Thursday, November 2nd at 7:30 pm, the W Department of Music is proud to showcase our students’ hard work – please join us for a wonderful evening of piano music. This event is free and open to the public.
Date of Performance: October 17, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. in Connie Sills Kossen Auditorium, Poindexter Hall. Senior Shakia Butler, soprano accompanied by William Reber, piano.
PROGRAM
El Majo Timido – Enrique Granados
Chi vuol la zingarella –Giovanni Paisíello
Panis Angelicus –César Franck
Deep River –Moses Hogan
It’s Me, O Lord–Betty King Jackson
The Trolley Song from Meet Me in St. Louis –Ralph Blane & Hugh Martin
Stay with Me from Into the Woods – Stephen Sondheim
Almost There from The Princess and the Frog – Randy Newman
It’s a Quiet Thing from Flora the Red Menace – John Kander & Fred Ebb
Believe in Yourself from The Wiz– Charlie Smalls
BIOGRAPHY
Shakia Butler is a senior studying Music Education at the W. She will be graduating this December after completion of her internship. Shakia is a very active singer and actor who was born and raised in Columbus, MS by her parents Ricky and Felecia Butler. She grew up here singing with her sisters, church choir, and praise team. Before coming to the W, she gained her A.S. degree before her high school diploma at Golden Triangle Early College Highschool.
She has been in many productions since she was 8 years old: The Nutcracker, Honor and Respect, Aladdin, Handsome and the Red Chief, and many more. She has served in many choirs in schools and in the community. Her achievements consist of winning “Most Outstanding Vocalist” in Atlanta’s Music in the Park Festival; placing top honors in NATS here at the W during her freshman year; and placing 2nd in NATS Regionals last spring. Above all else, she enjoys serving as Praise and Worship Leader at A.I.J.C Church in West Point, MS.
She looks forward to sharing the beauty, joy, and inspiration that music brings to those who listen. Her goal and passion is to speak life, teach truth, and love into others through the gift of music. May God’s Grace, Mercy, Favor and Blessings be with you from this day and forward. She thanks the W and appreciates everyone who came tonight to share her gift with you all!
Date of Performance: October 10, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. in Connie Sills Kossen Auditorium, Poindexter Hall
PROGRAM
All songs performed this evening were composed by Dr. Joe L. Alexander.
Two Bryant Songs: 1. Song (These Prairies Glow with Flowers), 2. November – Tiffani Jernigan, soprano (MUW) & Kelly Williams (MUW, class of 2022)
Soundscapes for guitar and soundfile – Alan Goldspiel, guitar (University of Montevallo)
Drowned – Susan Hurley, soprano (MUW) & William Reber (MUW)
Salonika Fantasy – Daniel Immel, piano (Kutztown University of Pennsylvania)
Red Mountain Overture – Video Performance by the University of Alabama at Birmingham Chamber Trio: Denise Gainey, clarinet; James Zingara, trumpet; Chris Steele, piano
Summer Sounds Beckon Me & Blue Jay, Sing a Tune – MUW Chamber Singers directed by William Reber, director (MUW) & accompanied by Valentin M Bogdan, pianist
In Loving Memory of
Composer, tubist, and theory pedagogist, Dr. Joe L. Alexander, joined the Mississippi University of Women’s music faculty in the Fall of 2016. His music has been performed throughout the United States, Ecuador, Germany, Greece, Italy, Russia, Rwanda, Scotland and South Korea. His compositions have been performed on recitals at conferences of the Birmingham Art Music Alliance; the International Trumpet Guild Conference; the Louisiana Composers’ Consortium; the National Association of Composers, USA (NACUSA); the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors; the Society of Composers, Inc.; the College Music Society; the Southeastern Composers’ League, the International Tuba Euphonium Conference, and the NACUSA National Festival.
Dr. Alexander loved teaching and he was beloved by generations of his students. He will be missed.
NOTE: this event includes content with mature themes – illness, death, gender expression and sexuality – that may not be suitable for children.
Concert starts at 7:30 p.m. in Poindexter Hall, Connie Sills Kossen Auditorium.
Presented by Dr. Susan Hurley, soprano & Dr. William Reber, piano
Program
I. Introduction
Fury
Words by Susan Snively & Music by Donald Wheelock
Heartbeats
Words by Melvin Dixon & Music by John Musto
I Never Knew
Words and Music by Ricky Ian Gordon
Walt Whitman in 1989
Words by Perry Brass & Music by Chris DeBlasio
III. HIV past and present
Her Final Show
Words by Rafael Campo & Music by Drew Hemenger
Hold On
Words from a Pueblo Prayer & Music by Gilda Lyons
V. Comments on the next three songs
One Child
Words by Sara Cooper & Music by Gregg Kallor
Atripla!
Words from a prescription drug label & Music by Eric Reda
At Last
Words by Wendell Berry & Music by Scott Gendel
Artists’ Biographies
Soprano Susan Hurley has performed internationally in repertoire ranging from opera and musical theatre to concert and recital literature, singing 25 principal operatic roles. She is the founding Artistic Director of Phoenix AZ’s annual AIDS Quilt Songbook performance project, now in its tenth year. Currently Associate Professor of Voice at Mississippi University for Women, Dr. Hurley has presented talks and lecture recitals on the AIDS Quilt Songbook at the International Congress of Voice Teachers, Southern Regional NATS, the Mississippi Governor’s School, and at universities and professional associations throughout the South. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Arizona State University. Her research into the Tomatis Method for singers appeared as a chapter in the 2020 book, “So You Want to Sing with Awareness.”
William Reber, pianist/music directorhas been conductor and music director for over 150 productions of operas, musicals, and ballets around the world. He is principal conductor of the Corpus Christi Ballet and Music Director for Spotlight on Opera. He served for 23 years as Artistic Director of ASU’s Lyric Opera Theatre and is Professor Emeritus at Arizona State University. He is currently Director of Choirs at Mississippi University for Women.
with Special Guests: MUW Chamber Singers (William Reber, Director) and Caledonia High School Choir & Columbus Choral Society (Jayne Doolittle, Director)
Selections
Kvetchers (Surprises in Controversial Time) – Laura Estes
Kvetchers is a mischievous musical argument in the form of a non-traditional concert march. In Yiddish, “Kvetch” means to complain, hence this piece lets every musician complain and play jokes throughout the march. Listen for the “Nana Boo Boo”, one note solos and meter changes from nowhere, along with other musical jokes. Enjoy Kvetchers by my friend from Atlanta, Laura Estes.
With Each Sunset (Comes the Promise of a New Day) – Richard Saucedo
Music has always been used as a way of expressing emotions or as an antidote to certain painful life encounters, and With Each Sunset functions in both ways. The work was written in memory of Jack Hensley, an American engineer from Marietta, Georgia, who while in Iraq was kidnapped and brutally slain by his captors in 2004. Hensley would have celebrated his 49th birthday the following day.
The title of the work suggests that in the darkest moments of life, there is hope for a new beginning.
African Noel – arr. Andre Thomas
This Christmas spiritual includes congas and tambourine to highlight the rhythmic accents of this holiday classic. The W Choir will be conducted by senior, Ri’carrdo Byrd.
The Pink Panther – Henry Mancini / arr. Brown
The Pink Panther is one of the most recognizable movie and TV themes ever written.It started in 1963 with comedy films featuring an inept French police detective, Inspector Jacques Clouseau. originated by actor Peter Sellers. Most of the films were directed and co-written by Blake Edwards, with theme music composed by Henry Mancini. The cartoon shorts were produced from 1964 to 1980, featuring Pink Panther’s nemesis, The Little Man.
Selections from Les Miserable – Claude-Michel Schonberg / arr. Vinson
Based on a classic novel by Victor Hugo, Les Mis opened in Paris in 1980, and five years later in London where it became the longest-running musical in West End history. The novel begins in 1815 and culminates in the 1832 June Rebellion in Paris. It follows the lives and interactions of several characters, focusing on the struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his experience of redemption. Our soloists tonight are: Sarah Blackwell, Aaron Rishel, Jaquarrius Frazier, and Shakia Butler. The W Wind Ensemble joins forces with the W Choir, the Caledonia High School Choir and the Columbus Choral in our rendition of Selections from Les Miserable.
