Early Music America Fall 2012 - (Page 5)

soundbytes Compiled by Mark Longaker The Juilliard School awarded an honorary doctor of music degree to conductor William Christie at its commencement ceremony in May. Born in Buffalo, NY, Christie directs the French ensemble Les Arts Florissants, which he founded in 1979. He is known as the “godfather” of Juilliard’s historical performance program. Grants, Awards & Advancement Harry Christophers, artistic director of the Handel and Haydn Society, has been named in the Queen of England’s 2012 Birthday Honors List, receiving a CBE for services to music. The CBE is one of the highest honors that can be bestowed by Queen Elizabeth II, and stands for “Commander of the Order of the British Empire.” In addition to his role as artistic director at H&H, Christophers is the founder and conductor of the British ensemble The Sixteen. Montreal recorder player Vincent Lauzer won first prize in the elite Stepping Stone division of the Canadian Music Competition in June, marking recipients are Paul Kieffer, Kyle Patterson, Kathryn Summersett, and Ryaan Ahmed. Bryan Duerfeldt, who received an Early Music America summer workshop scholarship in 2009, was honored this year as a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts, one of 20 winners chosen from 5,000 applicants. It is the first time that a recorder player was among the Scholars in the nearly 50 years of the program, which recognizes the most distinguished graduating high school seniors. Duerfeldt’s performances of early music and contemporary music played a large part in his receiving the award. He and other winners presented a June concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Opera Lafayette artistic director Ryan Brown received La Médaille d’Or du Rayonnement Culturel from La Ren- McLennan, fortepianist Michael Pecak, cellist Annabeth Shirley, and violinist Christine Wilkinson. Each winner received $750 to attend summer workshops across North America. Early Music America announced in May the winners of its annual Outreach Grants, which support outreach and education projects that draw new audiences to early music. Recipients include Ars Lyrica Houston for educational projects that introduce students in grades K-12 in the Houston area to early instruments; the Rose Ensemble to provide free choral music workshops for school and community choirs; MYSO (Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra) Baroque Players to hire a professional harpsichordist to work with the young Coldwell to Step Down as EMA Director Maria Coldwell, executive director of Early Music America, recently announced her decision to step down in September after 10 years at the helm of the national arts service organization. A musicologist, early music performer, educator, and concert presenter, Coldwell strengthened the ﬁnances of EMA and greatly expanded its range of services to membership. During her tenure, EMA presented ﬁve national competitions for emerging artists, scholarship programs increased ﬁvefold, and several grant programs were created in the areas of education and outreach. There has also been signiﬁcant growth in the size and circulation of Early Music America magazine, EMA’s quarterly publication, as well as a substantial increase in small endowments, despite the difﬁcult economy. “Supporting young people and building up the future of early music in North America has been my top priority,” said Coldwell, who received her Ph.D. in music history from Yale University in 1979. She won the Noah Greenberg Award of the American Musicological Society in 1981, and has taught music history at Yale and the University of Chicago. She moved to Seattle in 1987, where she directed Seattle Camerata for three years and then directed the Early Music Guild of Seattle for eight years. A three-year stint as program manager for the University of Washington’s Division of Educational Outreach preceded her hiring as EMA executive director in 2002. “Maria’s vision, leadership, organizational and administrative skills, knowledge of our ﬁeld, ability to build important relationships, and so much more, are beyond mere praise,” said EMA board president Bob Johnson. “The board’s debt to her is enormous, as is our gratitude.” A six-person search committee was established by the board to ﬁnd Coldwell’s successor. “We intend to have our selection made and our new ED engaged by the end of the summer,” said Johnson.—ML the first time the award went to a player of this instrument. The prize includes $10,000, a demo produced by RadioCanada, a residency at the Banff Centre, and an invitation to perform as a soloist at the CMC’s gala concert in Toronto. A recorder player since 1993, Lauzer also won this year’s Prix Opus for Breakthrough Artist of the Year. The Lute Society of America awarded three full scholarships, which include housing and tuition, and one halfscholarship, which includes tuition, to four students to attend the society’s Summer Seminar in Cleveland. The aissance Française in a private ceremony in May at the residence of the ambassador of France to the United States in Washington, DC. The award recognizes people who have rendered distinguished service in the promotion of French culture. Summer workshop scholarships were awarded in May by Early Music America to 10 young performers of early music. They include soprano Megan Chartrand, guitarist Carlos Cuestas, cellist Ching Yi Denise Fan, countertenor Brennan Hall, bassoonist Allen Hamrick, oboist Lindsay McIntosh, soprano Lindsey Early Music America Fall 2012 5 PHOTO:SYLVAIN MIGNOT

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Early Music America Fall 2012

Editor’s Note
EMA Competition
Sound Bytes
Musings: Listening Forward
Profile: A Classical Playlist on Your Cable Television
Recording Reviews
Reconstructing Spanish Songs from the Time of Cervantes
Janet See: Traversist on Two Continents
Musical Mosaic Explores “Perspectives of Interspersing Peoples”
Book Reviews
Ad Index
In Conclusion: Conducting Early Music

Early Music America Fall 2012