The Department of Music at Gustavus Adolphus College has five student recitals scheduled this weekend to fill Bjorling Recital Hall with new compositions and performances on violin, piano, French horn and voice. Beginning on Friday, April 8 and running through Sunday, April 10, these student recitals are free and open to the public.
Senior composer Paul Fraser opens the weekend on Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. with a program consisting of six of his own compositions. These works vary from solo piano works to piano and combo to a thirty-nine piece chamber ensemble. The chamber ensemble will premiere Paul’s work titled “Chimera” for which he won the 2005 Caltech Composition Competition.
Megan Strom, horn and Erin Deutchman, piano present a combined recital at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 9. Megan will present works for horn by Richard Strauss, Persichetti and Glazunov. Pianist Erin Deutchman opens with two sonatas by Scarlatti, the “Waldstein” sonata by Beethoven and Chopin’s “Grand Waltz.”
Senior violinists Zach Armstrong and Emma Jordan will present a joint recital on Sunday, April 10 beginning at 1:30 p.m. in Bjorling Recital Hall. Their recital includes works for solo violin, violin and piano and for violin duet by Bela Bartok, Felix Mendelssohn, Fritz Kreisler and Max Bruch. They are assisted by pianist John McKay.
Vocalists Elizabeth Wojahn and Sara Butwinick continue the afternoon of music with their recital at 3:30 p.m. Both musicians are sopranos and are assisted by pianists Anna Shallue and Britt Forsberg, along with violinist Stef Arndt and ‘cellist Shannon Schultze. Their program includes works for voice by Vivaldi, Schubert, Brahms, Dubussy, Mozart and others.
Sunday’s final recital is a solo viola recital by senior Beth Andert, accompanied by Janet Jansen, piano and assisted by violinists Sarah Yrjanson and Jenn Trygg and ‘cellist Shannon Schultze. Beth’s recital begins at 7:30 p.m. and includes works by J. S. Bach, John Dowland and Luigi Boccherini. She is joined by sister Becky Andert to sing a Richard Walters’ arrangement of Randall Stroop’s “How Can I Keep From Singing.”
This weekend of music is presented entirely in Jussi Bjorling Recital Hall and is free and open to the public.