Schubert, he writes and develops computer apps,
hangs out with friends, binge-watches tV shows, and explores philadelphia. His recent
accomplishments have done nothing to inflate his ego. this authenticity endeared him to
Curtis, and vice versa, from his first visit to the school. “i want to be here,” a ten-year-old
Daniel earnestly said to his father in 2008 upon entering the warm environment of the
graffman Common room. “He was laughing at me because the thought of it was impossible,”
recalls Daniel—although the faculty had other ideas. “You could hear, there was a spark,”
recalls Mrs. Sokoloff of her soon-to-be pupil’s demeanor and playing.
that year both Daniel and his older brother, Andrew, then just thirteen years old, were
accepted and entered Curtis. in 2010 their sister, Ashley, joined them, marking the first time
More Online
Hear and see Daniel Hsu playing Schubert at
www.curtis.edu/CurtisPerforms
WHY CHOOSE CURTIS?
—Daniel Hsu
PHOTO: PETE CHECCHIA
“First, I think the faculty is unparalleled. Second, it’s a performance experience you can’t find
anywhere else. You want to play, you sign up and play. Every single musician here is great.
[You’re] swimming in music the entire week, all the time, with all the faculty, and classes,
and rehearsals.”
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
7

“i don’t think i quite understood what was
happening, where i was studying, the
talent around me, and what was expected of me,”
recalls Daniel of his earliest years at Curtis.

MEET THE STUDENTS
since the early 1930s that three siblings attended Curtis concurrently, and the first time
in the school’s history that all three played the same instrument. the Hsu parents divided
their time between northern California and the east coast before settling in philadelphia to
support their gifted children. “i feel very fortunate to have had my family here because, being
the age i was, i don’t think i could have figured things out,” says Daniel. His siblings have
now entered graduate programs in New York, but he still sees them several times a month.
Attending a small school with a fluid age range, from single digits up to as high as 30
years old, can be a challenge—academically, musically, and socially. “i don’t think i quite
understood what was happening, where i was studying, the talent around me, and what
was expected of me,” recalls Daniel of his earliest years at Curtis. He received private lessons
in piano and musical studies, but faced obstacles trying to socialize and express himself.
“i observed and learned a lot and maybe didn’t know how to apply it in the first couple of
years, but now i’m starting to feel more comfortable in myself,” he says. “it’s different for
me now, of course, because everybody is much closer in age to me. there are more friends,
and chamber music is more fun.”
Violinist Marié rossano first collaborated with Daniel three years ago, and the two
continue to perform together. “We immediately ‘clicked’, both in the music-making and as
friends,” says Marié. “there was a depth to his sound and a raw honesty in his music-making,
unexplainable in words,” she recalls. “i had never heard the energy of a bubbly fifteenyear-old
boy so intertwined within an innate musical understanding that isn’t usually
internalized until adulthood.”
NURTURING NATURE
it can take anywhere from five to ten years for pre-teen enrollees to complete their course
of study at Curtis, and during that time students like Daniel are encouraged to explore
their potential in as many ways as possible. “Being in a place like Curtis, he’s among people
like him,” notes gary graffman, Daniel’s other piano teacher. “that doesn’t exist in many
places.” Mr. graffman himself attended Curtis from age seven to seventeen, and along
with Mrs. Sokoloff instructs most of the school’s younger pianists. they each understand
how to cultivate extraordinary gifts in young players. “We are flexible,” remarks Mrs.
Sokoloff. “We don’t put them in a box.” guiding youngsters at that tender age also requires
patience, as the students go through a developmentally fragile period in both their personal
and artistic lives. Both teachers knew great things were possible for Daniel, but saw a
noticeable leap in his playing a few years back. “He was always a big talent,” says Mr.
graffman, “and in these past two years he did what would normally [take] four or five
years.” Mrs. Sokoloff adds, “it was at that point when he turned around and really became
something else. He really got serious and the music began to pour out of him.”
Daniel’s connection to both Mr. graffman and Mrs. Sokoloff goes beyond the standard
student-teacher relationship. “She’s like my grandmother,” he says of Mrs. Sokoloff,
adding that the bond they share truly informs his approach to music. “there’s a difference
in teaching when you feel like the teacher cares about you and what you are doing, and
it’s not just your playing but you personally,” remarks Daniel. “Because music is so tied to
who you are as a person and what’s going on in your life, it really makes a big difference.”
Mrs. Sokoloff agrees. “i give as much time as i can possibly give to him,” she says, noting
that they often talk about subjects beyond music. “He’s got something that very few people
have,” she says. “i love him, i really do. He has a special place in my heart.”
even after eight years at Curtis, Daniel isn’t anxious to move on. “it honestly never
crosses my mind, because every lesson is something different and i keep learning.” When
asked about his graduation plan, he speculates that he might leave in two years—“maybe,”
he adds demurely. either way, he wants to make the most of his time at Curtis. “it’s very hard
to live up to ten years of studying with Mr. graffman and Mrs. Sokoloff,” says Daniel. “i
don’t know where i’m going to find something comparable. Nothing’s going to be close.”
Matthew Barker is the director of recitals and master classes at Curtis.
Photos on opposite page (clockwise from top left):
Daniel and his sister, Ashley Hsu PHOTO: PETE CHECCHIA
Daniel practices in the Horszowski Room at Curtis.
PHOTO: PETE CHECCHIA
Daniel (right) with Ashley and Andrew Hsu, who
graduated from Curtis in 2015. PHOTO: DAVID SWANSON
Sideline in Tech
Like any Curtis piano student, Daniel
Hsu spends hours practicing each day.
But computer programming has become
a big part of his life as well. “It’s a very
good contrast to music and I enjoy
doing it a lot,” he notes—quickly adding
that music always comes first.
Inspired by the intricate calendar
system that governs schedules at Curtis,
Daniel connected a couple of years ago
with two app developers, and started
to learn programming on his own. His
most notable app to date allows Curtis
students to navigate their complicated
lesson and class schedules through
their smartphones.
Looking ahead, Daniel believes that
understanding technology will help him
connect with 21st-century audiences.
That interest has also put him behind
a video camera for a number of the
school’s video shoots, guided by Greg
Sharrow, who holds the Field/McFadden
Chair in Audio Visual Arts. He describes
Daniel as “focused, dedicated, imaginative,
and passionate” when working
behind the camera or in front of it.
—M. B.
Taking a Music and Technology course three
years ago, Daniel Hsu learned to capture Curtis
performances using the latest broadcast-quality
video cameras. PHOTO: PETE CHECCHIA
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
9

MEET THE FACULTY
Deep Commitment
CURTIS DOUBLE BASSISTS DEVELOP THEIR VARIED STRENGTHS
UNDER THE GENEROUS AND FIRM GUIDANCE OF HAL ROBINSON.
Harold Hall Robinson holds the A. Margaret Bok
Chair in Double Bass Studies.
BY DAVE ALLEN
there’s something primordially fascinating about an orchestra’s double-bass section:
all those towering wooden figures, often taller than the musicians playing them. it’s like
a miniature forest—one whose trees are oddly uniform in height—emanating profound,
dark tones.
this larger-than-life, somewhat imposing group—in the Curtis Symphony Orchestra
as in orchestras around the world—often presents a variety of bow-holds, playing styles,
and, of course, personalities.
personality is just the thing that Harold Hall robinson employs to unite those diverse
elements of the Curtis bass studio. the current crop of bassists at Curtis comprises students
from as close by as central pennsylvania and as far as Australia, and the spread of studio
alums is even wider. Mr. robinson, a member of the Curtis faculty since 1995, can rattle
off where they live and where they are in their careers—principal positions in major
orchestras, on tour playing bluegrass, and everything in between—at a moment’s notice.
“i do keep track, although there are some i’ve lost touch with,” he says. “i’m super-proud
of all of them.”
Under Mr. robinson’s guidance, a loose, collegial feeling predominates; all his students
call him “Hal.” in his colorful lexicon, top-notch players are “monsters,” his fingers—short
10 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

MEET THE FACULTY
and stubby, in his estimation—are “brown-and-serves,” and playful nicknames abound
among the players in his studio.
that jovial spirit coexists with a direct, no-nonsense approach to teaching, as Mr.
robinson cultivates not merely a superb sound informed by technique, but a mindset that
seeks to lead from the bottom. Bassists, he says, “hate rushing, and we hate dragging,”
and in his position as principal bass of the philadelphia Orchestra, he takes great pride
in helping organize the orchestra rhythmically and, with the rest of the bass section, creating
“a pocket they can play in.”
Fourth-year student Samuel Casseday recalls being raw, musically speaking, when he
arrived at Curtis, and he credits Mr. robinson with helping him make technical strides forward
that were very much in evidence at his graduation recital—with the other six current
double-bass students in attendance and cheering him on—last December. “even though
i play german bow and Hal plays French bow, his concept of sound and the instrument
has always been helpful,” Samuel says. “if he couldn’t show me how to do something,
i could always figure it out from having him play for me.”
During individual lessons, Mr. robinson’s manner borders on surgically precise. By
careful attention to nuance in both sound and technical matters, he works to turn students’
weaknesses into strengths, and existing strengths into something akin to superpowers.
For Joseph Conyers, a 2004 Curtis graduate, the intense passion in his playing was a
strength that set him apart. rather than inhibiting this emotional quality, Mr. robinson
encouraged it as his promising student took orchestra auditions. “He told me never to
get rid of that,” Mr. Conyers says. “He allowed me to become my own artist and got me
exactly where i wanted to go.”
if both current students and alumni view Mr. robinson as a friend, mentor, and teacher,
then Mr. Conyers can add “co-worker” to that list of relationships; he’s currently assistant
Mr. Robinson in a lesson with Robin Brawley
PHOTOS: PETE CHECCHIA
By careful attention to
nuance in both sound and
technical matters, he works
to turn students’ weaknesses
into strengths, and existing
strengths into something
akin to superpowers.
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
11

MEET THE FACULTY
Mr. robinson cultivates
not merely a superb sound
informed by technique,
but a mindset that seeks
to lead from the bottom.
CURTIS PRESENTS
Hal Robinson and Friends
On April 3 in Field Concert Hall, Hal Robinson
brings alumni and students together for an
eclectic program of chamber music—and a few
surprises. Ticket information at
www.curtis.edu/CurtisPresents
principal bass in the philadelphia Orchestra, two stools away from his former teacher. Mr.
robinson’s model of leading by example served Mr. Conyers well when, in his first position
after graduating from Curtis, he had to lead a section as principal bass of the grand
rapids Symphony. “He told me not to make them ask how i want them to play. Just play,
and they’ll see that,” Mr. Conyers says. “As a colleague, he does the same thing.”
SHARED RESPONSIBILITY
even as a leader, Mr. robinson’s instinct, in most settings, is to step back and put others into
the spotlight. this even extends to his sharing of teaching responsibilities at Curtis. Over
ten years ago, edgar Meyer, the grammy-winning bassist and composer, contacted him and
expressed interest in joining the Curtis faculty. it was an unusual request, but Mr. robinson
knew that it came because Mr. Meyer respected his playing. “i was very honored,” he says,
“and i have certainly benefited from the partnership over the years.”
Mr. Meyer comes to Curtis from Nashville to teach three times per semester, and
the two teachers keep in touch in the interim, noting students’ progress and areas for
improvement. Both say that the partnership works well because each offers distinct strengths
within his respective areas of specialty: orchestral playing and other classical repertoire
for Mr. robinson, solo playing and music outside the classical tradition for Mr. Meyer.
“Hal is genuinely interested in other people’s ideas and in other ways of doing things,”
his colleague says, adding that the shared studio “would not have worked nearly as well
with anyone else.”
this openness to different ideas was evident during a lesson last fall, as Mr. robinson
and student robin Brawley explored a selection of orchestral excerpts with varied attacks
and different fingerings in a rapid but relaxed fashion. they frequently finished one
another’s sentences—sometimes with words, though more often by playing.
robin, a native of Sydney, Australia who already holds an undergraduate degree,
came to Curtis during a leave of absence from a position with an Australian orchestra.
His instrument was damaged in transit to the United States, and while he waited for it
to be repaired, Mr. robinson let him play his own primary orchestral bass, an italian
instrument from the mid-1800s with a distinctive lion-shaped scroll. robin retells this
with awe, saying, “that’s the kind of dedication Hal gives to his students.”
Beyond that act of generosity, he has already found his playing—and his life—enriched
by his studies with Mr. robinson. “He basically welcomed me into his family,” robin says.
“He’s the most dedicated teacher i’ve come across.” praise like that springs readily from
Mr. robinson’s current and former students—the “monsters” that he says make his teaching
so fulfilling.
“they’re searching for what makes them happy musically,” he says. “i’m teaching them
how to be their own guides.”
Dave Allen is publications and social media manager at Settlement Music School in Philadelphia. His
writings on music have appeared in Chamber Music, Overtones, Symphony, and the Courier-post.
WHY CHOOSE CURTIS?
—Hal Robinson
“Everywhere I’ve gone, I’ve always taught. Here at Curtis, there’s no dogma. I tell my students,
‘I’ll take any suggestions, you’re the boss.’ With me and Edgar [Meyer], you have two juggernauts
in the double-bass world; we try to craft the repertoire and the discussions around it,
and we help the students develop the true sense of their personalities. Our students have
success not because they play just like me or Edgar, but because we give them the information
and the confidence to have their own voice. You won’t find two students here that are the
same. I’m really proud of that.”
12 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

Alumni JOSEPH LOVINSKY (Horn ’83),
NANCY GENOVESE (Clarinet ’64), ALEXANDRA
DETYNIECKI (Oboe ’07), ALEXANDER RITTER
GEORGE (Horn ’04), WILLIAM WRIGHT
(Clarinet ’51), ALEXANDRA VON DER EMBSE
(Oboe ’12), and STANFORD THOMPSON
(Trumpet ’09) were among those playing
in the reunion orchestra.
Alumni
Homecoming
BY LAURA SANCKEN
Curtis hosts graduates from the 1930s to the 2010s.
PHOTOS BY DAVID SWANSON
What a weekend! Nearly 120 alumni
returned to Curtis from September 11–13 to reconnect, celebrate each
other, and reflect. the Alumni reunion was the fitting culmination of
a year-long celebration of Curtis’s 90th anniversary.
STANFORD THOMPSON (trumpet ’09) and MARSHA HUNTER (Opera ’77) led the reunion
committee, which arranged a bustling three days of activity, kicking off on Friday
afternoon with a “Wednesday tea” poured by ELEANOR SOKOLOFF (piano ’38) and BOBBI
MOSKOW (Voice ’50). On Friday evening, the venue shifted to World Café Live in West
philadelphia, where alumni showcased their talents for one other during an open mic night
and jam session coordinated by MIMI STILLMAN (Flute ’99) and BILLY SHORT (Bassoon ’10).
Saturday was a full day for alumni interested in touring the still-new Lenfest Hall and
the renovated rock resource Center, sharing memories with the archives, and learning
about the school’s present and future. president ROBERTO DÍAZ (Viola ’84) discussed how
Reunion committee chairs MARSHA HUNTER
(Opera ’77) and STANFORD THOMPSON
(Trumpet ’09)
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
13

Alumni Homecoming
September
Above: ROBERTO DÍAZ (Viola ’84)
with SCOTT ST. JOHN (Violin ’90)
and DAVID LUDWIG (Composition ’01)
Right: The reunion orchestra offered
returning alumni an opportunity
to play side-by-side with current
students. JOSHUA GERSEN
(Conducting ’10) led the ensemble.
14 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

the school continues to adapt to the ever-changing musical landscape. guest speaker BEN
CAMERON, program director for the arts at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, offered
a provocative keynote address at lunch, characterizing the current arts climate as a new
“arts reformation”; and STANFORD THOMPSON unveiled plans for a new Alumni Network
(see page 4).
the annual Alumni Awards were presented at a special dinner on Saturday evening.
Alumni excellence Awards went to ANTHONY CHECCHIA (Bassoon ’51) and to BOBBI MOSKOW
(Voice ’50), who entertained all with a tremendous acceptance speech. JOSEPH CONYERS
(Double Bass ’04) received the first-ever Young Alumni Award. Following dinner, all the
guests moved to Field Concert Hall for a performance by the alumni reunion orchestra,
featuring current students playing side-by-side with alumni. JOSHUA GERSEN (Conducting ’10)
led works by Mozart, Beethoven, and current student T.J. COLE (Composition). Chamber
music readings on Sunday morning and a leisurely brunch brought the reunion to a close.
Laura Sancken is director of alumni and parent relations at Curtis.
Left: Lunch in Gould Rehearsal Hall.
(Left to right): JANICE HOFER
REDICK (Opera ’74), Stephanie
Redick, PAUL FEJKO (Organ ’75),
JASON GAMER (Trumpet ’96),
and JOSEPH LOVINSKY (Horn ’83)
More Online
To see additional pictures and videos from the reunion, visit
www.curtis.edu/AlumniReunion
11–13, 2015
Above: ELEANOR SOKOLOFF (Piano ’38) and BOBBI MOSKOW
(Voice ’50)
Right from top:
DENNIS PETRUNIN (Timpani and Percussion ’06) traveled from
Russia to attend the reunion.
ROBERTO DÍAZ (Viola ’84) with keynote speaker BEN
CAMERON, MARSHA HUNTER (Opera ’77), and STANFORD
THOMPSON (Trumpet ’09)
ANTHONY CHECCHIA (Bassoon ’51)
DANIEL MATSUKAWA (Bassoon ’92) and RICHARD SWARTZ
(Horn ’90)
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
15

SINFON
Preparing Luciano Berio’s whirling tour-de-force for amplified singers and orchestra
KENDRA BROOM, mezzo-soprano, is a student
in the opera program and one of the eight singers
for Sinfonia.
CONNER GRAY COVINGTON, conducting fellow,
prepared the orchestra before the arrival of guest
conductor Ludovic Morlot.
ZACHARY MOWITZ is principal cello of the
Curtis Symphony Orchestra.
SUSAN NOWICKI, vocal studies faculty and
pianist, prepared the vocal scores for rehearsal
and coached the singers.
PHOTOS BY PETE CHECCHIA
One year ago, as Curtis planned a performance season informed by the
groundbreaking Darmstadt school of composition, a tantalizing idea surfaced:
Could Curtis present Luciano Berio’s Sinfonia?
this kaleidoscopic, complex masterwork is rarely performed for a reason: it’s tough
to put together. Singers join the orchestra, offering sung and spoken texts from many
sources—in various languages—that overlap and tumble into one another. the orchestra
parts are just as complex, drawing on a multiplicity of musical styles and inspirations.
Add amplification of the voices and two different venues, and the planning for preparation,
rehearsal, and performance could easily become overwhelming.
So Curtis embraced the challenge.
From research last summer, to coaching and rehearsing singers through the fall, to
putting it all together with the orchestra in January, four individuals deeply involved in the
preparation reflect on the eight-month-long process that led to performances at Verizon Hall
in philadelphia and Carnegie Hall in New York, as part of the Darmstadt all-school project.
More Online
Learn about performances related to the
all-school project at
www.curtis.edu/Darmstadt
SUSAN NOWICKI
Confidence is that feeling you have before you fully understand the situation.
Last spring i eagerly accepted the task of preparing eight singers for the Sinfonia
performance. i have prepared and performed numerous contemporary pieces in the
course of my career, i am a big fan of Berio, i was familiar with the piece in a general way,
and i felt up to the challenge.
My confidence quickly evaporated as details became clear. A rumored piano reduction
was, sadly, nonexistent. Vocal parts would not be available until months after i wanted to
start rehearsals with the singers. the guest conductor would be arriving three days before
the concert. And look what else was on the program: Mahler One! expletives flowed!
As i took several deep, cleansing breaths, i assessed my available resources: a full score
that often required a magnifying glass to decipher the complex detail of Berio’s idiosyncratic
and inconsistent notation; several theoretical analyses of the piece; and multiple wonderful
recordings (though it would take several attempts to follow along without getting lost).
the density of the score also frustrated my attempts to recreate much of it at the piano.
it was becoming clear that this was the biggest challenge i’d ever faced. How would
i present a reasonable representation of the piece, keep everyone on track, and still have
enough brain space to hear everything that was going on?
Solution: Delegate! i contacted my wonderful colleague and fellow vocal studies coach,
Donald St. pierre. We planned to split up the score to create an ad hoc, two-piano version
to accompany rehearsals beginning in the fall. But what about materials for the singers?
16 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

IA
DIARY
KENDRA BROOM
SUSAN NOWICKI
With the gracious assistance of the Center for Berio Studies, we had vocal parts in hand
by the time September arrived.
i first heard that i would be singing Berio’s Sinfonia during my first week at Curtis. i distinctly
remember running down the hall, full of excitement, to pick up my score—and then
feeling increasingly confused as i turned the pages. the piano reduction was missing,
there were musical notations i had never seen before, and the text looked unintelligible.
i was apprehensive, but i soon understood that Sinfonia is a work of art that becomes more
and more rewarding the deeper you delve into it.
i decided that i would need to analyze the text and music, to grasp the form as a whole
and find coherence within the piece. the music appears nebulous at first, but it’s very
structured and often grounded in third-based chords. Similarly, the texts have been carefully
interlaced. the movements are united through themes of water, death, and resurrection—
with excerpts from Claude Lévi-Strauss’s anthropological study Le cru et le cuit (“the raw
and the Uncooked”) on the origins of water and Samuel Becket’s The Unnamable, with its
nameless narrator trapped in a state of conscious mortality. At the end of the first movement,
we repeat the words “héros tué” (killed heroes), then segue to the second movement’s
tribute to Martin Luther King, comprising phonetic sequences based on his name. the
third movement is built on the Scherzo of Mahler’s Second Symphony, which originated
in a song about St. Anthony’s sermon to the fish, and is full of musical quotes: Debussy’s
La Mer, the drowning scene from Berg’s Wozzeck, ravel’s La Valse. All of the text has been
chosen with great purpose, and discovering those details made this project more exciting
than i would have dreamed of.
initial rehearsals in the fall were painstaking. the singers arrived abuzz about the prospect
of embarking on this adventure. After some explanations of notation, we delved into the
opening of the piece: an a cappella entrance on an eight-note polychord that leads to a
second chord of four notes. these two chords form the harmonic foundation of the first
movement, and they recur in the fifth movement as well. it was not long before eyes began
to glaze over, and everyone left the rehearsal somewhat shell-shocked. (they still recall the
time we spent an hour on two pages.)
the strategy was to find opening pitches from the orchestra’s tuning A. i knew we were on
our way when i played an A at the beginning of a rehearsal of the women; their nonchalant
body language said it all as they leaned back in their chairs, legs crossed, heads tilted, and
Above from left:
Sinfonia singers Kendra Broom and Anastasiia
Sidorova, fitted with microphones, rehearse
with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra under
conducting fellow Conner Gray Covington.
A page of the Sinfonia score
Susan Nowicki coaches the Sinfonia singers,
joined by Conner Covington and pianist Donald
St. Pierre.
i distinctly remember
running down the hall, full
of excitement, to pick up
my score—and then feeling
increasingly confused
as i turned the pages.
—Kendra Broom
A L L- S C H O O L P R O J E C T
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
17

nailed the opening chord—no sweat. On another occasion, as we began to push a section
towards the very fast performance tempo, the combination of concentration and mounting
elation was palpable. there were even some smiles as we cruised toward the final double bar.
KENDRA BROOM
During the first few weeks, we discussed performance practice, and Susan Nowicki, our
fearless leader, walked us through some of the more difficult passages. the fifth movement,
in particular, includes a breakneck stream of consonants that we very slowly brought up
to speed. throughout the process, we layered individual and group rehearsals, both to
maintain the clarity of the eight voices and to learn to blend our instruments together.
On any given day, we could be rehearsing alone, in pairs, within vocal group (altos and
sopranos), or as a full ensemble. i remember a December rehearsal with the four-hand,
two piano reduction that Susan and Don St. pierre had worked tirelessly to construct,
Conner Covington as our conductor, and all eight voices singing through the third movement,
almost up to tempo. it was the first moment when i thought, “Okay, we can do this.”
then i remembered that we still had to incorporate the microphones.
As we began to push a
section towards the very fast
performance tempo, the
combination of concentration
and mounting elation was
palpable. there were even
some smiles as we cruised
toward the final double bar.
—Susan Nowicki
CONNER COVINGTON
ZACHARY MOWITZ
Sinfonia is probably the most dense, complex piece that i’ve ever studied and conducted.
Confronting it for the first time was quite daunting, but i began by reading all that i could
find on the piece. i found some resources online in which Berio himself discusses some of
his ideas and vision for the piece, and these helped me understand his musical language
and his fascinating choices of texts for the singers.
Needless to say, trying to wrap my head around the complexity of the score and struggling
to discern the meaning behind the piece was a challenging task. in November i joined the
singers’ rehearsals with their wonderful coaches, Susan Nowicki and Don St. pierre, which
gave me an opportunity to ease myself into the piece with a smaller group rather than
having to try to lead the process with the full orchestra from the beginning.
Before the thanksgiving break i had taken a Berio score and my part from the orchestra
library to look over in my extra bit of free time. i play a good deal of chamber music with
Abi Fayette, this year’s concertmaster, and she mentioned that it would be good to start trying
to understand the challenges we would be up against in a few months’ time, presenting
Sinfonia alongside the Mahler First Symphony.
She couldn’t have given me better advice. i didn’t actually start practicing the part right
away. instead, listening and slowly figuring out how to decipher the score gave me a great
head start on internalizing this wonderfully complex work. the most important thing i
accomplished during this score study was simply finding what i could rely on rhythmically
throughout the piece—just so i would always have something to fit the cello part into,
especially if we ever got lost. (i soon discovered how much i had been overlooking the
percussion in the orchestra.) With this kind of work behind me, going into the first
18 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

CONNER COVINGTON SUSAN NOWICKI
ZACHARY MOWITZ
rehearsal i felt less frightened than curious about what this amalgamation of instruments,
sounds, and styles would sound like from within the orchestra.
My original goals were to have a full run-through of the piece with the singers before
the holidays, and to have one rehearsal with microphones. Neither happened, but i felt
optimistic in the final weeks of preparation, privileged to be working with these versatile
singers who produce great results no matter what comes their way, and thrilled to take
part in the production of this monumental piece.
in January, as school resumed after the holidays, i led separate brass and string sectionals
before putting it together with the entire orchestra. thanks to the intense preparation,
the first full orchestra rehearsal went surprisingly smoothly. the singers observed without
participating, to get a sense of how their parts fit in to the whole. At the next rehearsal the
singers joined in, and the process continued to progress at a solid pace. Adding microphones
for the singers and achieving the right volume levels for them created some new issues, but
these were solved relatively quickly.
Somewhat to my astonishment, the orchestra quickly pulled things together in reduced
tempi, and when the singers joined us, they knew their parts so well that it helped us put
everything together. the real struggle came in the performance halls. We not only had
to adjust to an acoustic different than that of the cozy gould rehearsal Hall, but we also
had to adapt to two very different halls right after one another—with one full rehearsal
in Verizon Hall and only a two-hour “sound check” in Carnegie Hall, only 30 minutes
of which could be spent on Sinfonia. At this point, curiously enough, all the work we did
on the Mahler kicked in to influence the Berio.
Our guest conductor, Ludovic Morlot, arrived three days before the first performance,
and the first thing he said in rehearsal was this, more or less: play the Mahler as you would
chamber music; listen, listen, listen, and pay little attention to me. But for Berio, find a
super-awareness of rhythm, both internally and in your connection to the baton. the more
we rehearsed and the more rhythmic precision and confidence we gained, the more i felt
a new level of listening within the orchestra, because we weren’t simply counting our beats
but were aware of an overarching texture, albeit a very fluid and erratic one, that we were
each a part of in a very integral way.
And so, by the time we got to Carnegie and Mr. Morlot raised his baton for that
first wondrously enigmatic bar, i found myself moving my chair out so i could see Abi
on the other side—just as i might in one of our quartet performances in Field Concert
Hall—preparing for an endeavor that would take all the sensitivity and hyper-awareness
i could muster.
Above from left:
Susan Nowicki coached the Sinfonia singers
from a complex score combining a two-piano
reduction of the orchestra parts with the
eight vocal lines.
Conner Covington led rehearsals of the
orchestra and singers in January, leading up
to the arrival on campus of guest conductor
Ludovic Morlot. Here he confers with
concertmaster Abigail Fayette.
Ludovic Morlot conducts Sinfonia at Carnegie
Hall. Principal cello Zachary Mowitz is to the
conductor’s right.
the more we rehearsed
and the more rhythmic
precision and confidence
we gained, the more i felt
a new level of listening
within the orchestra.
—Zachary Mowitz
A L L- S C H O O L P R O J E C T
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
19

C O N S T R U C T I N G T O M O R R O W
THIS SPRING AT CURTIS,
ON STAGE AND ONLINE
14–21 CURTIS ON TOUR East Coast Tour
Elena Perroni, soprano
Brendan Dooley, flute
Scott St. John, violin and viola (Violin ’90)
Will Chow, cello
Elizabeth Hainen, harp
ON STAGE
March
2–6 CURTIS OPERA THEATRE
Perelman Theater at the Kimmel Center
Presented in association with the Opera Philadelphia and
the Kimmel Center
Timothy Myers, conductor
Chas Rader-Shieber, stage director
STRAUSS Capriccio
The production is funded, in part, through support from the
William Penn Foundation. The Curtis Opera Theatre season
is sponsored by the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation.
The Aurora Series is underwritten by the Wyncote Foundation.
9–26 CURTIS ON TOUR West Coast Tour
Michael Rusinek, clarinet (’92)
Aizuri Quartet:
Miho Saegusa, violin
Zoë Martin-Doike, violin (’13)
Ayane Kozasa, viola (’12)
Karen Ouzounian, cello
SHARLAT RIPEFG for string quartet
SIBELIUS String Quartet in D minor, Op. 56 (“Voces intimae”)
MOZART Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581
Venues:
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music (March 9)
Harris Concert Hall, Aspen, Colo. (March 12)
Utah State University, Logan, Utah (March 14)
Jamieson Ranch Vineyards, American Canyon, Calif. (March 19)
Athenaeum Music and Arts Library, La Jolla, Calif. (March 21)
Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, Davis, Calif. (March 26)
DEBUSSY Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune
DEBUSSY Sonata for Flute, Viola, and Harp
LIEBERMANN Sonata for Flute and Harp, Op. 56
RAVEL Shéhérazade
WEINBERG Duo for Violin and Cello
DANIELPOUR Beloved Night
Venues:
Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music (March 14)
Orlean United Methodist Church, Orlean Mass. (March 17)
Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Mass. (March 18)
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston (March 20)
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J. (March 21)
April
1 CURTIS 20/21 ENSEMBLE: Darmstadt – The War
Field Concert Hall
MESSIAEN Quartet for the End of Time
ROREM Aftermath
3 CURTIS PRESENTS Hal Robinson and Friends
Field Concert Hall
The Curtis Presents season is sponsored by Blank Rome LLP.
6 RESIDENCY RECITAL – Aizuri Quartet
Field Concert Hall
SCHUMANN String Quartet in A major, Op. 41 No. 3
DVOŘÁK Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81
17 CURTIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center
Michael Stern, conductor (’86)
Edward Poll, conductor
DEBUSSY Prélude à l'après-midi d’un faune
VARÈSE Amériques
BRAHMS Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68
The Jack Wolgin Orchestral Concerts
More Online at www.curtis.edu/Performances
29 CURTIS 20/21 ENSEMBLE: The Road to Darmstadt
Field Concert Hall
Works by Messiaen, Schoenberg, Webern, Berio, Boulez, Cage,
Kurtág, Greenstein, and Maimets
20 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

For more than 90 years, Curtis has been constructing the music
and musicians of tomorrow—the sounds that will engage
audiences around the globe, and the musical leaders
I 5
who will galvanize their communities around the art
form. this season Curtis shares the dynamic future
of music, 175 students strong.
I 6
ONLINE
Curtis Performs
Watch Curtis performances anytime, anywhere at
www.curtis.edu/CurtisPerforms. Curtis Performs features
performance videos in broadcast-quality HD, viewable on
your mobile device, tablet, laptop, or PC. New content is added
continually and no registration is required. To be notified when
new videos are added, use the simple sign-in option.
May
4–8 CURTIS OPERA THEATRE
Perelman Theater at the Kimmel Center
Karina Canellakis, conductor (Violin ’04)
Jordan Fein, stage director
MOZART Le nozze di Figaro
The Curtis Opera Theatre season is sponsored by the Horace W.
Goldsmith Foundation.
18–June 2 CURTIS ON TOUR
in Spain and Germany
Rachel Sterrenberg, soprano (Opera ’15)
Stephen Tavani, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola (’84)
Zachary Mowitz, cello
Jose Franch-Ballester, clarinet (’04)
Chelsea Wang, piano
Works by Bruch, Ludwig, Messiaen, Mozart, Shostakovich,
and Stravinsky
Venues:
Auditorio de Diputación de Alicante, Spain (May 18)
Auditori Teulada Moraira, Spain (May 19)
Konzerthaus Berlin (May 22)
Dresden Music Festival (May 24-25)
Allerheiligen-Hofkirche, Munich (May 30)
Philharmonische Gesellschaft Bremen (June 2)
Instant Encore
Stream recordings of Curtis orchestra concerts, student recitals,
and more at www.instantencore.com/Curtis. New selections are
added each week, and when you become a fan, you’ll be notified
of new posts.
On Stage at Curtis
Philadelphia PBS station WHYY-TV (Channel 12) airs this
weekly series year-round, Sundays at 6 p.m., and posts every
program online. To view the current season of programs, visit
www.whyy.org/OnStageAtCurtis. A new broadcast season
of programs recorded in 2014–15 begins in October.
Curtis Calls
WWFM broadcasts Curtis performances each Monday at 10 p.m.
(E.T.) and Wednesday at noon (E.T.), with live streaming at
www.wwfm.org/CurtisCalls.
The Curtis Institute of Music receives state arts
funding support through a grant from the Pennsylvania
Council on the Arts, a state agency funded by the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the National
Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
21

More Online
See images and quotes reflecting student
life in the Exhibits section of
www.curtis.edu/Archives
Cutaway view of the main building, 1956. This
artist’s impression of the main building, created
for the cover of a music magazine, highlights
the spaces most commonly used by students,
including practice rooms and library reading rooms
in the basement. The full image can be viewed at
www.curtis.edu/Archives. PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/
ILLUSTRATION BY ANTHONY TREZZIA FOR EtudE MAGAZINE (1956)
“A Near-Utopian
Community…”
BY HELENE VAN ROSSUM
An archival exhibit focuses on student life through the decades.
For more than 90 years, Curtis students have attended school to study, practice,
rehearse, and perform. But when they were not in lessons, rehearsals, a practice room, or a
classroom, how did they spend their time? Where did they live? What did they do in their leisure hours?
these everyday, social aspects of student life are, almost by definition, underrepresented in
Curtis’s historical record—documented informally (if at all) in student snapshots or oft-repeated
anecdotes. Last summer the Curtis Archives assembled an exhibit on student life, and in the process
collected archival materials from alumni and conducted oral histories focused on student life in
various eras. these provide a glimpse into the daily lives of Curtis students through the decades.
Helene van Rossum was the archivist at the Curtis Institute of Music from October 2011 through February 2015.
Adding to the Archives
By definition, archival collections
contain few tangible relics of student
life. The Curtis Archives seeks
personal photographs, memorabilia,
and recollections of alumni to
supplement our records. If you
can help, please contact the
Archives at archives@curtis.edu.

FOUNDER’S CHOICE
During Curtis's early years, student
life was determined to a great
degree by the founder’s personal
involvement with the school.
Although tuition was eliminated
in 1928, many students faced
financial constraints. Mary Louise
Curtis Bok arranged for daily
meals in a cafeteria, instituted the
weekly tea and annual Christmas
party, and financed summer
retreats for students to continue
their studies with Curtis faculty.
When she entered the common
room, students were expected
to stand up to show respect.
Throughout Mrs. Bok’s lifetime
there was a dress code at Curtis.
Students on Rittenhouse Square, c. 1930. From left to right: (sitting) John Hreachmack (Flute ’35),
Jeanette Weinstein (Piano ’36), Bella Braverman (Piano ’35), Schima Kaufman (Piano ’26); Cecille
Geschichter (Piano ’37); Jascha Brodsky (Violin ’34); and, behind them, Max Aronoff (Viola ’34).
PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/GIFT OF BELLA BRAVERMAN BOOKBINDER (PIANO ’35)
“The common room was always full of students moving around,
going to classes or sitting between classes and chatting with each
other. Jane Hill, the registrar, was in the room to the right of the
entrance. When Mrs. Bok would arrive at the Curtis, [ Jane Hill would]
come out of the door and say, “Everybody get up!”
—eleanor Sokoloff (piano ’36)
Mary Louise Curtis Bok addressing students,
1938 PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/FRITZ HENLE ESTATE
“[Mrs. Bok] wanted to make sure
that everyone was well-fed, so
the upper floor of [1720 Locust
St.] was a magnificent cafeteria
where you could get a hot meal
for 15 or 20 cents. She hired a
live-in housekeeper who planned
the meals and acted as a majordomo
to make sure the buildings
were properly maintained.”
—Diana Steiner (Violin ’57)
in Mother Started It (2009)
Lunch in the fourth-floor cafeteria in Knapp Hall at 1720 Locust Street, 1938. (Eleanor Sokoloff is seated
second from right.) PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/FRITZ HENLE ESTATE
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23

“We had a race to see who could have the fastest
time racing [through the main building]—we went
down, and raced across the basement to the last
exit on the other side of Curtis, and raced up
to the first floor, and got back to the staircase. So
we would shave our time down from two minutes
to one minute and 38 seconds.”
—Arnold Steinhardt (Violin ’59)
“I, at least in retrospect, consider the Curtis social unit akin
to a near-Utopian community. Curtis was the nearest to a
one-world, non-prejudicial, peer-supportive society I could
imagine. There were no lines drawn for race, color, religion, age,
ethnic origin, financial status, geographic origin or language.”
—Joseph rezits (piano ’48) in American Music Teacher (2002)
Voice students
having fun, 1946.
From left to right:
Theodora Brandon
(Voice ’48), Edith
Evans Frumin (Voice
’48), and Estelle
Harrop (Voice ’48).
PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/
GIFT OF JANE PHELAN
VOGEL (VOICE ’47)
TIGHTER TIMES
After the Great Depression,
Curtis director Efrem Zimbalist
introduced a period of austerity:
cutting programs, reducing the
number of faculty and students,
and selling the building at 1720
Locust Street, which put an end
to the cafeteria. During the
Second World War, 35 students
were drafted, of whom fifteen
later returned to Curtis. Students
socialized in the library, the
basement, local luncheonettes,
and the lodgings they had
rented nearby.
Curtis students and staff at the Balalaika, a local
establishment, in 1947. From left to right: Ethel Nice,
secretary to the director; Jane Hill, registrar; Blanche
Burton-Lyles (Piano ’54); Isabelle Vengerova, piano
faculty; Joseph Rezits (Piano ’48); Sylvia Zaremba
(Piano ’51); Helen Hoopes, secretary of admissions;
Harriet Shirvan (Piano ’54); Harriet Serr (Piano ’51)
PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/GIFT OF JOSEPH REZITS (’48)
Students in 1959 at 408 S. 22nd Street, where for three decades, Curtis
students rented rooms in the two top floors. From left to right: Richard
Lesser (Clarinet ’59), Michi Ishikawa (Piano ’61), Lynn Kahle (Cello ’59), James
Caldwell (Oboe ’61), Susan Willoughby (Bassoon ’61), and Artemus Edwards
(Bassoon ’60). The cutaway diagram on the wall, created by Edmund
Moore (Tuba ’60), depicts all rooms rented to students at that time. Other
“408” residents over the years included Leonard Rose (Cello ’39), Leonard
Bernstein (Conducting ’41), John Dalley (Violin ’57), and Arnold Steinhardt
(Violin ’59). PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/GIFT OF SPENCER CROCKETT (BASSOON ’61)
24 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

Playing chess and reading the newspaper in
the basement library, 1974. From left to right: Huei-
Sheng Kao (Violin ’77); David Loeb, composition
faculty; Gregory Cantwell (Voice ’74); Larry Witmer
(Trombone ’74) PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/GIFT OF PAUL FEJKO
MUSICAL ISLAND
Curtis students were well aware of
the sweeping changes that took
hold on American campuses in the
1960s. In the 1969–70 school year
they added their voice to nationwide
student protests with an
outdoor performance. They also
petitioned for the appointment
of a student counselor and a say
in the selection of chamber music,
which had thrived after Rudolf
Serkin succeeded Efrem Zimbalist
as director in 1968. In general,
however, the school remained the
small island of musical study that
it had been in the previous decades.
Student life was still concentrated
in the common room—where
students leaned over the balcony
to communicate with friends on
the floor below, or sat on the stairs
to arrange their schedules—or in
the basement library.
“When I arrived at Curtis in the fall of 1969, I discovered that girls
were not allowed to wear pants to school. My friends and I accepted
this as part of the conservative nature of the school, but we were
shocked that winter when, during the worst snowstorm of the year,
a girl showed up at the door of Curtis wearing a nice tailored pantsuit,
and was sent home by the lady at the front desk. That was the last year
of the unspoken clothes rules. Early in the year, one soprano brazenly
showed up to Wednesday Tea wearing velvet hot pants, and was not
sent home or even reprimanded. Within a few months we were regularly
wearing pants to school, except for Tea and lessons.”
—Lucy Chapman (Violin ’74)
Social life was often
linked to chamber
music, either at
Curtis or at students’
apartments. From
left to right: Randall
Cook (Oboe ’74),
Christopher Millard
(Bassoon ’75), Lucy
Chapman (Violin ’74),
and Cynthia Raim
(Piano ’77)
PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/
GEORGE KRAUSE
Tea in the common room, seen in 1974 from the
recently installed glass walls around the stairs. To
the left of the entrance is the receptionist’s desk,
where students reserved practice rooms and
picked up messages and schedules. PHOTO: CURTIS
ARCHIVES/GEORGE KRAUSE
“It felt important to us to join the students protests
across the country [against the Vietnam War and
invasion of Cambodia], and to do our share in
trying to speak through music by performing
Mahler’s First Symphony on Rittenhouse Square.
The orchestra was made up of some Curtis students
as well as the larger community of freelancers and
students from other music schools in Philadelphia.”
—Judith Serkin (Cello ’73)
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25

EVERYDAY EVOLUTION
In the 1980s and 1990s, student life
evolved considerably. The accreditation
of the school in 1993 made
students eligible for federal student
aid to supplement their Curtis
scholarships. A student council was
formed and an orientation week for
incoming students was instituted.
The orchestra traveled to the Evian
Festival and toured more widely,
contributing to close friendships
among students.
“[Evian] was a two-and-a-half-week residency in a beautiful area.
The nice thing about it was the schedule gave us an opportunity
to do a lot of nice things in that area of the country. … And when
you’re at Evian or Verbier and having meals together, you had
an opportunity to meet people that you wouldn’t normally be with.”
—paul Bryan (trombone ’93)
Hoagies on Rittenhouse
Square, August
1995. During orientation
week, incoming students
were welcomed with
a speech and introduced
to faculty and staff,
culminating in a hoagie
picnic on Rittenhouse
Square—a tradition that
has continued in the
annual President’s Picnic.
PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/
CHRIS CLARK
Students boarding buses en route to the Evian Festival, 1984.
The Curtis Symphony Orchestra served several residencies at this
French music festival in the 1980s. PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES
“[In the student lounge] ping-pong
was the big thing. We had ping-pong
tournaments to the degree where
there were charts, where they would
play down to try to get a champion.”
—Jennifer Higdon (Composition ’88)
AND TODAY…
In the past decade, student life
has continued to evolve. The 2011
opening of Lenfest Hall, which
provides housing for half the
student body as well as full food
service, has provided new gathering
spaces and traditions; and today
Curtis is more directly involved in
student activities than ever before.
And with social media, selfies, and
spontaneous videos, daily documentation
of student life poses less
of a challenge than in decades past.
Students in front
of Lenfest Hall, 2015.
Curtis students
Adé Williams (Violin),
Erika Gray (Viola),
and Henry Woolf
(Flute) strike a pose
in front of the new
building inspired by
the 1946 photograph
shown on p. 24.
PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES/
HELENE VAN ROSSUM
26 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

THE COMPLEAT MUSICIAN
Radical Thinkers
TEACHING PHILOSOPHY IN THE CONSERVATORY
BY CAROLINE WISEBLOOD MELINE, PH.D.
When i tell people that i teach at Curtis, they expect to hear about my instrument. then,
when i say i teach philosophy, they are surprised. i am surprised, too. i am surprised at
what interesting discussions i can have in my classes because the students are so lively. i
wasn’t sure they would have enough energy left over from their challenging musical studies
for challenging academic courses, but they do.
philosophical readings require serious effort that sometimes resembles decoding. take
this passage from Charles Darwin that was featured in my recent course titled Darwin,
Marx, Freud, and Frankl. Writing in his 1871 book The Descent of Man, Darwin said:
the following proposition seems to me in a high degree probable—namely, that
any animal whatever, endowed with well-marked social instincts, the parental and
filial affections being here included, would inevitably acquire a moral sense or
conscience, as soon as its intellectual powers had become as well, or nearly as well
developed, as in man.
First we need to ask, what kind of statement is this? Darwin was a scientist, specifically
a biologist, not a philosopher. So the students must figure out not only what the sentence is
saying, but also why it is important for them to read it in a philosophical context. Furthermore,
they need to find out what it means to engage with any content in a philosophical way.
Darwin’s statement says that the human moral sense is an outgrowth of the social
instincts of nonhuman animals, after passing through the larger intellect possessed by man.
it is a statement about the origin of morality, and it is radical. Why is it radical? the answer
to that question points to the central reason for Darwin’s philosophical importance. the
underlying message in the quoted passage is that humans are not unique beings, not even
in our morality, which continues to be a controversial idea.
Another controversial topic in philosophy is free will. in the Darwin, Marx, Freud,
and Frankl course we were finally working on Frankl’s book Man’s Search for Meaning.
Victor Frankl (1905–1997) was a Holocaust survivor, and his classic book tells about his
own experiences in several concentration camps between 1942 and 1945; it includes a
section explaining logotherapy—a form of psychotherapy Frankl developed before the
Second World War. the crux of logotherapy is that no matter how bad a situation someone
is in, the person has a choice in how to respond. Logotherapy helps people to find meaning
in their lives as the central therapeutic technique. that is where free will comes in.
Frankl wrote this: “is that theory true which would have us believe that man is no more
than a product of many conditional and environmental factors—be they of a biological,
psychological or sociological nature? is man but an accidental product of these?” then
he answered his own rhetorical questions by claiming emphatically that man is more than
the sum of influences that affect him. Frankl concluded that “Fundamentally...any man can,
even under such [concentration camp] circumstances, decide what shall become of him—
mentally and spiritually.”
My question, though, was: Can all men do this? Why should we believe this is possible?
is it enough just to tell someone, “Your life can be improved if only you will see that you
can make it meaningful”? the other three thinkers we studied had various ways of explaining
human nature, and in none of their theories are humans free in the way that Frankl theorized.
the students took their time to consider these questions. in the end, the class did not
settle the issue of free will, as it probably cannot be settled, except in the process of living
one’s own life. But this is the kind of opportunity philosophy offers for taking to heart who
and what we are, as we do what we do.
Caroline Wiseblood Meline’s current course at
Curtis is People, Animals, and Ethics.
the students must figure out
not only what the sentence
is saying, but also why it is
important for them to read
it in a philosophical context.
Furthermore, they need
to find out what it means
to engage with any content
in a philosophical way.
Caroline Wiseblood Meline teaches philosophy at Curtis and at St. Joseph’s University. Her commentaries
have been published in the philadelphia inquirer and philosophy in the Contemporary World.
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27

FIRST PERSON
Violist, educator, and tech professional
Jessica Chang PHOTO: PHILO LEE
Whole Cloth
CURTIS VIOLA GRADUATE JESSICA CHANG WEAVES AN ARTISTIC LIFE FROM MULTIPLE STRANDS.
BY JESSICA CHANG
When Curtis piloted the
Community Artist program
in 2012, i was excited to
sign up. i designed and
launched Chamber Music by
the Bay, which has continued
and grown ever since.
As soon as our string quartet finishes playing for a group of middle-school students, the
youngsters explode into action. Whiteboard marker in hand, one student argues, “that’s
not the train! that’s the boy frolicking in a field!” Another chimes in, “Yeah! And then
he runs home to his family!” these members of the after-school orchestra at redwood
Middle School in the San Francisco Bay Area are debating their interpretation of the first
movement of Janacek’s Quartet No. 1 (“Kreutzer Sonata”). i love watching them draw
out storyboards to discuss the music, in a remarkable display of teamwork and creative
thinking in action.
this event is typical of the interactive chamber music programs i’ve been leading since
2012, when i created Chamber Music by the Bay through Curtis’s Community Artists
program (CAp). Five years later, Chamber Music by the Bay continues to thrive, and is one
of a few vital strands within my life. i’m a violist and a teacher; and i also work full-time at
Dropbox, a tech company headquartered in San Francisco, where i’m currently a program
manager for trust and security initiatives as part of Dropbox’s legal team. (Friends often
ask what it’s like to have a “9 to 5 job.” truthfully, there hasn’t been a single day where
i’ve only worked from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; being part of a tech start-up is a lifestyle of nonstop
work to help the company succeed.)
i’m typing this on a Sunday afternoon when i usually juggle a few things: preparing
to coach chamber music at California preparatory Music Academy, a pre-college music
program where i’m the director of chamber music; teaching private viola lessons; and
transitioning back to the week at Dropbox. Weaving together a life in both music and tech
has been deeply meaningful for me and has shown me how to live as both an artist and a
citizen. it is a path that i’ve chosen consciously and am grateful to have.
Photos on opposite page:
Souvenirs of Chamber Music by the Bay
events, including an outline of a musical
work from a young audience member
UNCONVENTIONAL ROUTE
entering Curtis in 2009, i was hardly the archetypal conservatory student. When i picked
up the viola in middle school and joined the orchestra, my not-so-secret goal was to hang
out with my musical friends. Later, my undergraduate studies at Yale focused on public
school administration and policy. i dove into educational theory, observed urban classrooms,
and spent a summer teaching creative writing to at-risk middle-school students.
Yet i was always surrounded by music. i picked up a work-study gig in stage management
at the Yale School of Music. i played in the Yale Symphony, dabbled in summer festivals
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FIRST PERSON
Weaving together a life in
both music and tech has been
deeply meaningful for me and
has shown me how to live as
both an artist and a citizen.
including Aspen and tanglewood, and was fascinated with the role of the viola in chamber
music. i was also fortunate to study viola with Daniel panner, a Curtis alumnus. When it
came time to make a decision about graduate school, i applied to education programs, but
also sent in a few applications to music schools, too, figuring that if i was a musical misfit,
i simply wouldn’t get in.
that’s how i wound up at Curtis. it was a shock to someone who had self-identified as
playing the viola “for fun.” the only way i was able to take stock of my new surroundings
was to throw myself in head-first. At Curtis, i stretched to learn how to practice, to play,
and to perform. My colleagues were world-class at age sixteen and i learned from every
one of them. My teachers and coaches taught and inspired me in ways that words cannot
capture. While at Curtis, i also took on an internship at the William penn Foundation in
philadelphia as their Arts and Culture program intern. Between Curtis and my internship,
i didn’t have time to wonder if i was a misfit. i was learning everything simply by doing
it all.
When Curtis piloted CAp in 2012, i was excited to sign up. With the mentorship
of alumna pianist Natalie Zhu, i designed and launched Chamber Music by the Bay to
bring interactive chamber music programs to audiences in schools throughout the San
Francisco Bay Area, with a focus on teamwork and creative thinking. CMB has continued
and grown ever since, even as i graduated from Curtis, studied at Juilliard, and toured
with the toronto-based Afiara Quartet. CMB has used works such as Janacek’s “Kreutzer
Sonata” quartet and Bartók’s String Quartet No. 2 to engage students in musical language
and storytelling.
CMB has also grown its Side by Side project annually to foster student learning and
engagement via side-by-side performances with its faculty members (including violinist
Zenas Hsu, a Curtis alumnus). in April 2016, Chamber Music by the Bay celebrates its
fifth season by commissioning a short fanfare for our Side by Side project from another of
my Curtis classmates, Daniel temkin, to share the spirit and responsibility of working with
our peers as active commissioners and interpreters of the music of our own time.
More Online
Learn about Chamber Music by the Bay at
chambermusicbythebay.com
ART IN THE OFFICE
And then there’s that “9 to 5 job” at Dropbox where, in addition to my work from day to
day, i’ve been fortunate to host concerts and reading parties in the office that have included
colleagues at Dropbox, other musicians in tech, freelance musicians, and members of the
San Francisco Symphony and San Francisco Ballet. By building a creative culture in the
workplace, we nurture a community that believes in and supports the arts and chooses to
engage in learning more about music.
During my time at Curtis i was fortunate to focus solely on music. Within the collaborative
and supportive community that Curtis offered, my peers and i learned how to work with
others and to work toward deadlines. We learned to tackle goals step-by-step and also to
understand that our work would never be fully done. We began to fully understand that
music brings good to the world and is deeply needed.
As performers and artist-citizens, our “success” is difficult to qualify and to quantify.
Like my Curtis colleagues, i have defined what this means for me over time. i’ve learned
that success is directly tied to my own vision. there’s no such thing as being a misfit if you
believe deeply in the importance of your life’s work. Why let others dictate our happiness
or sense of worth for how we each contribute to music and society at large?
My experience at Curtis helped me recognize the importance of pursuing my unique
path. i’ve found my voice by creating educational opportunities through music that build
broad abilities for youth and communities. Knowing that there is more than one way to
define success as an artist is one thing, but it’s another to believe that this combination
of work is my life’s mission.
With that, it’s back into the rest of Sunday, where i’m looking forward to living up my
own definition of artist-citizen with a full day of coaching, teaching, and at some point in
the evening, preparing for what the week brings at Dropbox.
Jessica Chang is a 2012 graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music.
30 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

MEET THE ALUMNI
Mr. Jacobs is tasked not only
with performing incredibly
difficult repertoire that requires
both hands and both feet, but also
demonstrating the relevance of his
instrument to classical audiences.
Head and Heart
FOR ORGAN VIRTUOSO PAUL JACOBS,
ADVOCACY AND ARTISTRY GO HAND IN HAND.
Paul Jacobs in a
Juilliard practice studio
PHOTO: FELIX BROEDE
BY WILLIAM ROBIN
Not long before graduating from the Curtis institute of Music in 2000, paul Jacobs
planned a bold experiment: to perform the complete organ works of Bach, more than 200
compositions, in fourteen consecutive evenings. For the youthful Mr. Jacobs, the music of
Bach was the pinnacle of the organ repertoire, not to mention Western civilization. to get
the word out, he looked up the address of the Philadelphia Inquirer and visited the newspaper’s
offices, but never made it past security at the front desk. A few weeks later, though, a music
critic called, and the student organist found himself the subject of a profile on the front
page of the arts section. “going the Distance With Bach,” the headline declared.
“i always was interested in expanding the boundaries that organists traditionally have
occupied,” Mr. Jacobs said recently over lunch near the Juilliard School, where he is chair
of the organ department. He once presented that same entirety of Bach’s organ works
in a single, eighteen-hour stretch; he has also performed nine-hour marathons of the
complete organ music of Olivier Messiaen. these feats of strength and endurance are less
of a gimmick than a commitment to the oeuvres of two of the organ’s greatest composers,
for a musician who has continually pushed artistic limits while communicating the importance
of an oft-overlooked instrument to the public.
For organists in the classical music world, advocacy is as important as artistry. the organ
presents challenges unlike any other instrument: each organ is unique, and completely
immobile. the instrument’s pedigree is ancient, but it is little understood by the public;
it is nearly omnipresent in the church, but less so in the concert hall. in his performances,
Mr. Jacobs is tasked not only with performing incredibly difficult repertoire that requires
both hands and both feet, but also demonstrating the relevance of his instrument to
classical audiences.
Paul Jacobs PHOTO: FRAN KAUFMAN
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31

MEET THE ALUMNI
With composer Michael Daugherty
after the Nashville Symphony’s
premiere of once upon a Castle.
Music Director Giancarlo
Guerrero, standing behind them,
led the performance.
PHOTO: COURTESY NASHVILLE SYMPHONY
“His ability to play
anything with consistency
and virtuosity, and his
uncanny ear for creating a
brilliant tapestry of sounds
from the organ, pulls the
audiences in,” says composer
Michael Daugherty.
Fortunately, he is well suited to the task. raised in Washington, pennsylvania, Mr. Jacobs
began piano lessons at age five, but soon encountered the organ in church. “i would work
my way into the gallery to watch the organist play the postlude each week, and was transfixed
by the colors and energy and complexity of the pipe organ,” he says. He started playing
soon afterwards, and by age fifteen was appointed organist of a large congregation nearby.
Due to the prominence of renowned organ pedagogue John Weaver, Curtis was the natural
next step. Mr. Weaver describes the young paul Jacobs as one of the best students he has
ever taught, a shy prodigy who soon developed musical and personal confidence. “Not only
does he play music beautifully and with great expression,” Mr. Weaver says, “but he also
plays some of the most difficult repertoire that ever has been written for the organ.”
FROM INTROVERT TO ADVOCATE
Mr. Jacobs pursued postgraduate study at Yale while embarking upon a national career,
with tours of the Bach and Messiaen marathons. At age 26, he was invited to teach at
Juilliard, becoming one of the youngest musicians appointed to the faculty in the school’s
history. He is the only organist to have won a grammy, for his 2010 recording of Messiaen’s
Livre du Saint-Sacrement. And he is perhaps the most in-demand virtuoso and advocate for
his instrument today. When the New York Times sought to sample the sounds of Manhattan’s
organs for a multimedia feature last year, Mr. Jacobs was the logical choice as tour guide.
Journalists often refer to Mr. Jacobs as cherubic, but behind his youthful look lurks an
Old World demeanor, and a broad interest in the humanities that was cultivated at Curtis.
He is hardwired with a sense of duty towards great art, and deeply concerned about the
indifference of the mainstream towards classical music. “Justin Bieber is welcome to do
whatever he wants,” Mr. Jacobs told me, “but when most people today are familiar with
some of his music and yet have never heard a single Beethoven symphony in its entirety,
that’s a problem.” towards the end of a studio class at Juilliard, he read aloud to his students
excerpts from an article by philosopher roger Scruton that lamented the noisiness of modern
life. the students then offered their own opinions, leading to a feisty intellectual debate of
a kind rarely heard in conservatories.
32 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

MEET THE ALUMNI
that commitment to multiple viewpoints also extends to Mr. Jacobs’s performance
practice. He believes that organists have too long favored intellect over emotion, even though
“the greatest composer for the instrument, Bach, is known to have reached that perfect
equilibrium between the head and the heart.” Mr. Jacobs teaches his students to embrace
a diversity of perspectives, one informed by John Weaver’s guidance at Curtis. Mr. Weaver,
he says, “never wanted students to sound like he sounded. He treated students as adults,
and he opened up their minds and ears.”
REPERTOIRE RENEWED
in November Mr. Jacobs premiered a new organ symphony by Michael Daugherty, Once
Upon a Castle, with the Nashville Symphony and its music director, giancarlo guerrero.
He has also premiered works by Samuel Adler, Mason Bates, Stephen paulus, and Christopher
theofanidis; and next season, he will premiere a new work by Christopher rouse with
the philadelphia Orchestra. His interest in new music, too, dates back to Curtis, where
he took a formative course with composer Jennifer Higdon. He remembers an exercise in
which each student was required to create a conceptual work, in the manner of avant-garde
provocateur John Cage. “i composed a piece that involved the lowest pipes of the organ,”
he recalls fondly, “so it sounds like the instrument is wheezing.”
though Mr. Jacobs no longer dabbles in composition, he has maintained that interest
in experimentation. “i couldn’t think of a better collaborator than paul Jacobs,” says
Mr. Daugherty, who suggests that Mr. Jacobs’s willful performances themselves represent
a form of advocacy for his instrument: “His ability to play anything with consistency and
virtuosity, and his uncanny ear for creating a brilliant tapestry of sounds from the organ,
pulls the audiences in.” While many today seek out newfangled stunts in the hope of
making classical music relevant—multimedia elements, informal dress—it’s reassuring
that a musician’s interpretive decisions can be responsible for attracting new listeners.
Working with composers also represents an opportunity to avoid the solitary life of many
organists. At Curtis, Mr. Jacobs studied harpsichord with Lionel party in order to perform
continuo with fellow students in chamber groups. Fifteen years later, that collaborative
mindset still fuels many of his projects, including a recent acclaimed album with soprano
Christine Brewer. She describes a particularly memorable concert in St. Louis, in which
the uncanny sound of Mr. Jacobs’s playing communicated the relevance of the organ to all
present: “As the sound spiraled up into the huge dome of the basilica and we experienced
the seven-second reverberation, we felt that perhaps we were experiencing what the
composers had felt when composing these pieces!
“And i know that the audience felt that magic, too. it was palpable.”
At the organ of Philadelphia’s Tenth Presbyterian
Church, around the corner from Curtis.
PHOTO: CHRISTINA WILTON
John Weaver describes the
young paul Jacobs as one
of the best students he has
ever taught, a shy prodigy
who soon developed musical
and personal confidence.
William Robin is a Ph.D. candidate in musicology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
He lives in Brooklyn and writes regularly for the New York times and Bandcamp.
WHY CHOOSE CURTIS?
—Paul Jacobs
“Primarily the major teacher John Weaver, in addition, of course, to Curtis’s own sterling
reputation … the students could not help but respect him, for his reputation and what he gave
to them in lessons.
“I took great pleasure in the art history courses offered by Carla Puppin—I really would
say, there wasn’t a single course at Curtis that was not valuable. All the teachers cared about
what they were doing, and I think that’s something to be treasured, and I’m confident that’s
still the case at the school because of the smallness of it, the intimate setting.
“I learned to make music at Curtis in a way that was full of love—love for the music,
and a passion to communicate that love to any listener … It has that youthful spirit to it,
and consequently, optimism. Hope is found in abundance within the walls of that institution,
and among the students.”
PHOTO: JIM McNUTT
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
33

NOtAtiONS
NOtAtiONS
ALUMNi
1940s
In November JOSEPH REZITS
(Piano ’48) played a recital with his
son David, a cellist. The program,
featuring music by composers of
Jewish origin, was presented by
the Society of Friends of Music
at the Indiana University Jacobs
School of Music.
1950s
JAMES VAIL (Organ ’51) performed
two organ recitals including works
by Bach, Hindemith, Karg-Elert, and
Vierne: at St. Edmund’s Episcopal
Church (San Marino, Calif.) in
February; and at the Cathedral
of Our Lady of the Angeles
(Los Angeles) last July.
In November MARJORY BLACK
(Horn ’56) performed in the
Howard Hanson Symphony
No. 2 with the Minnehaha Music
Repertory Orchestra in Minnehaha
(Minn.), conducted by her partner,
Craig Randal Johnson. Also in
November, Marjory began her
tenth season with the Marquette
Symphony Orchestra (Marquette,
Mich.), playing in the Gershwin
Piano Concerto.
JOSÉ SEREBRIER (Composition ’58)
conducted the Royal Philharmonic
in Royal Albert Hall (London)
in November.
Alumni may share news
of recent professional
activities and personal
milestones by e-mail to
alumnirelations@curtis.edu
or by post to Laura
Sancken, Curtis Institute
of Music, 1726 Locust St.,
Philadelphia, PA 19103.
Notes are edited for length
and frequency.
1960s
CHARLES SCHUPAK (Trombone ’66)
retired from teaching instrumental
and classroom music. He currently
performs with the municipal band
of Winfield, Kan., and is a church
organist.
JON PETERSON (Oboe ’67) has
retired from the Hamilton Symphony
Orchestra in Ontario, after
serving for 45 years as principal oboe.
His career also included ten years
as personnel manager of the
orchestra, 32 years as principal oboe
for Opera Hamilton, and ten years
as orchestra manager and dean of
studies for the Brott Music Festival.
ROGER BLACKBURN (Trumpet ’69)
was recently named one of 50
History Heroes of 2016 by the
West Virginia Archives and History
department in recognition of his
film documenting the history of
the Parkersville High School Big
Red Band.
FRANCIS RYAN (Trombone ’69)
retired from the University of Tulsa
as a professor emeritus. During
his 37 years at the university, he
taught courses in music theory and
film music, conducted the University
Orchestra, and served as director
of the School of Music. He was
also a longtime member of the
Tulsa Philharmonic. Frank now
looks forward to having more time
for photography and his Harley.
1970s
CHARLES WALKER (Voice ’71) is
beginning his 21st year as a member
of the voice faculty of Westminster
Choir College of Rider University.
In September SYLVIA BRYSON
(Voice ’72) and TIM BRYSON
(Tuba ’72) joined colleagues
to perform a benefit concert
for Friends of Santa Claus, an
organization assisting children
with cancer, at Burntshirt Vineyards
in Hendersonville, N.C. The group
performed arrangements by Tim
and by A. DOUGLAS WAUCHOPE
(Trombone ’66).
In November JAMES ADLER (Piano
’73, Composition ’76) performed at
the Yamaha Artist Services Piano
Salon in New York City to celebrate
the Albany Records release of his
album Introspections.
In April DAVID KRANE (Composition
’74) will conduct the New York
premiere of Kenneth Fuchs’s
falling Man, a monodrama for
baritone and chamber orchestra,
with the Center for Contemporary
Opera at Symphony Space.
David conceived the staging
of the production, which features
baritone JARRETT OTT (Opera ’14).
Karen Dreyfus
Last fall KAREN DREYFUS (Viola ’79)
gave master classes at the New
World Symphony and at the
University of Denver, where she
performed in the Mendelssohn Octet.
This spring Karen will perform
William Thomas McKinley’s Concert
Variations alongside her husband,
violinist Glenn Dicterow, with the
Shanghai and Guangzhou symphony
orchestras. This summer, she will
be in residence at the Texas Music
Festival and will serve as co-director
of chamber music at the Music
Academy of the West.
In November CHIN KIM (Violin ’79)
gave a faculty recital at the Mannes
School of Music.
1980s
CAROL LEONE’s (Piano ’81) article
on ergonomically scaled piano
keyboards, entitled “Size is Key,”
was the cover story for the Clavier
Companion’s September/October
issue. Carol performs, records, and
teaches on Steinway pianos fitted
with keys similar in size to Joseph
Hoffman’s piano keyboard. She is
chair of piano studies at Southern
Methodist University’s Meadows
School of the Arts in Dallas.
In November MICHAEL LUDWIG
(Violin ’82) performed the Korngold
Violin Concerto with the Erie
Chamber Orchestra, replacing
Midori on short notice. Also last
fall, Michael played the Barber
Violin Concerto with the Orquesta
Sinfonica Nacional de Costa Rica,
Prokofiev’s Concerto No. 2 with
the Akron Symphony Orchestra,
and works by John Williams with
the University of South Carolina
Symphony; and led master classes
for the Philadelphia Young Artists
Orchestra and the Drexel University
Orchestra.
In December SHEILA JACKSON
(Voice ’83) performed Christmas
carols with Orchestra Kentucky at
the Southern Kentucky Performing
Arts Center in Bowling Green.
CATHERINE NEZ (Piano ’83)
performed with violinist Katie
Wolfe at Boston University in
January. In March she will be
a featured composer at Ball
State University’s (Ind.) festival
of new music.
This season MARIA BACHMANN
(Violin ’83, ’84) and her colleagues
in Trio Solisti presented chamber
music of Johannes Brahms in a
three-concert series in Weill Recital
Hall at Carnegie Hall.
In July DARON HAGEN’s
(Composition ’84) Piano Concerto
No. 2 was premiered at the Wintergreen
Music Festival, where he is
chair of the composition program.
Elizabeth Starr
Masoudnia
In October
ELIZABETH
STARR
MASOUDNIA
(Oboe ’84, ’85)
performed the
world premiere
of Behzad
Ranjbaran’s
34 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

NOtAtiONS
English Horn Concerto with
Network for New Music in Gould
Rehearsal Hall at Curtis. In November
Elizabeth joined her Philadelphia
Orchestra colleagues KERRI RYAN
(Violin ’98), YUMI KENDALL (Cello
’04), and William Polk, violin, in
performance at the Free Library
of Philadelphia. They repeated the
program in January as a postlude
following a Philadelphia Orchestra
performance.
SHELLEY
SHOWERS
(Horn ’85) gave
the premiere of
Ralph Lehman’s
Horn Concerto
with the Allegro
Orchestra in
June at the
Shelley Showers
Ware Center
in Lancaster, Pa. The composer
dedicated this piece to his friend
NOLAN MILLER (Horn ’65). The
performance can be viewed on
YouTube.
JENNIFER JONES MOSHER (Opera
’89) taught in the vocal intensive
study program of the MasterWorks
Festival in Winona Lake, Ind.,
last summer and is currently
teaching voice at Thiel College
in Greenville, Pa.
1990s
LYNN EUSTIS (Opera ’90) was
promoted to director of graduate
studies for the Boston University
School of Music, where she is
also associate professor of voice.
Each summer, Lynn teaches at
the Up North Vocal Institute in
Petoskey, Mich.
HUGH SUNG (Piano ’90) launched
a new podcast called a Musical
Life, sharing stories about making
music. He has interviewed Gary
Graffman and Aaron Rosand for
the podcast, with more illustrious
Curtis alumni scheduled soon.
The Clarosa Piano Quartet, a
chamber group consisting of two
husband-and-wife pairs—JULIETTE
KANG (Violin ’91) and THOMAS
KRAINES (Cello ’92), and NATALIE
ZHU (Piano ’97) and CHE HUNG
CHEN (Viola ’00)—will perform on
the Philadelphia Chamber Music
Society series in May. They’ll also
play at the Kingston Chamber Music
Festival (R.I.) in July, presenting the
premiere of a new piano quartet by
STEWART GOODYEAR (Piano ’98).
In October, the English Symphony
Orchestra and conductor Kenneth
Woods premiered THOMAS
KRAINES’s (Cello ’92) arrangement
for chamber orchestra of his piece
Hansel and Gretel in Worcester,
England. On the same day Tom’s
no Harm done for violin, cello,
and narrator was premiered in
Harrisburg, Pa.
KAREN MENDOCHA SCHUBERT
(Horn ’94) performed as soloist
in Benjamin Britten’s Serenade
for Tenor, Horn, and Strings on the
Delaware Symphony Orchestra’s
chamber series in October.
Current Curtis student EVAN LeROY
JOHNSON (Opera) was the tenor
soloist. Karen has been principal
horn of the Delaware Symphony
Orchestra since 2003.
MISOON GHIM
(Opera ’95)
will perform
Berlioz’s Les
nuits d’été
with the
Peru National
Symphony
Misoon Ghim Orchestra
with music
director FERNANDO VALCÁRCEL
(Composition ’96) in July. Misoon
sang the role of Dorabella in Mozart’s
Così fan tutte with the Philadelphia
Concert Opera in February, and
will perform with the Dolce Suono
Ensemble in March.
In September AMY I-LIN CHENG
(Piano ’96) gave the American
premiere of the Piano Concerto
in D minor, Op. 7 by Vítězslava
Kaprálová at with the University
of Michigan Symphony Orchestra.
In October Amy gave a recital
with Detroit Symphony Orchestra
flutist David Buck at Orchestra
Place in Detroit; and performed
with violinist David Halen at the
University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
In November Amy performed
with Trio Solari, including SEAN
YUNG-HSIANG WANG (Violin ’91),
at Converse College (S.C.).
JONATHAN BAILEY HOLLAND
(Composition ’96) received a
commission from the Fromm Music
Foundation at Harvard University.
Jonathan was part of the Cincinnati
Symphony’s One City, One
Symphony concert in November at
Music Hall in Cincinnati. His Equality
was one of three new works on
the program with texts by Maya
Angelou; one of the others was
Elegy by current Curtis student
T. J. COLE (Composition).
In November ARASH “JOEY” AMINI
(Cello ’97) performed in Santa Ana,
Calif., with JUDY KANG (Violin ’97)
and composer and vocalist Huang
Ruo at the Bowers Museum’s
gala honoring the Chinese fashion
designer Guo Pei.
HEATHER CONNER (Piano ’97) has
been appointed chancellor’s chair
of pre-college piano at the Blair
School of Music at Vanderbilt
University, where she is also senior
artist teacher of piano.
The Quintet of the Americas
premiered DANIEL OTT’s
(Composition ’97) woodwind
quintet, Variable Winds, in June.
Later that month, Daniel’s double
aria was performed by violinist
Daniel Ott
Jasper Woods at Bargemusic
in Brooklyn. In September,
Daniel’s Second String Quartet
was performed by the Amernet
Quartet at Merkin Concert Hall.
TIMOTHY FAIN
(Violin ’98)
played his
composition
Resonance
for Google’s
virtual reality
collaboration
Timothy Fain with YouTube;
the video was
posted in November. Also that
month, Tim performed Randall
Woolf’s Beirut Is a House of Many
Rooms at Le Poisson Rouge in
New York City. Tim played the
Philip Glass Concerto No. 2 for
Learning together
by Laura Sancken
“I meet my students where they are in their
process, learn with them, and work closely with
them to achieve optimal fulfillment in their artistic
endeavors,” says JASON GAMER (Trumpet ’96). He
has never stopped learning and encouraging others
Jason Gamer
to do the same—a guiding principle from his Curtis
days, passed on by musical studies faculty member FORD LALLERSTEDT.
An active conductor and trumpet player who is music director at
Vistamar School, a private high school in the Los Angeles area, Jason
also serves as faculty music director at the Hawaii Performing Arts
Festival. “I strive to provide a dynamic musical experience that fosters
intellectual, creative, and personal growth,” Jason says.
Inspired by Dr. Lallerstedt’s classes and his friends at Curtis, as
a student Jason was “reaching for something that had meaning and
depth.” He and several classmates aimed to “create an intentional
musical community.” The outgrowth of this exploration was the Wild
Ginger Philharmonic, a bi-coastal orchestra Jason co-founded. Jason
conducted and played in the ensemble; power was not concentrated
on the podium. “Individual players had agency and a voice in how
the music was being interpreted,” Jason recalls. “There was musical
intimacy, vulnerability, and inquiry throughout our journey.” The Wild
Ginger Philharmonic gave its first concert in 1995 and continued for
more than a decade, gaining critical accolades for exceptionally
inventive, virtuosic, and exuberant performances.
Jason went on to earn a doctorate from USC-Thornton School of
Music and now performs across genres, from klezmer to punk to opera.
In his teaching, Jason focuses on musical empowerment through
comprehension of the musical language, instrumental proficiency,
collaboration, and dialogue. “Don’t learn what you want to teach, teach
what you want to learn” is a Dr. Lallerstedt lesson he will never forget.
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
35

NOtAtiONS
Violin and Orchestra with the
Pittsburgh Symphony in January
and will perform with the National
Orchestra of Spain in April.
Sarah Ioannides
SARAH IOANNIDES (Conducting ’98)
continues as music director of the
Tacoma Symphony Orchestra
(Wash.) and Spartanburg Philharmonic
(S.C.). She debuted last fall
with the Tonkünstler Orchestra
(Vienna), Yale Philharmonia (Conn.),
and National Orchestra of the
Dominican Republic; and in January
with the Transylvanian State Philharmonic
Orchestra (Cluj, Romania).
In December DANIEL ALFRED WACHS
(Piano ’98), music director of the
Orange County Youth Symphony,
led a family holiday concert at
Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa
Mesa (Calif.). In January he led the
OCYSO and the Young Musicians
Foundation Debut Orchestra at Walt
Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.
Also in January, he conducted a
concert at the Los Angeles County
Museum of Art that was broadcast
live on KUSC.
HILARY HAHN (Violin ’99) is artist
in residence this season at the
Wiener Konzerthaus. The residency
includes performances with
Camerata Salzburg and a European
tour with the Vienna Symphony
Orchestra. She will also play with
the Vienna Philharmonic, give a
recital with Cory Smythe, and do
community outreach.
GABRIEL KOVACH (Horn ’99)
just finished designing a line of
Kovach French horn mouthpieces
with maker Dave Houser. He also
designed a triple French horn
with Jim Patterson at Patterson
Horn Works.
In December MIMI STILLMAN (Flute
’99) played in Bach’s Brandenburg
Concertos with Anthony Newman
and the Bedford Chamber Ensemble.
Last fall she also gave a recital
and master class at the Chicago
Flute Club Flute Festival and a
recital with CHARLES ABRAMOVIC
(Piano ’76) at Baruch College.
Milestones
Births
Marriages
Deaths
MARK LUDWIG (Viola ’79, ’80),
his wife Kate Gascoigne, and
their daughter Sarah (age 12) are
delighted to announce the birth
of son Asher Gideon Ludwig on
October 6.
SUSANNE SON (Piano ’93) and
husband Ryan Kamm welcomed
daughter Ramona Ji-Hae Kamm to
the world on September 1. Ramona
joins sister Gretchen, age 7.
GABRIEL KOVACH (Horn ’99)
and Sarah Mayme Garcia Kovach
announce the birth of a son,
Teddy Jacob Kovach, on August
27. Teddy joins sister Olive
Zaydie Kovach.
NATHAN COLE (Violin ’00) and
Akiko Tarumoto welcomed the
birth of their twins on May 26.
Violet Mitsuko and James Ichiro
Cole join four-year old Hana Olivia.
LAURA FULLER (Viola ’07) and
Andrew Fuller announce the birth
of their son, Samuel Elias Fuller,
on September 11.
ROSE ARMBRUST GRIFFIN (Viola
’08) and Darrin Griffin welcomed
Lucy Mae Griffin on May 14.
TAMMY COIL (Opera ’09) and
Christopher Moore announce
the birth of their first child,
Penny Bonnie Moore, on June 22.
Stephen Edwards and Josephine
Visone James
STEPHEN EDWARDS (Double
Bass ’71) married Josephine
Visone James in Las Vegas on
July 23, 2015.
Rachael Mathey and Michael Ludwig
On October 10, MICHAEL LUDWIG
(Violin ’82) married Rachael
Mathey at the Kimmel Center
during a Philly Pops concert
celebrating Frank Sinatra’s 100th
anniversary. Their wedding was
officiated by Philadelphia Mayor
Michael Nutter.
CLARK GRIFFITH (Composition
’86) married Marvin Vann, a
French teacher at Southwest
High School in Fort Worth (Tex.),
on November 23, 2015.
Geraldine Rice and Paul Bryan
GERALDINE RICE (Viola ’83, ’89)
and PAUL BRYAN (Trombone ’93)
were married on November 27 in
Haddonfield, N.J.
YVONNE LAM (Violin ’05) married
Uriel Abt, a lawyer, in Chicago on
June 13, 2015.
YOOBIN SON (Flute ’07) and EARL
LEE (Cello ’05) were married on
December 26.
Alexander Souponetsky and Katerina
“Kat” Kramarchuk Souponetsky
KATERINA KRAMARCHUK (Composition
’12) married Alexander
Souponetsky on April 25, 2015 at
the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia.
Katerina has changed her name to
Kat Souponetsky.
RACHEL STERRENBERG (Opera ’15)
married Adam Pangburn on
November 28.
We mourn the loss of these
members of the Curtis community
and send our condolences to their
families and friends.
ERWIN PRICE (Trombone ’42) died
on April 10, 2015 in New York City.
At age 20, Erwin became assistant
principal trombone of the
Philadelphia Orchestra. Following
his Navy service during World War
II, Erwin was appointed principal
trombone of the Pittsburgh
Symphony. In 1947, Erwin and
his wife moved to New York City,
where he became a founding
member of the New York Brass
Quintet and the Young Audiences
chamber music series. He was a
prolific musician, working on the
Ed Sullivan Show and a Broadway
production of fiddler on the Roof
and playing with the Joffrey
Ballet, Long Island Philharmonic,
and Orchestra da Camera. He was
a devoted member of Local 802,
which he joined in 1946.
BARBARA DUVAL (Voice ’45) died
on July 1, 2015 in Muscatine, Iowa.
Barbara sang professionally until
her marriage to William Duval in
1946. She was a vocal instructor
at Muscatine Community College,
and worked as a volunteer for
her church and the local arts
council and symphony orchestra,
in addition to numerous other
community organizations.
ALEX WILSON (Trumpet ’49) died
on July 5, 2015. Alex was a World
War II veteran who played overseas
36 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

NOtAtiONS
2000s
JASON DePUE (Violin ’00) recorded
a YouTube video of Ysaye’s Sonata
No. 4 in memory of his teacher and
mentor WILLIAM DE PASQUALE
(Vioin ’54).
PAUL JACOBS (Organ ’00) is
celebrating the release of his new
recording with soprano Christine
Brewer, divine Redeemer, with a
cross-country tour. The tour has
stopped at Atlanta’s Spivey Hall,
San Francisco’s Davies Symphony
Hall, the Cathedral Basilica of
St. Louis, and New York’s Alice
Tully Hall. The tour concluded on
January 24 in Disney Hall in Los
Angeles. He also premiered Michael
Daugherty’s organ concerto, once
upon a Cloud, with the Nashville
Symphony in November.
DAVID ENLOW (Organ ’01) just
completed a nine-concert solo
tour of Austria, Germany, France,
and Switzerland, including the
Stiftskirche (Stuttgart) and Salzburg
Cathedral. His newly released CD,
Piano à l’orgue (Pro Organo),
includes his transcriptions of
Debussy’s Petite Suite, Grieg’s
David Enlow
Holberg Suite, and works by
Robert Schumann.
SUK CHUL KIM (Opera ’02) sang the
role of Erick in Wagner’s the flying
dutchman with the Korean National
Opera at the Seoul Arts Center in
November. In August he will cover
the role of Siegmund in Wagner’s
die Walküre at the Bayreuth Festival.
Last fall SOLOMIYA IVAKHIV
(Violin ’03) played the Dvořák
Violin Concerto with the Lviv
Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra
and the National Symphony of
Ukraine; and the Tchaikovsky
Violin Concerto in D Major with the
Greater Newburgh Symphony (N.Y.).
in an Air Force Band. He played
with a variety of organizations
throughout his career, including
the Robert Shaw Chorale and the
Ringling Brothers Circus. Alex was
principal trumpet for the Buffalo
Philharmonic for eleven years. He
was also a teacher, working first
in Seneca, N.Y., and later as music
director for South Philadelphia
High School. He retired to
Minneapolis, where he continued
to play, teach, and enjoy concerts.
GRACE MITCHELL (Voice ’50) died
on October 5 in Owasso, Okla.
Working under the professional
name Grace Carlino, she received
a Fulbright scholarship to study,
sing, and work in Rome following
her graduation from Curtis. She
worked as an interpreter in Italy
for Boris Karloff and in Hollywood
as a dialogue coach and interpreter
for Rossana Podesta, an Italian
movie actress. She later moved to
West Des Moines, Iowa, where she
spent most of her remaining years.
JOSEPH PEPPER (Violin ’50) died
on August 19, 2015 in Toronto.
Following his service in the Army
during World War II, Joseph
enrolled at Curtis, where he studied
with Efrem Zimbalist and met his
wife Barbara, a cellist. Following
jobs with the Philadelphia Orchestra
and St. Louis Symphony, and time
in Los Angeles where both Joseph
and Barbara worked recording film
soundtracks, the couple moved to
New Zealand, where Joseph gave
the New Zealand premiere of the
Alban Berg Violin Concerto with
the New Zealand Symphony. The
family later returned to the U.S.,
where Joseph was concertmaster
of the Westchester Symphony
and Joffrey Ballet orchestras
and played in several rock bands.
Joseph moved to Toronto in 1976,
where he was concertmaster of
the National Ballet of Canada and
an active teacher.
HARRIET ROTHSTEIN (Accompanying
’58) died on July 1, 2015 in
Massachusetts. Following her
time at Curtis, she attended the
University of Pennsylvania, married,
and moved to Caracas, Venezuela
as part of a Harvard and MIT
urban development program.
While in Caracas, she performed
with the Orchestra Central of
Venezuela. Upon moving back to
the Philadelphia area, she joined
the faculty of the Bryn Mawr
Conservatory of Music. Harriet also
loved the Berkshires in western
Massachusetts, and in 1969 began
teaching and performing at The
Music Inn in Lenox. Harriet was
also a devoted teacher at the
Berkshire Music School.
LYNN
BLAKESLEE
(Violin ’64)
died on
August 10,
2015. Following
her time at
Curtis, Lynn
Lynn Blakeslee continued
her studies at
Vienna’s Akademie für Musik on
a Fulbright scholarship. A member
of the Wiener Solisten for many
years, she was also concertmaster
at Theater an der Wien and
performed with the German
Bach Soloists. For fifteen years,
Lynn served as first violinist of
the Mozarteum String Quartet
and performed as a soloist with
ensembles such as the Philadelphia
Orchestra and Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Lynn starting teaching in
1987 at the Eastman School, where
she was later named professor
emerita. Lynn also taught at the
Mozarteum in Salzburg, Bruckner
Konservatorium in Linz, Bowdoin
Summer Music Festival in Maine,
and Euro Music Academy Leipzig.
GEORGE HARPHAM (Cello ’69)
passed away peacefully on June
26, 2015 in Paris, where he had
lived with his family since 1990.
George joined the Philadelphia
Orchestra the year he graduated
from Curtis. He become assistant
principal cello in 1977 and
associate principal in 1988. While
in Philadelphia, he participated
in numerous chamber music
concerts and as a soloist with
several orchestras in the area.
SCOTT LIGOCKI (Viola ’89) passed
away on September 28 in Seattle.
Scott studied at Curtis with Michael
Tree and Karen Tuttle. Scott served
as principal violist for the Pacific
Northwest Ballet in Seattle and
also performed with the Seattle
Symphony, Seattle Opera, and many
other orchestras and chamber
music ensembles, as well as in
recording studios. He was a dedicated
teacher of the viola and violin.
Scott served on the faculty of the
Max Aronoff Viola Institute.
In September JENNY QIONG-YAN
CHAI (Piano ’04) performed
Philippe Manoury’s Double Piano
Concerto with Adam Kośmieja and
the Polish National Radio Symphony
Orchestra at the National Concert
Hall in Warsaw.
In November JASMINE NAKYUNG
CHOI (Flute ’04) performed Mark
Laycock’s Flute Concerto with the
Berlin Symphony at the Philharmonie
Berlin. In October Jasmine played
Mozart’s Flute Concerto with
the Baden-Baden Philharmonie in
Lucerne, Switzerland. Last summer,
she played principal flute for Paavo
Jarvi’s annual Parnu Music Festival
in Estonia and gave a master class
at Curtis Summerfest.
STEVE HACKMAN
(Conducting ’04)
has been named
creative director
of FUSE at
the Pittsburgh
Symphony
Orchestra. In
Steve Hackman
his first season
he conducted
his hybrid works Brahms v. Radiohead,
Beethoven v. Coldplay, and
Copland v. Bon Iver, and was
commissioned to write Stravinsky
REMIX | RESPonSE.
SHEA SCRUGGS (Oboe ’04)
completed his M.B.A. at Cornell
University and started a new position
as director of music admission
and assistant dean of summer
and preparatory programs at
Ithaca College.
ELIZABETH DeSHONG (Opera ’05)
sings the role of Calbo in Rossini’s
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
37

NOtAtiONS
Maometto Secondo at Canadian
Opera Company in April and May.
She will also perform Mozart’s Mass
in C Minor and Dvořák’s Stabat Mater
at the Cincinnati May Festival, both
conducted by James Conlon. Elizabeth
will return to Glyndebourne in
August, singing Hermia in Britten’s
a Midsummer night’s dream alongside
MATTHEW ROSE (Opera ’03).
JULIANNE LEE (Violin ’05) has
joined the Johannes Quartet,
whose other members are SOOVIN
KIM (Violin ’00), PETER STUMPF
(Cello ’85), and C. J. CHANG
(Viola ’94). They will perform with
the Philadelphia Chamber Music
Society in March. Julianne has also
been named assistant principal
second violinist of the Boston
Symphony Orchestra.
The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
and music director Louis Langrée
will premiere ZHOU TIAN’s
(Composition ’05) Concerto
for Orchestra in May.
Jonathan Beyer
JONATHAN BEYER (Opera ’07) sang
Malatesta in don Pasquale with
Opera Naples in January and gave
a recital at the Cliburn Festival in
Fort Worth in February.
JOSÉ MARIA BLUMENSCHEIN
(Violin ’07) has been appointed
concertmaster of the Vienna State
Opera and Vienna Philharmonic
Orchestra. He also served as
concertmaster of the 2015
Bayreuth Festival Orchestra.
YOONIE HAN (Piano ’07) joined
the faculty of Bilkent University
in Ankara, Turkey, teaching piano
and chamber music.
SHERIDAN SEYFRIED’s (Composition
’07) Concerto for Bass Trombone
and Orchestra will be performed
by ZACHARY BOND (Trombone ’07)
and the United States Army
Orchestra on March 11 at Bruckner
Hall in Fort Myer (Va.) as part of
the American Trombone Workshop.
In June the Keystone State
Boychoir will premiere Sheridan’s
piece “When I’m Singing I Feel
Free” in Verizon Hall.
ROSE ARMBRUST GRIFFIN
(Viola ’08) performed a recital at
Wheaton College (Ill.) in November,
including Curtis faculty member
RICHARD DANIELPOUR’s Come
up from the fields, father with
JONATHAN BEYER (Opera ’07).
In January JOHNNY TEYSSIER
(Clarinet ’08) joined the Danish
National Symphony in Copenhagen
as principal clarinet.
ELENA URIOSTE (Violin ’08) made
her San Francisco Symphony debut
in December with TEDDY ABRAMS
(Conducting ’10). Last fall Elena
also debuted with the Alabama,
Des Moines, and Kitchener-Waterloo
symphony orchestras. In April
she will debut with England’s
Hallé Orchestra.
MATTHEW CMIEL (Composition ’09)
has been named director of the
John Adams Young Composers
Program at the Crowden Music
Center in Seattle.
American Opera Projects
commissioned an opera from
WANG JIE (Composition ’09) for
premiere in 2017. She is also writing
a miniature opera for the Lake
Superior Chamber Orchestra,
which will premiere in June.
2010s
SAMUEL SCHLOSSER (Trombone
’10) has been appointed principal
trombone of the Atlanta Symphony
Orchestra and received tenure as
principal trombone of the San
Francisco Opera.
AMALIA HALL (Violin ’12) won
first prize and the prize for best
interpretation of a composition
by Dvořák at the Leoš Janáček
International Competition. Amalia
also won sixth prize at the Joseph
Joachim International Violin
Competition in Hannover, Germany
in October; and the top prize at
the Jeunesses International Music
Competition Dinu Lipatti last May.
In May JOSHUA STEWART
(Voice ’09, Opera ’12) will make
his debut at La Scala, Milan, as Trin
in Puccini’s La fanciulla del West,
with conductor Riccardo Chailly.
In July he will sing the Shepherd
in Stravinsky’s oedipus Rex at
Festival d’Aix-en-Provence with
conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen.
BRANDON CEDEL (Voice ’10, Opera
’13) won a 2015 Richard Tucker
Career Grant from the Richard
Tucker Foundation. His recent
performances include Beethoven’s
Symphony No. 9 with the Russian
National Symphony (July), Colline
in Puccini’s La bohème with Boston
Lyric Opera (October), and Theseus
in Britten’s a Midsummer night’s
dream with Grand Theatre de
Geneva (November).
J’nai Bridges
PHOTO: LAWRENCE
BROWNLEE
In December
J’NAI BRIDGES
(Opera ’12)
performed the
role of Carmen
in the world
premiere of
Jimmy Lopez’s
Bel Canto at
the Lyric Opera
of Chicago;
and appeared with the Oregon
Symphony in its holiday program,
led by PAUL GHUN KIM (Violin ’01).
PATRICK
KREEGER
(Organ ’13)
was appointed
associate
organist at
Fifth Avenue
Presbyterian
Patrick Kreeger Church in New
York City. He
is also a music history teaching
fellow at the Juilliard School.
DANIEL TEMKIN
(Composition
’13) was
awarded the
2015 Marilyn K.
Glick Prize from
the Indianapolis
Symphony, who
will perform
his Cataclysm in
March. Daniel is also one of
four winners selected in the Mirror
Visions Ensemble composition
competition. His prize is a
commission for a new song cycle
for soprano, baritone, and piano,
to be premiered in New York City
in 2017.
Daniel Temkin
In November
AUSTIN LARSON
(Horn ’14)
was a finalist
in the Jeju
International
Brass Competition
in South
Austin Larson Korea and
won first prize
in the professional division of the
International Horn Competition
of America. Austin gave a live solo
recital on Wisconsin Public Radio
in September as a preview for his
performance playing the R. Strauss
Horn Concerto No. 1 with the Fox
Valley Symphony in October.
The DOVER QUARTET (Quartet ’14)
was awarded the Cleveland Quartet
Award by Chamber Music America.
This award is given biennially and
provides the winning quartet with
performance opportunities across
the United States.
In February JARRETT OTT (Opera
’14) sang the leading role of W. P.
Inman in Cold Mountain, JENNIFER
HIGDON’s (Composition ’88) first
opera. The Opera Philadelphia
production was to have starred
baritone Nathan Gunn, who withdrew
two weeks before the opening.
Jarrett, who workshopped the
opera at Curtis (in a collaboration
detailed in the Spring 2014 issue
of overtones), also covered the
role in the premiere production at
Santa Fe Opera last August. Opera
Philadelphia’s production also
featured RACHEL STERRENBERG
(Opera ’15) and Curtis students
LAUREN EBERWEIN (Voice), ROY
HAGE (Opera), and HEATHER
STEBBINS (Opera).
SARAH SHAFER
(Voice ’10,
Opera ’14)
sang Pamina
in the Magic
flute with
San Francisco
Opera in
October. In
Sarah Shafer
April, Sarah
will sing Adina in the Elixir of Love
with Opera Philadelphia.
SAMUEL ARMSTRONG (Trombone ’15)
is currently performing with the
Singapore Symphony Orchestra
and will begin as co-principal
trombone with the Malaysian
Philharmonic Orchestra in August.
38 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

NOtAtiONS
FACULtY
Hand Press, will publish a single
story book of Tim’s this spring.
Glenn Gould School of Toronto’s
Royal Conservatory.
KE-CHIA CHEN orchestrated ten
works for the Philadelphia Orchestra
performance during Pope Francis’s
visit to Philadelphia in September.
Curtis mentor conductor and
YANNICK NÉZET-SÉGUIN conducted
the performance as part of a
papal Mass.
TIM FITTS’s short story “Home Fries”
was published in the fall edition of
the Madison Review. Philadelphiabased
publisher, The Head and the
GORDANA-DANA GROZDANIC
has been awarded the Leon Levy
Biography Fellowship for 2015–16
at the Leon Levy Center for Biography
of the Graduate Center at
CUNY in New York. She is writing a
monograph about the life and work
of the Bosnian writer Zija Dizdarevic.
In December CRAIG KNOX (Tuba ’89)
presented three days of master
classes and a solo recital at the
MICHAEL KRAUSZ presented one
of the invited plenary lectures at
the 38th International Wittgenstein
Symposium in Kirchberg, Austria
in August, 2015. The title of his
presentation was “Relativisms
and Their Opposites.”
In October DANIELLE ORLANDO
played a recital with tenor James
Valenti for the Jordan Series at
Drake University in Des Moines.
In December she returned to the
Danielle Orlando
Palm Beach Opera as a guest
coach for the young artist program.
This June, Danielle will join Angela
Meade for a recital at the La
Coruña Festival in Spain.
StUDeNtS
Bryan Dunnewald
In September
BRYAN
DUNNEWALD
(Organ) was
appointed
organ scholar
at Saint Mark’s
Episcopal
Church in
Philadelphia.
He also released
his first solo
recording, Bryan
at Bryn athyn.
In June TIMOTHY
CHOOI (Violin)
won the bronze
medal at the
Michael Hill Violin
Competition in
New Zealand.
He won the
Canada Council
Timothy Chooi
for the Arts
Musical Instrument Bank competition
in September and will play on a
1717 Stradivarius violin for the next
three years. Also in September,
he performed at the gala seasonopening
performance of the
National Arts Centre Orchestra in
Ottawa with LANG LANG (Piano ’02).
In October he joined the roster of
Dispeker Artist Management in
New York.
T. J. COLE’s (Composition) Elegy,
a short narrated work with a text
by Maya Angelou, was premiered
in November. T. J. also received
two more orchestral commissions:
one from the Baltimore Symphony;
and one as collaborator and
orchestrator of a work to be
premiered by TIME FOR THREE and
the Sun Valley Summer Symphony
in Idaho in July.
EMILY COOLEY (Composition)
and NICHOLAS DiBERARDINO
(Composition) were selected for
the Minnesota Orchestra Composer
Institute in January, during which
their works were performed by
the Minnesota Orchestra and
Osmo Vänskä.
In June HELEN
GERHOLD
(Harp) and
ABIGAIL KENT
(Harp) were
prizewinners
at the 2015
American Harp
Society National
Competition’s
Young Professional
Division.
Helen Gerhold
The Salzedo Harp Quintet, including
Helen, Abigail, HÉLOÏSE CARLEAN-
JONES (Harp), ANNA ODELL
(ArtistYear), and faculty member
ELIZABETH HAINEN, were featured
performers at the American Harp
Society National Conference.
In September ARLEN HLUSKO
(ArtistYear) completed a two-week
recital tour in China.
In October, DANIEL HSU (Piano)
won first prize at the 2015 Concert
Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh
Competition in New York and
joined the Concert Artists Guild
artistic management roster. In
December, Daniel won the bronze
medal at the Hamamatsu International
Piano Competition in Japan.
Last March, ABIGAIL KENT (Harp)
and XIAOBO PU (Guitar) were
each first place winners on their
instruments in the National Solo
Competition of the American
String Teachers Association. In
addition, Abigail was selected
as one of six laureate finalists to
perform in the live finals, held at
Abravanel Hall in Salt Lake City.
Kate Liu
Rene Orth
KATE LIU (Piano)
placed third
in the 17th
Fryderyk Chopin
International
Piano Competition.
ERIC LU
(Piano) took
home fourth
prize.
T. J. Cole
In January the Louisville Orchestra
premiered new works commissioned
from student composers RENE
ORTH, EMILY COOLEY, T. J. COLE,
and ALYSSA WEINBERG. The
orchestra’s music director, TEDDY
ABRAMS (’10), led the performance.
SEAN MICHAEL PLUMB (Opera)
won the top prize at the 2015
Opera Index Competition and first
place at the 2015 Gerda Lissner
Liederkranz Competition. He
also received the 2015 Sullivan
Foundation Award.
Sean Michael Plumb
In November YU-CHIEN “BENNY”
TSENG (Violin) visited Taipei,
where he performed two recitals
and appeared as soloist with the
National Symphony Orchestra of
Taiwan and the Munich Philharmonic.
Also in November, he performed
with the China National Symphony
Orchestra in Beijing.
STEPHEN
WAARTS (Violin)
was signed by
HarrisonParrott
for general
management,
while remaining
on the Young
Concert Artists
Stephen Waarts
roster for North
American management. Stephen
performed with the San Francisco
Chamber Orchestra and the
Edmonton Symphony in January.
YIJIA WANG (Piano) won second
prize at the EDR Music Foundation
International Young Artist Piano
Concerto Competition in June. She
performed a solo recital at Shanghai
Symphony Hall in December.
ADÉ WILLIAMS (Violin) appeared
as soloist with the Philadelphia
Orchestra at its Martin Luther King
Jr. concert in February.
OVertONeS SpriNg 2016
39

NOtAtiONS
reCOrDiNgS AND pUBLiCAtiONS
CHARLES ABRAMOVIC (Piano ’71)
and MIMI STILLMAN (Flute ’99)
released freedom on Innova
Recordings in October. The album
also features YUMI KENDALL (Cello
’04) and Curtis faculty member
RICHARD DANIELPOUR’s trio,
Remembering neda, performed
by the Dolce Suono Ensemble.
DAVID BERNARD (Clarinet ’84)
led the Park Avenue Chamber
Symphony on their self-produced
recording Stravinsky: the Rite of
Spring, released in November.
J’NAI BRIDGES (Opera ’12)
was featured in a recording of
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with
Gustavo Dudamel and the Simon
Bolivar Symphony Orchestra of
Venezuela, released in October.
DAVID BROWN’s (Piano ’67, ’73)
Piano Sonata No. I for solo piano
was included on pianist and
composer Jennifer Nicole
Campbell’s debut CD, Perceptions
of Shadows, released last June.
KATERINA ENGLICHOVA (Harp ’94)
is featured on Musica per arpa,
released in October on the
Supraphon label.
TIMOTHY FAIN’s (Violin ’98) album
first Loves was released on the
Via label in September. Partita for
Solo Violin—tim fain Plays Philip
Glass was released by Orange
Mountain Music in April 2015.
GREGORY HALL’s (Composition ’86)
template for advanced classical
piano improvisation, Compositional
Improvisations Vol. I: Water, was
recently published by the American
Composers Alliance and received
an improvisational premiere by
pianist Jesse Feinberg in October
at the Unitarian Universalist Church
in Brunswick, Maine.
SOLOMIYA IVAKHIV (Violin ’03)
is featured with pianist Angelina
Gadeliya on a new CD, Journey to
freedom—a Century of ukrainian
Classical Music, released in February
on Labor Records.
In September PAUL JACOBS (Organ
’00) released a recording with
soprano Christine Brewer, divine
Redeemer, on Naxos Records.
In September Cedille Records
released filament, a new recording
by eighth blackbird, including
YVONNE LAM (Violin ’05).
ACHILLES LIARMAKOPOULOS
(Trombone ’08) is featured on a
new album by the Canadian Brass.
Perfect Landing was released in
November on the Opening Day
Entertainment label.
JENNIFER LIM (Piano ’98) and
KATHERINE NEEDLEMAN (Oboe ’99)
recorded duos for oboe and
Piano for the GENUIN label. It was
released in February and includes
Schumann’s Romances, Op. 94,
Poulenc’s Sonata for Oboe and
Piano, Pavel Haas’s Suite for
Oboe and Piano, Op. 17, and
DAVID LUDWIG’s (Composition ’01)
Pleaides: Seven Microludes.
MARK LUDWIG (Viola ’79, ’80) is
the editor of a poetry anthology,
Liberation: new Works on freedom
from Internationally Renowned
Poets, celebrating 63 poets from
25 countries. The anthology was
published in October and is available
from Beacon Press and Liberarte.org.
MICHAEL LUDWIG’s (Violin ’82)
performance of the Sibelius
Violin Concerto with the Buffalo
Philharmonic Orchestra and JoAnn
Falletta is featured on the CD
the Essential Sibelius (Beau Fleuve
Records), released in October.
Musical studies faculty member
THOMAS PATTESON’s new book,
Instruments for new Music: Sound,
technology, and Modernism, has
been published by the University
of California Press. It’s a history
of experimental music technologies
in Germany during the 1920s and
1930s, exploring how inventors,
musicians, and composers used
player pianos, electric instruments,
and recording media to create
unprecedented forms of musical
expression.
ZINA SCHIFF’s (Violin ’69) newest
CD is franck, Bloch, and Krein,
released by MSR Classics in October.
Last July Warner Classics released
a seven-CD set conducted by
JOSÉ SEREBRIER (Composition ’58).
dvořák: Complete Symphonies,
Legends, Slavonic dances features
the Bournemouth Symphony.
CRAIG SHEPPARD (Piano ’68) is
featured on dmitri Shostakovich |
24 Preludes and fugues, opus 87,
released on the Roméo label in
September.
Last summer MALWINA SOSNOWSKI
(Violin ’09) released Paul Juon:
Complete Works for two Violins
and Piano on the Musiques
Suisses label.
In November Bridge Records
released Volume 2 of its retrospective
series on BENITA VALENTE
(Voice ’60). This CD is devoted to
recordings made between 1980
and 1985.
In July GIDEON WHITEHEAD
(Guitar ’14) released his second
solo album, fiesta!, featuring
much-loved classics from South
and Central America. It is available
for purchase through his website:
www.gideonwhitehead.com.
Centaur released WANCHI HUANG’s
(Violin ’90) second CD in October,
featuring Bach’s six sonatas and
partitas for solo violin.
CHRISTINA AND MICHELLE
NAUGHTON (Piano ’11) signed a
recording contract with Warner
Classics in the fall. Their debut
recording, Visions, was released
in February.
40 OVertONeS SpriNg 2016

Blair Bollinger, left, with bass
trombone student Jahleel Smith.
LEGACY CREATOR
BLAIR BOLLINGER
Philadelphia Orchestra bass trombonist, Curtis alumnus,
and faculty member since 1997, Blair is passing on his
musical legacy to the next generation of young musicians
not only through his teaching but also by utilizing his
exceptional talent in coordinating our brass ensembles.
With Blair’s planned gift to Curtis to include his extensive
trombone and sheet music collection, future students
instruments in the world.
YOUR LEGACY.
THE WORLD WILL LISTEN.
Curtis is a unique global resource for musical talent, sustained by
the foresight and generosity of supporters like Blair Bollinger.
For more information about including Curtis in your estate plan,
call Charles Sterne, director of planned giving, (215) 717-3126.

1726 Locust Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103
NONPROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
pAiD
CURTIS INSTITUTE
OF MUSIC
address service requested
Standing: Theodore Saidenberg (Piano ’35), Mrs. Harry Kaufman, Efrem Zimbalist, Mrs. Josef Hofmann, Harry Kaufman, Harriet van Emden, Iso Briselli (Violin ’34),
Felix Slatkin (Violin ’33). Seated: Joseph Rubanoff (Piano ’32), Eleanor Lewis (Voice ’30), Florence Stern, Paceli Diamond (’34), Elizabeth Westmoreland
(Accompanying ’36), Frances Sheridan (Voice ’35), Selma Amansky (Opera ’34), Lois zu Putlitz (Violin ’31), Paul Gershman (Violin ’32) PHOTO: CURTIS ARCHIVES
CURTIS FACULTY AND STUDENTS IN NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT, SUMMER 1929
During Curtis’s first decades, founder Mary Louise Curtis Bok supported students’ lessons with faculty during the summer. In the
1920s, faculty took students to various locations, including New London, Conn. Here, in 1929, faculty members Efrem Zimbalist
(Violin), Harriet van Emden (Voice), and Harry Kaufman (Accompanying) gathered with students. Soon after, during the Great
Depression, Mrs. Bok bought up the harbor of Rockport, Maine, along with surrounding land, to establish a new retreat for students
and faculty. Through the 1930s and 1940s Rockport would become the school’s summer music colony.