Outstanding Teachers Recognized
At the close of the 2018-19 academic year, the Peabody Institute recognized outstanding faculty members in both the Conservatory and Preparatory with its annual Excellence in Teaching awards. Michael Kannen, the Sidney M. Friedberg Chair in Chamber Music, received the Johns Hopkins University Alumni Association’s Excellence in Teaching Award at the Conservatory commencement. A musician and teacher of extraordinary accomplishment, Kannen is a cellist whose celebrated performance career and artistic versatility profoundly informs his teaching. The Peabody Preparatory presented Elijah Wirth ( BM '99, Tuba; MM '02, Music Education) with the Suzanne Seff Kuff Excellence in Teaching Award. Wirth heads the Preparatory Music Theory Department; the Wind, Brass and Percussion Academy; and is the director of the Peabody Preparatory Wind Orchestra, which he led at the award ceremony.
From the Dean
With the 2018-19 academic year in the rear-view mirror, and as we prepare to welcome the new class to Peabody, it’s a good time to review admissions results for the upcoming year. Ultimately, Peabody’s success is built on being able to attract a diverse cohort of outstanding students, and we are on track to do this again for the fall 2019 undergraduate and graduate cohorts. We expect more than 310 incoming students and a projected total of 680 students at the Peabody Conservatory this fall. We began this year’s admissions process with another increase, receiving more than 2,100 applications, up 4 percent from last year. 
 
Most notably, our continued commitment to and focus on diversity led to an increase of 33 percent in applications from underrepresented minority (URM) students, for a total of 300 applications this year. As a result, we are expecting 100 URM students this year, more than 14 percent of the total student population, which is up 70 percent since 2015. 
 
This fall we also welcome our first student beneficiaries of Michael Bloomberg’s historic gift supporting financial aid. For the first time we have been able to target need-based funding to students with exceptional financial need, deployed as supplemental grants coupled with merit scholarship. As a result of this funding, we have been able to meet, on average, 85 percent of demonstrated financial need for students who qualify. In addition, the number of incoming students with Pell grants increased from 17 percent to 25 percent of the incoming class, helping to increase access to a Peabody education among those who otherwise might not have been able to enroll. Access will continue to be a key area of focus for Peabody going forward.



Fred Bronstein, Dean
On Stage/Off Campus
Sunday, June 23, 8:00 pm 

Faculty artist Manuel Barrueco ( BM ’75, Guitar), Ricardo Cobo ( ’81, Guitar), and David Tanenbaum ( ’76, Guitar) will honor Aaron Shearer, their former teacher, on the centennial of his birth in a concert titled “ Aaron Shearer Virtuosos” at Carnegie Hall. Shearer founded the Peabody Conservatory Guitar Department and is recognized as the father of classical guitar pedagogy.

Wednesday, June 26, 7:30 pm

Festival Baltimore will present bass-baritone and faculty artist Carl DuPont in a program called “The Reaction: Spirituals, Gospel, and Art Songs by Black Composers,” including some Baltimore premieres. The performance will take place at University of Maryland, Baltimore County’s Earl and Darielle Linehan Concert Hall.

Thursday, June 27-Sunday, June 29, 7:30 pm, 9:30 pm

Richard and Elizabeth Case Chair in Jazz Studies Sean Jones returns to Jazz at Lincoln Center, where he was an orchestra member, to perform at its Dizzy’s Club. In the unique program called “ Dizzy Spellz,” the music and life story of Dizzy Gillespie are used as a lens to explore an intersection of cultural and spiritual dilemmas within the African Diaspora. The performance also features turntablist and faculty artist Wendel Patrick. 

Friday, June 28, 8:00 pm

Jacomo Bairos ( GPD ’11, Conducting) will lead the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in a performance featuring genre-bending musician Ben Folds, who has performed with some of the world's greatest symphony orchestras. Bairos also made his subscription debut with the Boston Pops this month. 

Saturday, June 29, 7:00 pm

Faculty artist David Bilger, principal trumpet for the Philadelphia Orchestra, will perform with the Brass and Percussion Ensemble for “ Celebrate America, Volume 3” at Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Co. The program includes John Philip Sousa marches, John Williams’ iconic film and Olympic music, the 1812 Overture, and other American classics to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday.

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Peabody Notes highlights select off-campus or live-streamed performances featuring Peabody performers. For other events, please visit our Peabody Institute Concerts Facebook page. For the complete weekly list of concerts at Peabody, subscribe to Events at Peabody at peabody.jhu.edu/news.   
Artistic Achievements
Camila Agosto
Camila Agosto ( MM ’19, Composition) was named a finalist at the National Composer Intensive at the L.A. Phil, where her new piece Tybontoan was premiered by the International Contemporary Ensemble during the Noon to Midnight Festival on June 1. 
Hilo Carriel
Hilo Carriel ( MM ’19, Conducting) has been awarded a Dudamel Fellowship at the L.A. Phil for the 2019-20 season. As a fellow, he will have the opportunity to cover important conductors, as well as conduct programs for outreach and other events.
Gonzalo Farias
Gonzalo Farias ( GPD  18, Conducting ) has been named Jacksonville Symphony’s new associate conductor. In his new role, he will take part in planning education and community programs and assist orchestra Music Director Courtney Lewis.
Erin Freeman
Erin Freeman ( DMA ’16, Conducting) was named a finalist for Performance Today's inaugural Classical Woman of the Year Award. Earlier this month, she conducted Mozart’s Coronation Mass at L’Eglise de la Madeleine in Paris, and, on June 29, she will conduct Elijah in Boston Symphony Hall with Berkshire Choral International.
Jongwoo Woo
Tenor Jongwoo Woo ( MM ’18, Voice) won first prize in the European Music Academy Vocal Competition in Prague, Czech Republic, as well as the Beethoven Award. He performed in the gala concert with the North Czech Philharmonic and was rewarded with several engagements in the Czech Republic and auditions for theaters in Germany. 
Recent Releases

Roberta Rust ( BM ’76, Piano) released a new album of the works of eight composers with whom she has had direct contact over the years. The recording includes pieces by George Rochberg, Michael Anderson, and Leo Brouwer.

Daniel Wnukowski ( BM ’03, Piano) released volume one of the complete solo piano music of Karol Rathaus, a Jewish composer who had to abandon a successful career in Europe and flee to the U.S. prior to World War II. In May, Wnukowski gave his Carnegie Hall debut to a sold-out audience in Weill Recital Hall.