crescendo
Finding ‘Calm:’ Lowry Wins 2016 World Projects Composition Competition
Jun. 2, 2017—In August 2016 much of southern Louisiana lay underwater, flooded by more than 7.1 trillion gallons of rainfall. It was, meteorologists said, a 1,000-year event. In hard-hit Baton Rouge, Christopher Lowry, BMus ’11, now a viola and music composition doctoral student at Louisiana State University, took pen to paper and let his emotions flow. That...
Brëw-hilde: Blair Alumnae Bring Opera to Nashville Bars
Jun. 2, 2017—Nashville is known for its live music scene. Some nights you can drink a beer and enjoy country, blues, bluegrass, opera … no, not opry, opera—complete with a Viking helmet passed around afterward for donations. Thanks to Blair School of Music alumnae Erin Ridge, BMus’15; Charlotte Ulrich, BMus’15; and Lindsay Cunningham, BMus’10, you can add...
Class of 2017: Nicole Long looks at the big picture of arts administration
Apr. 25, 2017—The combination of music, high academic standards and an openness to explore is what brought Blair School of Music senior Nicole Long to Vanderbilt. She knew from the beginning she wanted to double major in percussion and something academic, though she wasn’t sure what her second subject might be.
Class of 2017: Zachary Bednarke thrives at the intersection of science and music
Apr. 25, 2017—After hours of thinking about theoretical physics, senior Zachary Bednarke relaxes by playing his trumpet. While running through scales on the instrument, he is also, technically, still doing schoolwork.
Blair students win at MTNA national competition
Mar. 22, 2017—Blair School of Music senior Mary Grace Johnson and student string ensemble Claudius Quartet brought home national honors from the 2016-17 Music Teachers National Association national competition held March 17-20 in Baltimore.
Class of 2017: David Rodgers is composing a life in music
Mar. 14, 2017—Blair School of Music senior David Rodgers is graduating with a newly released album of jazz originals he composed, arranged and performed, as well as a spot in the touring band of Grammy Award-winning blues musicians Keb’ Mo’ and Taj Mahal.
All together now: Chamber music groups at Blair proliferate
Mar. 7, 2017—Musicians learn not only how to play an instrument, but how to play in a group, be it a full orchestra or a quartet. Learning to play in both large and small ensembles is part of the core curriculum at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music. However, the number of small ensembles forming to play each...
Blair Big Band chosen to play at national jazz conference
Dec. 21, 2016—The Blair Big Band, directed by Ryan Middagh, has been selected to play at the Jazz Education Network national conference.
Vanderbilt Opera Theatre presents Mark Adamo’s ‘Little Women’
Nov. 9, 2016—Vanderbilt Opera Theatre and Vanderbilt University Orchestra present "Little Women" in Ingram Hall Friday, Nov. 11, and Sunday, Nov. 13. Composer Mark Adamo will give a talk at 7:15 p.m. prior to the Friday show.
The Met Connection: Parent Leader Rich Miller Keeps Opera Streaming from New York to Vanderbilt
Aug. 12, 2016—A tenor who studied with Metropolitan Opera star John Alexander and currently studies with Robert White of Juilliard, Rich Miller is in his sixth year as president of the Metropolitan Opera Guild and is an advisory director of the Metropolitan Opera Association. As a Blair parent and member of the Vanderbilt Parents Leadership Committee and the Parents and Family Advisory Board, he and his wife, Carol, have made it possible for the Blair and Vanderbilt communities to access live streaming of the Met through a subscription service.
Struck by car, Blair senior wants to increase pedestrian safety, disability awareness
Dec. 8, 2014—On a Monday afternoon in early September, Blair School of Music senior Kelby Carlson was crossing Children’s Way, the street that runs in front of the Blair School, just as he had done countless times before. Carlson, who is blind, was with his service dog, a 4-year-old yellow lab named Elvis.