Everything Nac

A former director of bands at Stephen F. Austin State University will be honored when the SFA Wind Ensemble performs at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, at the Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Richardson.

Honoree John L. Whitwell was director of bands in the School of Music from 1987 to 1993 and was inducted into the SFA Band Directors Hall of Fame in 2011. Whitwell will be honored at the concert for his years of service to the profession, and most notably, for his six years as director of bands at SFA. He will guest conduct “Irish Tune from the County Derry” by Percy Grainger.

The concert is an outreach effort to alumni and potential future students living in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, explained Fred J. Allen, SFA’s director of bands. The SFA Alumni Association has provided information about the event to alumni living in the area, and the band office is emailing invitations to band directors living within an approximate 60-mile radius of Richardson.

“The concert will appeal to everyone,” Allen said. “We are playing a march by John Philip Sousa, yet we are also playing pieces written in the last five years.”

Whitwell retired from his position as director of bands, professor of music and chair of the conducting area at Michigan State University in 2009. At MSU, he conducted the Wind Symphony and guided the graduate degree programs in wind conducting.

Prior to his appointment at MSU, Whitwell held positions at SFA and Abilene Christian University. He also taught in the public schools of Michigan as band director at Ann Arbor Huron and Northwest Jackson high schools.

His bands have performed for the College Band Directors National Association Convention, Texas Music Educators Association Clinic-Convention, Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic, and Midwestern Conference on Vocal and Instrumental Music. He is past-president of the Big Ten Band Directors Association, president of the North Central Division of the College Band Directors National Association, and member of the board of directors of the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic.

Whitwell maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor and clinician throughout the United States. He has received many honors, including “Band Teacher of the Year” award by the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association; “Citation of Excellence” award by the National Band Association in 1980 and 1985; Kappa Kappa Psi “Distinguished Service to Music” award; American School Band Directors Association “Edwin Franko Goldman” award; and the Michigan State University “Distinguished Professor” award.

The concert will also feature David Campo, SFA’s associate director of bands, conducting “Mare Tranquillitatis” by Roger Zare. Tamey Anglley, assistant director of bands at SFA, will conduct “Whirlwind” by Steven Bryant.

Featured work on the concert program will be two movements from David Maslanka’s Symphony No. 2.

“This is an epic work, full of emotion and power,” Allen said. The second movement is based on the spiritual “Deep River” and is dedicated to the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger.

The SFA Alumni Association will host a reception following the concert. Tickets may be purchased online at www.eisemanncenter.com.

The Percussion Ensemble at Stephen F. Austin State University will perform a concert of diverse and intriguing works at 6 p.m. Monday, April 10, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

The program will feature new and standard compositions for small chamber groups and large ensemble by Daniel Levitan, Rudiger Pawassar, Steven Snowden, Nigel Westlake and Edgard Varèse, according to Dr. Brad Meyer, director of percussion studies in the SFA School of Music.

The Manhattan Marimba Quartet commissioned Levitan’s “Marimba Quartet.” This two-movement composition is contemporarily creative, yet accessible to the interpretation of conventional notation, explains Jim Lambert in Percussive Notes magazine. Two groups of marimba quartets will play both movements, which utilize thick, jazz chords as well as dense, full harmonies between players, Meyer said.

Pawassar’s “Scuplture 3” was originally written as a quartet titled “Sculpture in Wood,” and this arrangement is for marimba trio. The piece is almost a classical sounding work, but resembles many harmonic structures found in ’70s and ’80s jazz. The composer comments that when writing this work, it resembled to him the making of a wood sculpture in which, in drafts, many parts were cut off, added again, shifted and intertwined with one another.

Each movement in Snowden’s “A Man With a Gun Lives Here” is based on symbols within a “hobo code” used by the brotherhood of nomadic freight train riders and traveling workers to keep themselves safe, fed and in work. Just like resourceful hobos, the piece makes use of limited resources, Meyer explained. All activity is centered on a single bass drum. Other items utilized include steel plates, rubber balls and a paper bag containing three pounds of loose buckshot.

The program also includes Westlake’s “Omphalo Centric Lecture,” the composer’s most performed work, and Varèse’s iconic and seminal work for percussion ensemble, “Ionization,” the title of which is derived from the ionization of molecules, as electrons are dispersed through the process of atomic change. “Ionization” is one of the first pieces written for percussion ensemble and has become a standard of the repertoire

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 (888) 240-ARTS or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

Stephen F. Austin State University students in the Rusche College of Business recently met and learned from industry professionals during the college’s fourth annual College to Career Conference.

“The C2C Conference continues to be one of the highlights of our year in the Rusche College of Business,” said Dr. Tim Bisping, dean of the Rusche College of Business. “This year, we were pleased to have several new employers involved with providing guidance to our students, as well as discussing career opportunities.”

Throughout the event, speakers from across the state representing companies such as Kohls, Wells Fargo, Wintrust Commercial Finance, Commercial Bank of Texas, Pilgrim’s Pride, Austin Bank and more spoke with students in various sessions and executive panel discussions.

“Our panel discussions were a huge highlight of the conference,” said Megan Sellers, coordinator for career success and corporate engagement and academic advisor in SFA’s Rusche College of Business. “Students had the opportunity to ask questions and receive professional advice from industry experts.”

Sessions focused on various topics, including building one’s brand, networking, personal strategic planning, entrepreneurship, first impressions and more.

“There was a lot of information to soak up throughout the day, but one of the main takeaways was that these high-level CEOs, presidents, vice presidents and other executives were once in the students’ shoes,” Sellers said. “Many of them started at SFA, and this knowledge motivates students to pursue their dreams.”

An invitation-only employer reception followed the conference. During the reception, SFA’s top scholars in the College of Business visited with executives on a personal level.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s Department of English and Creative writing will host David J. Peterson, creator of the Dothraki language featured in HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” at 6:30 p.m. tonight in Dugas Liberal Arts North, Room 142 on the SFA campus.

Peterson has created languages for both television and movies, including “Emerald City,” “Defiance,” “Star-Crossed,” “The 100” and “Thor 2.” He has authored two books: “The Art of Language Invention” and “Living Language Dothraki.”

Peterson’s talk is titled “Conlangs: The Art of Language Invention.”

The talk is free, open to the public and will be followed by an audience question-and-answer session.

Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music’s 2017 Opera Theater, Otto Nicolai’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” opens for a three-night run at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 30, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus. Among the music student cast members are, standing from left, Amanda Sheriff of Houston as Anne Page; Evelyn Shaffer of Houston as Mrs. Page; Kelsey Quinn of San Antonio as Mrs. Ford; and Brenton Mattox, front, of Houston as Sir John Falstaff. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and $7.50 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu or call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s College of Sciences and Mathematics will present its third annual Women in STEM Luncheon and Style Show at noon Tuesday, April 4, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom. Doors open at 11:30 a.m.

The luncheon is an effort to raise funds to create scholarships for women who are majoring in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines at SFA.

“America is experiencing a significant under-representation of women who select STEM majors and persist to enter STEM or STEM-related careers,” said Dr. Kimberly M. Childs, dean of SFA’s College of Sciences and Mathematics. “Although women comprise approximately 48 percent of the U.S. workforce, they hold less than 25 percent of STEM jobs.”

This year’s Women in STEM luncheon will feature a gallery walk and poster presentation of STEM research performed by female SFA faculty members and students. Researchers will attend the poster presentation, and visitors are encouraged to talk with researchers before the luncheon.

During the luncheon, female keynote speakers will discuss their experiences with STEM research and careers. Selected men will escort female role models during the style show to help emphasize the importance of having men support women in STEM disciplines.

“Last year’s luncheon generated enough funds to provide three $5,000 scholarships to young women enrolled in SFA’s College of Sciences and Mathematics,” Childs said. “We hope this year’s luncheon will generate even more donations to fund more scholarships, which is our goal each year we organize the Women in STEM event.”

The Town House and Miller’s Point will provide the fashions for this year’s event.

The 2017 Women in STEM Luncheon and Style Show is sponsored by J.E. Kingham Construction Company and Kristi Owens, vice president and wealth management advisor with Merrill Lynch.

For more information about the event, including ticket and table reservations, email Kim Carmona, project coordinator for the College of Sciences and Mathematics, at kdcarmona@sfasu.edu.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s dance program and Repertory Dance Company will showcase senior choreographic works and company pieces during its production of Danceworks: Deviation, which premieres at 7 p.m. April 20 in the Norton H.P.E. Complex, Room 201, on the university’s campus.

A second showing is scheduled for 7 p.m. April 21 with a final performance set for 3 p.m. April 22.

As the theme suggests, the production will feature a spectrum of choreography, including jazz, modern, hip-hop and more. Heather Samuelson, co-coordinator of SFA’s dance program and assistant professor of dance, explained this production is the program’s first time to feature hip-hop.

“This year’s show is full of dances we haven’t offered to the public before, so it will be a different experience for audiences,” Samuelson said. “It’s a really fun show.”

The production will feature six senior choreographic works and choreography from two dance faculty members and two guest artists, each with a different theme.

Guest artist Tonya Reed Simon, who is known for her work with artists such as Nelly, worked with SFA students to choreograph a hip-hop dance for the production. Additionally, guest artist Jo Byrnes collaborated with SFA students to choreograph a contemporary piece for Danceworks. Sarah Sanchez, an SFA adjunct faculty member, will present a ballet folklórico piece.

As part of their degree requirements, SFA seniors in the dance program must create a choreographic piece and present it.

“Danceworks provides our students opportunities for performance for their degree and it better prepares them for teaching or auditioning,” Samuelson said. “It helps get them ready to go out into the real world and secure jobs as dancers, teachers, choreographers or performers.”

Students in a production course taught by Haley Hoss Jameson, co-coordinator of SFA’s dance program and associate professor of dance, will work backstage during the production to help with lighting, quick changes and additional crew work. Overall, approximately 55 people are involved in the show.

Tickets cost $5 for students, $8 for faculty and staff members, and $10 for general admission and can be purchased at the door. Funds raised from ticket sales will be used to offset production costs and help recruit future guest artists. SFA’s dance program and the Department of Kinesiology and Health Science are sponsoring the production.