Orchestra showcases student work

Author: Lauren Smith

The Center for the Arts (CFA) concert hall was filled on Thursday, March 17, with the sounds of the Middlebury College Orchestra under conductor Troy Peters. The performance was entitled a "Student Showcase" and featured the world premiere of compositions by Andrew Lindblad '05, Jessica Manzer '05 and Jonathan Stuart-Moore '05. The concert also featured the winners of the College's 2005 Concerto Competition - Adam Morgan '08.5, Kevin Ng '08 and Hillary Waite '05.

The program began with two pieces by Handel with soloist soprano Waite. Waite is a senior English major with a passion for singing and performing. She sang "O Sleep, Why Dost Thou Leave Me?" from "Semele" and "As When the Laments her Love" from "Acis and Galatea."

The orchestra then performed the playful composition "Monsters in the Dark: A Child's Fantasy" by Manzer. The students in the orchestra as well as Peters seemed to enjoy performing the light-spirited piece.

Manzer commented on the product of her senior 700 project, saying, "It is a narrative piece, symbolizing the nighttime fantasies of a small child." The piece constantly featured an exchange between a playful, childish game and a simple lullaby, which was performed by the strings. As the composition progresses, the child seemed to have entered a nightmarish state. The climax of the piece, according Manger, is subdued and "followed by a final gesture indicating a concluding dialogue between the 'child' and 'monster' characters."

Next was a spirited solo performance by clarinetist Ng. The piece "Clarinet Concerto No. 1 in F minor" by Carl Maria von Weber, was fast-paced and included many complicated runs. Ng never missed a note and delighted the audience with his showmanship.

"On the Heavens: Thoughts on a Starry Sky" by student composer Lindblad followed Ng's solo. The composition was a brooding, dramatic piece that featured the horn section of the orchestra. Lindblad writes in the program notes that the composition was "inspired by the motions of the stars and planets, and various other celestial musings I've had over the past year or so." Lindblad not only composed the piece, but also performed it as a violist with the orchestra.

After intermission, the orchestra returned to accompany solo cellist Morgan for "Elegy for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 24" by Gabriel Faure. This third solo performance by a Concert Competition winner was as impressive as the first two performances. Morgan, who was performing for the first time with the orchestra, first picked up the cello in third grade. He spent his Feb semester at the University of Georgia (UGA) studying music and linguistics, and it was there that he discovered Faure's piece. "My cello teacher there [at UGA] introduced me to Faure's 'Elegy,' and it immediately became my favorite piece," Morgan said. "I first worked on it at UGA, and picked it back up when I read about the Concerto Competition. It was my first time performing it with an orchestra."

The last piece ofthe evening was by Morgan's fellow cellist, Stuart-Moore. The senior composed "Orchestral Suite: Incidental Music for Babbage's Dream" as a sort of homage to 19th century inventor, Charles Babbage. The Englishman Babbage created plans that would later become the inspiration for the modern computer. Stuart-Moore's piece is a musing on the modern computers and machines that Babbage "dreamed" of in the 19th century. The composition, according to Moore, asks the question of "whether we can model the human brain on a computer, including consciousness and creativity."

The audience, consisting of mostly students, was impressed by the compositions by their fellow students. Peter John '08 enjoyed his first concert by the orchestra. "I was really impressed with the concert," he said. "Not only were the student musicians excellent, but Troy Peters did an amazing job conducting. He added charisma to the performance and really brought the pieces to life. Equally as impressive were the world premieres of the student compositions. During the entire concert, there was never a dull moment."

The next performance by Middlebury College musicians will be April 16 at 8 p.m. in the CFA concert hall. Jeff Rehbach will direct the Middlebury College Chamber Singers.