Classical Music

Exclusive early viewing of War Requiem, the first performance in Ingram Hall to be captured by Blair School of Music’s new state-of-the-art recording and streaming technology, is being offered this week to MyVU readers. This ambitious production brought together the full force of the Blair School and ushered in a new level of technological capabilities. Read More

The Vanderbilt Blair School of Music has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts to receive a Grants for Arts Projects award of $20,000. Led by professor Douglas Shadle, the grant will fund “Florence Price: A Celebration,” a series of performances honoring classical composer Florence Price.  Read More

The Vanderbilt Blair School of Music has secured $5 million in funding for the pilot phase of a comprehensive scholarship, the Blair Community Scholars Program, which will recruit highly talented students from underrepresented and vulnerable backgrounds. Read More

Michael Kurek, who served 14 years as chair of the Department of Music Composition at Vanderbilt Blair School of Music, is only the second person to hold the distinction of composer laureate of Tennessee Read More

A workshop hosted by the GlobalVU initiative to examine the impact of the global marketplace on Western classical music will take place Feb. 10-11 at the Blair School of Music and Alumni Hall. Read More

Blair's Kurek hits No. 1 on the classical music chart with his album 'The Sea Knows.' Read More

Watch what happens when more than 100 Vanderbilt students, along with University News and Communications, team up for a fresh new take on the university's alma mater. Read More

Vanderbilt music professor Doug Shadle wants American composers of the 19th century to finally get a fair hearing, more than a hundred years after they lived and worked. Read More

Members of the Nashville Opera will be the featured performers at the third Opera on the Mountain concert Saturday, June 2, at Vanderbilt’s Dyer Observatory. The performance will include selections from Guys and Dolls, Camelot and Phantom of the Opera. Read More

Watch video of the March 3 presentation, “Bang That Drum.” Mitchell Korn presents the oldest and most enduring of all instruments – the drum – and its percussion sisters and brothers are investigated through group performance, exploration and play. Everything from small bells to snare drums, and to large marimbas and… Read More

Watch video of the Feb. 17, 2011, class, “Brash Brass and the Mighty Winds.” Mitchell Korn introduces to class participants the range, construction, sound production and history of brass and wind instruments. From conch shell and hunting horns to modern trumpets, oboes and horns, class participants get to blow as… Read More

Watch video of the Feb. 3, 2011, class, “What Does A Conductor Actually Do?” Giancarlo Guerrero leads a penetrating and intimate exploration of the role and responsibilities of the symphonic conductor. Through the use of personal stories, DVDs, recordings and demonstration, class participants learn firsthand the actual components of the… Read More

Watch the Jan. 27, 2011, talk “String Things,” part of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. Mitchell Korn leads a participatory and in-depth exploration of orchestral string instruments: their construction; sound production; techniques and histories. Audience members try out various instruments and directly participate in the joys, frustrations and challenges of… Read More

Watch video of the class “Symphony 101,” held Jan. 20, 2011. Giancarlo Guerrero, music director and conductor of the Nashville Symphony, leads an engaging and invigorating discussion about the elements and structure of the music of the symphony orchestra. What is a symphony? Maestro Guerrero will dissect the symphonic form… Read More

Watch video of the Jan. 13, 2011, class “The Musician’s World.” Mitchell Korn explores the mind set, culture, training, daily preparation and perspectives of the symphonic musician. Audience members learn about rehearsal regiments, the role of the musician’s teacher(s); the complexity of musical and intellectual tasks; and the challenges of… Read More

He’s played with everyone from Lady Gaga to Dizzy Gillespie. Vanderbilt graduate Daniel Bernard Roumain, better known as DBR, composes classical music with a modern, sometimes hip-hop twist, with his instrument of choice, the violin. DBR came back to Nashville to teach Vanderbilt students and kids at the W.O Smith… Read More