eAlumNotes Summer 2010 :: San Francisco Conservatory of Music

eAlumNotes Summer 2010

Dear Alumni:

Where did the summer go? Or did it ever begin? Though the fog refuses to retreat from the Civic Center, the 2010-2011 academic year is already upon us at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. New and returning students are slowly trickling back to 50 Oak Street in anticipation of the next (or first) round of auditions, classes and performances.

Speaking of performances, the Conservatory has another phenomenal season of concerts and recitals in store. You can view the full season calendar here. I encourage all alumni living in the Bay Area, and even those who have moved beyond Northern California, to attend as many performances as you can! Supporting our current students and faculty as audience members is one easy way to reconnect with your alma mater.

In addition to the annual calendar performances, alumni-specific events are also being planned. Here is a sample of things to come this year:

Alumni Recital and Reception
Last year’s biggest alumni event was such a huge success, we are making it an annual occurrence! Join us on Wednesday, August 25 for a kick-off reception from 6-7 pm to meet and mingle with new, current and past Conservatory students, followed by a special evening of alumni performances from 7-8 pm. Featured performers include Quartet Rouge (fresh from their successful run in Green Day’s American Idiot), The Avenue Winds, pianist Brenda Tom Vahur ’83, vocalists Raeeka Shehabi-Yaghmai ‘02 and Jennifer Martin ‘05 and more! Mark your calendars and be sure to RSVP with Michael Williams at mwilliams@sfcm.edu or 415.503.6245.

Alumni Studio Classes
Alumni Studio Classes in violin, piano and composition were also marvelously successful last year, and we will bring more installments this fall for an expanded list of majors. One date is already confirmed: Be on the lookout for an Alumni Opera Audition Class on Tuesday, October 5, led by our stellar opera department.

Chamber Music 25th Anniversary Celebration
The Conservatory celebrates the 25th anniversary of its chamber music program, the nation’s first, with special events throughout the year. Our fall Celebration Concert, on Friday, November 5, brings together alumni in conjunction with a visit from cellist Bonnie Hampton, one of the program’s original guiding lights. Watch for further details in the weeks to come.

NEW EVENT! Career Seminar
Talks are also underway to produce a Career Seminar in the spring semester, with recent and not-so-recent graduates, Bay Area performers and arts leaders discussing what it takes to get ahead in today’s music marketplace. Many alumni have requested career-oriented events over the past year, so this could be the first of many such activities.

Find Us on Facebook, Follow Us on Twitter
When you last heard from us via eAlumNotes, the Conservatory had nearly 1,350 “fans” on Facebook. There are now nearly 2,100! If you are not already following our updates, you can “like” us here: www.facebook.com/SFConservatoryofMusic.

Do you “tweet?” Of course you do—so follow our Twitter feed @SFConservMusic. Both social networking sites are the perfect medium for current students, alumni, concertgoers and donors to keep up with Conservatory happenings.

Access to 50 Oak Street
Alumni can gain access to 50 Oak Street simply by filling out the form found here. Once completed, you may either fax the form back to us at 415.503.6288, email it to alum@sfcm.edu or, of course, hand it to a member of the advancement staff in person. If you also wish to check out materials from the Conservatory library, you may include your credit card number for a one-time fee of $50. We would be happy to send you the receipt.

As always, there is even more in store. I urge you to stay connected and to update us with your achievements. I thank you for your support during the past year and wish you a fantastic fall.

Thank you,
Gary Rust, M.D. (B.M. piano, ’83)
Alumni Network Committee Chair
Board of Trustees

Alumni Recital and Reception
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Reception 6:00-7:00 p.m., alumni performances 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Back by popular demand, alumni concert and reception for new and returning Conservatory students.

check out full the performance calendar

I won’t mention those who were unable to accept my invitation to participate, since they are still being treated for severe depression. Instead, let me happily name the names of them who were onstage, with or without me, at various points throughout the evening:

Jeffrey Anderson, Barbara Bogatin, John Engelkes, Mario Guarneri, Wei He, Mark Inouye, Katie Kadarauch, Mark Lawrence, Justin Lee, Scott Macomber, Alasdair Neale, Jonathan Ring, Bruce Roberts, Richard Roper, Jerome Simas, Adam Smyla, Axel Strauss, Noah Strick, Stephen Tramontozzi, Robert Ward, Rob Weir, Paul Welcomer, Michael Williams, Amos Yang and Chen Zhao.

If that’s not an A-list of players to match the A-list in our audience, then I don’t know what is. One particular moment of interest to me was the Pierné sonata, which involved myself, the seniormost grizzled alumnus whose diploma was printed on parchment (modern paper not having yet been invented), and Justin Lee, the newest Conservatory alumnus (on whose diploma the ink hadn’t yet completely dried). The music triumphed (as it did throughout the entire evening), and there were no traffic accidents reported between skateboard and wheelchair...

I was most gratified to read the uniformly enthusiastic comments from audience members, and I was elated to learn that income generated by the gala exceeded projected revenue by $100,000! But the real serendipity for me lay in having been responsible for the convention of this extraordinary group of individuals—musicians united in chamber music, that most intimate of musical endeavors.

Aside from our love of music, which existed before any of us knew of the Conservatory, we were able, for one splendidly joyous evening, to revisit the nest in which so very many new sets of wings were discovered and tried out.

Alumni Spotlight: Some Thoughts on our 2010 Conservatory Gala
by Robin Sutherland (B.M., piano, ‘75)
Music Director, Conservatory Gala 2010
Principal Pianist, San Francisco Symphony

The most important fundraising event on our annual calendar is the Conservatory Gala, which occurred this year on June 9. We called it “Celebrating Our Own,” and it was dedicated to the memory of Caroline H. “Betty” Hume, one of the school’s unforgettable benefactors.

Betty Hume provided the lead gift which set in motion The Seminal Event in the Conservatory’s long and distinguished history—its move from the Sunset District to 50 Oak Street. Assuming its rightful place as an institutional member of the city’s performing arts district, the Conservatory has joined the Symphony, Opera and Ballet on equal geographical footing.

My participation in previous galas has been as audience member and dinner guest (excellent!), as audience member and table host (also excellent, but rather more expensive!), and as performer and dinner guest (more work, but still excellent!). When Colin Murdoch put me in complete charge of the music for this year’s gala, I was intrigued at first, then challenged, then panic-stricken.

Not on account of the music itself, of course, which was pretty much unassailable. Beginning with two antiphonal brass fanfares of Giovanni Gabrieli, the performance continued with Aaron Copland’s own chamber version of Appalachian Spring, and concluded with a seldom-heard twentieth-century sonata for flute and piano by Gabriel Pierné. (I put the accent on flute, as it was well known to have been Betty Hume’s favorite instrument.)

The panic was due to the one and only requirement given to me—every musician had to have some Conservatory connection, be it alumnus or faculty. (Two of the performers—violinist Wei He and bassist Stephen Tramontozzi—hold both distinctions!) But if anything, the Conservatory’s “offspring” are too good, meaning they tend to be too involved in the vibrant musical life of the Bay Area, and then there arises the problem of scheduling. Even our date, June 9, was not easily arrived at; as it was, we ended up with a perfectly timed conflict—the Opera’s opening performance of La fanciulla del West. Unfortunate, to be sure, but also unavoidable.

The Afiara String Quartet, featuring Yuri Cho (Artist Certificate, violin, ‘06), Adrian Fung (B.M., violin, ‘08) and David Samuel (Artist Certificate, viola, ‘06), has been named a co-winner of the Young Canadian Musician Awards, earning a $25,000 cash prize. The quartet will appear with the other award winner, Montreal pianist Wonny Song, in a joint performance October 31 in Toronto. This year marks both the first time a group has won the award and the first time the award has been granted to more than one recipient.

Several Conservatory affiliates have found their way to the Lamplighters Music Theatre stage, playing roles in the company’s upcoming production of Gilbert and Sullivan favorite The Pirates of Penzance. Katy Daniel (Postgraduate Diploma, voice, ‘04) and current student Sara Couden are double cast as Ruth, while Michael Desnoyers (M.M., voice, ‘10) plays the role of Frederic.

Three Conservatory alumni are currently involved in Project 440, a new method of commissioning chamber orchestra pieces from up-and-coming composers developed by Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and WQXR in New York. Robin Estrada (M.M., composition, ‘05), Devin Farney (M.M., composition, ‘09) and Jonathan Russell (M.M., composition, ‘03) are among 60 candidates in the first installment of Project 440. Each has posted a bio and audio clips on the WQXR website, giving listeners the chance to weigh in on their favorite composers. (See http://www.orpheusproject440.org.) Two more rounds of selection will reduce the number of candidates from 60 to 30, then from 30 to 12. Four winners will be chosen in October and will receive commissions from the orchestra.

Joshua Fishbein (M.M., composition, ‘09), a former student of David Conte, was recently selected as one of three winners of The Esoterics’ 2010-2011 POLYPHONOS Competition. As a competition winner, he receives a commission from the Seattle-based vocal ensemble to plan and compose a new choral work to be premiered in October 2011. In addition to this commission, Fishbein will receive $1,000 plus airfare and accommodations to attend the Seattle premiere of his commissioned work.

Scott Glasgow (M.M., composition, ‘99), a former student of Conrad Susa, is scoring the feature film The Legend Of Awesomest Maximus for National Lampoon. He also recently released the CD Lo, in a unique horror-comedy style using harpsichord, Koshkin-style plucked guitar and violin solos, on Movie Score Media. Since graduating from the Conservatory, he has released seven CDs and composed ten feature film scores with orchestras in Prague, Bratislava and Los Angeles.

Paul Hanson (B.M., bassoon, ‘97) provides an update on his recent activities, involving performances with Paul Dresher, John Adams, Terry Riley and other contemporary composers, plus integrating the bassoon into unconventional contexts such as performances with Bela Fleck & the Flecktones. He writes, “In 2008 I was cast in a unique role as the electric bassoonist in Cirque du Soleil’s new Tokyo resident show ZED. I am blessed to have a job that pays very well plus a great benefits package—all because I followed my dream of doing something with my bassoon education and thinking outside the box.”

Jeffrey Kahane (B.M., piano, ‘77) recently concluded a highly successful five-year tenure as music director of the Colorado Symphony in order to concentrate on his solo piano career. The Denver Post enthused that “[Kahane] is a conductor of uncommon intellect, insight and musical integrity . . . and it [is] easy to imagine him leading the orchestra for another five years or more.”

Roberto Kalb (B.M., composition, ‘09), a former student of Elinor Armer, won the Ann Arbor Film Festival’s 2010 Sight and Sound Competition. His piece Rêve was performed by the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of maestro Arie Lipsky in the historic Michigan Theater. The performance marked his debut with a professional orchestra. Kalb is currently a master’s student at the University of Michigan, studying with Evan Chambers.

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JooWan Kim (M.M., composition, ‘06) and his Ensemble Mik Nawooj, along with Push Dance Company, premiered his chamber hip-hop opera Great Integration in June at San Francisco’s ODC Commons. The story, according to the ensemble’s press release, goes as follows: “Black swordsman of dominance is chosen as the one to trigger the great integration of the world before the arrival of celestial king. When all the five lords of material realm are conquered, the old world we know will merge into one and the great celestial king will descend from ninth heaven to wipe out all the impurities of the world, thus creating a new world with brand new paradigm.” The ensemble also performed excerpts from the opera in July at Yoshi’s San Francisco.

Myung-Ji Lee (B.M., piano, ‘08), a former student of Mack McCray, won honorable mention in the 18th Japan Junior Classical Music Competition, hosted by the Tokyo International Association of Artists. (No first, second or third prizes were awarded.) As a result, she made her solo debut in Tokyo’s Nippori Sunny Hall on June 26.

Chi-shing Leung (M.M., clarinet, ‘08), a former student of Ben Freimuth, has conducted the Wind Orchestra of Chinese University, Hong Kong since fall 2009. He also performed as solo clarinetist in the musical theatre production Rock Hard in Shanghai Grand Theatre on May 9, an event of the Shanghai Expo 2010 and Shanghai Spring International Music Festival.

Jonathan Mendle (M.M., guitar, ‘10) is performing with superstar cellist Yo-Yo Ma and his Silk Road Ensemble for their August tour, which includes concerts in Philadelphia, Detroit, Cleveland and the Tanglewood Music Center, among others. Follow along with Mendle’s blog at http://travelingwiththesilkroad.blogspot.com.

Keisuke Nakagoshi (B.M., composition, ‘03; M.M., piano chamber music, ‘06) won first prize in the Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition with his piano duet ZOFO (along with partner Eva-Maria Zimmermann) and performed in the winner’s concert at Carnegie Hall on May 23.

Eleazar Rodríguez (B.M., voice, ‘10) earned rave reviews for his July performance in the Schwabacher Summer Concert, featuring members of the San Francisco Opera’s Merola opera program. The San Francisco Chronicle hailed a “magnificently alluring love duet between tenor Eleazar Rodríguez and soprano Janai Brugger-Orman, a feast of limpid harmonies and resplendent high notes,” while San Francisco Classical Voice compared Rodríguez favorably to Charles Castronovo and James Taylor and also termed him “an exceptional comic singing actor.”

On July 15, The Wall Street Journal profiled a fascinating discovery by Gonzalo Ruiz (B.M., oboe, ‘90) surrounding J.S. Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B Minor. While searching for Baroque flute repertory that could be transposed to oboe, Ruiz discovered that several compositional difficulties in Bach’s suite—known for its prominent solo flute part—are resolved when the piece is transposed to the more oboe-friendly key of A Minor. In view of Bach’s known penchant for recycling his own works, and a common eighteenth-century practice of substituting flutes for oboes, Ruiz and other scholars now believe Bach originally scored this piece for oboe rather than flute.

Phillip W. Serna (B.M., double bass, ‘99) won the 2010 Early Music America Outreach Award for his outreach program, “Viols in Our Schools.” The award, presented at the Berkeley Early Music Festival in June, honors excellence in outreach/educational projects and comes with a $1,000 cash prize. Since its inception in 2006, Serna’s program has worked to make period-instrument performance for viols a vital part of local school communities through collaborative performances, in-school recitals and day-long residencies in locations throughout Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

James N. Taylor (B.M., horn, ‘88), 3rd/associate principal horn of the Pacific Symphony, performed with the Rowland Ensemble (comprising members of the Pacific Symphony) on June 18 in Yorba Linda, California. The program included four new works by Taylor, who studied composition with David Conte during 1984-85.

Tell us what you are up to! Please email Alex Brose at awb@sfcm.edu with your updates, accolades and announcements.

Auditions:

Organization: Binghamton Philharmonic
Position: Assistant Concertmaster; Section Violin; Section Viola; Section Cello; Section Bass; Oboe II/English Horn; Clarinet II
Application Deadline: Aug. 31, 2010
Audition Dates: Sept. 18 & 19, 2010
Website: http://www.binghamtonphilharmonic.org
/auditions.aspx

Organization: Fort Wayne Philharmonic
Position: Second Bassoon; Third Oboe
Application Deadline: Aug. 1, 2010 (local); Sept. 21, 2010 (national)
Audition Dates: Aug. 23, 2010 (local); Sept. 20, 2010 (national)
Website: http://www.fwphil.org
/aboutus.asp?s=110

Organization: Oregon Symphony
Position: Section Violin
Application Deadline: Sept. 1, 2010
Audition Dates: Oct. 4-6, 2010
Website: http://www.orsymphony.org
/orchestra/auditions.aspx#ad2

Organization: Oregon Symphony
Position: Percussion
Application Deadline: Sept. 1, 2010
Audition Dates: Sept. 26-29, 2010
Website: http://www.orsymphony.org
/orchestra/auditions.aspx#ad1

Organization: Marin Symphony
Position: Principal Horn
Application Deadline: Sept. 6, 2010
Audition Dates: Sept. 18, 2010
Website: http://www.marinsymphony.org
/images/PrincipalHorn_audition10.pdf

Organization: Marin Symphony
Position: Section Cello
Application Deadline: Sept. 6, 2010
Audition Dates: Sept. 17, 2010
Website: http://www.marinsymphony.org
/images/SectionCello_audition10.pdf

Job Openings:

Position: Various
Organization: San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Description: Numerous job openings at the Conservatory.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://sfcm.snaphire.com/form
Contact: see website
Send to: see website

Position: PR and Publications Assistant
Organization: Pacific Symphony
Description: Key duties and responsibilities include coordinating and preparation for the production of program books; coordination of Classical 91.5 KUSC live broadcasts; managing PR archives; photo resources; communications calendar and guest artist biography files. Involvement in social media is an important part of this job.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.pacificsymphony.org
/res/pdfs/PR_and_Publications
_Assistant_(7-8-10).pdf
Contact: see website
Send to: see website

Position: Special Events Assistant
Organization: Pacific Symphony
Description: The Special Events Assistant is a full-time position reporting to the Director of Special Events. This position requires a very detail-oriented, organized individual whose role is instrumental in supporting a very busy special events program for the Development Department of the Pacific Symphony. These events include pre-concert dinners and receptions, post-concert receptions, patron luncheons, private cocktail and dinner events in patrons’ homes, support group fundraising events, support group field trips, season openings, Pacific Coast Wine Festival and the annual gala.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.pacificsymphony.org/res/pdfs/
Special_Events_Assistant_(6-10).pdf
Contact: see website
Send to: see website

Position: Vice President of Development
Organization: Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Description: To lead a talented Development team charged with cultivating, establishing and maintaining all donor relations and planning and directing all fundraising policies and activities. Responsibilities include both managing a development team and being directly engaged in developing, launching and managing activities related to individual and corporate fundraising campaigns, grants, sponsorships, public funding and endowment campaigns. Additional responsibilities include activities related to the United Performing Arts Fund (UPAF), liaison for the MSO League, board and board activities and management responsibilities as a senior officer of the MSO.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.mso.org
/main.taf?p=2,7
Contact: Don Tyler, Interim President & Executive Director
Send to: hr@mso.org

In Memoriam: Michael Moore (1945-2009)

The Conservatory regretfully announces the passing of alumnus Michael Moore on April 22, 2010. Moore received a B.M. from the Conservatory in 1968 and an M.M. in 1973, later earning his doctoral degree from the University of Arizona. He held faculty positions at Lone Mountain College in San Francisco, The University of Texas at San Antonio and Pima Community College in Tucson. He also competed in several amateur piano competitions, winning the Rocky Mountain Amateur Piano Competition in Colorado Springs in 2007 and making the finals of the Gina Bachauer and Van Cliburn International Amateur competitions. According to Moore’s longtime partner, John Johnson, “Mike often spoke of those years he spent at the Conservatory. . . . Milton Salkind was a big influence on Mike and was the reason Mike studied at the Conservatory.”

Recent Visits:

Doug Hall (M.M., horn, ’85) stopped by 50 Oak Street for the first time while in San Francisco in July. Hall, who has played with the San Diego Symphony for more than 20 years, was in the Bay Area for an Orchestra Management Conference sponsored by the San Francisco Symphony.

Warren Jones (M.M., piano accompanying, ’77) was granted an honorary doctorate degree from the Conservatory prior to his commencement address at this year’s graduation ceremonies. The key to success, as Jones put it, was to “be excellent” as recent graduates embark on a path serving music.

Chun Kit “Louis” Siu (B.M., percussion ’08) returned to campus in August during a brief visit to the Bay Area from Hong Kong. Regularly playing with the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Siu has also been traveling by ferry to Macao to play percussion with the Macao Orchestra.

Job Openings, cont.

Position: Director of Development-Individual Giving
Organization: Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Description: Responsibilities include assisting in the overall planning, goal setting and implementation of fundraising strategy for individual giving divisions and creating, directing and implementing—with the assistance of the development staff—a comprehensive funding strategy for acquiring, maintaining and upgrading donors for general operations and special projects, ensuring revenue goals are met.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.mso.org/main.taf?p=2,7
Contact: Don Tyler, Interim President & Executive Director
Send to: hr@mso.org

Position: Annual Fund Manager
Organization: Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Description: To manage and support the Development team in the acquisition of funding through the Annual Fund—individual gifts, corporate sponsorships, foundation & government grants, and special events.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.virginiasymphony.org/About
/Annual_Fund_Manager.html
Contact: see website
Send to: see website

Position: Marketing Coordinator
Organization: Los Angeles Philharmonic
Description: The Marketing Coordinator works closely with the Marketing Manager to implement direct marketing plans for all concerts presented by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.laphil.com/about
/jobs/details.cfm?id=336
Contact: see website
Send to: see website

Position: Production Manager
Organization: Los Angeles Philharmonic
Description: To manage production of concerts at the Hollywood Bowl and the Walt Disney Concert Hall, with particular attention to the Hollywood Bowl lease partners and production/maintenance needs.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.laphil.com/about
/jobs/details.cfm?id=336
Contact: see website
Send to: see website

Position: Major Gift Officer
Organization: Los Angeles Opera
Description: This position actively solicits donors for gifts of $3,500 and above. Activities will include hosting meals with donors and prospects, attending performances, and otherwise representing the L.A. Opera in a positive fashion to the donor community.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.laopera.com/company
/jobs.aspx
Contact: see website
Send to: jobs@laopera.com

Position: Development Assistant
Organization: Los Angeles Opera
Description: Responsibilities include processing gifts, drafting and preparing donor correspondence and acknowledgements, data mining and report generation, assisting with events, and helping to establish positive and responsive relationships with donors, prospects and Opera staff.
Deadline: until filled
Website: http://www.laopera.com/company
/jobs.aspx
Contact: see website
Send to: jobs@laopera.com

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eAlumNotes is a communication tool for Conservatory alumni. It is sent out three times per year with recent updates from your fellow alumni. In addition to this publication, at any time, you can find information on alumni in the new alumni sections of the website. To submit your current information, complete and return the update forms.
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