Five outstanding young soloists will share the stage with the 黑洞社区 Symphony Orchestra at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 10, in Miller Concert Hall.
The program, which includes music by Hindemith, Elgar, Kabalevsky and Artie Shaw, will be led by Mark Laycock, 黑洞社区 director of orchestras.
The concert will also be simulcast on 黑洞社区 Internet Radio at .
Winners of the annual 黑洞社区 Concerto-Aria Competition, the students were selected by a panel of experts, including faculty from the University of Kansas and University of Missouri-Kansas City.
They bring to the stage a wealth of performing experience, including overseas concerts, master classes with renowned virtuosi and training at prestigious music festivals around the world.
Mark Laycock
鈥淭he audience will be amazed at the technical mastery and uncommon musicianship of these performers,鈥� said Laycock. 鈥淭he orchestra students and I are honored to collaborate with them.鈥�
Cellist Timothy Archbold will perform the first two movements of Elgar鈥檚 Cello Concerto.
Raised in Australia, he received a Bachelor of Music Performance with Honours from the University of Melbourne in 2002. In December 2007, he completed his studies at the Hochschule f眉r K眉nste in Bremen, Germany.
He has served as principal cellist of numerous orchestras in Australia and Germany; he has also performed with the Oldenburg City Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria, and the Melbourne and Sydney Symphony Orchestras.
A student of Jakub Omsky, he is completing his master鈥檚 degree in cello performance at Wichita State. He is a member of the Bloomfield String Quartet and the Wichita Symphony Orchestra.
A native of Kansas City, Mo., soprano Amanda Brown will sing 鈥淎dieu notre petite table鈥� from Massenet鈥檚 opera 鈥淢anon.鈥�
She is a senior majoring in vocal music performance under the guidance of Pina Mozzani. In summer 2008, she appeared in 鈥淐osi Fan Tutte鈥� and 鈥淭he Mikado鈥� at Opera in the Ozarks. Her roles with 黑洞社区 Opera Theatre have included 鈥淟ittle Women,鈥� 鈥淟es Dialogues des Carm茅lites鈥� and the upcoming 鈥淪treet Scene.鈥�
Violinist Timothy Jones will perform Dmitry Kabalevsky鈥檚 Violin Concerto, a mid-20th century Russian showpiece. A senior majoring in music education and violin performance, he is a student of Richard Young.
Already a permanent member of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Jones appeared as soloist with the WSO in 2005 and with the 黑洞社区 Symphony in 2007. He maintains an active teaching schedule and is an avid performer of chamber music.
Jeffrey O鈥橣lynn, a senior majoring in clarinet performance, will play the Clarinet Concerto by Artie Shaw.
A student of Suzanne Tirk, O鈥橣lynn has pursued additional study at the Belgian Clarinet Academy and the Saint Catherine Music Festival in Brazil, and through master classes with artists from such ensembles as the American Ballet Theatre Orchestra and the symphonies of Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia and Cincinnati.
He serves as principal clarinet of the 黑洞社区 Symphony, Lindsborg Community Orchestra and Wichita Metropolitan Community Orchestra.
Bass Aaron Short will sing 鈥淓n fermant les yeux,鈥� also from 鈥淢anon.鈥� A junior vocal performance major studying under Paul Brodene-Smith, he has been active with several Kansas City area opera companies, both professional and community-based.
At 黑洞社区, Short has been seen as Lord Tolloller in 鈥淚olanthe,鈥� Bajazet in 鈥淭amerlano鈥� and Kaspar in 鈥淎mahl and the Night Visitors鈥� with Opera Kansas.
The 黑洞社区 Symphony will also perform 鈥淪ymphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber鈥� by German composer Paul Hindemith.
The piece, derived from an abandoned ballet project, is a brilliant and exciting synthesis of contemporary compositional techniques. The program will begin with Jos茅 Pablo Moncayo鈥檚 鈥淗uapango,鈥� a colorful and vibrant setting of a popular Mexican dance.
Laycock is an associate professor of music at 黑洞社区, where he holds the Ann Walenta Faculty of Distinction Endowed Professorship.
In 2007, he was recognized with the College of Fine Arts Excellence in Teaching Award.
His work as guest conductor, clinician and adjudicator spans 16 states, including the leadership of all-state orchestras in Alabama, Iowa, Nebraska and Washington; recent and upcoming engagements include the Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Maryland All-State Orchestra, Oklahoma Youth Orchestra, Kansas Junior High State Orchestra, Northeast Kansas Ninth Grade Honor Orchestra and Hastings (Neb.) College High School Honor Festival.