Piano faculty member Emmanuel Ax (Pre-College ’66; Diploma ’70, Postgraduate
Diploma ’72, piano) is one of this year’s eight inductees into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame. He was honored at a gala in October to inaugurate the Walk of Fame at Cincinnati’s Washington Park.

In November, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra premiered the Triple Trombone Concerto by Music Theory and Analysis faculty member Eric Ewazen (MM ’78, DMA ’80, composition). JoAnne Falletta (MM ’83, DMA ’89, orchestral conducting) conducted, and Jonathan Lombardo (BM ’03, trombone), Jeffrey Dee (MM ’01, bass trombone), and Timothy Smith were the soloists. The second, slow movement was written in memory of Scott Parkinson (MM ’00, trombone), a former member of the B.P.O., who died in 2004.

The Bang Group, which is co-directed by dance faculty member David Parker, celebrates its 10th anniversary performing Nut/Cracked, the company’s version of The Nutcracker, December 20-22 at New York Live Arts.  

Evening Division faculty member Julie Jordan (MM ’83, piano) will be presenting the New York Concerti Sinfonietta on December 11 in a concert featuring brothers Will Anderson (BM ’09, MM ’11, jazz studies) and Pete Anderson (BM ’09, MM ’11, jazz studies) performing the premiere of Twins Concerto by Kyle Athayde (BM ’11, jazz studies). The concert, conducted by clarinet faculty member Alan Kay (BM ’82, MM ’83, clarinet, Advanced Certificate ’90, orchestral conducting) will take place at St. Joseph’s Yorkville Church.

In September, violin faculty member Itzhak Perlman (Pre-College ’63; ’68, violin) made a guest appearance on Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report. Perlman spoke about his early training and performed Fritz Kreisler’s “Spanish Dance” from La vida breve.

Dance faculty member François Perron was featured in “How I Teach a Tour en L’Air” by Jenny Dalzell in the September issue of DanceTeacher magazine. 

Evening Division faculty member Henning Rübsam’s Sensedance, which he founded 21 years ago, presented the premieres of obsession | calm and Brahms Dances in October at the Salvatore Capezio Theater at Peridance. Also on the program was a reprise of Petit Pas, which was presented as a tribute to the late Neil Armstrong.

STAFF

In October, archivist Jeni Dahmus danced as a member of the corps de ballet in the premiere of The Stone Ring, with choreography and direction by Dawn Hillen, at Ballet Arts. A quartet including Ben Baron (Pre-College ’08; BM ’12, bassoon) performed the music, which was composed by Laura Sally Jacobs. 

Keith Michael, Dance Division production coordinator, is in rehearsal with New York Theater Ballet for the second season of his “nouveau” Nutcracker. N.Y.T.B. will perform Michael’s Mother Goose-inspired Goose!, with a piano four-hands score by Dance Division accompanist Vladimir Shinov, in April.

Tricia Ross, associate vice president for special projects, was honored at her alma mater, Milford (Ohio) High School, at the third annual Night of the Stars dinner.

STUDENTS

Graduate diploma soprano Julia Bullock and third-year pianist Ji Yong Kim are first prize winners of the 2012 Young Concert Artists International Auditions. They will be presented in debut recitals in the 2013-14 Young Artists Series in New York at Merkin Hall, in Washington at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater, and in Boston at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Cello Artist Diploma candidate Jay Campbell, master’s pianist Steven Lin, and the Lysander Trio, whose members are Itamar Zorman (MM ’09, Artist diploma ’12, violin), Michael Katz (MM ’11, cello), and Liza Stepanova (MM ’07, DMA ’12, piano), are winners of the 2012 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition. They will join the C.A.G. artist roster and receive two-year management contracts.

In May, Pre-College violinist Mercedes Cheung released her recording of Paganini’s 24 Caprices (Gam Productions). She will perform them at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall on December 28. 

Master’s candidate Patrick McGuire (BM ’12, cello) is this year’s recipient of the McGraw-Hill Robert Sherman Award for Music Education and Community Outreach. He was presented with the award on October 17 at the Gina Bachauer Competition Winners’ Recital, in Paul Hall.

In October, Graduate Diploma singer Takaoki Onishi took the top prize at the Opera Index Vocal Competition, which was held at Hunter College.

In October, historical performance student Clayton Zeller-Townson completed the 40-mile Pine Mountain Ultra Marathon, in Georgia.