GALA GRADUATION CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE CONDUCTORS INSTITUTE AT BARD ON SUNDAY, JULY 31

Free concert will feature works by Bartók, Beethoven, Berlioz, Brahms, Debussy, Elgar, Mahler, Mozart, Persichetti, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky, as well as world premieres by candidates for the degree of master of fine arts in conducting “No serious conductor should miss the opportunity to study at the Institute.” —Marin Alsop, Principal Conductor, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—The Conductors Institute at Bard presents its 2005 Gala Graduation Concert on Sunday, July 31. The program, free and open to the public, will be held in Olin Hall on the Bard College campus from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. The six candidates for the degree of master of fine arts in conducting and one candidate for the bachelor of arts degree will conduct the Institute Orchestra in a program of works from the traditional repertoire as well as world premieres of their own compositions. Each of the seven conductors—Raymond T. Brown, Hee Kyeong Gil, Warren Puffer Jones, Nathan Madsen, Marcus J. Parris, William H. Reed, and James A. Stopher—will present different programs. The repertoire includes Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra; Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93; Berlioz’s Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9; Brahms’s Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98; Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune; Elgar’s Enigma Variations, Op. 36; Mahler’s Adagietto from Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp Minor; Mozart’s Overture to The Magic Flute, K.620; Persichetti’s Serenade No. 1 for Ten Wind Instruments; Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5, Op. 100; Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring; and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 36. This is the second consecutive summer in which the six graduate degree candidates have participated in the Institute’s six-week program. They also completed required course work at Bard during the intervening academic year, including classes in composition, basic orchestra repertoire, languages, a “second” instrument (string or piano), and solfège. In addition, they have had private studies and master classes in technical score study and analysis with Maestro Harold Farberman, as well as podium time with the Institute string quintet and conducting opportunities with the Bard College Community Orchestra, Chorus, and Vocal Ensembles. Harold Farberman founded the Conductors Institute 26 years ago to fill a void in the United States with a summer training program for conductors. “I hit on a formula that remains the same to this day—vigorous technical training and promotion of American music in a cooperative atmosphere,” he said. The Conductors Institute is in its seventh year at Bard College, and this is the fifth year that the master of fine arts degree in conducting is being offered. In addition to Farberman, the year-round graduate program faculty includes Bard professors James Bagwell, Kyle Gann, Christopher Gibbs, Franz Kempf, Joan Tower, and Laurence Wallach, as well as cellist Ling Kwan, pianist Sylvia Suzowsky, and violinist Marka Young. During the two six-week summer Institutes, the M.F.A. candidates have had new instructors and repertoire each week, assuring them of exposure to a variety of expert opinions. Visiting maestri have included Leon Botstein, Karen Lynne Deal, Guillermo Figueroa, Raymond Harvey, Apo Hsu, David Alan Miller, and Sidney Rothstein; and such visiting composers as Stephen Paulus, Joseph Schwantner, George Tsontakis, and Joan Tower. Maestro Farberman anchors the faculty of the summer program; Eduardo Navega directs the Discovery Program. Conductor and composer HAROLD FARBERMAN has written diverse works for orchestra, three operas (most recently, The Song of Eddie, which was premiered at The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College last July), numerous chamber works, a score for an Academy Award–winning documentary film, and music for dance companies. Many of his works, which have been performed all over the world, are represented on three Albany Records CDs devoted to his music. An advocate of modern music, Maestro Farberman received the Ives Award for his definitive interpretations of the work of Charles Ives. His recordings of Mahler, Michael Haydn, and Irwin Bazelon, as well as that of Ives and his own music, have earned worldwide recognition for excellence. Farberman founded the Conductors Guild and is the author of a pioneering work, The Art of Conducting Technique: A New Perspective, an innovative approach to the physical placement and movement of the baton. He is also the founder and artistic director of the Conductors Institute and director of Bard’s master of fine arts degree program in conducting. A member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s percussion section from 1951 to 1963, Farberman was its youngest performer when he joined the orchestra immediately after graduating from The Juilliard School of Music. For further information, call 845-758-7425 or visit the website www.bard.edu/ci. # # # (7/19/05)

This event was last updated on 08-01-2005

Back to Top