On October 14th, 2009 I attended a concert in Bryan Hall. The concert, also known as Praecepta, featured many BGSU composition major’s pieces. The first piece, Emergence, was by far my favorite piece performed at this concert. It featured six different trombones and when each trombone played a different part all together, it made this brilliant sound that gave me goosebumps. The next piece, Lost at Sea, featured a violin and a soprano. This was very short in length and had a bit of a musical theme to it. Duo for Two Flutes didn’t interest me too much but I can see a flute major loving this piece. The next piece, CJ’s Night Out, was a piano solo and was performed by the composer himself. This had a jazz sound to it and seemed very difficult. The second last piece performed, Of Wood and Water, was a solo for bass clarinet. This didn’t interest as much as the others because it had a classical sound to it. The last piece, Upload, was a piece written for alto saxophone and electronics. This piece impressed me quite a lot! The alto saxophone sound was played around with and produced awesome sounds. I especially loved this piece because the composer, Dan Tramte, is my aural skills graduate assistant.
On September 20th at 3 PM, I attended Nina Assimakopoulos’ recital in the Great Gallery at the Toledo Art Museum. Assimakopoulos played a piece for each work of art that surrounded her. She gave a brief explanation of how the music and the work of art connected and then let us hear for ourselves. Before this recital , I knew there was a connection between art and music, but had never experienced it. The connections Assimakopoulos made were astounding. I heard and saw a story painted and played at the same time. The colors of the music, the phrasing, helped enhance the art work. I feel that this recital helped me greatly with picking out a piece of art for my New Music and Arts Festival project. From Assimakopoulos’ descriptions and playing, I am starting to understand the collaboration of music and art better. I plan on using art as a source of inspiration in my playing in the future.
Caitlin Guenther
Soprano Recital
On December 5 I saw a vocal soprano recital. The performer was Tammie Bradley. She had flown in from Houston because I guess right now she is performing in a choir in Houston. She had to be one of the best vocalist I had ever heard. I don’t usually go to vocal performances, but I knew that this on was a good one. When I asked my friend about it he told me that she was an amazing singer and he was upset that he missed it. She sang a lot of songs that were in a a different language, but the expressions she showed on her face made it easier for me to understand what the pieces were about. The last song that she sang was “He Has the Whole World in His Hands.” This was a very moving piece for her and a lot of her friends and family in the audience. When the song was over there were a lot of people crying. It was a great performance.
Don Quixote was performed in Kobacker Hall on November the sixth.The performance of Don Quixote was one of the most amazing operas that I have ever seen. Having been to one before I sort of knew what to expect when I walked in the door to see it. The coolest thing about this show was how they got all of the puppets to work the way they did. It was just amazing. I liked the story in the first act. It was the story that helped build up the story we know and love which is Don Quixote. This show just cracked me up and I couldn’t believe the story it was just that good. In the show I loved the way that everything flowed it just made me feel like I was there in the story right next to Don Quixote. Another thing that I enjoyed with the production was the fact that the pit orchestra was phenomenal. I felt that the music was performed well and that without the music in this case the story would not have been as good. I just love how the entire show was put together. To me I felt there were no mistakes or flaws in the production. I would love to participate in one sometime.
I saw one of the most energetic, exciting performances of my life on Thursday, December 3rd, 2009. The Kusuma Sari Balinese Gamelan, Afro-Caribbean Ensemble, and the Hayabusa Taiko Ensemble were all participates in World Percussion Night. The show started with a procession of all the performers. The performers marched to a slow, clamoring beat that turned heads as they passed. The Kusuma Sari Balinese Gamelan began the concert. They also had a soloist who danced in a traditional style and performed on the Trompong. I thought it was a very nice touch to have dancers accompany the drumming ensembles because dancing is very often associated with rhythm. When the Afro-Caribbean ensemble performed I couldn’t help but tap my foot along. I wanted to get up and dance with the ensemble. They energy that the group of dancers showed was incredible. I had never seen anything like that before. The Taiko Ensemble was magnificent. I was in awe at how much effort it took to play those drums. The muscles on the performers’ arms could be seen every time they hit the drums. The volume was incredible too. I could feel the beat resonating throughout the entire room. I enjoyed the concert so much that I wanted to hear more. It was a great experience as well as performance.
I went to the Manor nursing home on Thursday December 10th. We sang Christmas carols to the residents at the home. While I was there I was able to experience something that I have for the past 4 years; however the feeling of pride you get when you see the residents faces light up when you start to sing is amazing. Even after 4 years having them simply thank you for being there makes something inside me not only swell with pride but also sadness. When a woman come up to us and told us that our singing brought her to tears. I myself was ready to start balling. When we had a woman request a song from us and it was so sweet when she started to sing along with us. It is amazing to me how the smallest gestures during the holiday season or at any time can have the biggest and most lasting effect on people.
On Thursday December 10, 2009 a group of talented musicians from our BGSU 1000 class played their instruments and sang for the residents at Blakely Nursing Home. The entertainment started when a brass trio played a few well known classic Christmas songs which the residents seemed to really enjoy. The group of singers then took the stage to sing Christmas Carols but because of an overwhelming reaction of joy from the residents we started to take requests from the audience. The group of us were so overjoyed to perform for such a gracious group of people. As a performer I am always touched when I can see joy on people’s face as I sing for them. I felt that this was a perfect service project for our class being that we are musicians and sharing our talents with people truly deserving of them makes me feel really good inside.
On Thursday December 10, 2009 our class went to sing for residents at nursing homes. I love doing service projects that are unique and show off talents. Also, the people always really appreciate it. It’s nice to bring them holiday cheer. Our group also included the brass trio, which was nice because it showed off talents that not everyone has. Anyone can sing christmas songs, but not everyone can play an instrument. I thought that our group had a very good handle on our tunes. It was nice because our audience wouldn’t have cared if we weren’t music majors, they wouldn’t have cared if we didn’t sound very good, they were just happy that we were there. It was nice to see the smiles on their faces as we sang for them, and it was even nicer when they began to sing along. I feel like we really brightened up their day. After we finished our planned set list, we took requests, some of these songs didn’t go very well, but again, they were very appreciative that we were there to sing to them. It was a very rewarding and fulfilling experience.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
On October 14th, 2009 I attended a concert in Bryan Hall. The concert, also known as Praecepta, featured many BGSU composition major’s pieces. The first piece, Emergence, was by far my favorite piece performed at this concert. It featured six different trombones and when each trombone played a different part all together, it made this brilliant sound that gave me goosebumps. The next piece, Lost at Sea, featured a violin and a soprano. This was very short in length and had a bit of a musical theme to it. Duo for Two Flutes didn’t interest me too much but I can see a flute major loving this piece. The next piece, CJ’s Night Out, was a piano solo and was performed by the composer himself. This had a jazz sound to it and seemed very difficult. The second last piece performed, Of Wood and Water, was a solo for bass clarinet. This didn’t interest as much as the others because it had a classical sound to it. The last piece, Upload, was a piece written for alto saxophone and electronics. This piece impressed me quite a lot! The alto saxophone sound was played around with and produced awesome sounds. I especially loved this piece because the composer, Dan Tramte, is my aural skills graduate assistant.
November 27th, 2009 at 11:31 am
Lauren Oberle
BGSU 1000
On September 20th at 3 PM, I attended Nina Assimakopoulos’ recital in the Great Gallery at the Toledo Art Museum. Assimakopoulos played a piece for each work of art that surrounded her. She gave a brief explanation of how the music and the work of art connected and then let us hear for ourselves. Before this recital , I knew there was a connection between art and music, but had never experienced it. The connections Assimakopoulos made were astounding. I heard and saw a story painted and played at the same time. The colors of the music, the phrasing, helped enhance the art work. I feel that this recital helped me greatly with picking out a piece of art for my New Music and Arts Festival project. From Assimakopoulos’ descriptions and playing, I am starting to understand the collaboration of music and art better. I plan on using art as a source of inspiration in my playing in the future.
December 8th, 2009 at 10:08 am
Caitlin Guenther
Soprano Recital
On December 5 I saw a vocal soprano recital. The performer was Tammie Bradley. She had flown in from Houston because I guess right now she is performing in a choir in Houston. She had to be one of the best vocalist I had ever heard. I don’t usually go to vocal performances, but I knew that this on was a good one. When I asked my friend about it he told me that she was an amazing singer and he was upset that he missed it. She sang a lot of songs that were in a a different language, but the expressions she showed on her face made it easier for me to understand what the pieces were about. The last song that she sang was “He Has the Whole World in His Hands.” This was a very moving piece for her and a lot of her friends and family in the audience. When the song was over there were a lot of people crying. It was a great performance.
December 8th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Don Quixote was performed in Kobacker Hall on November the sixth.The performance of Don Quixote was one of the most amazing operas that I have ever seen. Having been to one before I sort of knew what to expect when I walked in the door to see it. The coolest thing about this show was how they got all of the puppets to work the way they did. It was just amazing. I liked the story in the first act. It was the story that helped build up the story we know and love which is Don Quixote. This show just cracked me up and I couldn’t believe the story it was just that good. In the show I loved the way that everything flowed it just made me feel like I was there in the story right next to Don Quixote. Another thing that I enjoyed with the production was the fact that the pit orchestra was phenomenal. I felt that the music was performed well and that without the music in this case the story would not have been as good. I just love how the entire show was put together. To me I felt there were no mistakes or flaws in the production. I would love to participate in one sometime.
December 8th, 2009 at 8:13 pm
I saw one of the most energetic, exciting performances of my life on Thursday, December 3rd, 2009. The Kusuma Sari Balinese Gamelan, Afro-Caribbean Ensemble, and the Hayabusa Taiko Ensemble were all participates in World Percussion Night. The show started with a procession of all the performers. The performers marched to a slow, clamoring beat that turned heads as they passed. The Kusuma Sari Balinese Gamelan began the concert. They also had a soloist who danced in a traditional style and performed on the Trompong. I thought it was a very nice touch to have dancers accompany the drumming ensembles because dancing is very often associated with rhythm. When the Afro-Caribbean ensemble performed I couldn’t help but tap my foot along. I wanted to get up and dance with the ensemble. They energy that the group of dancers showed was incredible. I had never seen anything like that before. The Taiko Ensemble was magnificent. I was in awe at how much effort it took to play those drums. The muscles on the performers’ arms could be seen every time they hit the drums. The volume was incredible too. I could feel the beat resonating throughout the entire room. I enjoyed the concert so much that I wanted to hear more. It was a great experience as well as performance.
December 11th, 2009 at 1:17 am
I went to the Manor nursing home on Thursday December 10th. We sang Christmas carols to the residents at the home. While I was there I was able to experience something that I have for the past 4 years; however the feeling of pride you get when you see the residents faces light up when you start to sing is amazing. Even after 4 years having them simply thank you for being there makes something inside me not only swell with pride but also sadness. When a woman come up to us and told us that our singing brought her to tears. I myself was ready to start balling. When we had a woman request a song from us and it was so sweet when she started to sing along with us. It is amazing to me how the smallest gestures during the holiday season or at any time can have the biggest and most lasting effect on people.
December 11th, 2009 at 11:04 am
Nursing Home Trip
On Thursday December 10, 2009 a group of talented musicians from our BGSU 1000 class played their instruments and sang for the residents at Blakely Nursing Home. The entertainment started when a brass trio played a few well known classic Christmas songs which the residents seemed to really enjoy. The group of singers then took the stage to sing Christmas Carols but because of an overwhelming reaction of joy from the residents we started to take requests from the audience. The group of us were so overjoyed to perform for such a gracious group of people. As a performer I am always touched when I can see joy on people’s face as I sing for them. I felt that this was a perfect service project for our class being that we are musicians and sharing our talents with people truly deserving of them makes me feel really good inside.
December 14th, 2009 at 8:37 pm
On Thursday December 10, 2009 our class went to sing for residents at nursing homes. I love doing service projects that are unique and show off talents. Also, the people always really appreciate it. It’s nice to bring them holiday cheer. Our group also included the brass trio, which was nice because it showed off talents that not everyone has. Anyone can sing christmas songs, but not everyone can play an instrument. I thought that our group had a very good handle on our tunes. It was nice because our audience wouldn’t have cared if we weren’t music majors, they wouldn’t have cared if we didn’t sound very good, they were just happy that we were there. It was nice to see the smiles on their faces as we sang for them, and it was even nicer when they began to sing along. I feel like we really brightened up their day. After we finished our planned set list, we took requests, some of these songs didn’t go very well, but again, they were very appreciative that we were there to sing to them. It was a very rewarding and fulfilling experience.