Class Notes

Eastman School of Music

1945
Gerhard Samuel and Darrell Handel ’69 (PhD) collaborated on the CD The Orpheus Oracle, which was released in 1998. Each contributed several compositions, all based on the Orpheus myth.

1949
Emma Lou Diemer (MM), ’60 (PhD) writes, “My composition, Songs for the Earth, was premiered on August 19, 2005, at Davies Hall in San Francisco by the San Francisco Choral Society and Orchestra, conducted by Robert Geary. My composition, Concerto in One Movement for Organ and Orchestra (‘Alaska’), recorded by organist Marilyn Mason and the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, was released in early 2005.”

1952
Nancy Hayes Van de Vate released the CD All Quiet on the Western Front, her opera based on Erich Maria Lemarque’s classic World War I novel, in 2002. It was performed by the New York City Opera in its “Vox 2003: Showcasing American Opera” series, as well as the Osnabrück (Germany) Opera, which staged the show 10 times in 2003–04. Nancy also released the CD Chamber Music, Vol. VII, in 2005.

1955
Donald Cervone ’70 (PhD) writes, “The Allegheny College Choir, conducted by Ward Jamison, performed my composition, Nunc dimitiis, in Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh on December 3, 2005, and at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., on December 4 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Allegheny Singers, with whom I sang for two years. I wrote the piece in memory of the group’s founder, Morten J. Luvaas.”

1960
Emma Lou Diemer (PhD) (see ’49). . . . John Galm ’61 (MM) and his wife, Alyne, have released two CDs: Stories from the Grandparents and Stories from the Godmother Tree. “These stories with music are from a tradition that we learned in Senegal from the Wolof people. Stories from the Grandparents are short stories for children, and Stories from the Godmother Tree are longer stories for all ages,” John writes.

1961
Raleigh McVicker (MM) and his son, Michael, gave a concert at the Riverside Community Church in Hood River, Wash., last December. Raleigh, on organ, and Michael, on trumpet, performed music based on Advent and Christmas chorales and hymns.

1969
Darrell Handel (PhD) (see ’45).

1970
Donald Cervone (PhD) (see ’55). . . . Percussionist Geary Larrick (MM) writes, “I recently have published a book, An Autobiographical Bibliography of Percussion Music, as well as several articles: ‘Chinese Music with Percussion,’ in the winter 2005–06 issue of the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors’ Journal; ‘Music and Local Government,’ part of the Proceedings of the 2004 15th Conference on the Small City and Regional Community, released on CD in December 2005; and ‘Music and Work,’ comparing contemporary work and society with that experienced by well-known musicians of the past, specifically Bach, Beethoven, and Mendelssohn, which was included in the book Winning, Losing, Moving On, edited by sociology professor Kenneth Westhues.”

1975
Arlene Shrut ’77 (MM) is the founder of the New Triad for Collaborative Arts in New York City. She also is a vocal instructor at the Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music.

1977
Deborah Brown ’79 (MM), a former Jack L. Frank instructor of piano at the Eastman Community Music School, has released a self-titled CD featuring music by Haydn, Liszt, and Rachmaninoff. She recorded the CD at Eastman. . . . Arlene Shrut (MM) (see ’75).

1978
Helen Weiss Phelps (see ’56RC undergraduate).

1979
Jeffrey Brillhart (MM) writes, “I have been appointed lecturer in organ improvisation at Yale University. I have been director of music and fine arts at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church since 1983. In 1999, I was appointed music director of Philadelphia’s Singing City. We have performed numerous concerts with the Philadelphia Orchestra and have toured Cuba and northern Ireland.” . . . Deborah Brown (MM) (see ’77).

1980
Moira Danis writes, “I have released the CD I Wish, a collection of songs that tells of wishes, hopes, and dreams. I am a music teacher in Westchester County and perform in New York City.” . . . Mentalist, author, and composer Sidney Friedman has published several books and audio books, including Your Mind Knows More Than You Do, which was a national bestseller in 2000, and the audio book Mind Dynamics. He wrote the theme music and scored 11 episodes of the PBS series World Museum Classics, as well as episodes of Chicago Stories and Treasures of the World. He also wrote the music for many commercials, including for United Airlines, Skymall, and Lind Waldock. Sidney recently was commissioned by Temple Hakafa in Winnetka, Ill., to compose 18 pieces of liturgical music for the reform Jewish Sabbath service. He has been a guest on ABC’s The View, CBS’s The Morning Show, and NBC’s Leeza Gibbons Show. His Web site is www.sidneyfriedman.com.

1984
Pianist William Chapman Nyaho (MM) performed music from his CD, Senku: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent, in concert in Seattle last February.

1986
Chelsea Tipton, resident conductor of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, in December 2005 conducted the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in the concert “An orKIDStra Holiday.”

1988
Norman Boehm (DMA) was the piano soloist in a performance of Hindemith’s Concertmusic for Piano, Brass, and Harp, Opus 49, by the University of Central Arkansas Brass Choir last January.

1991
Robert Moody (MM) was a guest conductor with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony last December. He led the symphony in performances of Marquez’s Danzon No. 2 and Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1 and Symphony No. 1.

1992
The quartet La Gente d’Orfeo, with Kiri Tollaksen on cornetto, has released the CD Passion and Repose: A 17th Century Italian Musical Extravaganza.

1994
Erich Heckscher is principal bassoon with the Britt Festival Orchestra and the Houston Grand Opera Orchestra.

1995
Arthur Sharp (MA) and Anne Sterling were married on July 9, 2005, in Salem, Mass. Arthur is a music teacher with Middleton Public Schools, and Anne is employed by the Consortium for Mathematics and Its Applications.

1996
Jennifer Rhodes is principal bassoon with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra.

1998
Rachelle Rivera Gerodias (MM) was a guest soprano with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance in Manila last January, which also featured Broadway star Lea Salonga and tenor Otoniel Gonzaga.

2002
Jonathan Brin and Amanda Brown were married on June 17, 2005, in Perinton, N.Y. Jonathan and Amanda are members of the Hyperion String Quartet and hold residencies at San Diego State University and the La Jolla Music Society.

2003
Peter Zlotnick is principal timpani with the Greensboro (N.C.) Symphony.