Everything Nac

The husband-and-wife piano duo of Matthew and Katarina Loudermilk will present a guest recital at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28, in Cole Concert Hall in the Wright Music Building on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.

The concert is a presentation of the SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Music and is a feature of the Cole Performing Arts Series.

The duo will perform works by Franz Schubert, including the Fantasia in F minor for piano four-hands, D 940. Works by Sergei Rachmaninoff will be performed in the second half of the concert.

Matthew and Katarina Loudermilk have performed numerous times on KUHF Radio, and their Schubert Fantasy was featured on Houston’s PBS television station. In the summer of 2015, Matthew and Katarina toured China with a program of Rachmaninoff’s music, and this past summer they performed in Moscow, Russia.

As a soloist, Matthew has performed throughout the United States, including appearances at the NFMC national convention in New Orleans, Severance Hall in Cleveland, the Gilmore Festival in Michigan, the Cincinnati Art Museum and a live performance on WCLV-FM, Cleveland’s classical music station.

Born in Moscow, Katarina made her Russian debut at age 13 in the Bolshoi Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. She has performed throughout Russia and Europe including appearances at the National Art Museum and Rudolfino Hall in Prague and the Maliy Hall of the Russian Music Academy

In addition to their performing careers, Matthew and Katarina are co-founders and directors of the International Music Academy in Houston, which is revolutionizing the approach to children’s music education. As highly sought after speakers and judges, they have presented at the TMTA Convention, Society for the Performing Arts and Tuesday Musical Club, as well as giving guest lectures at Rice University.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

The SFA Charter School joined with its Parent-Teacher Organization to host the eighth annual walk-a-thon Friday in Johnson Coliseum on the university’s campus.

Approximately 265 SFA Charter School students participated in the fundraising event, which benefits the school’s learning trips, children’s performing arts series, author visits, fitness days and social events.

Each grade and class competed to raise funds through sponsorships and walking in the coliseum. The walk-a-thon raised more than $17,100.

Dr. Jane Long, associate professor in SFA’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics, PTO member and chair of the walk-a-thon, said the day was a success.

“We are very pleased with the funds we were able to raise for the school. We wanted to have a fun environment, and I think we achieved it,” Long said.

This year’s walk-a-thon theme was the Olympics. Students learned about different sports and researched the history of the sport their class chose to represent. SFA athletic teams, including the track and field and soccer teams, visited the school to discuss their sport with the charter school students.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s A Cappella Choir will present its “Fall Concert” at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, in Cole Concert Hall in the Wright Music Building on the SFA campus.

Dr. Tim King, director of choral activities for the SFA School of Music, conducts the choir, which will preview music to be performed during the ensemble’s tour of Germany in May.

“The tour celebrates the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, which is perhaps the single most influential event ever to affect the course of musical history,” King said. It is interesting to note that, even though separated by 200 years, Martin Luther and J.S Bach lived and worked in the same central Germany locale, King explained.

“The Germany tour and Thursday’s program feature both aspects – Luther, the reformer, and Bach, the eminent church composer,” King said.

The program features a contemporary version of the great Lutheran hymn tune “Wachet Auf Ruft Uns Die Stimme” by Hans Werner Zimmermann, a prominent church composer in his own right; “Der Geist Hilft,” one of the most celebrated Baroque motets or anthems by J.S. Bach; and “Tristis Es Anima Mea” by Johann Kuhnau, who was Bach’s predecessor at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, Germany.

The concert is a joint presentation of the SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Music.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.