TU Opera Theatre
By: Associate Professor of Music in Opera Studies and Voice Brady McElligott
The University of Tulsa Opera Theatre, directed by Brady McElligott, is in the final stage of editing the videos for its Spring Project: a virtual presentation of operatic duets by Mozart, Bizet, Rossini, Delibes, Puccini, Gilbert and Sullivan, and Simon. The performance will be available for viewing in early summer.
Cappella Chamber Singers and TU Concert Chorale
By: Professor of Choral Studies and Voice Kim Childs
The University of Tulsa choral program has been active in rehearsing and performing during spring 2021. Because of no in-person concert activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cappella Chamber Singers, under the direction of Kim Childs, recorded several works for live streaming . These works, all of which were accompanied by pianist Chris Powell, include the Vivaldi Gloria (RV 589), the Five Mystical Songs of Ralph Vaughan Williams (movements four and five) and the first three movements of Benjamin Britten’s Gloriana Choruses. All solos and duets were performed by members of the ensemble, and former voice performance major Taylor Conley was baritone soloist for the Vaughan Williams.
TU Symphony Orchestra
By: Director of the School of Music Richard Wagner
Despite campus COVID-19 protocols, members of the TU Symphony continued to work hard in rehearsal and preparation for video performances during the spring semester. Masked and properly distanced in the Lorton Performance Center lobby, orchestra musicians, primarily in smaller chamber orchestra repertoire, prepared Mozart’s Overture to The Marriage of Figaro, the Symphony No. 5 in Bb major by Schubert and the first movement of J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 (in celebration of the 300th anniversary of the full Brandenburg concerti).
Our guest conductor for Brandenburg No. 6 was TU alumna Amelia Ivory (BME ‘09). Ivory teaches orchestra in the Union Public Schools and has recently been accepted to the University of Montana Summer Conducting Workshop and the Wintergreen Music Festival Conductor’s Summit. The performances were recorded on April 14 and 16, and will soon be available on the School of Music website.
TU Concert Bands
By: Assistant Director for Sports Bands Andrew Anderson
Due to COVID-19 room occupancy limits, the TU Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Winds were required to forego their traditional setup of 45-55 players each. Instead, they were split into 12 separate chamber ensembles with size limits of no more than 15, performing socially distanced and with musician-specific personal protective equipment. Each group met one hour per week during normal band time and spent the semester working on assigned music either written for specific instrumentation or written as “flexible” scored works for which the number of players and instruments themselves can be variable. A programming focus for the semester was to highlight, when possible, works written by composers of underrepresented populations.
Although not the experience that the students were accustomed to, our musicians continued to show maturity, musicianship and personal growth through the process of preparing these pieces to share. Their performances were recorded on April 12-13 and will soon be available on the new TU Music Performances webpage.
The ensembles were directed by Richard Wagner, Andrew Anderson and Aaron Wacker. Here is the semester’s repertoire:
Old Wine in New Bottles, by Gordon Jacob
Machiavelli’s Conscience, by Michael Markowski
Music from the Funeral for Queen Mary, by Henry Purcell, arranged by Andrew Anderson
Steampunk Scenes, by Erika Svanoe
Mare Tranquilitatis, by Roger Zare
Collage, by Tetsunosuke Kushida
Alegre, by Tania Leon (Jacob Malone, student conductor)
Sharp Nine, by Omar Thomas
Bitscapes, by Jennifer Rose
Shock Factor, by Nathan Daughtry
Aether, by Francisco Perez
In the Sky, by Patrick Speranza
Little Fugue in G minor, by J.S. Bach
Canzon per sonare #4, by Giovanni Gabrieli
Shepherd’s Hey, by Percy Grainger
Irish Tune from County Derry, by Percy Grainger
While appreciative of the opportunity to make live music, the students look forward to increased normalcy for the 2021-22 academic year, with the energy that comes from live performances for live audiences.
TU Jazz Ensembles
By: Director of Jazz Studies and Applied Professor of Music Vernon Howard
The TU Jazz Improvisation Combo, directed by Dean DeMerritt, performed on April 11 at TU Outdoors at Thomas Plaza. They performed jazz standards and some original compositions written by the student members. In addition, members held an outdoor performance on April 29 at Tulsa’s Foolish Things Coffee House.
The TU Bass Lab Ensemble consists of three double bass players and one electric bassist. They met once per week during the spring semester and rehearsed a wide variety of bass-centric pieces, including works by Paul Chambers, Jaco Pastorius, Ron Carter, and J.S. Bach. The ensemble will present a concert in the fall semester. DeMerritt directs the group.
The TU Jazz Singers rehearsed twice per week during the spring semester. The vocalists, directed by Adjunct Professor Sarah Richardson, studied and performed jazz classic compositions as well as standard songs from the Great American Songbook. The TU Jazz Singers will perform a public recital during the fall semester.
The TU Big Band, directed by Applied Professor of Music Vernon Howard, rehearsed twice weekly during the spring semester. Due to COVID-19 restrictions on available performance venues, the band focused on sight-reading a wide variety of jazz performance literature, including works by Count Basie, Maria Schneider, John Coltrane, and many others. The band members also worked on developing jazz improvisation performance skills. The TU Big Band plans to return to its regular performance schedule in fall 2021.
Chamber music
By: Applied Professor of Music Diane Bucchianeri
The TU Chamber Players, consisting of two separate groups, performed a concert on May 2 at First Baptist Tulsa. The concert featured violinist Helena Singleton, cellist Madison Phelan and pianist Trisha Dunlevy performing Beethoven’s Piano Trio in C minor, Op. 1 #3; and violinist Val Hinkle, violist Kyleigh Taylor, cellist Jennifer Ripley and pianist Alina Ryzhkova performing Dvorak’s Piano Quartet No. 1 in D major, Op. 23.