Opus 2017-2018 by Walla Walla University

Spring 2018 Walla Walla University Department of Music

Suite Songs Feature article pg. 4

Message from the chair Pam Cress, associate vice president for Graduate Studies and interim music department chair

Alumni and friends, The Department of Music continues to be about the business of teaching students and creating exceptional music for the campus and surrounding communities. This issue of Opus features stories on department happenings including talented student composers, the big piano move, new scholarships, a new CD by I Cantori and a first annual piano festival. Faculty news includes the August 2018 retirement of Dr. Lyn Ritz, who has worked with string students and chamber ensembles for 15 years. Dr. Kraig Scott, organ and chorale, is officially on sabbatical for winter and spring quarters, 2018. Lindsay Armstrong, a 2017 music education graduate, was hired to conduct chorale ensembles in Kraig’s absence. Jinhyang Park, collaborative piano coordinator, completed a Doctorate of Musical Arts from Boston University in January. Finally, the plan for me serve as interim music chair for a year has morphed into two. It is a pleasure to announce at the time of this writing, interviews are taking place with promising applicants for the open chair position. Plan to read a message from a fresh and exciting new leader in next year’s Opus. The faculty and staff of the Walla Walla University Department of Music are passionate about music education in the 21st century. Your donations of time, affirmation and dollars allow us to continue doing what we love most— educating students and making fine music. Thank you for the continued support of the department and Walla Walla University in that endeavor.

Piano students to visit WWU for first annual piano festival

ALLA WALLA UNIVERSITY will host its first annual piano festival April 15–17. Activities will include master classes and performances by Jinhyang Park, WWU instructor of music, and Christopher Harding, assistant professor and chair of the piano program at the University of Michigan. Festival events will include a lecture by Harding titled, “Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven: How to Play Their Music Without Mixing Them Up,” a festival recital, and an award ceremony. Participants will have the opportunity to tour campus, interact with WWU piano majors, and meet with Park and other members of the WWU faculty. “This will be an exciting event for young piano students and for WWU piano students,” said Park. “We welcome all members of the community to attend these events.” Junior and senior high school pianists who are interested in attending the festival can submit an application and video at wallawalla.edu/piano-festival.For information about the festival, contact Park at jinhyang.park@wallawalla.edu. WWU will provide accommodations for festival participants and their families and will also reimburse prospective students for half of their travel expenses to attend the festival, up to $250. Learn more about travel reimbursement at wallawalla.edu/visit.

I Cantori releases new CD

H E WA L L A WA L L A University select choir, I Cantori, is pleased to announce the release of a new CD titled A Colony of Heaven in a Country of Death. Inspired by a phrase in Eugene Peterson’s commentary on Ephesians, the album aims to remind listeners of the importance of working toward unity, fellowship, and growth in a world that desperately needs God’s love. “All year long, the choir had fun discussing this phrase and thinking of ourselves as a little colony, a small congregation, a group of like-minded individuals needing to take care of each other. I’ve never worked with a more cohesive, unified, caring group of choir students. It was something special,” said Kraig Scott, I Cantori director. “As the original idea started to sink in and influence our daily behavior, the joy in caring for each other grew along with our understanding and love of the music. It was a happy nexus. The CD can be purchased at cdbaby.com (search for “I Cantori of Walla Walla University”) or by calling the WWU Department of Music at (509) 527-2561.

Park completes doctorate in piano

inhyang Park, instructor in music, completed a doctor of musical arts degree in collaborative piano at the Boston University School of Music in 2017. Collaborative piano is an intensive program of study and immersive experiences in the art of ensemble musicianship. Park’s doctoral project, “Mohammed Fairouz’s Cello Sonata Elegiac Verses,” consisted of a formal lecture and recital based on an analysis of Fairouz’s “Elegiac Verses” for cello and piano. In her lecture, Park discussed how Fairouz’s musical language and philosophical ideas have influenced

listeners and contemporary society alike and how he combines Middle Eastern and Western musical languages to reflect cultural currents and programmatic ideas. “It was fulfilling to devote research and practice time to this piece of music, and presenting the lecture recital was musically satisfying,” said Park. “I’m so happy to have completed my degree, and I look forward to focusing on my work at Walla Walla University.” Park has taught piano, ear training, and music theory at WWU since 2016. Her degree was conferred in January 2018.

Brombaugh continuo organ with unique WWU connection finds home

RAIG SCOTT, WWU PROFESSOR of music, first rented the small continuo organ, Opus 24b, built by John Brombaugh of Eugene, Oregon, for the Walla Walla Symphony performance of Handel’s Messiah in 1986. Now, more than 30 years later, the same Opus 24b organ sits tucked away in WWU’s Melvin K. West Fine Arts Center after being purchased by the Department of Music in 2017. Brombaugh built the small pipe organ in 1980, the fourth of 12 he built during his career. His other continuo organs reside across the country, including at Case Western Reserve University, Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in Indianapolis, and Southern Adventist University. Before finding its home at WWU, however, Opus 24b was rented and played across the country, including by Scott. “I recall playing this exact continuo on five separate occasions,” said Scott. After his initial rental of Opus 24b in 1986, Scott decided to rent the organ again for two additional Messiah performances with the Symphony. In 1999, he borrowed Opus 24b a fourth time, after being asked by Joe Galusha, WWU professor emeritus of biology, to provide music for a weekend during the summer program at Rosario Beach Marine Laboratory. “This organ made the [Rosario] cafeteria

Opus 24b is a Baroque continuo organ built by John Brombaugh of Eugene, Oregon.

ring,” said Galusha. “It seemed as though it was almost living, just like most things we study here in the marine environment.” Almost 10 years later, Scott was invited to perform at the 2008 Idaho State University Baroque Festival. After arriving in Pocatello, he was surprised to discover the instrument he would be playing, now the fifth distinct time, was Opus 24b. Flash forward nine years to 2017, when Scott encountered Opus 24b yet again. This time the little continuo was far from its original home in the Pacific Northwest. Listed for sale on the Harpsichord Clearing House website, Opus 24b had ended up across the country in the small town of

Rehoboth, Massachusetts, where it had most recently been rented and played at the 2017 Boston Early Music Festival. Within a week of its online discovery, the WWU Department of Music bought Opus 24b. “Brombaugh’s continuo instruments are the best organs of this type that I’ve ever played,” said Scott. “I believe he will go down as the most important organ builder of the late 20th or early 21st century. We could not pass up the rare opportunity to acquire an instrument of this quality.” Listen to Kraig Scott, professor of music, play the continuo organ for the 2017 WWU Christmas concert at wallawalla.edu/concert.

New scholarship supports members of WWU student string quartet

NEW SCHOLARSHIP IS NOW AVAILABLE TO WALLA Walla University string musicians. The $6,000 Honors Quartet Scholarship will be awarded annually to WWU string students and is divided evenly among the four members of the WWU Honors String Quartet. Scholarship recipients must be, “accomplished string players and willing to work with the quartet at least two hours a week for rehearsal and be available for assorted performances throughout the year,” said Lyn Ritz, professor of music. Scholarship recipient candidates are selected during fall quarter orchestra auditions and must pass a second honors audition to receive the scholarship and join the honors quartet. Vier Streicher (“four strings” in German) is the WWU scholarship string quartet.

Suite Songs WWU students create original musical compositions for senior projects

N A COOL AFTERNOON last February, original musical suites composed by Walla Walla University students Lindsay Armstrong and Talea Shupe were performed at Chism Recital Hall on the Whitman College campus. The performances were part of Whitman’s Winter Composers Concert, which featured the students of John David Earnest, Whitman professor of music composition. Armstrong and Shupe had both taken a composition class from Earnest for transfer credit during fall semester as part of the WWU/Whitman College reciprocal agreement, which gives students at either school the opportunity to take classes at the other university if those classes are not offered on their campus or if there is a scheduling conflict. During the class, Armstrong and Shupe met weekly with Earnest for private composition lessons where they received suggestions for improvement of their work. The entire class also gathered weekly to present their progress, share ideas, and give each other feedback.

“A Suite of Toys” When asked to describe the development of her composition, “A Suite of Toys: I. Soldiers, II. Teddy Bear, III. Spinning Top,” Armstrong, who graduated in 2017 with a bachelor of music degree, major in music performance, said it is a difficult process to describe since it is so dynamic. She began by choosing a subject—in this case, toys— which she selected because she wanted to compose a fun and lighthearted suite. Next, she brainstormed about her instrumentation for cello and piano and about titles for each movement. “The goal of this piece,” Armstrong said, “was to remind the listener of their childhood playtime, as each movement is designed to create a sound picture of the respective toy as if it were coming to life in a child’s imagination. The first movement, Soldiers, is a light and bouncy march, as I think the drumbeat for a small army of toy soldiers would be. The second movement, Teddy Bear, is lazy and silky to mimic the clumsy movements of a teddy bear as he drifts in and out of sleep. The third movement, Spinning Top, is ominous and mysterious as the top

wobbles back and forth and finally crashes in a dramatic flourish at the end.” Once she had these ideas on paper, Armstrong worked with a computer music notation program to compose melodies, fill in harmonies, and tweak until she liked the sound. She then worked with performers Justin Chung, senior business administration major, and Alisha Paulson ’17, elementary education major, to ensure the pieces were “playable and still sounded good on live instruments.” “Aviary Suite” Shupe, a music education major, describes a similar composition process. However, she says one unique approach she took was to analyze the form of Dvorak’s melody from the second movement of his “New World Symphony” for inspiration in crafting her own melodies. In composing her piece for two flutes, titled “Aviary Suite: I. Hunt of the Hawk, II. Morning Swans, III. Hummingbirds,” Shupe followed in the footsteps of other great composers, such as Saint-Saëns, Vivaldi, and Prokofiev, who each scored flute music to depict birds.

The first movement, which portrays a and definitely worth all the work,” said Shupe. hawk hunting its prey, begins with low, eerie Armstrong describes similar feelings of notes that rise, accelerate, and intensify when nervousness and exhilaration when hearing the hawk spots its prey and ends with urgent her work performed at the concert. “I couldn’t chromatic scales as the hawk swoops down. calm down until about an hour after the The second movement, which depicts swans concert was over,” Armstrong said, “yet I gliding across a pond in the early morning was so proud of my musicians and myself hours, is a much slower and more melodic for working so hard to pull it together.” movement that varies the “Seeing all my hard work culminate in those 10 minutes was extremely main theme—presented in an initial flute solo—through rewarding and definitely worth all the work.” different articulations, Both Shupe and Armstrong have plans rhythms, and styles. The final movement, —Talea Shupe which depicts hummingbirds, passes the to continue studying music. Shupe, who will “motive” from one flute to the other to graduate in 2018, would like to continue represent the “rapid, distracted movements composing (she took Earnest’s composition and flight patterns of hummingbirds.” Shupe class again during spring semester) and wants described the movement as “short, busy, to share her passion for music in the lives Talea Shupe, senior music education and entertaining—fitting for hummingbirds of others as a music teacher. Armstrong is major, makes a few notes by hand on and also a nice contrast from the first two assisting with choir conducting at WWU the score she created using musical movements of my composition to conclude during the 2017-18 school year while Kraig notation software called Scott, professor of music, is on sabbatical. this work.” Sibelius. When her piece was performed in The following year, she plans to pursue February by WWU students Giovanna voice performance and pedagogy Girotto, junior mathematics major, and Lori at graduate school, working James ’17, industrial design major, Shupe toward her ultimate goal of says she felt both exhilarated and extremely teaching voice and choir nervous about how her piece would be at the collegiate level. received. Ultimately, she says the experience of hearing her music actually performed and treated like a real piece of music was very special. “Seeing all my hard work culminate in those 10 minutes was extremely rewarding Shupe works to fine-tune her original composition score, “Aviary Suite.”

The big piano move of 2017

OVING A PIANO IS no small feat—especially when stairs are involved! Relocating just one instrument takes planning—and a lot of muscle—but moving 12 pianos in one summer can prove Herculean, as the Department of Music discovered last year. When a Kawai grand piano was donated to the department in July by Walla Walla General Hospital, the generous gift set in motion what members of the department have affectionately dubbed “the big piano move of 2017.” In addition to moving the Kawai into the WWU Fine Arts Center, several pianos were refurbished over the summer, and 11 department pianos were either sold or donated to other organizations. The Kawai is now used for practice by music majors. “The donation of this piano has enhanced the daily musical interactions of our vibrant music community,” said Matthew Moran, senior music and bioengineering major. “It has quickly become students’ favorite piano in our practice rooms. The rich tones and sensitive touch to the new piano enriched my learning experience and enhanced my music.” Eleven older pianos were moved out of the Fine Arts Center over the summer. The move constituted an enormous undertaking, as movers and department leaders considered the options for moving so many pianos down the twisting stairs of the building. “One idea for moving the pianos was to use a forklift and take the them out through the window that looks down on the lobby,” said Pam Cress, associate vice president for graduate studies and interim music department chair. “This ended up not working because they couldn’t

get a small enough forklift in the front door.” Eventually, the upright pianos were carried down the stairs, requiring four to six movers for each piano. The two grand pianos proved to be a greater challenge. Each had to be partially disassembled before being carried down the stairs. Two pianos were moved to the WWU Rosario Beach Marine Laboratory where they will be used in the chapel and cafeteria. One of the grand pianos was donated to the Christian Aid Center, a local Walla Walla homeless shelter, which plans to use the piano in its new center for women and children, scheduled for completion in May 2018. The piano will reside in the lobby where experienced guests can play and where volunteer instructors can teach music to the children in residence. “We want the new center to be beautiful—a different place from anywhere they’ve lived before, and it couldn’t be complete without live music,” said Corina Car, CAC marketing and relations representative. The big piano move of 2017 was complete when the two Steinway pianos in the Fine Arts Center auditorium, which are used for recitals, concerts, and other events, were refurbished by a master technician from Spokane. Or was it? The department learned last month that another beautiful grand piano has been bequeathed to them and will be coming to campus soon! Music lessons are available through the WWU Department of Music. To learn more about your options, call the music department at (509) 527-2563 or visit music.wallawalla.edu.

Ritz to retire after 15 years at WWU

YN RITZ CAN’T FORGET WHEN she stepped off an airplane that appeared to be in a Walla Walla wheat field. She was among the amber waves of grain after traveling from the University of Dayton to interview for a new teaching job at Walla Walla University. Although she is now far removed from Ohio and her native Rochester, New York, Ritz has called Walla Walla home for 15 years as a WWU professor of music. Ritz has taught classes in music theory, ear training, chamber music coaching, 18th century counterpoint, form and analysis, string techniques, and orchestration, as well as private violin and viola lessons. She has also shared her knowledge in computerbased music, in which students complete their own compositions in a publishable form. Ritz plays violin and viola, but says choosing one as better is like being asked if she has a favorite child. “I played violin until grad school and then broadened my experience with the viola,” she said. “They have distinct personalities, but I like them both.” Through the years, she has been an active participant in many chamber concerts as violinist or violist. As a fair-minded “parent,” she served 14 years as concertmaster of the

Walla Walla Symphony, but recently chose to join the viola section to experience the harmonic richness found in the midst of an orchestra. Ritz has been a driving force behind chamber music at WWU. She currently directs three WWU chamber groups: a scholarship quartet called Vier Streicher (“four strings” in German), the Mountain Ash Trio, and the Pine Nut String Quartet. “Teaching students about music is more than just notes on a page,” she said. “You teach them how to dress, how to program music, how to make announcements to the audience, how to get to performances on time, to bring their music and music stands, what to do when someone gets the flu or someone’s string breaks at the last minute.” Ritz said she will miss the students, mentoring them for solo performances, and coaching chamber music. She will retire from her professorship in June, but her future plans are not about driving in the slow lane. “I’m not going to stop working,” she said. “I’ll have more chances to do what I want to do with music.” Ritz and her colleague, Pat Ensman, recently published a two-volume large-print method book titled, “Soprano Recorder for Everyone.” It has been piloted in retirement homes in New York State, and Ritz might consider doing the same in Walla Walla. “I expect my collaborations with my friends to grow,” she said. “I will still play in the symphony and will continue composing, arranging, and teaching privately. I want to have time to read, play the recorder, garden, study German, and also practice. I don’t think I’ll be bored.”

Tour highlights: I Cantori charms Southern audiences in March 2017

A vespers concert on the scenic campus of Mt. Pisgah Academy in Candler, North Carolina, was the second stop on the 2017 I Cantori tour.

The tour continued with music for the church service at Peachtree United Methodist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. Among other pieces, I Cantori performed Psalm 122 by Alice Parker, Ubi caritas by Paul Mealor, and Requiem (1, 2, 3) by Herbert Howells.

On Sunday afternoon, choir members enjoyed some downtime at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia.

A choir exchange in The Schwartz Center on the campus of Emory University in Atlanta provided an opportunity for Walla Walla University students to sing with Emory students and share ideas.

The Forest Lake Seventh-day Adventist Church in Apopka, Florida, was the site of the 14th and final tour performance before members of I Cantori flew the next day from Orlando to Seattle, with a stop for dinner at Miner’s in Yakima on their bus drive back to Walla Walla.

Hear I Cantori sing “My Soul’s Been Anchored in the Lord” at wallawalla.edu/concert.

NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID WALLA WALLA UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC (509) 527-2561 204 S. College Ave. College Place, WA 99324 music.wallawalla.edu RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

2018 calendar highlights We invite you to join us! Tuesday, April 17, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 19, 4 p.m.

Guest recital: Christopher Harding

Wind Symphony Concert

Melvin K. West Fine Arts Center Auditorium

University Church

Friday, April 27, 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, May 31, 7 p.m.

Piano Vespers

Symphony Orchestra Concert

Melvin K. West Fine Arts Center Auditorium

Saturday, June 2, 5 p.m. Friday, April 27, 8 p.m.

Spring Choral concert

PRISM vespers concert

University Church

Wednesday, June 6, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 28, 7 p.m.

Big Band concert

Alleluias and Meditations:

Melvin K. West Fine Arts Center Auditorium

Brass Choir University Church

Saturday, June 9, 7 p.m. Faculty recital: Lyn Ritz

Tuesday, May 15, 7 p.m.

University Church

Guest Recital: Frankie Bones, piano Melvin K. West Fine Arts Center Auditorium

Please check the online calendar at music.wallawalla.edu for possible live streaming of events and for additional events, including student recitals.

WWU Steel Band performs with Ray Holman

HE WALLA WALLA UNIVERSITY Steel Band, under the direction of Brandon Beck, associate professor of music, performed in May at the Gesa Power House Theatre in Walla Walla with renowned steel pan arranger, composer, and performer Ray Holman. Holman is a musician who has challenged the norms of steel drum arrangements by incorporating European classical music into his arrangements. He has played steel drums professionally since the age of 13 and has become one of the most respected and sought-after steel band performers and arrangers in the world. He was awarded the Hummingbird Silver Medal of Merit by the government of Trinidad and Tobago in 1993 for his significant contributions to the culture of his nation. The WWU Steel Band has performed annually at the Gesa Power House Theatre since 2013 and has toured across the United States. To learn more about upcoming performances by the WWU Steel Band, visit music.wallawalla.edu.