But why not go big, after all this lost time? COVID forced us to abandon our series in 2020—it normally runs every other year. “We’d planned to do Verdi’s ‘Requiem’ back then,” Lewis recalls. “Rather than perform it this year, we decided to do Carl Orff’s ‘Carmina Burana’ with the biggest forces we can muster. We’ll be involving all the CU șù«ÍȚÊÓÆ” choirs, including the Festival Choir—a CU entity consisting of students and singers from the greater community.” Those familiar with “Carmina” know it as a major challenge for huge chorus and orchestra (in this case, the CU Symphony Orchestra)—and as a serious test for three soloists. Lewis voices full confidence in his vocal trio. “Two are staff and faculty members, tenor Javier Abreu and baritone Andrew Garland. And the soprano is a marvelous graduate student, Dawna Rae Warren,” he says.

Orff’s spectacular oratorio may be the headliner, but this concert will also deliver a news-making world premiere commissioned by the Dr. C.W. Bixler Family Foundation—the Symphony No. 3 by renowned composer Carter Pann, CU șù«ÍȚÊÓÆ” professor of composition. Subtitled “On The Importance of Our Democracy,” the five-movement, 17-minute work was completed in just the last few months, according to Lewis. “It’s a charming work, with some incredible grooves and wonderful rhythms.” 

“Yes, there’s some angst in it,” he adds, referring to the political underpinning. “But it stands on its own. Carter will be at the concert and he’ll say something about the meaning of the symphony. I talked to the players about it when we started to work on the piece.”

Any controversy will disappear after Pann’s symphony when the Boettcher stage fills with 150 gifted young musicians from El Sistema’s music-training program. “We had invited some of them to join us a few years ago,” Lewis says. “But we’ve never had this many. We’ll probably fill up every corner of the stage. Most of them will have to play standing up. They’ll offer a few short selections and then we’ll all finish with (Beethoven’s) ‘Ode to Joy.’”

This is an opportunity for hundreds of young musicians to strut their stuff before a big audience in a big concert hall. It’s a huge deal, with a large crowd expected. Governor Jared Polis has been invited. “We want to get people aware of the College of Music,” Lewis concludes. “We’re trying to expand our reach. 

“We are so proud of the product. I’ve been at CU șù«ÍȚÊÓÆ” for 15 years and it’s an honor for me to work here.”

Professor of Conducting + Director of Orchestral Studies Gary Lewis will direct —a gathering of forces from the College of Music—on Tuesday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m. in Boettcher Concert Hall at the Denver Performing Arts Complex. Admission is free, no tickets required. CU at Boettcher is funded by the Dean’s Annual Fund. 

Above right photo: Carter Pann (left) dedicated his Symphony No. 3 to his close friend, Brian Scott Mason (right), “who has revealed himself as a touchstone of balanced integrity in my life.” Mason, a CU alumnus, is currently the District Attorney of Adams and Broomfield counties in Colorado. In 2016, he officiated Pann’s wedding.

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“Tuesday’s Child” was years in the making, with songs written over the last two decades inspired by everything from a cross-country move to losing a family member. Watkins wrote the songs herself on acoustic guitar, then recorded them with the help of producer John Keane who also added supplementary instrumental tracks, like mandolin or drums.

“It was really fun to experience the recording process and hear my songs literally change into almost a completely different format just by adding instrumentation,” shares Watkins. 

The album also pulls inspiration from artists Watkins loved growing up, like Joni Mitchell and Neil Young.

“All in all, I like to consider the album singer-songer rock ‘n’ roll. And there’s a little taste of country in there,” Watkins says. “My influences are blues and rock ‘n’ roll and jazz and broadway and opera—I credit being a classically trained singer and having been involved in so much musically throughout college to being really versatile now.”

She adds, “CU changed my life. It was one of the greatest decisions that I ever made for myself. And I’m still friends with so many people that I went to college with.” 

“My thing, as a kid, was sitting in front of my record player pulling out liner notes, listening to the whole album front to back, A to B, and reading the lyrics along with it,” Watkins recalls. “Luckily, vinyl has made a resurgence. It’s really fun just knowing that other people who might share that passion can pull out the vinyl, listen to the songs and read the lyrics.”

Watkins’ advice for current students echoes the College of Music’s vision to develop universal musicians—don’t limit yourself, try everything. “It’s so easy for people to quit or get frustrated because it’s not happening now,” she reflects. “So yeah, never give up. Try everything. Stick your feet in all the puddles. Get in there!”

“Tuesday’s Child” is available on all streaming platforms.

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As a current graduate student studying violin performance and pedagogy—while serving as communications assistant for our college—it’s been rewarding to be a part of the behind-the-scenes preparations to launch this large-scale community event, Dec. 3-5. College of Music faculty and my fellow students have worked incredibly hard in rehearsals—especially since fall break—to deliver high quality performances this weekend. And the college’s communicators, marketers and box office staff have worked tirelessly, collaborating with different departments to creatively promote our Holiday Festival to interested audiences.

I’m honored to be concertmaster—the leader of the first violin section working closely with the conductor—this holiday season. I’m excited to be a part of this warm and entertaining holiday tradition presenting many beautiful arrangements of holiday favorites. One piece I particularly enjoy playing is “Christmas Overture” by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, an Afro-English composer. The most easily recognizable carol themes referenced in the overture include “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” â€œGood King Wenceslas” and “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.”

With the college’s dedication to expanding diversity, equity and inclusion in everything we do, it’s been wonderful to work on a program that features repertoire from composers of all backgrounds, including works by historically underrepresented composers. 

This year more than ever, I’m grateful for the opportunity to perform live for in-person audiences. I’ve been talking with community members who are counting down to this concert-filled weekend—like me, many people are eager to return to some semblance of normalcy, including going to concerts and celebrating the holiday spirit together. 

Gregory Gentry, who conducts the CU Chamber Singers, puts it this way: “Both our students and staff are proud that we’re able to come back to this community tradition that was silenced last year because of the pandemic. The Holiday Festival has been and continues to be a gift to not only our students and campus community, but the broader community as a whole.”

See you at Macky Auditorium this weekend!

Photo: MarieFaith Lane, front and center, is concertmaster of this year's Holiday Festival.

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This summer, we’re shining the spotlight on alumni of our Graduate Certificate in Arts Administration. Enjoy our previous spotlight on Luis Granda.

“It’s the reason I was hired,” says Kettlewell, who previously earned bachelor of arts degrees in music and psychology at the University of Missouri Columbia. “And now, I have the satisfaction of going to work every day knowing that I’m part of the reason that arts organizations in my area receive funding and are able to commission new works, create new outreach programs and provide artistic opportunities to underserved populations in Texas.”

Continues Kettlewell, “Reviewing applications is one of my favorite things I do at TCA. I need to know what to look for and what should be included, and I need to identify red flags and send constructive criticism back to applicants.” 

She describes grantwriting projects from Joan McLean Braun’s Introduction to Arts Administration class as invaluable experience that helped her develop skills she relies on daily. Braun serves as entrepreneurial lecturer, as well as executive director of CU Presents and assistant dean for concerts and communications. 

“Joan is a goddess of arts administration,” says Kettlewell when asked who inspires her. “She taught important professional skills that typically aren’t part of your average college lecture. 

“The stories she shared from her personal experiences emphasized the importance of not only being able to work on a team, but also appreciating your team members. She recounted ‘admin emergency’ stories from her career and how she and her team addressed them—the entire class found her very inspiring.”

Kettlewell further credits SoYoung Lee’s Sustainable Arts Organizations: Forecasting and Fundraising class for providing the instruction and resources needed to create unique fundraising templates she can use in her job. Lee is executive director of the Rocky Ridge Music Center in șù«ÍȚÊÓÆ”.

“Another value of the program is the network I gained,” adds Kettlewell. “We created a Facebook group to come together, ask each other for advice and celebrate each other's accomplishments.”

In sum, the Certificate in Art Administration is a three-course, nine-credit credential that serves as a platform for building the skillsets essential to a successful career in arts administration—including strategic planning, communications, fundraising and organizational management. Declares Kettlewell, “I can’t communicate enough to CU șù«ÍȚÊÓÆ” students how valuable these courses are!”

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Although Riley’s parents are not professional musicians, music was emphasized at home, and Riley was always encouraged to pursue her musical interests. It’s not surprising, then, that she would be curious about voice when she came to CU șù«ÍȚÊÓÆ”. 

“I had always sung in choirs and even sang the national anthem at my high school graduation although I wasn’t studying voice at the time,” Riley explains. “I started taking voice lessons with a grad student my freshman year at CU just because I liked singing, and pretty soon after I started, they told me I should consider auditioning for the voice program the next year.”

Completing just one degree is an accomplishment; completing two requires twice as much work and even more support from one’s teachers.

“I feel so lucky having such supportive teachers,” Riley says. “Many professors prefer that their students only study one instrument because they feel that studying a second would take away from the first, but [Professor of Flute] Christina Jennings and [Associate Professor of Voice] Jennifer Bird-Arvidsson have been so open and helpful with everything that I’ve done here, and I’m so thankful for that.”

At first glance, flute and voice may seem like completely different studies, and in many ways they are. But Riley has found that they complement each other unusually well. Last year, she was able to sing the lead role of Mary Hatch in Eklund Opera’s production of “It’s a Wonderful Life,” then play principal flute for the spring opera “The Marriage of Figaro.” 

“I hadn’t really realized how much I loved opera until I got to be a part of those two productions,” Riley points out. “I learned so much from being able to work in two totally different parts of the operatic process. Singing Mary and playing for ‘Figaro’ will always be some of my best memories at CU.”

Riley is currently auditioning for graduate schools in both voice and flute and hopes to find a program that will allow her to continue studying both. She could see herself performing professionally as both a flutist and a vocalist—possibly even within the same company or ensemble. 

Meanwhile, though, she has a rare six months or so to herself after graduation, something which might take a little getting used to.

“I love to hike and have completed seven fourteeners, so I’m hoping that I’ll be able to take more time to get outside this next year and continue that,” she says. “It’s amazing being able to go to a school where you experience those kinds of things. I don’t know yet where I’ll end up for grad school, but I hope that I’ll have the room and support to be able to grow like I did at CU. And the mountains of course. Those would be things I would really miss.”

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