MUSIC AT EMORY
Abby Balson, soprano
Junior Recital
Greta Franke, soprano
Senior Recital
Dr. Matthew Brower, piano
From the studio of Dr. Bethany Mamola
Saturday, March 22, 2025, 3:30 p.m.
Performing Arts Studio Department of Music
1804 N. Decatur Rd. Atlanta, GA 30322
Please turn off phones and all electronic devices. Photography, recording, or digital capture of this concert is not permitted.
Program
“Let the Bright Seraphim”
George Frideric Handel from Samson (1685–1759)
Greta Franke
Povera Me Pauline Viardot Garcia (1821–1910)
La speranza al cor mi dice Isabella Colbran (1785–1845)
O del mio amato ben Stefano Donaudy (1879–1925)
Il Barcaiolo Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848)
Abby Balson
Liebestreu
Johannes Brahms An die Nachtigall (1833–1897)
Greta Franke
I can’t be talkin’ of love John Duke Loveliest of Trees (1899–1984) The Last Word of a Bluebird
Abby Balson
Seven Elizabethan Lyrics, Op. 12
Roger Quilter Weep you no more (1877–1953) My Life’s Delight Damask Roses The Faithless Shepherdess Brown is my love By a Fountainside Fair House of Joy
Greta Franke
“No One Else”
Dave Malloy from Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 (b. 1976) “All That Matters” Gary Barlow from Finding Neverland (b. 1971) “Anything Goes” Cole Porter from Anything Goes (1891–1964)
Abby Balson
La Partida F. M. Alvarez (1833–1898)
Greta Franke
The Girl in 14G
“Evening Prayer”
Abby Balson
Jeanine Tesori (b. 1961)
Engelbert Humperdink from Hansel and Gretel (1854–1921)
Abby Balson and Greta Franke
This recital is presented by the Department of Music at Emory University. music.emory.edu
Performer Biographies
Greta Franke, 22, of Tower Lakes, IL, is a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences (ecology and conservation track) and a Bachelor of Arts in Music (vocal performance track). Greta began singing as a toddler in the “Joyful Noise” children’s choir at church. She sang with the Barrington Children’s Choir for nine years, served as soprano section leader of her high school’s chamber choir and Madrigals ensemble, placed in three Chicago NATS classical competitions, and was a two-time Illinois All-State Musician. At Emory, Greta studies voice with Dr. Bethany Mamola. She is a soprano in the Emory Concert Choir, the music director of Dooley Noted A Cappella, and the vice president of Mu Phi Epsilon professional music fraternity. Outside of music, she has served as a peer mentor and a teaching assistant for the Department of Environmental Sciences, an honors researcher focusing on soil science, a field technician for the Emory Ecological Society, and a trip leader for Outdoor Emory and the SOAR preorientation program. Greta’s musical studies have been generously supported by the Emory 2018 Music Scholarship, the William Lemonds Award for Summer Study Abroad, the Boykin Music Scholarship, and several Emory Friends of Music Scholarships. Greta has been inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, the 100 Senior Honorary, Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Eta Sigma, and she is a grateful recipient of the Emory Liberal Arts Scholarship and the James G. Lester Scholarship.
Abby Balson is a third-year student at Emory University, double-majoring in Music (Vocal Performance) and Human Health (Health Innovation). She is a recipient of the John H. Stipe Society Music Scholarship. At Emory, Abby sings in the University Chorus and plays alto saxophone in the Emory Wind Ensemble, Emory Saxophone Quartet, and Emory Young People’s Orchestra. She directs the Emory Pep Band and serves as Historian for Emory’s professional music fraternity, Mu Phi Epsilon. Abby also enjoys teaching voice lessons to kids and college students. She is currently pursuing research in the area of music education, investigating how music ensembles encourage community building and student flourishing at the high school and collegiate level. Outside of her musical pursuits, Abby does social media work and environmental health research on heavy metal levels in Atlanta homes with the Emory University Saikawa Lab.
Hailed as “superb” by the Philadelphia Inquirer, Matthew Brower is a pianist, coach, and educator whose expertise spans a variety of genres, from classical piano, chamber music, opera, and art song to musical theater and jazz. He is an artist affiliate in piano at Emory University and Agnes Scott College and a member of 6-WIRE, a violin-erhu-piano trio that combines classical chamber music with styles from around the world. Brower has appeared in many prestigious venues throughout the United States and China, including Carnegie Hall, the Kimmel Center, and the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, and he has been featured on WRTI, Philadelphia’s classical radio station. As a vocal coach and choral accompanist, he has held positions at Opera Philadelphia, Westminster Choir College, the Curtis Institute Summerfest Young Artist Voice Program, the Centre for Opera Studies in Italy, Opera in the Ozarks, and the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to his current academic appointments, Brower served as a visiting assistant professor of piano at Washington College and a faculty member of the University of Delaware’s Master Players Festival. He has doctoral and master’s degrees in collaborative piano from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
Student Recitals - Spring 2025
Sunday, February 23, noon
Performing Arts Studio
Joey (Yizhou) Chen, trumpet Junior Recital
Sunday, February 23, 2:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
Sanjay Aiyar, piano Senior Honors Recital
Saturday, March 22, noon
Performing Arts Studio
Alexa Schwartz, soprano Senior Recital
Saturday, March 22, 3:30 p.m.
Performing Arts Studio
Abby Balson, soprano Junior Recital
Greta Franke, soprano Senior Recital
Sunday, March 23, noon
Performing Arts Studio
Jordan Averett, soprano Senior Recital
Sunday, March 23, 2:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
Runyu Huang, flute Senior Recital
Saturday, March 29, noon
Performing Arts Studio
Jessie Zhu, piano Senior Recital
Saturday, March 29, 2:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
Julia Nagel, flute Senior Honors Recital
Saturday, March 29, 5:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
Chloe Nelson, violin Senior Honors Recital
Saturday, April 5, 2:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
David Klimjack, piano Junior Recital
Katie Shin, violin Senior Recital
Sunday, April 6, 2:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
Peiming Yang, piano/digital composition Senior Recital
Sunday, April 6, 3:30 p.m.
Performing Arts Studio
Anushka Basu, soprano Junior Recital
Saturday, April 6, 5:00 p.m.
Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall
Satvik Elayavalli, piano Senior Recital with San Pham, piano
Saturday, April 27, noon
Performing Arts Studio
Kimiko Darcy, piano Sophomore Recital
Jonathan Luo, piano Sophomore Recital
