Visual and Performing Arts News

Category: Music

Meyer and Plummer Host Suzuki Performance

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Two VPA Instructors to Perform at PLDL Tomorrow

Visual and Performing Arts instructors Libby Meyer and Amanda Plummer will host a Suzuki stringed-instrument performance, “Big Violins for Little People,” Tuesday, September 23, 2014, at the Portage Lake District Library, from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m.

Children will enjoy an hour of music-making, dancing and learning about what makes these instruments so much fun to play. Children of all ages are encouraged to attend. After the performance, participants will also have an opportunity to try out the instruments as part of a big violins “petting zoo.”

Library presentations are free, and everyone is welcome to attend. For more information, call the library at 482-4570 or visit Portage Lake District Library.

From Tech Today.

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John Luther Adams at Michigan Tech

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John Luther Adams and Libby MeyerA delicate balance
Pulitzer Prize winner visits Tech

Scientists, researchers and artists work daily at Michigan Technological University but do not often come together. In an effort to bridge the gap between two disciplines, faculty and staff gathered for a panel discussion Tuesday featuring composer John Luther Adams, who was awarded the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for music Monday.

“In a lot of his writing he talks about what art and science have to say to one another and I thought, since we are a school that has both, it would be an interesting topic for conversation,” said Libby Meyer, instructor of visual and performing arts at Tech.

That dialogue was facilitated by a panel including representatives from science and humanities disciplines, with John Vucetich, associate professor in the school of forest resources and environmental science; Amy Schrank, research assistant professor in the school of forest resources and environmental sciences; Chris Plummer, associate professor in visual and performing arts; M. Bartley Seigel, associate professor of creative writing and diverse literatures; and Evan McDonald, executive director of the Keweenaw Land Trust.

Read more at the Mining Gazette, by Meagan Stilp.

In the News

National Public Radio (NPR), Associated Press and Canadian Press wire services and other national and international media outlets reported that Alaska composer John Luther Adams was an artist in residency at Michigan Tech when he was notified that he had won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize in Music.

From Tech Today.

Alaskan Composer Wins Pulitzer For ‘Become Ocean’

By telephone Monday afternoon, I located John Luther Adams, 61, in Houghton, Mich. (in the state’s Upper Peninsula), where he is in residence at Michigan Tech. He said he was napping between classes when he got “a most welcome wakeup call” informing him he’d won the award.

Read more at Deceptive Cadence from NPR Classical, by Tom Huizenga.

Details on the 2014 Pulitzer Prize winners in journalism and arts, and reaction

MUSIC: John Luther Adams’ “Become Ocean” (Taiga Press/Theodore Front Musical Literature)

John Luther Adams knew he’d been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his composition “Become Ocean,” but he had no expectations of winning. He was so busy with classes as part of a residency at Michigan Tech University that he even forgot the day they’d be handed out.

“I was actually taking a quick power nap between classes and got a phone call. It was a quite a wake-up call,” Adams said with a chuckle. “It was pretty great.”

Though based temporarily in Michigan, Adams’ thoughts are never far from Alaska.

Read more at The Canadian Press News Service.

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Alumni on Concerts and Artists

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Alan ParsonsThe Golden Age of Concerts

Another bonus of living here is all the talent that comes through town: famous lecturers, comedians, acting troupes, and especially musicians have graced the stages at Tech. Through extensive research in the Keweenawan and elsewhere, I’ve discovered a golden age of rock, folk, and jazz concerts at Tech.

Read more at TechAlum Newsletter, by Dennis Walikainen (Dennis ’92 ’09).

More on Homecoming ’83 and More

Thanks for the article on artist, Tony Orrico’s visit to Michigan Tech and Finlandia. I went to high school with the two professors (Anne Beffel, MTU and Carrie Flaspohler, Finlandia) who collaborated on this project.

Read more at TechAlum Newsletter, by Lynda (Gertz) Kuisell ’85.

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PJ Olsson and Alan Parsons Hold Fundraiser for Rock Camp

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Alan Parsons
Alan Parsons

PJ Olsson to hold Rock Camp fundraiser concert
Alan Parsons will also be participating

Houghton native PJ Olsson will be performing at 7:30 p.m. on March 8 at the Rozsa Center. His performance is not for any personal gain, but to help fund Rock Camp, an event that helps foster musical talent in the area that Olsson and co-founder and partner Todd Brassard have put on since 2009.

Aside from inspiring people with music, Olsson said that Rock Camp is so important to him because growing up in this area there was a lack of opportunity for him growing creatively.

“Creative opportunity wasn’t there,” Olsson said.

But Olsson credits his father, Dr. Milton Olsson, with helping to bring culture to the area with the Rozsa Center and he credits teachers with helping to instill it within himself.

Read more at the Mining Gazette, by Scott Viau.

PJ Olsson Live:  Music and Stories @ The Rozsa

Saturday, March 8, 2014 | ROZSA CENTER | 7:30 PM | BENEFIT FOR THE 2014  “PJ OLSSON’S ROCK CAMP” WITH TICKETS BY DONATION, “PAY WHAT IT’S WORTH TO YOU!”

Olsson, Parsons talk Rock Camp concert

Olsson spoke about the concert Friday along with rock legend Alan Parsons, in whose band, Alan Parsons Live Project, Olsson has been lead singer for the past decade. Each camp costs $35,000, Olsson said, including paying for children who can’t afford to participate.

Read more at the Mining Gazette, by Garrett Neese.

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Jared Anderson is a Distinguished Teaching Award Finalist

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Jared AndersonThe William G. Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning seeks input for its annual Distinguished Teaching Awards, which recognize outstanding contribution to the instructional mission of the University.

In the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, Jared Anderson has been nominated within the Assistant Professor category.

Comments on the nominees are due by Friday, April 4, and should be sent to the Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning.

Read more at Tech Today.

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Pep Band at Heikinpäivä 2014

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Hancock celebrates Heikinpäivä 2014 despite frigid weather

Undaunted by the sub-zero temperatures last Saturday, Jan. 25, Hancock celebrated its mid-winter festival, Heikinpäivä 2014, a celebration of Finnish American cultural heritage.

Image taken from video clip captioned:

“More characters from the Kalevala, Finnish Theme Committee members, Finlandia University students, members of the Keweenaw Nordic Ski Club, the Brrr Maids and the Michigan Tech Pep Band parade down Quincy Street in Hancock during Heikinpäivä 2014.”

Read more at Keweenaw Now, by Michele Bourdieu.

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