Alumni News

Alumna Sio Tepper ‘14 receives recognition during 2020 BroadwayWorld Theatre Awards of the Decade Santa Barbara Regional Awards

Sio Tepper

Alumna Sio Tepper ‘14 received recognition during the 2020 BroadwayWorld Theatre Awards of the Decade Santa Barbara Regional Awards for her work with the Santa Barbara High School Theatre Program. Nominations for the awards were submitted by members of the BroadwayWorld community and winners were selected by popular vote. Tepper was recognized for Sound Design of the Decade for her work on Santa Barbara High School’s 2018 production In The Heights. From 2013 to 2020, Tepper has worked with the Santa Barbara High School Theatre Program on nearly every one of their productions. Tepper received a Bachelor of Arts degree with an emphasis in Ethnomusicology from UC Santa Barbara.

Composition Alumnus Dr. Brandon J. Rolle ‘19 to release debut album on Arpaviva Recordings

Brandon J. Rolle

Alumnus Dr. Brandon J. Rolle’s debut album, Glitch Portraiture, will be released by Arpaviva Recordings in November 2021. The production of the album will be supported by the Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University and the Arpaviva Foundation. Glitch Portraiture will feature five recent electroacoustic chamber works that exhibit Rolle’s distinct approach to integrating technology with acoustic performance. The record includes several works composed during Rolle’s time as a PhD student at UC Santa Barbara, along with new works including an electroacoustic chamber concerto written for violinist/composer Mari Kimura and featuring her recently-released MUGIC™ performance sensor.

Music Theory Alumna Dr. Elizabeth Hambleton ‘20 appointed Visiting Assistant Professor at Colby College

Elizabeth Hambleton

Alumna Dr. Elizabeth Hambleton ‘20 was recently appointed as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. For the semester-long appointment, Hambleton is teaching post-tonal theory, which is the capstone class to the four-semester theory sequence for the music majors, as well as an introduction to sound art and soundwalking, which is a more hands-on / “ears-open” class designed for non-majors of all musical and artistic background. In the post-tonal class, Hambleton is adding units on electroacoustic music, graphic notation, and new notation, plus video game music theory and analysis. Hambleton holds a Master of Arts and PhD in Music Theory from UC Santa Barbara.