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(08/24/17 10:00am)
Mercer’s Townsend School of Music faculty will come together for a welcome back concert August 29. The event will include exclusive faculty-led performances for new and returning students.
“It’s really fun to collaborate,” said Martha Malone, chair of vocal studies and director of the Mercer University Opera.
The concert will take place at the Neva Langley Fickling Hall on Mercer’s campus and is free and open to the public. The performance will begin at 7:30 P.M.
“It’s a really fun way to start the year,” Malone said.
She said that the Townsend faculty musicians are at-heart performers.
“We all love to perform,” Malone said about her fellow educators.
This concert gives Townsend faculty members the opportunity to do what they do best.
“[The concert] is the only one of its kind. We do it only once a year,” said Townsend Chair of Instrumental Music, Monty Cole.
Cole said that the concert is an introduction to new music students and that many of the freshmen may have never seen a performance like this.
“There is always a minimum of talking and a maximum of music,” Cole said.
The All-Faculty Gala gives students the rare opportunity to see their professors outside of the classroom, on stage and as professionals in their field.
Malone said that Townsend faculty equally enjoys seeing their colleagues play.
“You always hope that everyone does their best,” Cole said about his fellow musicians.
Malone said there will be about 10 to 15 educators performing in the evening soiree.
Cole, who plays the clarinet and saxophone, is planning on playing jazz pieces in a faculty band during the concert.
Malone has a recital coming up in September. She will select songs to preview from the recital at the gala.
“We hope everyone will come,” Malone said. “We love to teach [music]. We love to perform it.”
For more information on the Townsend All-Faculty Gala visit the calendar page on the school of music website.
(03/18/17 7:41pm)
The Mill, Macon’s only downtown LGBTQ bar, closed its doors early last month unexpectedly. The Thirsty Turtle will take the club’s place.
Many took to Facebook and social media trying to figure out what happened to the Mill or to express their frustration
One Facebook user wrote, “What happened? I went out of town for a few weeks and come back to find The Mill closed? “
Another user replied, “They closed down to get us gay’s out!!!”
The Mill had only been operating as a gay bar for about five months before it shut down.
“I’m pretty good at running a bar and not so good at running a nightclub,” said Tim Obelgoner, owner of the Mill.
He said that the bar did not close down because of its attachments to the LGBTQ community, but because it was not profiting well.
“It’s strictly financial,” said Obelgoner, who also owns the Hummingbird downtown.
The weekly entertainment was also costly.
Obelgoner said only about 100 patrons were willing to attend on a regular basis and that was not working for a nightclub that size.
“Tim just had different business interests [and] he just wanted to completely redo, because at the end of the day . . . he still has to make money,” said Bentley Hudgins, a former Mill employee.
The Mill consisted of a front room with a bar, a dance room with a stage and a bar in the back.
“That’s a very hard place to tackle structurally,” said Hudgins.
Obelgoner said a much smaller venue for a LGBTQ bar would service the community better in Middle Georgia.
“What we were doing was not appealing to a broad enough segment of the population to make it financially viable,” Obelgoner said.
He said he felt the bar was not servicing the Middle Georgia community well.
“If there was a huge gay population here that wanted specifically a gay bar, by golly I’d be the first one to open one up,” he said.
Obelgoner, who identifies as a heterosexual male, said he is a strong advocate for LGBTQ equality.
He also is a supporter of inclusiveness.
“We (Obelgoner and his staff) have been very successful in creating an environment that a lot of different people from different walks of life can feel comfortable in and feel a part of,” Obelgoner said.
He said The Mill was exclusive, and he was unhappy about it.
Obelgoner said he received a lot of different complaints about the Mill, but it was his gay friends who raised many of the concerns.
They told Obelgoner that he was seeking a very narrow market in Macon and would not find enough patrons.
The Thirsty Turtle, which is across from the Hummingbird on Cherry Street, will allow patrons the opportunity to easily visit both of Obelgoner’s bars on a given night.
The new bar — which opened Thursday for St. Patrick’s Day — will remain under the same ownership, but it will be branded as an all-inclusive venue.
It will be a non-smoking facility with an outdoor patio, foosball tables, projector screens and pool tables.
Obelgoner said he is excited for the community both bars could create together downtown.
“I’m just tickled to death,” Obelgoner said about the venture for the new bar.
(02/21/17 2:14am)
The second annual Student Composers Recital is coming up on Feb. 23, which will feature student composers from the Townsend School of Music at Mercer University.
The student recital will take place at the Neva Langley Fickling Hall on Mercer's campus, beginning promptly at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
“What do you want to start? What are you interested in?” said Dr. Christopher Schmitz, Associate Professor of Music Theory at Mercer.
These are the questions he asks his composition students before they begin writing a new piece of music.
Each new piece begins with a “research phase [by students], listening to the masters,” said Schmitz.
The upcoming recital will feature a variety of music from instrumental composition to choral pieces, but Schmitz said that all student works can be considered art music. In the same regard, the evening will feature many different instrumentations, including a piece with violin and piano and three pieces with chamber choir.
Many of the students who will be featured at the recital have already taken music theory or beginning composition courses at Mercer.
Schmitz said his role as music theory professor is to “put the tools in [the students’] hands.”
He said his presence is “just to facilitate the exploration for the students.”
Nathan Holmes, a sophomore voice major and composition student, has written a choral piece entitled “Kyrie.” The piece involves twelve vocalists, including himself, which will be performed at the upcoming recital.
“Composition is using the stuff we learned in theory such as harmony, melody, [and] form . . . we also learn about different composers' techniques and then try and write other certain pieces based off of the composers we learn about,” Holmes said.
“I created [“Kyrie”] because I have an immense passion for choir,” Holmes said. “I fell in love with the beauty of a choir at a young age and I wanted to write a beautiful piece that expresses that love in every possible way.”
Additionally, Holmes said the upcoming recital gives the student composers the opportunity to work with performers, which in his opinion, will be a valuable experience for the future.
“It gave me a fundamental understanding of the building blocks of music,” said Mercer junior Bethany Moss about her experience studying music theory with Schmitz.
Moss has written a composition for violin and piano, titled “Waltz for Violin and Piano.” She will be playing the violin in her piece and senior Hannah Loeffler will be performing the piano part.
“Early last semester, the [Robert McDuffie] Center for Strings recorded ‘Concerto for Violin, Rock Band, and String Orchestra’ with Robert McDuffie and Mike Mills from R.E.M. The [fourth] movement is a beautiful waltz, and really inspired me to write my own waltz,” Moss said.
Additionally, she said the student composers recital gives students from the Townsend Composition Studio the opportunity to publicize their works, perform them in front of a larger audience and have the pieces recorded.
“It is a great opportunity for the community [to] experience concert music of the 21st century,” said Denzel Washington, a Mercer senior.
Washington is a saxophone player, and he has composed a piece of choral music to be included in the concert.
The title of his composition is "The God Who Made the World" for a four-part choir and piano.
It features quoted text from the Book of Acts in the Bible, chapter 17, verses 24 and 25 (New International Version).
“The song will be conducted by [Mercer graduate] student Cannon McClain and the piano performed by Zach Smith of the Bearitones,” Washington said.
Washington added, “this recital is a one of a kind opportunity for Mercer and Macon to experience a glimpse of the future of music in the present.”
“It is a chance that shouldn't be missed,” he said.
Schmitz said that he enjoys watching the student composers’ ability grow from year to year.
“I'm really not excited over one piece to another… I'm excited for all of them!” Schmitz said.
Many of the pieces that will be featured at the upcoming recital were completed over the course of last year. However, some have been completed over the past couple weeks.
Since their pieces were finished, the students have been working on their compositions and rehearsing them in preparation for the performance. “A couple of [the compositions] are brand new. Most of these are world premieres,” Schmitz said.
He said he hopes to encourage people, including community members, to continue supporting new music and consider coming to future concerts.
“Anyone who is interested in or enjoys music should attend this recital . . . We have all worked hard on these pieces and are excited to share them with the community,” said Moss.
For more information on the student composers recital visit the Townsend School of Music calendar page at music.mercer.edu.
(01/25/17 7:50pm)
The recent production of “The Gondoliers” was a great success for the Mercer University Opera. The well-attended event saw three nearly-sold out shows, some fantastic character performances by students and infectious audience engagement.
The comedic and satirical operetta by powerhouse duo W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan has been an international crowd pleaser since its opening in 1889, making it an easy and enjoyable show for a wide range of audience members.
The show features a story of two goofy venetian gondoliers, an impoverished noble Spanish family, marriage and deceit and a transition in monarch politics.
Audiences at the Mercer performance laughed out loud, listened attentively and gave a roaring applause at the end of show.
Opening night saw a standing ovation with great satisfaction from the audience.
This Victorian-era production stayed true to its history with fun and bright costumes and romantic charms.
Yet, during the performance, there were times when the script was noticeably tampered with, which did not always seem necessary or appropriate.
The insurance company Gieco and the Von Trapp family (commonly known from the more contemporary musical “The Sound of Music”) were made mention of as comedic relief.
Although these jokes got a positive audience response, these anachronisms — an act of attributing a custom, event, or object to a period to which it does not belong — may have taken some audience members out of the show.
Gilbert and Sullivan were made famous by their ingenious and provocative word choices throughout their careers as composer and librettist.
There is certain prestige to their work and to freely change the script may come across as obnoxious to some opera or theater enthusiasts.
Opera for today’s modern audience is often already confusing enough. To add contemporary parallels to historic scripts could perpetuate this confusion.
Nonetheless, the night showcased many outstanding and entertaining moments from student performers.
There is no lack of talent at Mercer’s Townsend School of Music.
Graduate students Melissa Rodriguez, Lindsey Rueter and Clay Young, playing the roles of the Spanish noble family, knocked it out of the park.
They were the most poised on stage, professional and committed in their performances and their opening song was wonderfully polished.
The latter, which is widely recognized as a signature style of Gilbert and Sullivan, was especially excellent. It was clean, neat and audible.
Mercer sophomore James Ruffin, playing the role of the Duke of Plaza-Toro in the Spanish court, was equally talented and entertaining next to his fellow graduate-level performers, but it was obvious he still is a young actor.
At moments he was overacting, finding the correct air of nobility for his character. And at other times, pulling focus from actors in-scene with some of his background movement and gesturing.
The stars of the show, gondoliers Nathan Holmes, sophomore, and Peter Schultz, junior, were great fun to watch on stage.
They had brilliant chemistry together and easily played off one another making for a great performance. Their boyish charm was evenly matched and admirable.
However, again, being young actors there were moments of overacting, but all of this is to be expected from a collegiate performance where student players are finding and perfecting their craft.
Though many of the actors in the production had one or two awkward moments on stage, they never took away from the enjoyability of the show nor the audience’s genuine engagement.
Opera Director Dr. Martha Malone showed an intuitive visual eye with her great use of space for the venue’s size. She directed actors to perform in every area of recital hall like in black box theater productions.
Fickling Hall on Mercer’s campus is quite small and crafted to meet the needs of intimate chamber music. To have such a grand production like “The Gondoliers” in a small space could be problematic, but the entire theater was used during the performance, eliminating this issue — a great choice.
Having characters enter and exit through the audience gave theatergoers a special experience as well.
The orchestra, under the direction of Richard Kosowski, was equally brilliant in that it did not overpower the theater.
The Mercer student instrumentalists filled the theater with well-balanced music from an elaborate score, complementing the singers on stage.
Student percussionist Holly Cooper, who was stationed in the audience, was so impressive in that she did not divert attention from the performance. She had full command of her instruments.
All in all, the Mercer production of “The Gondoliers” was entertaining. It had moments of great professionalism and moments of amateurity. It was another great success for the Mercer Opera archives.
(12/04/16 5:43pm)
While the construction and landscaping projects at Mercer Landing off of Mercer University Drive have been completed, many of the retail spaces still remain vacant and the eateries that were slated to be there haven’t moved in.
Chain restaurants like Mama Goldberg's Deli and Chen's Wok were expected to already be open for business.
"We were hoping that they would be opening during [Mercer] football," said David Higdon, property manager of the Mercer Landing lofts.
Higdon said that Mama Goldberg's Deli had to push back their opening date due to personal matters.
"[It will] probably be about the first of the year," when the restaurant opens, he said.
Higdon does not know the status of Chen's Wok, but did confirm that they will still be a vendor at the landing.
Papa John's Pizza has been part of the development project from the beginning and has been open for several months now, however.
"They have been doing extremely well over there," Higdon said.
Some Mercer students are not impressed by the halt on Mama Goldberg’s and Chen’s Wok opening dates.
“The fact that the other two restaurants haven’t opened yet is slightly agitating, as it was supposed to be a perk of living here, but it’s not life altering,” said Mercer sophomore Avery Everling.
Higdon came into his management position during the last quarter of construction when cable and furniture installation was being completed in the Lofts at Mercer Landing.
The landscaping for the development was also being completed around this time.[related title="Related Stories" stories="16673,20591" align="right" background="on" border="none" shadow="off"]
"We did notice that some things worked better than others," Higdon said about the planting of vegetation and installation of irrigation systems.
Higdon said that they did have to make a few changes to the original landscaping plan.
"But, for the most part, everything was designed well and worked out well," he said.
The new pedestrian bridge that links the landing to the Mercer football stadium had its grand opening in September.
This architectural structure was a collaboration between Mercer, Sierra Development, Inc and the city of Macon.
Higdon said that the grand opening for the bridge had to be pushed back three times due to the project having multiple parties invested.
However, the bridge has led to a better sense of community for the area, including Mercer, the landing and loft residence.
Even though the pedestrian bridge gives easy access to Mercer’s campus for loft residents, Everling said that the overall location of the landing is too removed from the university.
“[T]he location is inconvenient, being on the outskirts of campus. But I don’t mind driving to campus,” Everling said.
According to Higdon, it will be after the first of the year when new additions to the landing can be expected to be made.
Editor's Note: Mama Goldberg's Deli opened Dec. 27, after publication of this article.
(11/01/16 8:03pm)
The Mercer University Wind Ensemble is preparing for back-to-back concerts with middle Georgia high schools in early November.
The concerts, titled “Macon Music Across Middle Georgia,” will feature high school-level instrumentalists from Fayetteville and Warner Robins.
Mercer instrumentalists will join students from Warner Robins High School on Nov. 1 for a collaborative concert.
The concert will begin promptly at 6:30 p.m. in the high school’s auditorium.
Then, on Nov. 7, Mercer will perform with Starr’s Mill High School in Fayetteville.
The concert will start at 6 p.m. and will feature a pre-show performance from the Mercer Faculty Brass Quintet. Both concerts have free admission and are open to the public.
“Music is the international language,” said Douglas Hill, director of instrumental ensembles at Mercer’s Townsend School of Music.
Hill said that this opportunity will allow Mercer students to have an inside scoop to high school musicianship and what these young students are capable of.
This is especially beneficial to Mercer’s music education majors, he said.
Second-year graduate trumpet major Jeremiah Kersting views these concerts as teachable moments for the high school students.
“It’s always good for the university to give back to the community,” he said.
Hill said that the upcoming concerts will allow the high school students the opportunity to talk with university students to learn about college and possible areas of study.
“Generally, between the wind ensemble and Mercer Singers, [the Townsend School of Music] have [almost] every major on campus,” said Hill.
The concerts serve not only for Mercer instrumentalists to showcase what they have been working on over the semester, but both the high school and university students will be able to share their knowledge and skills in music performance.
Hill said that the parents of the high schoolers will also benefit because they will hear what college-level performance will be like.
At both concerts the Mercer Wind Ensemble will play a program of select pieces from their repertoire. “We are playing a pretty wide variety of music,” said Kersting.
At the concert in Warner Robins, the two ensembles will come together to play a joint piece, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “March Slav.”
Kersting said the Tchaikovsky piece is a march and has elements that make it sound nationalistic.
He said that the composition has parts of the Russian national anthem interwoven into the piece. It is these “little nuggets,” as Kersting calls them, that make the music sound familiar.
“It’s just a nice robust piece you could [include] both bands [in],” said Kersting.
Before the performance begins at Starr’s Mill, the Mercer Faculty Brass Quintet will perform selections from the Charles Gounod piece “Petite Symphonie.”
Earlier that day, the faculty quintet members will host masterclasses for the high school students.
Additionally, Starr’s Mill band director Scott King has invited all of the neighboring high schools in Fayetteville County to attend the concert on Nov. 7.
Hill said that he will also be inviting his colleagues and their students to the upcoming concerts.
Kersting said, “I believe you should support your community in anything . . . We should rally around the arts.”
Hill said in the same sentiment: “I think I’d encourage people to [come] hear wonderful wind music.”
More information on both of these concerts is available at the Townsend School of Music official website at music.mercer.edu.
(10/16/16 6:26pm)
With fall already underway, a new season of giving has also just arrived. Busy schedules and complex lives often keep us away from participating in charitable activity. So, here are ten easy ways that we can all be charitable in our everyday life.
AmazonSmile
Amazon, the online marketplace, has developed a way for shoppers to donate to select organizations through their purchases. Amazon says on their website, “The difference is that when customers shop on AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to the charitable organizations selected by customers.” Shoppers are able to contribute to their organization of choice by shopping through the AmazonSmile website (smile.amazon.com). This is an easy way to donate without breaking the bank.
Kroger
Kroger has paved a way for customers to give through their Plus Cards. Kroger Community Rewards allows card holders to enroll in a program that uses their points to give to local schools, churches and other non-profit organizations. This program allows customers to easily donate by just shopping at Kroger and using their Plus Card. Reward cards are easy to apply for with a short application form and are always available in-store.
Coinstar
If a large amount of coins have been sitting in a corner of a shelf or countertop, there is a way to easily transform them into charitable funds With the Coins That Count charity program, Coinstar kiosks allow users to donate their change directly to organizations instead of receiving a cash voucher. When donating, people have a variety of charity organizations that they may donate to, including the World Wildlife Fund, the American Red Cross, the Humane Society and Feeding America. Coinstar kiosks can be found in many grocery stores, including Kroger, throughout Macon.
A Thrift Store Donation
If donating cash is not possible, perhaps parting with a few unused odds and ends from your home is better. There are many local and national thrift store organizations that are willing to take in lightly used clothing, furniture and housewares to generate funds for their causes. Not only are people able to do something with their unused products, but they are able to donate directly without spending money. Additionally, it is possible for donors to receive a tax credit for their donations, and many organizations will come and pick up items up from their homes. Two thrift stores that are always able to give out these tax credits and are near Mercer’s campus are the Salvation Army and Goodwill.
Donate Your Old Books
Friends of the Library Macon has been serving Middle Georgia libraries since 1966. Annually, the organization hosts an old book sale that benefits the Macon-Bibb county library system. Throughout the year, people are able to donate gently used books for the upcoming old book sale on select days of the week. More information on how to participate can be found on their organization website at www.friendsofthelibrarymacon.com.
Donate Money or Food Items to Food Bank
The Middle Georgia Community Food Bank accepts donations everyday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from their warehouse. If providing a monetary donation is not feasible, think about donating acceptable food items to a local food pantry. These organizations provide hungry and low-income people the opportunity to receive the food they need. Middle Georgia Community Food Bank is also able to arrange for large donation pickups if needed.
Give Blood
Every 2 seconds, someone in the United States needs blood. Becoming a blood donor will allow for life-saving transfusions to be made possible. Further, one donor can potentially help more than one patient. Throughout the month of October and into the early part of November, there are many opportunities for Middle Georgia community members to donate blood through the American Red Cross. To find out more information on how to give blood and who is eligible, visit the American Red Cross website at www.redcrossblood.org.
Donate New or Unwanted Pet Supplies
Many local animal shelters in the Middle Georgia area, like All About Animals Rescue Macon, will accept new and unwanted pet supplies. Many of the websites for these organizations have wish lists describing what items are currently needed to run their facilities. Largely, pet food is needed for the animals at these places. People are able to drop off these items by contacting the animal welfare organizations and arranging for a delivery.
Volunteer
Volunteering offers the opportunity for individuals to give back on their own time. Many local Macon organizations like the Daybreak Center located in downtown Macon and United Way need volunteers to help cut cost for their operations. Volunteers have the ability to work directly with people benefitting from these local programs and offer help to areas of the organization where it is needed. Often these volunteer opportunities are flexible and work with individuals’ schedules.
Pay it Forward
Sometimes a nice gesture is all someone needs to completely change their life. All too often, people underestimate the positive impact just being kind has on one another. In a controlled environment, University of California, San Diego and Harvard University found that the “pay it forward” model does work to enhance a person’s ego and the kind acts performed do spread from person to person to person by way of mimicking. Whether it is holding the door, giving praise to someone or sharing a smile, these are all simple ways to be charitable.
(10/13/16 2:34pm)
A broadcast of the world-renowned opera “Don Giovanni” will come to the Douglass Theatre live and in high definition on Saturday, Oct. 22.
The Italian opera was composed by Mozart, with libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. In conjunction with the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD series, “Don Giovanni” will air live at 12:55 p.m. (EST) from the Lincoln Center in New York, New York.
The opera is based on the Spanish story of Don Juan, a fictional libertine—one devoid of most moral or sexual restraints—and seducing character.
“The opera truthfully examines the “human condition” through the interactions of a cast of country folk, servants, and nobility,” said Richard Kosowski, associate professor of music and director of graduate studies at the Mercer University Townsend School of Music, in an email.
“We have been doing the Metropolitan Opera series for 11 years,” said Gina Ward, director of the Douglass Theatre.
Every year, the Douglass teams up with the Central Georgia Opera Guild to bring the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD series to Macon. Over the next few months, at least one opera will air live from New York at the theater each month.
Ward said that “from year to year, performance to performance,” the event brings a variety of people to the Douglass.
According to Kosowski, this is the “ideal first opera” for people because the story is easy to understand and quite enjoyable.
The Opera Guild usually hosts a champagne intermission for patrons, but at the airing of “Don Giovanni” they will have a concluding reception for all guests of the theater.
“For this specific [opera], [the Central Georgia Opera Guild] will be celebrating afterwards with wine and hors d'oeuvres . . . It is included with admission,” Ward said.
Additionally, the Douglass, with assistance from the Mercer University Townsend School of Music, has planned for a short opera discussion to take place before the screening begins.
“[Mercer] students enrolled in the Opera History and Literature course that I teach will be leading a pre-performance lecture about the opera performance, providing biographical and historical information,” Kosowski said.
The Douglass is committed to providing the Macon community and surrounding area with a multicultural experience that includes a wide array of annual events.
The theater was founded in 1921 by African American entrepreneur Charles Douglass. It was created as a venue for black entertainers during a time of racial segregation in America.
Since its opening, the venue has been committed to music and film, including screenings of feature-length films and vaudeville performances.
Today, the theater celebrates and serves people of all backgrounds while remembering its heritage.
“Our mission is to develop a range of programming for our community,” Ward said.
Kosowski said that the Opera Guild would love to see more students in attendance.
“Attending cultural and artistic offerings as students, even if they take us out [of] our comfort zone, help us to make informed decisions about the effectiveness of artistic creation and communication,” he said.
Tickets to the screening of “Don Giovanni” are currently on sale. Adult admission is $24 per person, and student and senior admission is $20 per person. Tickets may be purchased directly through the Douglass Theatre.
For more information on “Don Giovanni” live in HD at the Douglass Theatre, visit their website at www.douglasstheatre.org. Additional information can be accessed from the Metropolitan Opera’s official website at www.metopera.org/hdlive.
(10/13/16 2:28pm)
Students and faculty from Mercer’s Robert McDuffie Center for Strings and the Townsend School of Music have been preparing for a full-length Mercer Orchestra concert over the course of the Fall semester. The concert will take place on Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m. in the McCorkle Music Building in Fickling Hall.
Admission is free and open to the public.
“This is the first full concert of the school year by the Mercer University Orchestra,” said Amy Moretti, director of the McDuffie Center for Strings, in an email.
The orchestra is made up of 21 string students from the McDuffie Center for Strings with 10 violinists, six violists, five cellists and two bass players.
“It's such a pleasure to hear these students perform because it is at such a high level. They get beyond the composers' notes on the page and make the music speak,” Moretti said. “Their concerts are always highlights on the calendar of events.”
The concert will be about an hour in length and will feature Felix Mendelssohn's “String Symphony No. 11 in F Major” and Mozart's “Divertimento in D Major.”
“Both of these works are full of energy and life, and I know that all of us string students will have a wonderful time performing it,” said Mary Grace Bender, a junior studying cello performance at the Center for Strings.
Bender has been studying the cello since she was six years old after receiving the instrument as a Christmas present.
Bender said to expect “[high]-energy music that will put you in a wonderful mood” at the upcoming concert.
“We’ve got a classic and a zinger,” said Reed Tucker, a senior double bass performance major at the Center for Strings who will be playing as part of the orchestra, in an email. “It's [going to] be an awesome concert.”
According to Tucker, the beauty of Mozart is that his compositions are timeless. He said Mozart's unique sound derived from his opera tradition.
“[Mozart's Divertimento] is essentially a collection of opera scenes for string orchestra, but in this opera, the listeners are given license to write the plot and the lyrics themselves,” Tucker said.
Under the directorship of conductor Ward Stare, the student instrumentalists have prepared over the past few months during his planned visits to Mercer.
Throughout most of the year, Stare serves as the music director of the Rochester, New York-based Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.
He is an award-winning conductor and has been described as “a rising star in the conducting firmament" by the Chicago Tribune.
“I'm excited to share some of the most perfect music ever written,” said Tucker. “This is about as close a spiritual connection that one can [get] with people who lived in the 18th and 19th centuries.”
For more information, refer to the Townsend School of Music website at music.mercer.edu or the official website of the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at departments.mercer.edu/mcduffie.
(10/02/16 12:53pm)
The Historic Macon Foundation recently released its new Macon’s Fading Five list for 2016. This list showcases the top five historic structures and properties throughout Macon that are at-risk by neglect or possible demolition.
The public nomination for these properties is made in May each year, and then the approved list is announced in August.
The official list for 2016 is currently available on the Historic Macon Foundation website.
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This year the list was announced on Aug. 31 at the Bonnybrae-Bedgood House, a historic 1839 Greek Revival mansion which was featured on last year’s Fading Five list. The home has since been purchased and is undergoing restoration.
“This is a model that is used nationwide," Historic Macon Executive Director Ethiel Garlington said.
The idea of creating an endangered list of historic properties as a call for public action is commonplace in historic preservation and the organizations that surround it.
“It was born out of losing Tremont Temple [Baptist Church] and the Douglass House,” said Garlington about the history of Macon’s Fading Five List.
Tremont Temple Baptist Church was a historic black church in Macon that was considered a Civil-Rights era landmark by preservationists. It was sold and demolished in 2014 to allow for the creation of Dunkin Donuts across the street from the Medical Center.
The Douglass House was the historic home of Charles Henry Douglass, who is said to have been Macon’s first black millionaire. The home saw the same fate as Tremont Temple and was also torn down in 2014.
Now in its second year, Macon’s Fading Five is a community-based initiative to help prevent future demolitions of historic buildings in Macon.[pullquote speaker="Ethiel Garlington" photo="" align="right" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]It’s like picking your favorite child . . . They are all near and dear to our hearts.[/pullquote]
“One of the most important . . . reasons why we create this list is to raise awareness,” Garlington said.
Since the list was released, Historic Macon has already received many phone calls from people interested in the buildings.
Garlington said that Historic Macon’s role in the Fading Five is to help find people the resources for the ownership and restoration of these properties.
He said that all of the properties from last year’s list have solutions for restoration, although they are not all completed.
The only place that has been carried over from the 2015 list is the Cotton Avenue district, because it features many properties that are currently endangered.
Historic Macon is committed to featuring properties from one year to the next until the structure is no longer under threat or has been determined to be appropriately preserved.
Garlington did advise that all of these places are private properties, and it is not encouraged that people walk up to these structures.
“We do not want people trespassing to investigate these properties,” he said.
Garlington said that those interested in the properties may contact Historic Macon directly with enquiries for more information. They may be reached by phone at 478-742-5084 or by email at info@historicmacon.org.
When asked which of the five properties is at the top of the list this year, Garlington said, “It’s like picking your favorite child . . . They are all near and dear to our hearts.”
(09/29/16 11:30am)
Distinguished musical theater performer and educator Byron Grant will visit the Townsend School of Music at Mercer University to teach a three-part masterclass.
As a returning guest to Townsend, he will guide students through techniques on how to sing the story and “sell the song.” The first class took place on Sept. 27 and the two upcoming masterclasses will take place at the McCorkle Music Building on Oct. 4 and Oct. 11 from 4-6 p.m. These workshops are free to attend and open to the public.
“[Grant] will bring musical theater experience to opera and art song,” said associate professor of music and director of graduate studies Richard Kosowski.
The vocal department at Townsend primarily focuses on building vocal technique in opera and classical styles, although musical theater is often incorporated into the students’ repertoire.
Kosowski said that these masterclasses will serve as a tool to help “students act for the stage.”
The goal of the masterclasses is to have the student singers learn how to clearly communicate what is written on the page of the song.
“[Grant] really has a storied career,” Kosowski said.
Grant was the former head of Webster University’s theater department in Saint Louis, Missouri, a school known for its excellence in theater training. He has worked professionally in New York and across the country as a performer, theatrical director and music director.
For the upcoming masterclasses, some students were asked to bring in song selections from the 1930s and 1940s from the likes of Harold Arlen, Richard Rodgers, Lorenzo Hart and Cole Porter. Kosowski said that this is “because there is generally a story in these songs, both by components and during the era.”
This year there will be 11 students participating in the masterclass series, two of which — juniors Joy Mote and Peter Schultz — have been selected to perform on all three days.
Mote and Schultz will be workshopping one song each from start to finish.
Usually in a masterclass, singers bring in a well-rehearsed piece to perform and receive feedback from the coach to make the performance better. However, both Mote and Schultz will be going through the progression of learning a song in its entirety.
Although both of the students have spent some time learning their song selections ahead of time, they have been specifically directed to learn the notes of the music separate from the song lyrics.
In a telephone interview, Mote said, “We are trying to approach [the song] unbiased.”
Mote, who is a vocal performance major, has selected “Simple Little Things” by composer Harvey Schmidt from the musical “110 in the Shade” as her song of choice. Mote said that in the first week, the focus will be on exploring the text and finding out which words are the most important.
According to Kosowski, both Mote and Schultz will be workshopping the lyrics as a monologue and then incorporating them into the song as the masterclasses progress.
“I think that, a lot of times, people think opera performers sing very well, but [do not] act as well,” said Mote, who has sung all her life.
She explained that a musical theater perspective will help to enhance the “actability” of the song.
Mote said that musical theater performers are often known as great actors who may not necessarily need the greatest singing voice. This combination of musical theater acting and classical training will be one of the highlights during the masterclasses.
In an email, Schultz said, “I am hoping to be able to learn how to better pair expressing the song’s emotion and character with musicality.”
Schultz is working on his bachelor of science in psychology and bachelor of arts in music degrees.
He selected “I Chose Right” from the musical “Baby” with music by David Shire and lyrics by Richard Maltby, Jr.
“This passage is very rich in introspective acting, which contrasts [with] my regular comedic roles,” he said
Schultz said that normally he can cover up an inability to emotionally connect to a particular passage with musical phrasing, but now he will be exposed.
“Performing is a very vulnerable thing to do. With this workshop every aspect of my performance will be focused on,” he said. “Grant will be guiding me to accurately represent the piece.”
Both students are a bit nervous for the upcoming masterclass, but they are looking forward to the experience.
“[Grant] is really great at what he does,” said Mote. “He teaches in a different style than what I am used to . . . He does bring great results from people.”
For more information regarding location and times of the Byron Grant masterclasses, refer to the calendar page on the Townsend School of Music website at music.mercer.edu.
(09/28/16 1:45pm)
Whitney Phillips is the assistant professor of literary studies and writing at the Penfield College of Mercer University. She does not like the term “troll,” and in a telephone interview with The Cluster, Phillips laid down the facts on her recently-published book.
Effectively titled “Why We Can’t Have Nice Things: Mapping the Relationship Between Trolling and Mainstream Culture,” Phillips’ book discusses the ideas that surround online trolling and what she sees as its emergence into the mainstream in 2008.
She presents how society has allowed for these online aggressions to become a normal part of everyday culture.
Phillips received her bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Humboldt State University. From there, she felt that this area of study was too much of a rigid structure. She went on to receive her masters of fine arts in creative writing with an emphasis in fiction from Emerson College.
“[I] haven’t always fit where I’ve been getting my degree,” Phillips said.
Needing a bit more structure than that, she finally received a PhD in English from the University of Oregon. There, she took a digital culture focus.
Phillips said that she thought that her dissertation would be based on researching political humor surrounding the 2008 presidential elections.
However, once her brother had recommend that she look at the website 4chan.org — an imageboard website linked to the development of the modern meme culture — her focus quickly shifted.
“[My book] was a combination of all [my] interests in research,” Phillips said. “[It] chronicles the emergence of online trolling.”
The aim of the book is to understand how this subculture emerged in the initial troll-space and the relation between trolling and sensational media.
Earlier this year Phillips told Times Magazine that “[t]hese are mostly normal people who do things that seem fun at the time that have huge implications. You want to say, ‘this is the bad guys,’ but it’s a problem of us.”
Phillip said this is where the understanding of online aggression becomes a grey area, also saying that online trolls are amplified versions of what we deem as acceptable. She said that, if they were the “bad guys” they would not fit into the click-based web economy.
The subjects that we see online are the same issues that we face in everyday life: racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia, to name a few.
“It is framed as aberrational behavior,” said Phillips.
When in fact, to Phillips, the online aggression we are seeing is not.
She said, “That line is much blurrier.”
One question that Phillips raises in her book is if the behaviors silence others’ voices.
According to her research that spanned from 2008 to 2012, Phillips found that on many platforms, the defense of free speech in its vernacular form is used to justify the trolling behaviors taking place. She said that this idea of free speech is being used to protect some of the most aggressive actions online.
Surprisingly though, Phillips said she has “become uncomfortable of the term troll.”
The reason for this, she explained, is that the term has changed since she concluded the book’s research in 2012. Phillips said that in the last three to four years the term ‘troll’ has been used to describe acts of playful humor, harassment, hate and negativity associated with people like Donald Trump.
“‘Troll’ is not differentiated as it was,” Phillips said.
So now, Phillips looks at online behaviors through a detailed lens to find what the impact or outcome of the act will be. She said she is getting to the root of the negative-aggressive action.
“I want people to think critically of what passes as normal in the United States of America in 2016,” Phillips said.
Phillips would like to see how we can change the landscape on the internet and make it more hospitable.
She said “average people . . . see more conflict online rather than in bodied spaces.”
(09/16/16 2:45am)
Mad About Chamber Music I, the first of a two-part series, will come to the Neva Langley Fickling Hall at Mercer’s Townsend School of Music on Friday, Sept. 16. The evening will feature small chamber ensembles comprised from members of the larger Mercer Wind Ensemble. The concert is free and open to the public.
“The wind ensemble is too big to fit in the chamber hall,” said Mercer’s director of instrumental ensembles, Douglas Hill, about the decision to divide the musicians into smaller performances.
This year, the Mercer Wind Ensemble has grown to a sizeable group of forty-five players.
In addition, the wind instrumentalists have paired with the Mercer Percussion Ensemble for this upcoming performance. If they were all to play together at once, it would make for an incredibly boisterous sound that the concert hall was not quite built for.
According to Hill, Fickling Hall was built acoustically to amplify the sounds of intimate chamber groups and solo performances.[related title="Related Stories" stories="18926,19065,19887" align="left" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]
However, this has given Hill and other Townsend faculty members the opportunity to creatively divide the wind and percussion players into smaller chamber ensembles that will effectively use the building and enhance the musical performance.
“[This is the] first time we will be able to perform a piece for a horn octet,” said Hill.
With the rise in wind players at Townsend, there are now enough instrumentalist to form new chamber groups, like the horn octet. This also makes it possible for new musical arrangements and compositions to be performed.
Hill said, “There is chamber music for all kinds of instrumentations . . . so there is something for everybody.”
This upcoming concert will feature a large array of pieces dating from the 17th century to a more recent work, “Fanfare for Full Fathom Five” by John Mackey.
This epic fanfare by Mackey debuted in 2015 at Columbus State University, where representatives from nine universities participated in its premiere performance.
“I think people really will like it,” said Hill. “It will have dissonance and [then] go into something really tuneful.”
The Mackey piece features brass glissandos where the instruments sigh into their musical phrases. The composition is grand and cinematic and forms “clash-y” chords that then resolve into pleasant harmonies.
“I’m lucky I’ve got some good players,” said Hill in reference to the Townsend student instrumentalists, further highlighting what seems to be a promising year for the Mercer Wind Ensemble.
Hill said that the goal of this concert is to touch one person with one piece. Since the program will feature an eclectic collection of music, it will give audience members the opportunity to hear a wide range of musical styles.
For more information on the Townsend School of Music and Mad About Chamber Music I, refer to music.mercer.edu.
(09/14/16 8:46pm)
“1, 2, 3 Team!” is the chant of many kids’ sports teams and the title of Mercer University Women's Basketball Coach Susie Gardner’s new children's book.
“[The book] is about a little girl named Zoe. She is the best [basketball player] and she knows it. . . she doesn't think she needs her team,” Gardner said.
However, Zoe later learns that she does need her team.
Gardner said, “My goal was to teach a life lesson.”
She said that she believes children's books have the capability of teaching valuable lessons to children as well as to adults. She even reads children's books to the Mercer Women’s team on occasion.
1, 2, 3 Team! marks Gardner's first book and the first children's book that Mercer University Press has ever published.
“I told them I was very passionate about children's books,” she said, “I was very humbly surprised.”
Gardner explained that she did a lot of research before writing this book by going to the Tarver Library on Mercer’s campus and the Washington Library in downtown Macon.
“Do I like this author's style or this book's illustrations?” Gardner said was one of the questions she would ask herself while researching.
It was a process, but Gardner said it was easy.
The book’s illustrator, Tina Mullen, is a friend of Gardner's. They met while Gardner was at the University of Florida.
One of the issues Mercer University Press had before agreeing to publish Gardner’s book was that they did not have an illustrator for it. Gardner was happy to recommend Mullen, and the publishers agreed to bring her onboard.
“To be a great book, it has to have good illustrations,” said Gardner with satisfaction for her book’s pictures.
Gardner said that she did not write this book for herself.
“I’m just trying to give back. I don't want this to be about me,” she said.
When asked about the level of support she has received, Gardner said that it is her past players that she coached who have been some of the best outlets of support.
Gardner said that her players who now have children have sent her pictures of their kids holding the book.
“That has touched my heart,” said Gardner.
She said that the lesson she wants to teach her readers is to learn how to be a team player at a young age.
She suggests that she wants them to walk away with a lifelong impression of what it is to be a teammate.
Gardner said in the few last moments on the sideline that “My wish would be for every child to have their own book, their favorite.”
(03/31/16 12:43am)
The Mercer Wind Ensemble is teaming up with Westside and Central High schools for a special concert Tuesday, April 12.
The concert will be held at Central High School’s auditorium. It will begin at 7:30 p.m., and admission is free and open to the public.
The concert has been titled “April Showers Bring Musical Flowers” as a play on words of the original saying, “April Showers Bring May Flowers,” said Douglas Hill, a Mercer professor of music and director of instrumental ensembles.
“[The Central High School auditorium] is a beautiful auditorium,” Hill said, adding that this event is an opportunity for the high school students to gain exposure working with university musicians. This concert will also allow the students from Westside and Central the chance to hear university students in their neighborhood.
In a combined effort, Mercer has been working with symphonic band directors Michael Scott — a Mercer alumnus — from Central and Tyler Allen from Westside. Each school will play a program individually with the Mercer Wind Ensemble concluding the concert.
Hill said that the stage at the auditorium is not big enough to fit all three schools at one time.
Mercer has worked with high schools before, and this is only one concert in a series. But this is the first time Mercer has worked with Westside and Central together.
Hill said that not only is this an opportunity for the students to hear each other, but this collaboration will allow Mercer to potentially recruit new students. This concert will showcase the wind ensemble but will open a door for the high school students to explore all that Mercer has to offer.
There are two standout pieces that the Mercer wind ensemble will be playing. The first is “KHAN” by Julie Gioux, portraying the historical conquest of Genghis Khan.
Gioux described it as a “programmatic work depicting Genghis Khan and his army on the move.”
The second piece is “Five” by Kenyon Wilson. This piece was commissioned for use by 67 high school, university, community, military and brass bands — including Mercer — after the attacks in Chattanooga, Tennessee on July 16, 2015, which killed five servicemen.
During the performance five brass players will leave the stage as a memorial to the five servicemen who died in the shootings.
Hill said that this piece holds a special place with him because his son is an F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot in the Air Force. It is that military connection that nurtures his association with this composition.
For more information on the “April Showers Brings Musical Flowers” concert, visit the Townsend School of Music website at music.mercer.edu. Information will be listed in the event calendar.
(03/31/16 12:32am)
The Mercer Brass Choir concert that is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Friday, April 8 — titled Bear Day Brass — has been moved from the McCorkle Music Building patio to Fickling Hall inside the music building. This event is free and open to the public.
“It will be bombastic,” said Douglas Hill, Mercer professor of music and director of instrumental ensembles.
Hill said that the change is a good thing and that Fickling Hall will be easier to play in for the student instrumentalists. Due to the wonderful acoustics of the hall, the sound will be quite immersive, Hill said.
The April concert will feature both brass and percussion students. Not all of the instrumentalists, however, are music majors. Hill said that in addition to students of the Townsend School of Music, the ensembles include students from majors such as engineering, English and business.
During the concert, several groups will play music that they have been working on over the semester. This concert will feature performances by the Horn Quartet, the Tuba and Euphonium Ensemble and the Trombone Quartet, which will be premiering a commissioned composition of “Mean Streets” by Alejandro Guardia, Jr.
Hill said that “Mean Streets” is a piece that he is looking forward to at the concert. The piece was commissioned by the Townsend School of Music after previously working with Guardia, Jr.
“We found him at random,” Hill said.
Guardia, Jr. had contacted Mercer a few years ago after composing a piece, asking if Townsend students would be interested in playing his music. Impressed with his work, the school of music asked Guardia, Jr. to compose a new piece just for Mercer.
Hill said that Guardia, Jr. is a young and up-and-coming composer.
“Mean Streets” is an eclectic piece with all kinds of sounds, said Hill. Recreating a city environment, players will make the sounds of motorcycles, horns and sirens with their instruments.
To join the brass players, Mercer student percussionists will also be featured throughout the concert.
Hill hopes that through this, Mercer brass players and percussionists will be exposed to a greater range of brass literature, particularly Renaissance brass literature. The concert will feature pieces from the 1400s and 1500s that students have been studying.
“Anybody who like brass music will [hear] something that they like in this [concert],” Hill said.
For more information on Bear Day Brass, visit the Townsend School of Music event calendar online at music.mercer.edu.
(03/17/16 12:28pm)
First opening seven years ago on Cotton Avenue in Macon, Georgia, Cherry Street Cycles has built a name for itself among the downtown crowd.
And the specialty bicycle store will be celebrating its one year anniversary at its current location at 484 Second St. this Saint Patrick’s Day.
“We are a specialized dealer,” said Tony Howd, the general manager of Cherry Street Cycles.
In honor of the anniversary, Cherry Street Cycles has been celebrating with “Spring Savings.” All throughout the shop, bicycles are sporting the red sales tag and being sold for a discounted price. The savings event will be going on until March 20.
Additionally, Cherry Street Cycles offers a package discount that comes with each purchase of their bicycles. Anytime a client purchases a bike in the shop, they receive up to fifty percent off the purchase price on a trade in, lifetime tune ups on the bicycle, factory lifetime warranty on frames, factory one-year warranty on parts, experienced mechanics assembling the bicycle and free fitting and orientation of the new bike.
This purchase package is available year-round for any bicycle that is bought from the store.
Howd said that the bike shop will be hosting a “social ride” on March 17 to celebrate the anniversary of its new location. It will begin at 6:00 p.m., and anyone is welcome to come out and ride.
The ride will be about an 8 to 10 mile loop with “probably a beer stop afterwards,” Howd said.
Prizes will be awarded for great Saint Patrick’s Day costumes.
Wearing helmets will be required to participate in this ride.
Cherry Street Cycles is affiliated with Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association (SORBA) and the Middle Georgia SORBA chapter, the Ocmulgee Mountain Bike Association (OMBA). As a sponsor of OMBA, Cherry Street Cycles is associated with rider skills clinics and day trips, and the business supports local trail building.
In addition to the Saint Patrick’s Day ride, the bicycle shop has began involvement with Bike Macon to bring Open Streets Macon to College Street Sunday, April 17 from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Open Streets Macon has been themed after Ciclovia in Bogotá, Colombia, and other related events throughout the world, which will open up the streets in Macon for playing, biking and walking.
This year will mark the first-ever Open Streets Macon. Bike Macon says on their website that the event “will be part bike tour, part block party, and a great time for getting active, interacting with your neighbors, and enjoying our amazing city.”
Cherry Street Cycles will be hosting a backwards bike challenge activity at the Opens Streets Macon event. They have built a literal backwards bike, and they are challenging the community to see who in Macon can ride the bicycle the farthest.
(03/17/16 12:23pm)
When you think of poetry slams and spoken word, your brain may jump to images of multi-syllabic contortions in dark, hazy rooms. You may think of semi-ironic nodding and snapping. Bongos may come to mind.
When spoken word becomes a competition, the rules change completely.
The Mercer University spoken word club, Point B.L.A.N.K., plans on attending the College Union Poetry Slam Invitational (CUPSI) from April 6 to April 9 in Austin, Texas. CUPSI (pronounced Cup-See) is an annual national collegiate event that brings together poetry and spoken word organizations from all over the nation.
This year the Mercer club will be bringing five university students to participate in the competition. The CUPSI competition will be sub-divided into four rounds: the preliminary round, the second preliminary round, the semi-final and the final round.
Each round judges students on quality of performance and time for a total of 30 possible points. Students participating in these rounds are competing for the highest possible score. Those with the highest score move on to the next round.
In April, Mercer students Rebekah Fulton (junior), Sydney Simpson (junior), Tamar Thomas (sophomore), Micheline Antoin (senior) and Ryan Alexander Jones (senior), will all be traveling to Texas by car to participate in the event.
“We were a surprise last year,” said Point B.L.A.N.K. president and Mercer senior, Ryan Alexander Jones. In a phone interview, Jones explained that last year was the club’s first time attending CUPSI in Richmond, Virginia. Although the club fell out of the competition in the semi-final round, nobody anticipated Point B.L.A.N.K. landing a spot in the top 20.
Jones said that they are expecting about 68 schools to compete this year. Some of the heavy hitters will be New York University (NYU) and the University of Texas at Austin.
“NYU puts out a great team every year . . . [and] University of Texas [at] Austin have the home court advantage,” Jones said.
He said that Point B.L.A.N.K is trying to prepare for anyone and everyone.
This year, Point B.L.A.N.K. members who are competing are required to come up with four individual spoken word pieces, and they are working on some group pieces together. Prior to spring break, the club was meeting about twice a week. Now, the club plans to meet about three times a week to work on pieces until the competition starts.
Jones said that he wants club members to work together and not practice by themselves. They will be helping to critique the quality of each other’s work and make sure that everyone is prepared before they leave.
The club has started a free Generosity fundraiser online to help offset the costs of the trip to Texas. So far the club has raised about $800.00 and plans to raise about one thousand dollars more. Two thousand dollars in total would be the ideal amount that the club would like to raise.
Funds raised will go towards vehicle rental costs, extra hotel costs and group meals.
Point B.L.A.N.K. was officially founded at Mercer during the 2014-2015 school year. B.L.A.N.K. is an acronym for Believing Love and Nurturing Knowledge. Although the club is primarily for spoken word, they would like to grow into a larger arts collective.
“[We are] very appreciative of all the support that Mercer [and Macon] has given to us,” Jones said.
(02/25/16 4:05am)
On March 1, warmer weather will be ushered in with “Spring Fever,” the Townsend School of Music's latest faculty artist recital. This faculty-led cabaret will be performed on campus at Fickling Hall in the McCorkle Music Building. The event is free and open to the public.
This event invites the public to “go a little crazy with comedy, love songs, jazzy tunes, and classics from the Great American Songbook,” according to the Townsend website.
To lead the audience into the Ides of March is Dr. Martha Malone, Mercer University’s vocal studies chair and opera director. For this recital, Malone has pieced together various works from her repertoire into her vision of an old-fashioned cabaret.
The cabaret’s roots began in Paris, France. Through its intimate style — usually requiring only voice and piano — it traveled throughout France and later into Germany. As “a nightclub thing,” as Malone called it, cabarets appealed to visual artists and other creative types. Soon after, it would cross the Atlantic and to New York, where it blossomed in the United States.
For this cabaret, Malone has decided to go with the theme “Spring Fever” and how this time of year affects us. Aspects of falling in love, people’s reactions to spring and even academic types getting tired near the end of the school year will be featured in Malone’s hour-long cabaret.
[pullquote speaker="Dr. Martha Malone" photo="" align="left" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]People will be entertained, they will hear familiar songs and new songs that they haven't heard.[/pullquote]
Stepping away from the traditional cabaret style of voice and solo piano, Malone will welcome a few of her fellow faculty members and Mercer students to the stage. Pianist Cam Bishop, saxophonist and clarinetist Dr. Monty Cole, jazz pianist and bassist Dr. Christopher Schmitz, percussionist Dr. Marcus Reddick and Mercer student double bassist Reed Tucker will be performing alongside Malone.
As a young girl, Malone grew up with cabaret music playing in her parent’s home. It has been five or six years since Malone has performed one of her own.
“Spring Fever” will feature songs like Rogers and Hammerstein’s “It Might as Well Be Spring,” but Malone plans to jazz it up a bit. Other selections will include “April in Paris” by Vernon Duke, “Lazy Afternoon” from the show “Golden Apple” and some Cole Porter.
“People will be entertained – [the audience] will hear familiar songs and new songs that they haven’t heard,” Malone said.
For more information on “Spring Fever” and other upcoming faculty artist recitals, please see the Townsend School of Music website at music.mercer.edu.
(02/25/16 3:42am)
Renowned organist Christa Rakich will perform the world premiere of Margaretha Christina de Jong’s “Fantasia on Salve Regina” (2016) as part of Mercer University’s Joan Stockstill Godsey Concert Series, beginning Feb. 26. The concert will be held at Christ Episcopal Church in Macon at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
“[Rakich] makes the organ fun,” said Jack Mitchener, director of Mercer’s Townsend-McAfee Institute of Church Music and associate professor of organ. With an expansive studio pipe organ from Paris in her background, Mitchener described Rakich as a buoyant personality with a colorful way of playing the organ.
[pullquote speaker="Jack Mitchener, associate professor of organ" photo="" align="left" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]She makes the organ fun.[/pullquote]
Rakich, a concert and recording artist, is an artist-in-residence at the First Congregational Church in Somers, Connecticut. She directs the music program at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in West Hartford, Connecticut and has taught at the New England Conservatory, Westminster Choir College, Brandeis University and the University of Connecticut.
Rakich has previously served as the artist-in-residence at the University of Pennsylvania and First Lutheran Church in Boston. She has further served as assistant university organist at Harvard University.
“Fantasia on Salve Regina” uses a Latin hymn based on a Gregorian chant. Mitchener said that Rakich has described the piece as “Neo-Romantic.”
The concert will feature organ music written by a variety of different composers from diverse countries and eras. Both female and male composers will be featured, including contemporary composers who have written in the romantic style.
In addition to the de Jong piece, Rakich will perform a selection from J.S. Bach’s famous “Goldberg Variations” — which were originally written for harpsichord — and a collection of other pieces from her eclectic repertoire.
“We do this first and foremost for the students,” Mitchener said, explaining his excitement for the concert. Rakich is a colleague of Mitchener’s through the organ profession, and he said that he is looking forward to having her play for the Godsey concert series.