Students Learn Through Lessons from Legendary Opera Singer   
- Private lessons and masterclasses with opera great, Marilyn Horne -

(Norman, Okla)—“Ms. Horne’s masterclasses here at OU are always well attended,” says Tyrone Chambers, an alumni of the OU School of Music. “Not only by music students, but by their friends, other OU faculty members who are friends with Ms. Horne, the members of the OU Musical Theatre and Opera Guild are always there and others. It is usually a packed house.”

The University of Oklahoma School of Music welcomes back legendary opera mezzo soprano, Marilyn Horne, widely considered to be one of opera’s greatest singers. Horne will serve as a visiting faculty member within the OU School of Music, holding private lessons and masterclasses for OU’s voice students on Nov. 16-20. The masterclasses scheduled for 7 p.m. on both Tuesday, Nov. 17 and Friday, Nov. 20, in Pitman Recital Hall are free and open to the public, granting opera fans and music lovers a rare opportunity to see the outstanding singer up close, working with students in a small, intimate environment.

“I would suggest bringing paper and a pencil. Ms. Horne is always throwing out names and performances that anyone can find on YouTube or somewhere online. If anyone is interested in opera, it is a good idea to watch and listen to other singers perform,” says Chambers.

President David Boren asked Horne to become a visiting faculty member after her visit to OU to inaugurate the Paul F. Sharp Concert Hall during the dedication of the second phase of the University’s Catlett Music Center. He realized the impact someone of her stature could have on OU’s voice and opera students. Horne first began working with OU students in 1998.

“I have known and worked with Ms. Horne at the University of Oklahoma for quite a few years. She is such an asset to our education here,” says Célia Zambon, soprano, doctorial student in voice at OU School of Music. “She visits once a semester for a week to give us private lessons and masterclasses.”

“Ms. Horne cares a lot for her students, and I know I can always call her on the phone or send her an email if I need anything; she’s happy to help. She is a wonderful lady, who is on a mission to share her wealth of knowledge and experience with the next generation of classical musicians. Her coming to OU is a great gift and privilege,” says Zambon.

These masterclasses are free and open to the public and located in Pitman Recital Hall inside the Catlett Music Center at 500 W. Boyd Street, in the OU Arts District. Due to the intimate setting for the class, seating is limited.

For more information about Horne’s upcoming visit to OU, the masterclass, or for accommodations on the basis of disability, please contact the OU School of Music at (405) 325-2081. Please visit http://music.ou.edu/calendar.html for a full calendar of events and performances at the OU School of Music.

OU Symphony Orchestra Performs Protest Pieces for Fall Concert   
-Includes a special performance by the Richard Zielinski Singers-

(Norman, Okla)— The University of Oklahoma School of Music presents the OU Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Jonathan Shames, music director, in a concert entitled “Composers in Protest,” at 3 pm on Sunday, November 22 in Sharp Concert Hall. Appearing together with the orchestra will be Julie Davis, soprano; Rebekah Ambrosini, contralto; Bradley Williams, tenor, and for the first time in Norman, the Richard Zielinski Singers. Clarinetist Mark Billy, a student of David Etheridge and a winner of the 2008 OU School of Music Concerto Competition, will also appear on the program.

The concert includes Haydn’s “Farewell Symphony” and Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Suite from The Golden Cockerel,” as well as the concluding Allegro of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto. It features the rarely-performed cantata “Il Canto Sospeso” (“The Song Suspended”) by the Italian composer Luigi Nono, a 20th-century master. In this work, Nono sets the words of World War II resistance fighters on the eve of their execution, and the result is an austere, haunting protest against totalitarian violence.

“The first performance of the work in 1956 was one of the first artistic statements about the war. Its performance in Norman by our students brings this history very close to them and, we hope, to our audience as well,” says Jonathan Shames.

The Richard Zielinski Singers was founded in 2005 by its music director, Richard Zielinski, who this year became OU's director of choral activities. Consisting of 40 professional singers, the chorus inspires audiences with programs of contemporary choral works as well as great choral classics.

There will be a pre-concert roundtable discussion of the program at 2 pm, with OU scholars José Canoy of the History Department, and Michael Lee and Sarah Reichardt, both of the School of Music. The discussion is free and open the public, and takes place in Catlett’s Seminar Room.

All Sutton Series performances are in OU’s Catlett Music Center, 500 W. Boyd, in your OU Arts District! Tickets for Sutton Series events are $8 for adults and $5 for all students, OU faculty/staff and senior adults. For tickets and up-to-date information call the Fine Arts Box Office at (405) 325-4101.

Many concerts are scheduled for live stream via Internet, to see a schedule visit http://music.ou.edu/calendar. Please visit http://music.ou.edu/ for a full calendar of events and performances at the School of Music. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. For accommodations on the basis of disability, please call the Box Office at (405) 325-4101.

OU Civic Orchestra Takes Listeners Around the Globe   

(Norman, Okla)—“This concert has a geographical emphasis and will expose the audience to a wide variety of inspirational art music,” says Wesley DeSpain, doctoral candidate in the conducting program at the OU School of Music.

The University of Oklahoma School of Music presents the OU Civic Orchestra, under the direction of DeSpain. The concert is titled “Going Places with the Orchestra” and features works inspired by geographical locations at 8 p.m., on Tuesday, Dec. 8, in Sharp Concert Hall. This concert is family friendly, free and open to the public.

Music selected for the concert include: Weber’s “Turandot Overture,” Borodin’s “In the Steppes of Central Asia,” Piston’s “Three New England Sketches” performing the movements “Seaside” and “Mountains,” Beethoven’s “The Ruins of Athens Overture,” Thomson’s “The Plow that Broke the Plains” and ending with Lizst’s “Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2.”

“The 98-member OU Civic Orchestra consists of OU students, most are non-music majors, OU non-music faculty members, OU alumni, and community members. There is a wide diversity of age groups,” says Despain. “Our youngest member is around 15 and our oldest is in her 70’s. “

The OU Civic Orchestra is a joint venture between the OU School of Music and the College of Continuing Education. For more information in the OU Civic Orchestra, please visit http://www.cafe.ou.edu/civic/index.html.

This concert is free and open to the public. Sharp Concert Hall is located in OU’s Catlett Music Center, 500 W. Boyd, in your OU Arts District!

Many concerts are scheduled for live stream via Internet, to see a schedule visit http://music.ou.edu/calendar. Please visit http://music.ou.edu/ for a full calendar of events and performances at the School of Music. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. For accommodations on the basis of disability, please call the Box Office at (405) 325-4101.

Composer, Pianist Joins OU Wind Symphony in Concert  

(Norman, Okla)— The University of Oklahoma School of Music presents the Sutton Concert Series with composer and pianist, Carter Pann, who joins the OU Wind Symphony at 8 p.m., on Monday, Nov. 23, Sharp Concert Hall, as solo pianist for the consortium premiere of his “Concerto Logic” for piano and wind symphony.

OU’s Symphony Band performs “Games, Dances, and Celebrations” a new brilliant fanfare by noted video game composer from Japan, Wataru Hokoyama, exotic dances from Armenia by Aram Khachaturian, a beautiful German art song, “Allerseelen,” by Richard Strauss, and the fun-loving Sousa rag written for the annual Easter egg roll held on the White House lawn the Monday after Easter.

In addition to Pann’s “Concerto Logic,” the OU Wind Symphony performs “Wedding Dance” from Hasseneh (Wedding) Suite by Jacques Press and American composer John Mackey’s newest composition, “Aurora Awakes.”

All Sutton Series performances are in OU’s Catlett Music Center, 500 W. Boyd, in your OU Arts District! Tickets for Sutton Series events are $8 for adults and $5 for all students, OU faculty/staff and senior adults. For tickets and up-to-date information call the Fine Arts Box Office at (405) 325-4101.

Many concerts are scheduled for live stream via Internet, to see a schedule visit http://music.ou.edu/calendar. Please visit http://music.ou.edu/ for a full calendar of events and performances at the School of Music. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. For accommodations on the basis of disability, please call the Box Office at (405) 325-4101.