Everything Nac

The Men’s Choir and Women’s Choir at Stephen F. Austin State University will present the program “Elemental: Songs about Earth, Wind and Fire” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

The program theme lends itself to a wealth of outstanding texts and music based on the subjects of Earth, wind and fire, according to Dr. Tod Fish, associate director of choral activities in the School of Music and the choirs’ director. SFA collaborative pianists Hyun Ji Oh and Dr. Thomas Nixon will accompany.

“This theme has allowed for tremendous diversity in our programming,” Fish said. “The choirs will perform music ranging from earlier masters such as Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Schubert and Clara Schumann to current star composers Jake Runestad and Eleanor Daley.”

Dr. Jennifer Dalmas, professor of violin and viola, and Dr. Brad Meyer, director of percussion studies, will perform on Runestad’s “Sing Wearing the Sky.”

Among the other program highlights is the Women’s Choir performing “Suite” de Lorca by Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara, longtime professor of composition at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Finland.

“Rautavaara was known as an eclectic composer who fused archaic and modern styles skillfully,” Fish explained. “He displays this ability in his 1973 composition, ‘Suite’ de Lorca, which is a staple in both the mixed and treble choir repertory. Rautavaara takes four dark texts by the Spanish poet Lorca, and merges modern techniques such as semi-tone clusters, mediant triad harmonies and aleatoric effects with ancient techniques such as modality and fauxbourdon. ‘Suite’ de Lorca is neo-classical in nature and fully displays Rautavaara’s gift for pluralism.”

The Women’s Choir will also perform Schumann’s “Er ist gekommen,” arranged by Brandon Williams. Originally composed as a solo lied, Williams arranged the piece for a women’s chorus. The lied was written in June of 1841, while Schumann was pregnant with her and husband Robert’s first child, Marie. “Er ist gekommen” is part of a three-song set (op. 12) from texts by 19th-century poet Friedrich Rückert.

“The piece is driven by a virtuosic accompaniment that will put our outstanding collaborative pianist, Hyun Ji Oh, on full display,” Fish said.

The Men’s Choir will perform “Tu qui consortem” by Brian Bondari, associate professor of music theory and composition at Trinity University and Fish’s friend.

“Brian and I collaborated on this composition during our time together at the University of Kansas,” Fish said. “It is a poignant piece based on a war poem by Sextus Propertius. The story is from the standpoint of Gallus, a mortally wounded soldier. Gallus implores the other soldiers to tell his sister that he fought valiantly but perished at the hand of an unknown enemy. He begs his comrades to ‘save themselves,’ so that their families may ‘rejoice’ in their return home from the atrocities of war.”

Two new graduate students in the School of Music, David Zielke of Albany, Oregon, and Greg Simmons of Lufkin, will conduct two selections with the Men’s Choir. Zielke will also conduct the Women’s Choir on Paul Read’s “Birdsong.”

The program will also feature a portion of the music chosen for the Women’s Choir’s performance at the 2020 Southwest American Choral Directors Conference in Little Rock, Arkansas, this coming March.

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 student chapter of The Wildlife Society placed in a three-way tie for fifth during The Wildlife Society’s national quiz bowl held at the joint conference of the American Fisheries Society and The Wildlife Society in Reno, Nevada.

“Our team did well, but came up just short of Purdue University, the eventual national champions, in the third round,” said Jake Hill, forest wildlife management sophomore and vice president of SFA’s student chapter of The Wildlife Society. “The opportunity to compete at the national level against 18 other major schools from across the U.S. was truly a privilege.”

The SFA chapter also was recognized for its efforts in advocating for the adoption of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act. This bipartisan legislation seeks to make supplemental funds available for the management of fish and wildlife species in greatest need of conservation as determined by individual state fish and wildlife agencies. Last year, the SFA chapter mailed more than 600 letters expressing their support for the initiative to representatives and lawmakers across the state.

“This conference was all about personal and professional development, and I think the chapter definitely achieved its goals,” said Dr. Daniel Scognamillo, SFA associate professor of forest wildlife management and faculty advisor for the student chapter.

Students participated in a variety of networking events and special sessions related to current issues in wildlife science and management. Scognamillo also facilitated a conference workshop and delivered two presentations regarding wildlife research conducted at SFA.

This was the first-ever joint national conference of these two conservation organizations, drawing approximately 5,000 fish and wildlife professionals from across the U.S., Mexico, Canada and beyond.

Story by Sarah Fuller, outreach coordinator for Stephen F. Austin State University’s Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture. Contact information: (936) 468-1185 or fullersa@sfasu.edu.

Clarinetist Frank Kowalsky, professor emeritus at Florida State University, will perform a guest recital at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 24, in Cole Concert Hall on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.

Kowalsky will collaborate with several SFA music faculty members, all of whom are graduates of Florida State University, according to Dr. Christopher Ayer, professor of clarinet in the SFA School of Music.

Dr. Jennifer Dalmas, violin and viola, Dr. Evegeni Rachev, cello, and Dr. Ron Petti, piano, were all doctoral students at FSU while Kowalsky was professor of clarinet there. Rachev’s cello teacher at FSU was Lubomir Georgiev, who wrote Dialogues I for cello and piano. Rachev will perform it with Kowalsky that evening.

“So, it’s a special treat for all of them to collaborate together on this concert,” Ayer said.

Among the other selections on the program are “Peregi Verbunk” by Leo Weiner; Suite for Clarinet, Violin and Piano and “Scaramouche” by Darius Milhaud; and Sonata by Carlos Guastavino.

Kowalsky has performed as principal clarinetist with several orchestras throughout the United States. His introduction of Scott McAllister’s “X—Concerto for Clarinet” to the clarinet community in 1998 led to the commissioning of McAllister’s concerto, “Black Dog,” which he premiered at Florida State University in 2003. A member of the faculty at the Interlochen Arts Academy for 10 years, Kowalsky joined the faculty at Florida State University in 1984 and retired in 2013. He holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, the Manhattan School of Music and the Catholic University of America.

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.