South American Rhythms - Southern Miss Symphony Opening Night 2023

V yagE

104th SEASON

South American Rhythms

Dr. Michael Miles, Music Director

Welcome to the 104th season of The University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra! We are so pleased that you could join us on our Voyage! We have an incredibly exciting season ahead of us as we take our students and patrons on a journey around the world, experiencing the music of an exciting array of cultures along the way.

South America is the first stop on our tour. We travel south to bring you the rhythmic pulsations of Brazil and Argentina, with a stop in Puerto Rico on the way. In all of the selections this evening, you will hear folk elements of the regions represented in the rhythms, melodies and harmonies of the music. Sometimes these elements are directly quoted, and other times the composers will reference folk elements to give impressions of life in their native lands. In all cases, we completely expect to see you moving in your chair tonight!

We are so pleased tonight to share a very international lineup of guest artists and composers with you. Lisandro Parada, who composed Concerto for Three Percussion and Orchestra, joins us not only as a guest clinician, but also as a guest artist performing his own music. He will be joined by Jeronimo Molina and Angel Frette, two of his good friends from Patagonia. Tonight’s performance will be the North American premiere of this work. We also are thrilled tonight to premier two original works by our good friend and professor of percussion, Dr. John Wooton. John is a fixture in our community and around the world as a percussionist and purveyor of all things steel pan. His international travels and love for Latin American music inspired him to write Amigos de Borinquen and Bembe My Way. These wonderful compositions have been arranged for us by USM alumnus, Bill Murphy. Dr. Wooton will perform on steel pan on both of his compositions alongside his friends from Patagonia. And finally, we are honored tonight to welcome Dr. Sarah Higino as our guest conductor. Dr. Higino will lead the Orchestra and Hattiesburg Choral Union in the Villa-Lobos Choros No. 10. Sarah is the conductor of the orchestra and mixed choir, teacher, pianist and pedagogical coordinator for the Volta Redonda Cidade da Musica, a music program serving 4,600 students K-12 in Brazil. We have had the honor of having Dr. Higino on campus for a week sharing her talent experiences and pedagogical philosophies with our orchestra, choral, and music education students. We look forward to many more partnerships and exchanges with Dr. Higino’s program in the future.

I can’t wait to perform this program! The rehearsals have been so much fun and so educational for our students. They have been pressed beyond their norms of Western music for this program, and they’ve responded incredibly well. I know you will enjoy it, and it’s a great start to our Voyage this year. Next stops…Venice and Vienna!

THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES SCHOOL OF MUSIC present

SouthRhythmsAmerican

The University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra

Dr. Michael Miles, music director

Dr. Sarah Higino, guest conductor

John Wooton, Lisandro Parada, Jeronimo Molina, Angel Frette, percussion and the Hattiesburg Choral Union

Tuesday, October 3, 2023, 7:30 p.m.

The Thomas V. Fraschillo Stage at the Mannoni Performing Arts Center

Batuque Oscar Lorenzo Fernandez from Reisado do Pastoreio (1897-1948)

Concerto for 3 Percussion and Orchestra Lisandro Parada (b. 1984)

Lisandro Parada, Jeronimo Molina, Angel Frette, percussion

Intermission

Amigos de Borinquen John Wooton (b. 1962) arr. Bill Murphy

Bembe My Way John Wooton arr. Bill Murphy

John Wooton, Jeronimo Molina, Angel Frette, percussion

Choros No. 10

Sarah Higino, conductor

This program presented in part by a generous grant from Partners for the Arts

Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959)

Program Notes

Batuque from Reisado do pastoreio

Although he first studied medicine, Brazilian composer Oscar Lorenzo Fernández (1897-1948) came up through the Rio de Janeiro musical establishment with largely conventional training, writing music after European models. He succeeded one of his own teachers as professor of harmony at the National Institute of Music in 1925, and in 1936, he founded the Brazilian Conservatory of Music, which he directed until his death.

In 1924, Fernández won a composition contest with his Trio brasileiro, a piano trio imbued with Brazilian popular elements. His subsequent works are decisively Brazilian in character, often quoting folksongs. Reisado do pastoreio (1930) is a sort of orchestral Christmas triptych based on Afro-Brazilian traditions, though without actual folk melodies. A festively pulsating Batuque, a type of percussiondriven secular dance, is the third movement of that suite.

Concerto for Three andPercussionists Orchestra

Lisandro Parada is a musician, composer, arranger and performer born in Argentina in 1984. The Concerto for Three Percussionists and Orchestra was written in 2022 for the 20th anniversary of the Patagonia International Percussion Festival, and premiered together with the Patagonia Cultural Foundation Symphony Orchestra that same year within the framework of the festival.

The concerto has three distinctive movements. The first movement is “Round 7”, in memory of my father. The second is “Río Minero,” which describes a river located in Patagonia, Argentina in Villa Traful in the Andes Mountains. The 3rd movement, “1099,” is inspired by the neighborhood where I grew up in Neuquen. In this music, different conversations take place between the three soloists and the instruments of the symphony orchestra, converging during their different movements, intertwining different elements of modern music with some folkloric elements from Argentina.

Notes by the composer

Amigos de Borinquen

Borinquen is the indigenous name for Puerto Rico, and after making many trips to Puerto Rico, I accumulated many dear friends, some of which I consider family.  Most of my trips to Puerto Rico were by invitation of José Alicea to perform and teach at the International Percussion Festival that he hosts once a year at the Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico. After falling in love with the island, the people and the food, they gave me the title of “Honorary Boriqua.” A Boriqua is an indigenous person from Borinquen. Years later, I met my wife, who is a real Boriqua, and she loved my tune, Amigos de Borinquen.  So, it is only appropriate for me to dedicate this orchestral version to her.

Notes by the composer

Bembe My Way

Bembé comes from the Yoruba people of West Africa. Depending on the context, the term “bembé” can refer to one of many things: a type of drum, an ethnic subgroup, a religious ceremony, a style of dance, a genre of music, a wooden platform...you get the idea. The genre, Bembé, made its way through South America and the Caribbean.  We are most familiar with the version that came through Cuba and Puerto Rico.  Today Bembé is common in Latin jazz although some people call this style “Afro-Cuban 6/8.” My version of Bembé is unique and far removed from the original genre; therefore, I thought a proper name would be, “Bembé My Way.”

Notes by the composer

Choros No. 10

Nationalistic composers have always walked a thin line between the preservation of cultural identity on the one hand and Western integrity, complexity, and idiom on the other. The pitfalls of the former result in music that sounds awkward and unnatural in its foreign medium, while the cost of the latter may be the selling out of nationalistic intentions. Villa-Lobos sidestepped the dilemma altogether, fashioning a music that relied on native elements to capture the greater essence rather than the actual reality of Brazilian folklore.

The title Chôros refers to Brazil’s urban street musicians. The work’s subtitle, “Rasga o coração” (“Rend the Heart”), is derived from the last line of the poem by Catulo da Paixão Cearense that serves as the text. The words that are sung at the chant-like entry of the chorus, Ja-ka-tá ka-ma-ra-já, do not appear in Cearense’s poem at all, but were chosen by the composer for their purely sonorous effect. The lyrical melody that soon emerges is by Villa-Lobos’ older contemporary, the Brazilian composer Anacleto Augusto de Medeiros (1866-1907).

Villa-Lobos draws upon both the music of Brazil’s large international cities such as Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, and that of the far-removed world of the Brazilian interior. These culturally disparate elements (urban dance rhythms and Villa-Lobos’ fanciful version of indigenous chant) are synthesized on a massive symphonic scale, magnified far beyond the local scale of their respective social contexts. Whereas European nationalism necessarily gravitated away from city life, where art music thrived, Latin America’s European-style cities afforded concert composers a vital wealth of musical resources that had long remained untapped.

The net result of the work is wholly unique, however. Most notable in its freshness is the hypnotically vigorous second half, in which a driving rhythmic foundation (the crisp and deliberate patterns of Brazilian dance) underlies the soaring lyricism of the chorus (as it impersonates the spirit of indigenous chant). Through the clear delineation (or stratification) of melody and rhythm, the dichotomous worlds of song and dance, the rainforest and the city, primitive spirituality, and sophisticated decadence all mutually coexist in a meaningful way.

Symphony Orchestra

Violin 1

Marlene Gentile, concertmaster

Alexander Ilchev

Jessica Achon

Juan Lincango

Adele Paltin

Icaro Santana

Jonathan Chen

Violin 2

Federico Franco, principal

Lily Martinez

Nohelia Zambrano

Angelina Sidiropoulou

Alejandro Lopez

Victor Amaut

Grace Pineda

Lucas Gonzalez

Dexter Rodkey

Viola

Ana Sofia Suarez, principal

Renata Andrade

Isabella Marques

Christian Avila

Nicole Herrera

Ronnie Ortiz

Cello

Alejandro Restreppo, principal

Mert Ozkan

Brian Lorett

Maricio Abaunza

Cristian Sanchez

Kassandra Henriquez

Evelin Lopez

Courtney Francois Bass

Daniel Magalhaes, principal

Pedro Arceo

Jose Cuellar

Matheus Ferreira de Souza

Carlos Herrera

Nick Shellenberg

Manuel Jara Ramirez

Charlie Levandoski

Flute

Sarah Hinchey, principal

Claudio Palazzi

Angel Hamel

Oboe

Alexandra Gordon, principal

Darbi George

Josh Strobel

English Horn

Darbi George

Clarinet

Gerby Keiny Galvan, principal

Caitlyn Austin

Bass Clarinet

Eli Anderson

Bassoon

Gabriel Flores

Zachary Howell

Contrabassoon

Brandon Woodie

Alto Saxophone

Lyndon Bobo

Horn

Brian Alston, principal

Chance Rootes

Anna Zurawski

Abby Loftin

Connor Hammond

Trumpet

Doug Hutchison, coprincipal

Rob Smith, co-principal

Zach Dake

Kyle Matthees

Trombone

Caleb Owenby, principal

Nicholas Dauerer

Bass Trombone

Jonathan Henneveld

Tuba

Dawson Foster

Timpani

Carmen Vessel

Percussion

Malachi Collins

Ryan Dunklee

Christopher Johnston

Shawn Lawrence

Bryce McDonald

Angel Murillo

Nathan Sanders

Sam Shaner

Logan Whitehead

Hattiesburg Choral Union

SOPRANOS

Kathlyn Arcemont

Evette Bailey

Bayleigh Batchelor

Elizabeth Bemis-Gatter

Aria Blackard

Kate Blackledge

Abby Bo

Braelyn Brewer

Anna Brown

Tristan Carnley

Thailor Carpenter

Chloe Chatman

Tristen Coleman

Laura Cochran

Mary Carol Dassau

Savannah Diamond

Madison Eubanks

Jillie Grace

Christina Gomez

Sadie Graham

Suzanna Haddox

Norma Hallberg

Ashlynn Hamilton

Josephine Huff

Kaelyn Hunter

Isabella Jordan

Ashlyn Joyner

McKenzie Kuykendoll

Bonnie Littlejohn

Jolee League

Maggie Martinez

Bitsy Brownie Miller

Elisha Miller

Belle Moeller

Barbara Niezgoda

Katherine Pittman

Colleen Pratt

Melody Rawls

Tatiana Rivera

Miya Robbins

Maesey Rowell

Rachel Sanders

Ashawndra Simmons

Erin Smith

Rachel Smith

Lucille Spinosa-Parker

Allison Tharp

Mariah Trunell

Brooke Vasquez

Reese Walker

Rachel Walley

Monti Watkins

Mary Katherine

Wilkinson

Atlanta Williams

ALTOS

Abi Allarde

G. “Gander” Andersen

Jessica Anderson

Samantha Baker

Kalyn Bales

Emily Beall

Abigail Bouzigard

Kahia Buckley

Kassidy Chandler

Judi Collins

Maite Coronado

Ellie Cox

Jayla Davis

Madison Fowler

Danielle Gray

Gia Guice

Christine Heath

Marissa Heath

Amoiree Kelly

Maggie Kelly

Lorinda Krhut

Sarah Kwas

Mackenzie Lacy

Anna Kate Long

Jennifer McClarron

Hannah McCoy

Jasmine McGaughy

Bailey McKee

Sydney Mitchell

Taryn Monroe

Tara Piggott

Jakala Pittman

Lacey Prater

Layla Price

Rebecca Rowan

Ashleigh Sanderson

Aimee Scharcherer

Hannah Shows

Chloe Smith

Erica Smith

Lauryn Spell

Cecilia Stearman

Renise Strong

Anna Taylor

Krys Taylor

Leighla Thompson

Skye Tobias

Mari Tyler

Jayla Vaughan

Emma Walker

Maggie Westbrook

Riley Young

TENORS

Eli Anderson

Roderick Andrews

Jeremiah Bates

Rodney Bridgeforth

DVon Dampier

Nigel Dixon

Paul Dunn

Julian Ferrell

Christian Fox

Logan Graham

Tanner Green

Will Griswold

Ryan Guerra

Tyrese Hardy

Diego Henriquez

Eli Joyner

Hunter King

Patrick Martin

Derek Meler

John Meyer

LaDarrien Paten

John Pharis

Jesse Preston

Hutson Rollins

Lazarius Shelby

Eli Skinner

Cameron Steichen

Omari Thigpen

Blake Tolbert

Omari Walker

Jeremiah Williams

Jesse Woodcock

Chris Young

BASSES

Donald Aaron

Rasheed Ambrose

Dakota Andrews

Skyler Angus-Barker

Colin Bruff

Davion Cole

Joshua Cothron

Langston Dillon

Fazion Ellis

Fhoenix Ellis

Aubrey Glenn

Devon Guy

Hunter Hammond

Bob Heath

Ty’Shun Hopson

Braden Hudson

Jerry Johnson

Garret Johnston

Joseph Jones

Salem Kandel

Delvin Kelly

Aiden Luttrell

Holden McGee

Marvin Miller

Lucus Orndorff

Quinten Powell

Cameron Robinson

Connor Schuster

Makell Shorter

Preston Tate

Kenolbe Taylor

Hilawe Tibebe

Miguel ValadezSanchez

Josué Valdez

Isaiah Wade

Christopher Whitmore

Eli Wright

STRINGS

Dr. Borislava Iltcheva, violin

Dr. Hsiaopei Lee, viola

Dr. Alexander Russakovsky, cello

Dr. Marcos Machado, bass

Dr. Nicholas Ciraldo, guitar

WOODWINDS

Dr. Danilo Mezzadri, flute

Dr. Galit Kaunitz, oboe

Dr. Jackie McIlwain, clarinet

Dr. Kim Woolly, bassoon

Dr. Dannel Espinoza, saxophone

BRASS

Dr. Rob Detjen, horn

Dr. Tim Tesh, trumpet

Dr. Ben McIlwain, trombone

Dr. Richard Perry, tuba

PERCUSSION

John Wooton, percussion

PIANO

Michael Bunchman, piano

Ellen Elder, piano

Hongzuo Guo, staff pianist

Elizabeth Moak, piano

Zhaolei Xie, staff pianist

ORCHESTRAL ACTIVITIES

Michael Miles

CHORAL ACTIVITIES

Gregory Fuller

Jonathan Kilgore

VOICE

Kimberley Davis, voice

Taylor Hightower, voice

Meredith Johnson, voice

Jonathan Yarrington, voice

MUSIC EDUCATION

Ashley Allen

Melody Causby

Ian Cicco

Stacey Miles

UNIVERSITY BANDS

Catherine Rand

Travis Higa

Cody Edgerton

JAZZ STUDIES

Larry Panella

MUSIC HISTORY

Barbara Dietlinger

Edward Hafer

Joseph Jones

MUSIC THEORY

Danny Beard

Joseph Brumbeloe

Douglas Rust DIRECTOR

Colin McKenzie

ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS

Joseph Jones

Timothy Tesh

ASSISTANT TO THE DIRECTOR

Laurie Rinko

FINANCIAL MANAGER

Belinda Taft

ACADEMIC ADVISEMENT COORDINATOR

Lauren Gerhart

GRADUATE COORDINATOR

Melody Causby

UNDERGRADUATE COORDINATOR

Jonathan Kilgore

PR/MARKETING AND EVENT COORDINATOR

Mike Lopinto

PIANO TECHNICIAN

Carlos Boza

About the Artists

Dr. Michael Miles is a unique brand of musician, whose career includes a blend of musical and academic positions. Dr. Miles’ academic career includes appointments at Western Carolina University and Florida International University. He also served for seven years as chair at Southeastern Oklahoma State University and six years as director of the School of Music at The University of Southern Mississippi. Dr. Miles’ interest in arts advocacy and education in the community has led him to administrative positions in several community and state organizations. He served on the Hattiesburg Concert Association staff, and as executive director and founder of the Red River Arts Academy, an intensive summer arts training experience for students 14-18 years of age. Dr. Miles also served eight years as president of the Board of Directors of the Red River Arts Council in Durant, Oklahoma.

Dr. Miles’ appreciation for all forms and styles of music are evident in the variety of performing, conducting and music directing positions he has enjoyed. As a trumpet artist, Dr. Miles has performed with dozens of symphony orchestras as featured soloist and principal trumpet, and released a compact disc recording of new music for trumpet and piano by Robert Suderburg and James Wintle, titled Reflections in Times’ Mirror. In addition to his current duties as director of orchestral activities at Southern Miss, Miles’ conducting appointments include music director of the Hattiesburg Civic Light Opera Company, music director of the Oklahoma Youth Symphonies, and music director of the Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival. Miles recently conducted the USM Chamber Orchestra in its Carnegie Hall debut and served as guest conductor of the Festival Orchestra at the V Clinicas Instrumentalis in Cartegena, Columbia. In 2013, Dr. Miles served as guest conductor with The University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, backing the legendary Beach Boys at the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. Dr. Miles has also served as guest conductor with the Xinghia Conservatory Orchestra of Guangzhou, China, Vidin (Bulgaria) Philharmonic, Springfield Symphony, Tulsa Philharmonic, Tallahassee Symphony, New Mexico University Symphony, and Oklahoma Youth Orchestra.

In his career, Dr. Miles has served as music director/conductor for over 190 musical theatre performances involving 55 different musical theatre productions, including the recent highly acclaimed Southern Miss productions of The Drowsy Chaperone, The Phantom of the Opera, Magic of the Musical Stage, West Side Story, Mary Poppins, Ragtime, Showbiz Showstoppers, Showbiz Harmony and Sweeney Todd. Dr. Miles served as music director of HCLO’s productions of Into the Woods, Cabaret, Wizard of Oz, Camelot and Tommy. Dr. Miles also served as chorus master for the Hub City Players production of Rock of Ages and music director for their production of James and the Giant Peach. The Phantom of the Opera and James and the Giant Peach productions were awarded the prestigious American Prize for Musical Theater in 2018.

In his tenure at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Dr. Miles led an awardwinning Jazz Ensemble that was recognized by the Oklahoma State Legislature as the “Official Jazz Ambassadors of Oklahoma.” This ensemble made three concert tours of the People’s Republic of China School of the Arts.

Born in Volta Redonda (RJ), Maestra Sarah Higino has a Master in Music degree through the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro where Ms. Higino also got a degree in Piano Performance and Orchestral Conducting under the guidance of Maestro Ernani Aguiar. She has additional conducting studies with Maestro Roberto Tibiriçá, and has participated in several piano performance classes with well-known professors, such as Miriam Daueslberg, Maria da Penha, Heitor Alimonda and Luiz de Carlos de Moura Castro. Ms. Higino has performed as piano soloist and conductor with orchestras throughout Brazil, as well as recording for several TV shows. In 2019 Ms. Higino debuted in all music platforms with the album Serata with Brazilian songs by Chiquinha Gonzaga, Pattapio Silva e Joaquim Callado, as well as in a duo with the flutist Helder Teixeira. Ms. Higino has also been invited by several professional orchestras in Brazil to prepare choruses for major works, including the Choros No. 10 by Villas Lobos and the Faure Requiem.

In 2018, Sarah was the guest conductor at the University of Northern Colorado for the 35th Annual Western Orchestra Festival, where she lectured for the university’s Music Education Courses and Festival professors, and conducted the Festival’s closing concert. She also served as a speaker at the II International Symposium of Women Regents in Montevideo, Uruguay where in March, 2020 she served as the guest conductor of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Montevideo in the Celebrative Concert for the International Women’s Day. In September 2020, as her second time in that event, Ms. Higino was invited to mediate and coordinate the III international Symposium of Women Conductors, in the Panel of Orchestra and Band Conductors Maestras, which happened online with 976 subscriptions among maestras from 36 countries.

Believing in transformation through music, she works directly as pianist, conductor, teacher, and pedagogical coordinator of the musical educational work developed by the project called “Volta Redonda Cidade da Música”, where 4,600 young students benefit from quality music education in public schools of the city. Over the years, she has performed several national and world premieres of pieces for piano, Choir, Concert Band and Orchestra. Having as one of her main interests the dissemination and propagation of Brazilian Music, in 2021 she began her academic career teaching Brazilian History Music at UBM – Centro Universitário de Barra Mansa.

In 2020 and 2021, due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, she has been active as a guest and speaker at several webinars on themes related to Afro-Brazilian music and culture, as well as online concerts, with the aim of encouraging the fight against racism, respect and equality for all.

John Wooton is a lover of music as he performs, teaches, and listens to a variety of genres, but prefers a blend of jazz and several Caribbean styles. Known as a rudimental drumming specialist, John actually gets more work as a singer and steel pan player. So, when he isn’t flipping sticks and playing ratamacues around the globe, you can find him dressed in linen playing at a casino, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, or dressed in style playing at a jazz club in New Orleans. Otherwise you can find him on a basketball or tennis court trying to stay young. He is a 78% free throw shooter and 4.0 tennis player, recently bumped down from a 4.5…, proof that age is winning.

Over his career Dr. Throwdown has played paradiddles with stick tosses, hertas, “Hi Moms”, and “flam 5s” on a snare drum and has sang jazz standards, calypsos, reggae and pop tunes while accompanying himself on his steel pans, in places like Vancouver, Tenerife, The Forbidden City, Novi Sad, Ludz, Madrid, Bucaramanga, Biella, San Juan, Missoula, Rome, Pescara, General Roca, Xinxiang, Buenos Aires, Lima, Houston, Gdansk, Vienna, Cali, Ferrara, Tegucigalpa, Port of Spain, Dallas, London, Mayagüez, Dusseldorf, McAllen, Almeria, and many others. No, the countries are not listed… do your homework. He is an international artist and clinician for several percussion companies, whole heartedly endorsing each one of them, not only for their wonderful products but for the support they all give to percussion education around the world. Those companies are Pearl Drums, Zildjian Cymbals, Remo, and Vic Firth. John also endorses Row Loff Productions, publisher for his books, solos and ensembles. Check out all their web sites, not only for wonderful products but also for their educational material. www. rowloff.com

John is in his 32nd year of teaching at Southern Miss, close to where he grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana, so he gets to enjoy dat great Cajun cuisine and Miss’ippi bar-bque. Doc, as his students call him, loves his job… making music with his students on various percussion instruments. Search Youtube for “Southern Miss Percussion” to enjoy some of the ensembles he teaches. He was educated in Lafayette, Lou., Denton, Texas and Iowa City, Iowa, receiving documents from all three places, but he was also educated by teachers such as Marty Hurley through the experience of drum and bugle corps, specifically the Phantom Regiment from Rockford, Illinois. He has won some prestigious trophies, including several national titles as a soloist, ensemble member, composer and teacher, along the way with these organizations but prefers to play music for the joy of the experience. This past year Dr. Wooton was inducted to the Phantom Regiment Hall of Fame.

You can find John online at VicFirth.com, Youtube, drumeo.com, Soundcloud and johnwooton.com.

The Percusión Ensemble Fundación Cultural Patagonia (Argentina) was created in 1999 by Ángel Frette with the aim of realizing a repertoire approach from chamber music to percussion. It depends on Fundación Cultural Patagonia, develops its main activity in the provinces of Río Negro and Neuquén. The Ensemble has been active internationally promoting the music of Argentinian composers and performing at major festivals and conferences.

Lisandro Parado is a musician, composer, arranger and performer born in Argentina. He currently serves as Professor of Percussion at the Patagonian Institute University of Arts, and at the Neuquen Higher School of Music in Argentina. Specializing in percussion, Lisandro has participated in seminars, festivals and tours with various musical groups in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Costa Rica, Spain, Croatia, Portugal, USA, performing masterclasses and concerts.

Lisandro is currently involved with a variety of artistic projects including performing as a percussionist of the Symphony Orchestra of F.C.P. and the F.C.P. Percussion Ensemble. He has performed perform several solo concerto works with both ensembles.

In 2022, Lisandro composed the “Concert for three Percussionists and Orchestra” which premiered that same year within the framework of the Patagonia International Percussion Festival. Lisandro performed as one of the three soloists in this performance.

Jerónimo Raúl Molina is an Argentine musician and percussionist who has participated in various percussion festivals both in Argentina and in other countries such as the United States, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Brazil, Peru, Costa Rica, and Bolivia. Currently, he works as a professor in the percussion department at the Patagonian Institute of Arts (IUPA) and at the Superior School of Music in Neuquén (ESMN). Additionally, he shares his musical knowledge and experience as a teacher in the Children-Youth Orchestra of the city of Gral, Roca. He is a member of the Percussion Ensemble and the Symphony Orchestra, both groups belonging to the Patagonia Cultural Foundation (F.C.P.). Furthermore, he has been an active participant in all editions of the International Percussion Festival in the city of Gral, Roca, Rio Negro, from 2003 to the present.

Angel Frette started his percussion studies with Juan Ringer, perfecting them in New York with marimbist William Moersch in 1994 and 1995. Angel has performed the premiere of more than 80 works by Argentine composers, including eight concerts for marimba and orchestra. He performed as a marimba soloist in Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Croatia, and in the United States, at the Universities of Miami, Illinois and Minnesota, as well as in the renowned contest organized by the Percussive Arts Society (1999). Angel has also served as an adjudicator at the International Marimba Contest held in Belgium (2001 and 2004), the First South American Contest of Marimbists in Brazil (2003) at the National Marimbist Contest in Chiapas Mexico in 2006, and at the International Marimba Contest in Fermo,Italy (2008). He also worked as percussion teacher for the Youth Orchestra of the Americas, headquartered at the New England Conservatory, Boston (2002). Angel has performed at the Festival de Percusión de Paris, at the Festival de Marimbas in Chiapas (Mexico, 2005 and 2006) and at the Second Festival Internacional de Percusión Tamborimba in Cali (Colombia, 2009). In 2011 he performed the South American premiere of Rapture, concert for percussion and orchestra by Michael Torke, at Teatro Colón.

Angel has released five compact discs: “La marimba en la Argentina”, “Un camino de tierra”, “Tangos y más”, “Música argentina para percusión” with the Ensamble de Percusión Patagonia and “American Fantasy” that contains the complete work for of pianos and percussion by the Danish composer Kim Helweg, together with Silvia Dabul and Manuel Massone. Angel currently directs the Festival Internacional de Percusión de la Patagonia, which takes place annually in General Roca (Río Negro). Since 1999 he has served as the director of He is the founding member and Director of the Ensamble de Percusión Patagonia, and since 1988, he has been a percussionist with the Orquesta Filarmónica de Buenos Aires. Mr. Frette is the General and Artistic Director of Fundación Cultural Patagonia.

The ‘Volta Redonda City of Music’ Project

The ‘Volta Redonda City of Music’ Project, conceived and directed by Maestro Nicolau Martins de Oliveira in 1974, is pioneering in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Leading the project’s artistic and executive team are conductors Sarah Higino and José Sérgio Tôrres da Rocha. The project is implemented in 39 Educational Units of the Municipal Department of Education and Educational Foundation of Volta Redonda, currently reaching over 4,600 students from preschool to high school.

The Project’s primary goal is the sensory development of children, encompassing aspects such as motor coordination, hearing, vision, phonation, touch, attention, memory, and logical reasoning. Using music as a pedagogical tool, students are encouraged to cultivate discipline, regular attendance, punctuality, musical proficiency, academic success, teamwork skills, persistence, and responsibility.

As a result of this endeavor, a variety of musical groups have gradually been established, including the Mini Band, Brass Band, Concert Band, Violin and Viola Orchestra, Cello and Double Bass Orchestra, String Orchestra, Children and Youth Choir, and Mixed Choir.

The Project is sustained and supported by the Municipal Government of Volta Redonda as an extracurricular activity for public school children, offering free music education to all attendees and significantly contributing to the musical and cultural education of the students in the city’s public schools for nearly five decades.

LEGACY LIFETIME MEMBERS

Gold Legacy Society - $25,000

Gail and Larry Albert

Becky and Doug Montague

Dr. and Mrs. R. Greer Whitacre

Silver Legacy Society - $12,500

Dr. Shannon Campbell

Dick and Mo Conville

Tammy and Arthur Martin

Doug and Pam Rouse

Bronze Legacy Society - $5,000

Dr. Amy Chasteen

Dr. David R. Davies

Dennis and Erin Granberry

Don and Amy Hinton

Carol Marshall in memory of John Ivany Marshall

Andy and Stace Mercier

Dr. Michael and Stacey Miles

Dr. Joe and Meg Paul

Dee and Toddy Tatum in memory of

Dr. and Mrs. A.T. Tatum

Doug and Becky Vinzant

ANNUAL MEMBERS

PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE - $5,000+

Francis Bell

Carter’s Jewelry of Petal

The College of Arts and Sciences

Mr. and Mrs. W. Carey Crane III

Dr. and Mrs. Jiménez

GRAND BENEFACTOR - $2,500

Dr. Stella Elakovich in memory of Drs. Dana Ragsdale and Karen O. Austin

Ferraez Law

The First Bank

Gulf South Productions

Dick Jordan and Allen Williams in memory of Mary Garrison Jordan, Sonia Jordan and Sonyna Jordan Fox

KW Elite Keller Williams Realty

Dr. and Mrs. Lawrence Leader

Rogers Oil Co.

Kate Smith and Hank Mazaleski

Dr. and Mrs. J. Larry Smith in memory of Mrs. Jane Becker Heidelberg

Stagetec

Sandra Whitacre

Dr. and Mrs. Chris Winstead

BENEFACTOR - $1,000

Myrle-Marie Bongiovanni

John Chain

Peter and Diane Ciurczak in memory of Lillian, Helen, and Regina

Lisa and Rick Conn

Patrick Dornan

Cooperative Energy

Chad and Catherine Edmonson

Lawrence and Mary Gunn

HMP Management Corp.

HMP Nursing Services Inc.

Dr. and Mrs. Aubrey K. Lucas

Carole M. Marshall in memory of John Ivany Marshall

Cody and Joan McKeller

Dr. Steven Moser in memory of Dennis Behm

Pine Belt Properties

Kris and Amanda Powell

Signature Magazine

Southern Miss Alumni Association

Dr. Virginia Angelico Tatum, DDS

Charitable Fund, a Donor Advised Fund of the U.S. Charitable Gift Trust

William L. Thames in honor of Lou Rackoff

Thad and Gerry Waites

Dr. and Mrs. Christian M. Zembower

SUSTAINER - $750

Dr. William Odom

Denis and Jean Wiesenburg

PATRON - $500

Albert Architects

The All-Star Team Realtors

Elizabeth Mee Anglin

Dr. Angela Ball

Dixie and Dennis Baum

Rebecca Bedell

Beltone Hearing Care Center

Brandon Chase Welborn Designs

Dr. Alyson Brink and Dr. Jeremy Deans

Clyde J. Bryant

Cadence Bank

Chae Carter

Brian and Sarah Carver

Perry and Gwen Combs

Dr. and Mrs. Christopher R. Crenshaw

Mary J. Cromartie

Charles Dawe and Dr. William Waller

Iris Easterling

Eric and Sabrina Enger

Hancock Whitney

Stanley Hauer

Lauren Rogers Museum of Art

John M. and Carolyn Lopinto, Sr.

Maureen K. Martin in honor of

Dr. and Mrs. Aubrey K. Lucas

Dr. and Mrs. Troy McIntire in memory of Dr. Dean Cromartie

Keith and Carolyn McLarnan

Celia Faye Meisel

Becky Montague

Mrs. Virginia M. Morris

Drs. William and Jeanne Morrison

Robert and Kathyrn Morrow in honor of Rob Wheeler

Brenda O’Neal Lambert

David Ott

Abb and Jennifer Payne

Matthew Wayne Pennington

Randy and Kathy Pope

Dr. and Mrs. Tom Puckett

Robin and Connie Roberts

Rush Law Firm

Sassy Candles

Signs First

DeLois Smith

Southern Bone & Joint Specialists, PA

Stephen and Jane Thomas

Mary and Eric Sumrall

Millie Swan

Dr. Douglas F. Thomas

Dr. and Mrs. Greg Underwood

Walnut Pharmacy and Gifts

Russ Willis

DONOR - $250

Paula and Allen Anderson

Anonymous

Billie Ballengee

Larry and Linda Basden

Dr. and Mrs. David W. Bomboy

Lauren and JoJo Bridges

Biljac and Joanna Burnside

Fran and Gene Carothers

Bob and Peg Ciraldo

Nicholas and Rachel Ciraldo

Lewis and Carolynn Clark

Dr. Eyler Coates Jr.

Ryan and Anna Copeland

Amber Cole

Robert and Linda Cox

Bettie Cox and David Powers

Joelle Crook in memory of George T. Crook

Alice Crotwell

Kimberley Davis

Andy and Beejee Dickson

Drs. Sergey and Veronica Dzugan

Allyson Easterwood

Muriel Everton

Gary Fordham

Pamela Gavin

Ms. Allison Gillespie

John Griffith and Linda Boutwell-Griffith

Wes Hanson

Dr. and Mrs. Wendell Helveston

Richard D. Hudson

Chris and Joyce Inman

Betty Jo D. Ison

Raoul and Althea Jerome

Rebekah and Jeff Johnson

LBJ Properties LLC

Dr. Jameela Lares

Dr. Mike Lopinto in honor of John and Carolyn Lopinto

Maureen Martin

Megan McCay

Jennifer and Kennard McKay

Mary Virgnia McKenzie

Drs. Jim and Diane Miller

Drs. Marvin and Bitsy Browne Miller

Lance Nail

Dr. Andrew and Suzanna Nida

Candace and Kent Oliver

Clay Peacock

Pinebelth Foundation

Brad and Jacquelyne Pittman

Aaryanne and Rick Preusch

Bradley Seacrest

Curt and Petra Redden in memory of Irma Schneider

Sharon and David Richardson

Dr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Rust

Mr. and Mrs. Sam Sackler

Alex and Sabrina Schuerger

Seth and Carolee Scott

David and Teejay Shemper

Ed and Diana Simpson

Susan Slaughter

Delois L. Smith in memory of J. Lavon Smith

Tommy and Martha Thornton

Deborah Topp

Dr. Sharon and Mr. Carey Varnado

Mr. and Mrs. Carl E. Voss Jr.

Kenneth and Barbara Waites

Jerry and Diane Waltman

Amelia Watkins

Aissa Wiggins

Paige and Pat Zachary

CONTRIBUTOR - $150

Area Development Partnership

William and Lynne Baggett

Billie Ballengee

General Buff and Anita Blount

Katherine Boone

Mr. Joe Bost and Dr. Katie James

Michael Boudreaux

Todd and Mary Glenn Bradley

Jewel Brantley Tucker in memory of Samuel Tucker

The Rev. Laurie Brock

Charles A. Brown in memory of Mirneal C. Brown

Sam and Jennifer Bruton

Megan Burkes

Julia Chaffin

Dr. Douglas B. Chambers

Ron and Margaret Chapman

Mitch and Marcia B. Cochran

Jacob Cotton

Jennifer Courts

LuAnn Knight Crenshaw

Alice Crotwell

Dr. and Mrs. Randall Currie

Jay Dean and Maryann Kyle in memory of Jack and Sara Dean

Jerry and Bethanie DeFatta

Andrew Dews

Steven Ferrell

Carol and Gardner Fletcher

Andrea Ford

Gary Fordham

Nancy Guice in memory of Dr. John D. W. Guice

Barbara Hamilton

Benjamin Hardy

Dr. and Mrs. Robert Heath in honor of Sarah K. Heath

John and Susan Howell

Elizabeth Hughes

Dr. and Mrs. Richard A. Johnson

Rosi and Dex Johnson

Ivonne Kawas

Debbie Killen

Mike and Linda Kuykendall

Marcia M. Landen

Mr. John Logan

Melinda and Alan Lucas

Marcos Machado

Beth Mayo Jamison

Milo and Jackie McCarthy

Ellen McKenzie

Bebe McLeod and Bill McLeod in memory of Dr. John A. McLeod III

Larry and Margaret McMahan

Kathy J. Cornelius McMahon in honor of Kate Smith

Bill McHugh

Dr. and Mrs. Thomas Messer Jr. in honor of Dr. Mike Lopinto

John and Louise Meyer

Astrid Mussiett in memory of Gladys S. Mussiett

Heath Nobles

Dr. Francis Laatsch and Susan Reiter

Bill and Martha Resay

Ben and Jackie McIlwain

Danilo Mezzadri

Dr. Mark Miller

Deborah and Steve Moore

John Mullins in honor of Jim Meade

Mr. and Mrs. Hal E. Odom

Dr. Roderick and Eula Posey

Bob and Betty Press

Ellen Price-Elder

Charles and Anita Price

Jann and George Puckett in honor of DeAnna Douglas

Louis N. Rackoff and Elizabeth Slaby

Mr. and Mrs. William K. Ray

Bill and Martha Resavy

Sherrie Mitchell Richmond

Mark Rigsby and Melanie Eubanks

Marc Edward Rivet

Barbara Ann Ross

Ellen Ruffin

David Sliman

Tayvi Smith

Joseph Steadman in memory of Betty A. Steadman

Sally and Garland Sullivan in memory of Garland H. Williams

Sidney and Barbara Sytsma

Richard and Debra Topp

Jennifer Torres

Lisa and Greg Vickers

Jacqueline and Michael Vlaming

Brittney Westbrook

Aissa Wiggins

Larry G. Williamson

FRIEND - $50

Michael Aderibigbe

Nikki Acord

Kimberly Ainsworth

Dr. Jenna and Mr. Daniel Barton

Richard Edward Beckford

Chris and Elizabeth Bedenbaugh

Drs. Joshua and Diana Bernstein

Cindy Bivins

Day Bookout

Dr. Cherie and Mr. Lance Bowe

Chris and Lisa Bowen

Dr. and Mrs. Bob Brahan

Rashonda Brown-Hughes

Joe Brumbeloe

William Byars

Kathy and Ben Carmichael

Matthew Casey

Dr. Adam Clay

Jim and Deedré Coll

Darcie Conrad

Brooke Cruthirds

Drs. J.P. and Lisa Culpepper

John Cummings

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Daughdrill

Melissa Jean David

Becky Pruett Denham

Dannika Dewhurst

Diane Dobson

Steve and Mary Dryden

Helen Edwards

Kelly Ellis

Elissa Ernst

Carol and Gardner Fletcher

Barbara Jane Foote

David Fortenberry

Olivia Clare Friedman

Emily Jane Gallaspy

Monika Gehlawat

Heather and Ken Graves in memory of Robert Jeremy Lespi

Jeff Greene

Bruno D. Griffin

Julie Hammond

George and Diana Hardin

Anita Hearon

Frances B. Hegwood

Brenda Hesselgrave

Marsha Hester

Dr. Eddie and Sarah Holloway

Dale and Emily Holmes

Wanda J. Howard in memory of Mrs. Beth Curlee

Dr. Luis A. Iglesias

Casey Jarman

Cheryl D. Jenkins

Jane W. Jones

Lisa Jones

Nicolle Jordan and Thomas O’Brien

Dr. and Mrs. Charles Junek

Kailey Kemp

Penny and Gene Kochtitzky

Lorinda Krhut

Wendy Kulzer

Capt. Karl Langenbach III in memory of Betty Langenbach

Karen LeBeau

Kelly Ferris Lester

Linde and Jeff Lynn

Jessica Magee

Tammy Martin

Kelli McCloskey

Robert Angus McTyre

Barry Monday

Kristie Murphy

Christa Nelson

Chuck Nestor in memory of Dr. Charles Nestor Sr.

Katherine Olexa

Kathy Owens

Robert Pierce

Peter and Kathy Pikul

Amy Rogers Pelton in memory of Betty C. Rogers Morris

James Pettis in memory of Linda C. Pettis

Charles and Nellie Phillips

Mr. and Mrs. Zeke W. Powell Jr.

Ashley Price

Charles Ray

Julie Reid

Barbara L. Ross

Dr. Alexander Russakovsky

Bill and Rosalie Schoell

Elizabeth and Scott Schwartz

Chris and Allie Seay

Linda Seifert

Erin Sessions

Jae-Hwa Shin

Valerie C. Simmons

Ken and Carol Simpson

Dana William Skelton

Carroll and Dura Smith

Blaise Sonnier

Rebecca G. Stark

Edward N. Stephens

William K. Stevens

Kenneth and Virginia Stevens

Lorraine A. Stuart

David and Katie Sullivan

Dr. Timothy J. Tesh

Hayden Tharpe

Gabby Theriot

Janet and Pat Tidmore

David Tisdale

Susannah J. Ural and John Rasberry in memory of Dr. William F. Ural

Krystyna Varnado

Betty Lynn and Joe Ed Varner in memory of Virginia H. Culpepper

Lee Anne Venable

Cathy Gulli Ventura

Mr. and Mrs. Blake Weathersby

Kisha Welford

Anne G. Wilkins in memory of Bert Wilkins

Cory R. Williams

Alehandro Wooten

Christine Wooton

Dr. John Wooton