Source: Kristin Mortenson, 785-532-5740, kmortens@k-state.edu
News release prepared by: Rosie Hoefling, 785-532-2535, media@k-state.edu

Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2010

MUSIC DEPARTMENT OFFERS SEVERAL HOLIDAY-THEMED PERFORMANCES IN DECEMBER

MANHATTAN -- The Kansas State University music department is offering several holiday-related performances during December.

Unless otherwise noted, all events are free and open to the public. They include:

* Wind Ensemble and Concert Band performance, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 1, McCain Auditorium. Conducted by Frank Tracz, director of bands at K-State, the program will feature a variety of traditional and contemporary works for band.

* Holiday Festival of Music, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 2, First United Methodist Church, 600 Poyntz Ave., Manhattan. The concert features several K-State musical groups directed by various music faculty at K-State, including the Concert Choir and Collegiate Chorale, directed by Joshua Oppenheim and Julie Yu-Oppenheim, both assistant professors; the Trombone Ensemble, directed by Paul Hunt, professor; and the Trumpet Ensemble, directed by Gary Mortenson, professor and head of the department. The performance also features the church's Rhapsody Ringers Bell Choir, directed by Jodi Caldwell. Early arrival is recommended as the concert is usually standing-room-only.

* Musical accompaniment by the Percussion Ensemble and Latin Jazz Ensemble in WinterDance 2010, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 2-4, and a 2:30 p.m. Dec. 4 matinee, Nichols Theater. The show will feature K-State dance students performing a variety of routines to the musical selections of the ensemble members. Tickets are $14 for the general public, $12 for military and seniors, and $9 for students. They can be purchased at the McCain box office or by calling 785-532-6428.

* The K-State Singers, directed by Joshua Oppenheim and Julie Yu-Oppenheim, will perform a winter show at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3, in All Faiths Chapel auditorium. A small admission fee will be charged. The K-State Singers, all non-music majors, have been the singing ambassadors for the university since 1954, performing in cities across the United States and abroad.

* Performances by the K-State Men's and Women's Glee clubs, 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5, All Faiths Chapel auditorium. The two groups will perform a fun and varied vocal program as directed by Josh Oppenheim and Julie Yu-Oppenheim, with assistance from graduate assistant conductors Janie Brokenicky, master's student in music, Manhattan, and Ryan Bogner, master's student in music, Leavenworth.

* Composition Recital by K-State music theory students, 5:45 p.m. Monday, Dec. 6, All Faiths Chapel. The program will feature the best selections from each class' composition projects completed during the semester. Students were instructed by various K-State music faculty, including David Littrell, university distinguished professor; Kristin Mortenson, outreach coordinator and instructor; Jacqueline Fassler-Kerstetter, associate professor; Tod Kerstetter, associate professor; and Craig Weston, professor.

* K-State Orchestra concert, 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 6, McCain Auditorium. K-State's Janie Brokenicky, master's student in music, Manhattan, and Rebecca Ballinger, master's student in music, Lubbock, Texas, will sing arias by Puccini and Mozart at the concert. Brokenicky and Ballinger are both sopranos and were winners of the recent K-State aria contest.Blair Williams, master's student in music and graduate student conductor, Peabody, will lead the orchestra in Beethoven's "Leonore Overture No. 3." K-State's David Littrell will conduct Copland's "An Outdoor Overture" and "Symphony No. 3" by Jean Sibelius. A donation of $5 for adults and $2 for students will be collected at the event to help fund the K-State Chamber Orchestra's trip to Ireland in March 2011.

* The K-State Jazz Combos, directed by Wayne Goins, professor of music, and Gordon Lewis, instructor of music, will perform a concert at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 7, in Union Station at the K-State Student Union.

* David Pickering, assistant professor of music, will present "Organ Music for a Wednesday Morning" at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 8, in All Faiths Chapel. The program acquaints students and the general public with the organ and its repertoire.

* Recital by the Konza Winds, K-State's music faculty wind quintet, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 8, All Faiths Chapel Auditorium. The ensemble's performance will feature original works written for wind quintet by composers from all over the world. The program will include repertoire standards by Hungarian composer Gyorgy Ligeti and American Samuel Barber, along with a quintet by German composer August Klughardt and a lighthearted dance suite by Brazilian composer Julio Medaglio. Members of the ensemble are Christina Webster, instructor, flute and piccolo; Nora Lewis, assistant professor, oboe; Tod Kerstetter, associate professor, clarinet and E-flat clarinet; Susan Maxwell, instructor, bassoon; and Jacqueline Fassler-Kerstetter, associate professor, horn.

* K-State Faculty Brass Quintet recital, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 9, All Faiths Chapel. Members include Craig Parker, associate professor of music, trumpet; Katherine Klinefelter, graduate assistant and master's student in music, Whitehall, Mich., trumpet; Jacqueline Fassler-Kerstetter, associate professor of music, French horn; Paul Hunt, professor of music, trombone; and Steven Maxwell, assistant professor of music, tuba.

* Beginning guitar course concert, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 15, Union Station. Instructed by K-State's Wayne Goins, the concert features students in the course performing on guitar and singing folk standards.