The Jazz Night concert will feature the Linfield Jazz Band and the Linfield Jazz Choir, Double Vision, at 8 p.m. May 13 in Ice Auditorium.

The music will range from original compositions to big band favorites.

Several jazz band performers, including seniors Ryan Dickman, Tracy Beaver, Carolyn Blood, Helen Kehoe and Matt Moss, will perform solos during the concert.

Double Vision will feature guest artist Clark
Bondy on the saxophone. They will play songs by John Lennon and Little
River Band and jazz standards such as “Route 66.”

Senior Carolyn Blood said in an email that she asked to play clarinet in Kehoe’s feature piece. Blood used to play the baritone saxophone in the jazz band, but the clarinet is her
primary instrument.

“I’ve only been working on this piece and my solo in it for a few weeks with the band,” Blood said. “Generally, I prefer to play in an ensemble and be part of a cohesive sound in a jazz band. But to be heard, you have to solo.”

The jazz band meets twice a week, but band members have such varied schedules that it is hard to have a complete band for each rehearsal,  senior Matt Moss said in an email.

“But that’s how it is,” Moss said. “Even though it’s tough to get time for rehearsal, we always seem to put together a great set. It’s more a matter of investing yourself in the music, not your time.”

Moss and Blood joined the jazz band during their freshman year. Moss has been in the band every semester since freshman year, but Blood had to decide to cut jazz from her schedule during her junior year.

“I’m glad I got the opportunity to perform with the band again after being gone from it for a couple semesters,” she said. “It’s going to be fun to have the opportunity to end my musical career on stage with [Moss] and my other friends.”

Moss said that he has also faced challenges performing and preparing for this concert.

“After freshman year, I underwent jaw reconstruction surgery, which left most of my face senseless,” he said. “Playing a sax without feeling is no easy task. To this day there are parts of my chin and jaw that I can’t feel.  It’s been a slow progress.”

There have been other distractions for Moss in preparation of this concert.

“Both of my majors require thesis papers so it seems like I’ve been writing since last February,” he said. This summer also marks a huge change in my life with graduation, and I’m also getting married in August.”

This concert will be the seniors’ final jazz band performance at Linfield. Moss said that he has mixed feelings about this final performance.

“I’ve been a part of jazz ensembles since sixth grade so I’ll really miss it. On the other hand, I’m excited,” Moss said. “It feels right that this last concert will showcase the styles that we have been playing over the last four years. It’ll be a good send-off for all of us.”

Moss said that the best part of being in the jazz band is the music.

“It’s jazz,” Moss said. “It hits me deep.”

__________________________________________________________________________
Sharon Gollery/For the Review
Sharon Gollery can be reached at linfieldreviewculture@gmail.com.

Internationally known opera singer and affiliate professor David Wakeham critiqued male student vocalists on March 14 in the Delkin Recital Hall at the Vivian Bull Music Center, bringing with him experience and a sense of humor.

“[Wakeham] brings a new fun to music and makes everything relatable to life,” junior vocalist Logan Freitas said.

Professor of Music Gwen Leonard invited Wakeham to critique tenor and baritone performers in front of an audience during the event “Master Class for the Male Voice,” sponsored by the Lacroute Arts Fund and Linfield Department of Music.

The event featured male vocalists from Linfield, the McMinnville community and other locations throughout Oregon. Linfield participants included tenor Freitas, junior baritone Jeremy Moll and tenor Sam Dinsmore, class of ’09.

Wakeham’s class is a display of vocal pedagogy Freitas said.

The event was set up so that each vocalist performed a piece, selected previously by Leonard, along with accompaniment by pianist Susan McDaniel, and then received constructive criticism from Wakeham. Using analogies to explain vocal technique to his students, Wakeham provoked laughter from the vocalists and audience members.

“My favorite part about teaching is seeing the results and watching people grow. I love it,” Wakeham said.

While Wakeham offered his personal experience in singing opera and knowledge of the voice to the students, he acknowledged his limitations as an instructor.

“I approach male and female vocalists the same way. The only difference is talent and ability. I can’t control that,” he said.

Wakeham has been visiting Linfield sporadically for 32 years, since former music professor Larry Marsh initially invited the Australian singer to teach voice. According to the event’s program, Wakeham has established an international reputation, with critically acclaimed performances at La Scala Milano, the Komische Oper Berlin and Theatro Massimo, Palmero in Italy.

Wakeham closed with encouraging words for anyone interested in music. “Go out there and make music,” Wakeham said, “Just make love to my ears.”

Felicia Weller/Copy editor
Felicia Weller can be reached at linfieldreviewcopy@gmail.com.

Linfield students will have a chance to soak up some island vibes March 11 in the Fred Meyer Lounge during a Hawaiian Club fundraiser.

Resident music group Na Hemo will perform at “Rub-a-Dub” to raise money for the 39th annual Hawaiian Club Luau, which will take place on April 30.

Senior club president Ihilani Haru said in an e-mail that the luau will feature a country store, food, music and dances from Hawaii.

“Linfield students should learn that there is a rich culture associated with the islands. Hawaii is the melting pot of the U.S. and students from Hawaii grow up experiencing many different traditions,” Haru said in the e-mail.

Na Hemo comprises six Linfield Students who play reggae, bringing alive the “aloha spirit” of their native Hawaii.

In the band are juniors Kala’e Parish on vocals and guitar, Logan Freitas on vocals and keyboard, Sparky Gonzalez on vocal and percussion, Chris Kamaka on guitar, Jeremy Moll on drums, senior Cheyne Kaninau on bass guitar.

Moll will also perform a solo at the beginning of the night, Haru said.

Na Hemo has not performed at Linfield in more than a year.

Na Hemo was formed in 2008 when the members started at a friend’s house. Parish explained that they had the idea to start a band for a Cat Cab.

“It’s a part of our culture to sit around and ‘jam’ or play all types of music from the past and present,” Parish said.

Kaninau said the name of the group has a meaning:

“The word ‘Na’ in Hawaiian is a pluralizer or an adjective meaning a thing or a person. The definition of ‘Hemo’ is ‘to be loose,’” Kaninau said.

Parish mentioned some of the band’s various inspirations.

“[Our music is] influenced by our elders (grandfathers, fathers, uncles, etc.) back home in Hawaii who have passed down the music and culture and experience to us. We are also heavily influenced by the one and only Bob Marley, Katchafire and Israel Kamakawiwo’ole,” Parish said in an e-mail.

The band hopes students enjoy themselves by dancing, feeling alive and break ing free from their problems while listening to groovy music.

“The greatest reward that we can gain through sharing our music with our students is a smile and a good time,” Parish said in the e-mail.

For more information about Na Hemo and future shows, visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/nahemomusic.

The Hawaiian Club luau costs $3 without a canned food donation and $2 with a can of food, which will be donated to a food bank. Students are encouraged to bring exact change and soft drinks will be served.

Yoko Gardiner/For the Review
Yoko Gardiner can be reached at linfieldreviewculture@gmail.com.

The professional women’s vocal ensemble In Mulieribus performed March 6 in Ice Auditorium.

Their performance set included famous compositions by Palestrina, Landini, Machaut, Dufay and Josquin.

Their music showcased the primary forms of polyphony: florid organum, the conductus and the motet. Florid organum illustrates the subordinate role of pre-existing chant while the conductus is completely original and independent. The motet highlights text that is sung simultaneously by upper voices.

“I thought the group’s sound was quite spectacular. They had good sense of pitch” freshman Joe Komarek said. “It was a good selection of music, starting with Gregorian chant and ending with contemporary choral music — with Renaissance polyphony music in between. So I personally enjoyed the concert very much.”

Anna Song, director of choirs and assistant professor of music, co-founded the ensemble in 2004. Song served as the artistic director and conductor of the group.

“I thought it was good. I was pleased. There were challenges, but overall it went well,” Song said of the performance.

In Mulieribus is dedicated to bringing the community together through music written before the 1750s and bringing the Renaissance back to life.

“I recently had moved to Portland, and I loved early music, especially from the Renaissance,” Song said. “I was looking for an artistic outlet, and I wanted to perform music at a professional level.”

Both Song and Tuesday Rupp co-founded the ensemble. When Rupp was unable to continue her leadership position, Song took over. What started out as an informal hobby quickly turned into a popular group.

“We gave a concert, and we had almost 250 people come to our first Christmas performance,” Song said. “The reception was well received. We got a board together and became a non-profit organization.”

In Mulieribus is also involved in community service. Until recently, all of its proceeds went to non-profit organizations, especially those geared toward helping women and children.

The ensemble not only represents polyphonic music but uses its voice to give back to the community at large.
To find out more information about In Mulieribus, visit www.inmulierbus.org.

Chelsea Ploof/For the Review
Chelsea Ploof can be reached at linfieldreviewculture@gmail.com

When audience members filed in to watch senior Melissa Davaz’s student recital on Feb. 20, many found they got much more than they had bargained for.

Davaz sang various operatic pieces, such as “Sehnsucht nach dem Frühling” by Mozart, “Waldesgespräch” by Schumann, “Ganymed” by Schubert, and “Fleur desséchée” by Viardot.

Deborah Huddleston, adjuct professor of music and the pianist at the recital, spoke highly of her experience working with Davaz.

“She’s very organized, she knows what she wants, and she adapts well,” Huddleston said. “It’s wonderful to play with someone who can nuance the songs like she does. It’s like working with a professional.”

Davaz has been singing for about eight years. She said she is inspired by artists from the Romantic period, such as Schubert and Brahms,  although she admitted she is also partial to more contemporary artists such as the Allman Brothers and Billie Holiday.

In addition to her operatic performances, Davaz also plays the keyboard and sings with the folk-rock band Jack Ruby Presents.

Davaz studied vocally under Professor of Music Gwen Leonard and spent a semester abroad studying music in Vienna, Austria.

Davaz graduated in December 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology and a minor in Music.

“For me, Linfield has created a diversity of experiences,” she said. “It has helped me become a more professional performer.”

<hr>

<em>Ellen Brahae, for the review</em>

Finckel and Wu are scheduled to play in the third performance of the Linfield Chamber Orchestra’s 2010-11 series on Feb. 18. Photo courtesy of Tristan Cook

Two world-renowned musicians will perform at 8 p.m. Feb. 18 in Ice Auditorium. The event is in the third performance of the Linfield Chamber Orchestra’s 2010-11 series.

Cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han will visit Linfield thanks to the sponsporship of an anonymous donor, president of LCO Nora Stevens said.

“Our orchestra and college has the reputation to support musicians of this caliber,” she said. “The Linfield Chamber Orchestra’s mission is to provide world-class music.”

Finckel is a cellist for the Emerson String Quartet, which has received three Gramophone magazine Awards, eight Grammy Awards and the Avery Fisher Prize.

Finckel and Han are also the artistic directors of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center located in New York City.
Junior Samantha McCarty, the office assistant for the LCO, was in charge of promoting the concert to students who can attend the concert free of charge.

“I think the concerts are a really great experience because you’re listening to professional artists for free,” she said. “You’re getting a free concert that other people would pay a lot of money to see.”

Chamber Orchestra Administrator John Paul Bierly also said this event would normally cost more than $100.

“This is an opportunity for the Linfield campus to come and see an internationally renowned pair of artists,” Bierly said. “[They’re] basically the rock stars of classical music right now. This music will probably be as perfect as it can be.”

The concert, titled “Exultation,” will feature pieces by Ludwig van Beethoven and Johannes Brahms, who was largely influenced by Beethoven during the Romantic Era.

Stevens said that reserve seats are almost all taken.

“We’re hoping for a sellout,” she said.

Students are encouraged to show up when the doors open at 7 p.m. to make sure they get a seat. Tickets for general admission cost $18, reserved tickets are $25, and tickets for students up through grade 12 cost $5.

For more information about the concert, contact Stevens at nora@clean-copy.com or visit www.lcomusic.org.

The next LCO concert is set for April 15 and will feature new music by grammy award-winning composer Libby Larsen in celebration of the LCO’s 20th anniversary.