Rutgers In New York 2001
Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center
On April 18, 2001, the 2,511-seat Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln
Center was packed to the gills for the debut performance of
Rutgers In New York.
The Avery Fisher performance began with the New York premiere
of William Bolcom’s The Miracle, a work commissioned
by the Rutgers University Glee Club and its director Patrick
Gardner, who will conducted the piece. The Miracle, Bolcom’s
setting of Arnold Weinstein’s poem, is an evocative presentation
of an imagined scene from the life of the Renaissance painter
Paolo Uccello. The work is scored for two percussionists performing
on a wide array of instruments, a woodwind quintet and a men’s
chorus. Joining the Glee Club in the New York premiere were
The Raritan Winds, Mason Gross’s own faculty woodwind quintet,
with percussionist/faculty member Hsin-Yi Wu and percussionist
Tony Oliver.
The program continued with Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy,
featuring Ruth Laredo on piano. Declared as “America’s First
Lady of the Piano” by the New York Daily News, Laredo
has a distinguished worldwide reputation as a leading soloist,
recitalist and recording artist. While she is particularly renowned
for her pioneering recording of the complete solo piano music
of Rachmaninoff and the complete piano sonatas of Scriabin,
her broad repertoire ranges from Beethoven to Barber.
Joining Laredo, the Rutgers University Orchestra and the amassed
university choirs were: soprano Taina Kataja, soprano Faith
Esham, tenor Frederick Urrey, baritone Brad Hougham, and bass-baritone
Brian McIntosh, all of whom serve on the voice faculty at Mason
Gross’s Department of Music. Mezzo-soprano and doctoral candidate
Paula Dória, will also be performing.
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 marked the finale of Rutgers In New York 2001 with performances by soprano Faith Esham, mezzo-soprano
Paula Dória, tenor Frederick Urrey and bass-baritone Brian McIntosh,
along with the Rutgers University Orchestra and the amassed
university choirs. The piece brought together approximately
250 of Mason Gross’s most talented musicians and performers
on the historic and celebrated stage of Avery Fisher Hall.
President Francis L. Lawrence and Dean George B. Stauffer
hosted a special pre-concert reception for Rutgers donors and
friends of Mason Gross in the illustrious Promenade of the Avery
Fisher Hall.
Rutgers In New York was sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Family
of Companies and Robert E. Mortensen. Ms. Laredo’s appearance
was underwritten by Ira and Donna Lomench. Additional support
for the concert was provided by William G. Becker, Class of
’52; Marilyn F. Somville; and Paul Trilling.
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