Famed musicologist Celenza to visit APSU November 12th-17th as Acuff Chair of Excellence
November 8, 2014
Clarksville, TN – In 1772, the Austrian composer Joseph Haydn decided to play a little trick on his benefactor, Prince Nikolaus Esterházy. Haydn and the court orchestra had spent months with the overbearing prince at his summer palace, and they were beginning to feel homesick for their families.
That summer, Haydn composed his Symphony No. 45 in F-Sharp minor, known as the “Farewell Symphony,” for the prince.
Anna Harwell Celenza
Cello percussion duo New Morse Code visiting Austin Peay State University on October 31st
October 28, 2014
Clarksville, TN – In a brief YouTube video clip, Hannah Collins is seen playing the cello while Michael Compitello taps his drumsticks against different sized flowerpots. The performance could be seen as a novelty act if the resulting music wasn’t so beautiful.
This mixture of playfulness and serious music making is what defines New Morse Code, a music duo of Yale University graduates who are using inventive performances to expand the reach of classical music to a younger generation.
New Morse Code to visit Austin Peay on Friday, October 31st. (Photo: Michiko Tierney)
APSU’s Halloween concert returns for 30th year on October 30th
October 27, 2014
Clarksville, TN – In July, the phone started ringing in Austin Peay State University’s Department of Music office, with callers interested in buying tickets for an upcoming concert.
They were a bit early, since the department’s annual Halloween Percussion Concert was still a good three months away, but the callers knew that for 30 years, the wildly entertaining event usually sold out, so there was nothing wrong with being a little premature.
Several renowned musicians to visit APSU this year as Acuff Chairs of Excellence
September 8, 2014
Clarksville, TN – When Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto first premiered in Prague in October 1791, the famed piece sounded much different than what audiences often hear today.
The composer’s friend, Anton Stadler, used a basset clarinet in that first performance, but the instrument fell out of favor in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Modern performances of the work are simply faint echoes of the how the piece was originally conceived.
Charles Neidich
APSU professor Karen Crow to represent Mid-South in National Vocal Competition
April 19, 2014
Clarksville, TN – Karen Crow, Austin Peay State University adjunct professor of voice, has been chosen to represent the Mid-South Region in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Artist Award (NATSAA) competition at the association’s upcoming National Conference in Boston this July.
The competition is held biennially in conjunction with the association’s National Conference.
Austin Peay professor Karen Crow.
Jazz great Gregoire Maret to headline 53rd annual Mid-South Jazz Festival at APSU
March 28, 2014
Clarksville, TN – At 92, Toots Thielemans is considered the world’s greatest jazz harmonica musician, having played with luminaries such as Charlie Parker and Miles Davis.
In 2012, Thielemans made a guest appearance on 37-year-old Gregoire Maret’s self-titled debut solo album, and most music critics saw this as a passing of the baton to a new master of the jazz harmonica.
Gregoire Maret to perform at the 53rd Annual Jazz Festival at APSU.
Gateway Chamber Orchestra To Host Second “Winter Baroque” Concert On December 8th
December 3, 2013
Clarksville, TN – In 1939, Italian composer Alfredo Casella performed a little-known choral work by Antonio Vivaldi. The piece was about 200 years old, but after two centuries of neglect, Vivaldi’s “Gloria” struck a cord with Casella’s audience. The Baroque masterwork, originally composed as part of the Catholic Mass, is now a holiday staple, performed in churches across the globe each December.
At 3 p.m. on Dec. 8, the Gateway Chamber Orchestra and Choir will feature the famed work at the Madison Street United Methodist Church during the GCO’s second annual Winter Baroque Concert.
Gateway Chamber Orchestra
“Christmas with David Steinquest and Friends” coming to APSU December 6th
November 23, 2013
Clarksville, TN – This December, why not enjoy a night of holiday music with a couple hundred of your closest friends?
That’s what will happen at 7:30pm on Friday, December 6th, when the Austin Peay State University Department of Music hosts “Christmas with David Steinquest and Friends: A Winter Wonderland” in the Mabry Concert Hall.
Christmas Concert at Austin Peay State University.
Austin Peay State University Symphony Orchestra hosts free concert of Classical Masterworks on October 20th
October 18, 2013
Clarksville, TN – At 4:00pm on October 20th, the Austin Peay State University Symphony Orchestra will perform a free concert at the Mabry Concert Hall, featuring some of classical music’s more popular and rousing works.
The concert will be the only performance this semester for the 60-member student orchestra, under the direction of Dr. Gregory Wolynec, APSU professor of music. [Read more]
APSU Music Education Students attend state conference
October 17, 2013
Clarksville, TN – “Think Music. Think Austin Peay.” That’s the motto of the Austin Peay State University Department of Music, and earlier this year, Dr. Eric Branscome, coordinator of music education at APSU, decided to remind his students what exactly those five words meant.
“For the longest time, we have not had students in music education participate in many of the local or state-wide music education events,” he said. “My soapbox to the students has been, it’s hard to ‘think music, think Austin Peay’ when Austin Peay is not involved in the music education community.”
Austin Peay Music Students attend National Association for Music Education’s National Conference.
