Music Academy of the West to Host Percussion Masterclasses and Concert
For Immediate Release May 9, 2007
Contact:
Tim Dougherty
805.695.7908
Santa Barbara, CA-The public is invited to observe four masterclasses for orchestral percussionists and attend a related mock audition and concert at the Music Academy of the West May 28 to June 1. The classes, mock audition, and concert will be led by five acclaimed orchestral performers, including Music Academy faculty members Ted Atkatz, formerly the principal percussionist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Michael Werner, a percussionist in the New York Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Admission and campus parking are free.
The masterclasses will take place from 7:30-9:30 pm on Monday, May 28; from 1-3 pm on Tuesday, May 29; from 7:30-9:30 pm on Wednesday, May 30; and from 1-3 pm on Thursday, May 31. The mock audition will take place from 1-3 pm on Friday, June 1. The percussion ensemble concert will take place the same day at 7:30 pm. All events will be held in Abravanel Hall at the Music Academy, located at 1070 Fairway Road in Santa Barbara.
The Music Academy is presenting the events as part of its third annual Orchestral Percussion Seminar, a six-day intensive workshop for professionals, students, advanced amateurs, and teachers.
A member of the Music Academy faculty since 2003, Mr. Atkatz also is a member of the faculty at DePaul University. He has performed with the Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, Harrisburg Symphony, and the New Hampshire Symphony, and has participated in the St. Bart's Music Festival. Mr. Werner is an alumnus of the Music Academy (1990) and has been a member of the Academy faculty since 2005. Also a faculty member at the Mannes College of Music since 2001, he has toured North America, Europe, and Japan as a member of the Met Orchestra Percussion Ensemble.
The seminar also will feature Will Hudgins, a percussionist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and a faculty member at the New England Conservatory of Music; Ray Froehlich, a percussionist with the San Francisco Symphony; and Keith Aleo, a faculty member at the Boston Conservatory.
For more information, call 969-4726.
Founded in 1947, the Music Academy of the West is among the nation's preeminent summer schools and festivals for gifted young classical musicians. The Academy provides these promising musicians with the opportunity for advanced study and performance under the guidance of internationally renowned faculty artists, as well as guest conductors and soloists. Admission to the Academy is strictly merit based, and students receive full scholarships. Academy alumni are members of major symphony orchestras, chamber orchestras, ensembles, opera companies and university and conservatory faculties throughout the world. Many have established themselves as prominent solo artists. Based in Santa Barbara, the Music Academy of the West presents more than 175 public events annually, including performances by faculty, visiting artists, and students; masterclasses; orchestra and chamber music concerts; and fully staged opera. For more information, visit www.musicacademy.org.
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