Everything Nac

The Trombone Choir at Stephen F. Austin State University will present a concert of varied music from the last five centuries when the student ensemble performs at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 23, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Comprised of 28 trombone students, the choir is directed by Dr. Deb Scott, professor of trombone.

The concert will include arrangements of “Panis Angelicus” (O Lord Most Holy) by Cesar Franck and “Contrapunctus 14” by J.S. Bach. Also on the program is an arrangement of excerpts from Hector Berlioz’s opera “The Damnation of Faust.” From “Five Jewish Songs of Joy,” the group will perform “A Wicked Wicked Man” by S.E. Goldfarb.

Also on the program are a few contemporary pieces, including “Great Lake Octet” by Eric Ewazen, which will be performed by eight of the student trombonists.

Dr. Daniel Chapa, low brass professor, will join the group to conduct a select group of players performing “Londonderry Air” arranged by James Christiansen and Mark McDunn.

The concert is a presentation of the SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Music. Cole Concert Hall is located in the Tom and Peggy Wright Music Building, 2210 Alumni Drive.

Concert 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 Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music will present “Canetti-menagerie: a surreal soirée,” a program of works by Joseph Klein, at 6 p.m. Monday, April 22, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

The program (played continuously without pauses) consists of group improvisations and solo performances of works by American composer Klein, which are based on Elias Canetti’s 1974 book “Der Ohrenzeuge: Fünfzig Charaktere (Earwitness: Fifty Characters),” a collection of 50 surreal character studies. The performance is designed as a multimedia event, which includes theatrical lighting and staging, readings from the Canetti texts, and projections of visual interpretations of the various Canetti characters.

“Canetti was a versatile writer whose body of work reflects his rich and varied interests in philosophy, psychology, sociology and literary criticism, taking the form of novels, memoirs, essays, plays and non-fiction writings,” explains Klein.

The concert features performances by Elizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; Kyle Stec, alto saxophone; Andrew May, violin; Madeleine Shapiro, violoncello; with Klein as narrator. Klein is currently Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of North Texas College of Music where he has served as chair of composition studies since 1999.

Works to be performed include “Canetti-menagerie,” “Die Müde” (“The Tired Woman”), “Die Schadhafte” (“The Defective”), “Der Hinterbringer” (“The Tattletale”), “Die Tischtuchtolle” (“The Tablecloth Lunatic”), “Der Tückenfänger” (“The Wile-catcher”) and concluding with another full ensemble performance of “Canetti-menagerie.”

Born in Los Angeles in 1962, Klein is a composer of solo, chamber, and large ensemble works, including instrumental, vocal, electroacoustic, and intermedia compositions. His music reflects an ongoing interest in processes drawn from such sources as fractal geometry, chaos and systems theory, often inspired by natural phenomena. His works frequently incorporate theatrical elements. Literature is another important influence.

Kimberly Cole Luevano has established herself as a formidable soloist and chamber musician known for poignant interpretations and inventive programming. She has performed, adjudicated, taught on four continents and has recorded on several labels. She joined the University of North Texas faculty in 2011.

Andrew May is best known for innovative and subtle chamber music, some of which involves computer-based agents interacting with human performers. May has performed internationally as a violinist and conductor, specializing in adventurous new music and avant-garde improvisation. He teaches composition at UNT.

Flutist Elizabeth McNutt is a recitalist who primarily performs contemporary music. She has premiered more than 200 works and performed in Europe, Asia and throughout the U.S. She teaches flute and directs the new music ensemble Nova at UNT.

Guest artist Madeleine Shapiro presently directs ModernWorks and performs as a solo recitalist throughout the United States, Europe and Latin America. In addition to her recital work, Shapiro has had residencies at numerous institutions presenting master classes and workshops.

Kyle Stec is an educator and performer currently serving as saxophone instructor for the Flower Mound and Marcus high school clusters in the North Texas area. As a soloist, he has been named National Second Prize Winner of the Music Teacher National Association Young Artist Woodwind Competition and winner of the UNT Concerto Competition.

Concert 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 Music Preparatory Division in the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music will begin its spring recital schedule with a performance by piano students of Lydia Lim at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, April 27, in the Music Recital Hall on the SFA campus.

Piano and cello students of SFA music major instructors, piano students of Dr. Mario Ajero and saxophone students of Nicholas Bissen will perform at 4 p.m. Sunday, May 5, in the Music Recital Hall in the Wright Music Building on campus.

String students of Alba Madrid, Dr. Jennifer Dalmas and Dr. Evgeni Raychev will perform at 6 p.m. Friday, May 10, in the Music Recital Hall.

Piano students of Mary Cooper will perform at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 12, in Cole Concert Hall in the Wright Music Building.

The Piney Woods Youth Orchestra, directed by Raychev, will perform at 7 p.m. Monday, May 13, in Cole Concert Hall.

The SFA Young Violinists and Suzuki violin students of Brenda Josephsen, will perform at 6 p.m. Friday, May 17, in the Music Recital Hall, followed by a performance of harp students of Susanna Campbell at 7:30 p.m. in the Music Recital Hall.

The final concert of the spring for the Music Preparatory Division will be presented by piano students of Linda Parr. They will perform at 4 p.m. Saturday, May 18, in Cole Concert Hall.

All recitals are free and open to the public. The recital schedule is posted on the SFA Music Prep Facebook page.

For a complete listing of classes and types of instruction available through the Music Preparatory Division, visit www.music.sfasu.edu/prep or contact Director Pat Barnett at (936) 468-1291.

The Stephen F. Austin State University Board of Regents held a specially called meeting Monday to honor two donors by naming SFA’s math building as the Roy E. and Linda Bush Mathematical Sciences Building.

According to Jill Still, vice president for university advancement, Roy and Linda Bush have generously supported SFA and have demonstrated the value they placed on higher education and the university.

A native of Childress, Texas, Roy earned a Bachelor of Science in mathematics from SFA in 1957 and put to use the knowledge and skills he cultivated at the university while serving in the U.S. Navy and throughout his career. He married Linda Stone, a Houston native and an accountant, in January 1965.

Roy enjoyed a 25-year career with Conoco, managing drilling operations in Louisiana and Italy and eventually serving as vice president of Conoco Egypt. Linda began her career in the oil and gas industry and transitioned into the real estate field in New Orleans, Houston and Austin.

“After Roy’s death on August 13, 2018, Linda honored her husband’s legacy with a gift to SFA,” Still said. “The contributions Mr. and Mrs. Bush have made to SFA will not be forgotten.”

A ribbon cutting to celebrate the renaming of the building will be held at 1:30 p.m. April 29 in conjunction with the quarterly meeting of the Board of Regents.

For more information about the College of Sciences and Mathematics, visit sfasu.edu/math.

The Stephen F. Austin State University European Union Team recently tied for fourth place at the Midwest Model European Union Competition.

The SFA team competed at Indiana University against 21 other teams from schools such as the University of Illinois, Texas Woman’s University and Iowa State University. SFA’s team represented Estonia in the competition.

The MMEU competition is the second-oldest intercollegiate simulation of the European Union in North America. According to Dr. Steven Galatas, SFA associate professor of government and SFA Model EU faculty advisor, the competition allows students to immerse themselves in the policies and procedures of the EU.

“The purpose of MMEU is to provide a hands-on learning experience about how the European Union operates, to work with students from across the U.S. to debate and discuss issues related to the European Union, and to promote awareness and understanding of the union and its role in the world,” Galatas said.

“It was amazing to see our school, which was representing a tiny country, compete head-to-head with Big Ten Conference schools and other large universities,” said SFA student Morgan Moya of New Braunfels, who served as the environmental minister of Estonia.

In addition to tying for fourth place, three individual award winners from SFA included Aaron Kelley of Ennis, who received first place as the economics minister of Estonia; Moya, who won second place; and Daniel Greco of Katy, who placed third as minister in the foreign affairs council.

SFA students received their country assignment though a lottery system. The team met often during spring semester to discuss Estonia’s position on key issues facing the EU, such as Brexit, immigration and refugees, climate change, and more. Additionally, each member wrote a piece of legislation to submit for the competition.

“I prepared for this competition by investing a lot of time researching Estonia so that I could respond to unexpected situations,” Greco said. “I also spent time getting to know my team members so we could work well together and our team dynamic would be strong.”

The political science program within the Department of Government sponsors the team. Upon completing the European Union course in the fall, Galatas invited select students to join the team.

“The SFA Department of Government does a phenomenal job of preparing its students for events like this,” Moya said. “I had no experience with the European Union prior to this, but other classes I have taken at SFA helped me with background information regarding European politics, as well as parliamentary procedures that helped me during the competition.”

Students at other universities often participate in Model EU competitions as a requirement for a course, but volunteers comprised SFA’s team.

“Dr. Galatas’ class on the EU taught me a lot and showed me how interesting the EU can be,” Greco said. “But I chose to join the team because I wanted to well-represent SFA in an academic competition and demonstrate that SFA’s political science program can compete on a level with other universities.”

To learn more about SFA’s Model EU team, contact Galatas at galatasse@sfasu.edu or (936) 468-2003.

By Emily Brown, marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Dr. John C. Pruit, a Stephen F. Austin State University assistant professor of sociology, has learned the lessons taught in preschool often have the ability to go beyond classroom walls.

“Analytically, the preschool teacher is a simplified social identity, but preschool teaching is strikingly complex in everyday practice,” said Pruit. “With my research, I wanted to show that how preschool teachers teach is anything but straightforward.”

Pruit focuses his research on preschool teachers and classroom settings — an interest that began from both an analytical and personal standpoint. When his own son entered preschool, Pruit found himself wondering what he could do better in regards to understanding both the constraints of and constructs within the classroom.

Studying education and preschool teachers in particular has influenced Pruit’s own teaching style. Through his research, he has realized that preschool teachers both teach and care for their students, which is something he tries to achieve in his own interactions with college students.

“I try to approach my students with compassion and let them know that I care about them and want them to succeed,” Pruit said. “Sometimes they just need someone to listen to them and validate their experience.

“I also often talk to students about the times I have failed at doing things well. This allows my students to see that I am human and, like all humans, I make mistakes; but these mistakes are often opportunities to learn.”

Using a constructivist approach, he engages students in critically thinking about how sociology, especially sociological theory, is applicable to their everyday lives.

Along with studying education, Pruit’s research areas include narrative, identity and sociology of early childhood, deviance and sociological social psychology.

“I’m interested in how people put their lives together within institutional contexts,” Pruit said. “I prefer to do research in the settings in which I talk and interact.”

Pruit holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in sociology from the University of Memphis and a doctoral degree in sociology from the University of Missouri. Prior to joining SFA’s College of Liberal and Applied Arts faculty in 2016, Pruit was a visiting assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University in Abington.

He has authored several journal articles and textbooks, and recently published a book, “Between Teaching and Caring in Preschool: Talk, Interaction, and the Preschool Teacher Identity,” where he used ethnographic and interview data to analyze how preschool teachers construct institutional identities. He is a member of the American Sociological Association, the Midwest Sociological Society and the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction.

Most recently, Pruit received the Teaching Excellence Award for being an outstanding faculty member in the College of Liberal and Applied Arts. The Teaching Excellence Award is based on knowledge of subject matter, quality of lectures and assignments, enthusiasm for teaching, commitment to continuous improvement, contribution to the quality of teaching at SFA by assisting and encouraging other faculty members, and interest in and availability to students.

“Receiving the Teaching Excellence Award is humbling and validating. I am fortunate to be a part of the education of some of the best students at SFA and in the state of Texas,” said Pruit. “My job is more meaningful because my students are learning to think about the social world in a thoughtful, imaginative and critical manner.”

By Emily Brown, marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.