Volume XV - November 2022

FROM THE CHAIR

My message to everyone this month will be short, but extremely important. There are four main things to think about in the upcoming days and weeks.


1. VOTE this coming Tuesday, November 8. It is critical that everyone uses their voice to participate in our society. Think of this as if you are part of an ensemble where your voice is just as important as the next person’s—because it is!


2. GIVING TUESDAY is coming up on November 29. We are establishing pages for both our Music Department and Dance Program. In the next week or so, you’ll receive another message containing the link where you can donate to either, or both, programs. I urge you to share these links widely with family, friends and acquaintances so that we can raise some money for our scholarship programs. Look for the link coming soon.


3. For Students, it’s important that you REGISTER NOW for Spring ’23 classes. This will help you avoid issues with holds and late registration issues and will ensure that your classes will run as scheduled.

4. The end of the semester will be upon us before you know it, so start preparing for your juries now. Also, I urge you to support each other in every way possible. Attend recitals and showcases as well as our large ensemble and dance concerts. Attending live Music and Dance concerts is one of the best ways we have to connect with each other and to learn about new works.


I sincerely hope that everyone has a wonderful and relaxing Thanksgiving holiday, and I look forward to hearing the results of your hard work in the end-of-semester concerts.


Sing On! Play On!


-- Dr. Robert Heitzinger

CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Chamber Music Series comes to NEIU's Recital Hall


The NEIU Department of Music is thrilled to welcome the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Chamber Music Series to our very own Recital Hall! Join us on the afternoon of Sunday, November 13 for an exciting program of chamber works by Maurice Ravel and Albert Roussel performed by the CSO's Oberon Ensemble. Tickets are free but must be reserved in advance via CSO.org. Grab one while you can!


The program includes:

  • Ravel: Introduction and Allegro for Harp, Flute, Clarinet and String Quartet
  • Roussel: Trio for Flute, Viola, and Cello, Op. 40
  • Ravel: String Quartet in F Major

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: Dr. Kay Kim

As the primary collaborative pianist here at NEIU since 2011, Dr. Kay Kim is one of the heroes of the Department of Music, and she was kind enough to share some thoughts about her work here at NEIU:


What is a regular week at NEIU like (if there is such a thing!)? The most stable part of my day to day schedule has two components. I have playing duties that are regular such as voice lessons, choir, opera, choral conducting etc. and classes that I teach such as Accompanying and Class Piano this year. Woven into that frame throughout the semester are the concerts/events including studio classes, showcases and opera/choir concerts and auditions. The frame with which I start out gets filled in with rehearsals on by-appointment basis so my schedule each week is not always the same. 

 

What is your favorite part or parts of your job here at NEIU? I love how I get to interact with students and faculty across the whole department. My job allows me that unique opportunity which I have always cherished: I feel fortunate to get to work with many different faculty, students, and ensembles throughout the year. It is really wonderful to get to witness and to be part of a gamut of the growth process of the students in their education and the passion and fantastic artistry of their teachers in the classes. 

 

Do you have any specific performances or experiences that are especially meaningful or stick with you? All degree recitals are rather special since they are the culmination of the students’ painstaking years of honing their art, but I find Junior recitals and student recitals quite meaningful because it usually is either the first time that the students experience owning the stage to make music for an extended period of time by themselves or they feel more vulnerable presenting something that they feel is work-in-progress. They learn how seemingly lonely but exhilarating of an experience it is. (I say ‘seemingly lonely’ because everyone in the audience is rooting for them to do well.) 


Dr. Kim has influenced so many students, both as an fellow performer on stage and as a teacher of the art of collaboration and accompanying, so we asked a couple of them to share their thoughts as well:


Chloe (voice): "There can never be enough great things said about Dr. Kim! She just radiates so much empathy, patience, and kindness, and that tenderness always shines in her playing and when working with students. I have definitely grown as a musician just working alongside her. This simply cannot be said enough, thank you for everything you do for us, Dr. Kim!"


Gerardo (violin): "I had the privilege to work with Dr. Kim’s accompanying studio. Collaborating with her studio became my highlight of the week. It was like she had the magic to make us sound better. She made me feel motivated and at the end I couldn’t believe the progress accomplished. I felt so proud of the music we were making. And for that, I will forever be grateful."

JOIN VOICES CHICAGO VISITS NEIU IN FULL VOICE AND GOOD CHEER!


On October 27, the NEIU Choral Program hosted the latest iteration of Join Voices Chicago. As part of IL ACDA’s urban initiatives, Join Voices represents a unique opportunity for city choirs to come together in a non-competitive, supportive environment to perform and participate in a clinic. JVC is open to high schools in the Chicago Public Schools at no fee for participants; transportation, meals, clinic, and sheet music are all provided free-of-charge. There are also opportunities for collegiate choral music education students and current teachers to gain professional development hours in this collaborative setting. Talented and inspirational clinicians provide a clinic for each participating choir, as well as teach a mass selection at the end of the day. The past four years’ events were great successes with over 500 elementary and high school students attending. This event is funded by IL ACDA.


Last week, over 10 schools from across Chicago came together to perform for each other, work with clinician Julian Goods, and then sing as one massed choir for a few songs, including the South African folk tune Kwangena Thina bo. Participating schools included: Whitney Young High School, Franklin Arts School, Chicago School for the Arts, Solorio Academy High School, Nicholas Senn High School, Lakeview High School, Walter Payton High School, Kenwood High School, Lindbloom High School, Disney II Magnet High School.


Check out the brief video below!

NEIU WIND ENSEMBLE PAINTS PICTURES


For their end of semester concert on Tuesday, November 30 the NEIU Wind Ensemble presents Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition, which presents musical vignettes in conversation with paintings and drawings by the artist Viktor Hartmann. Originally written for solo piano, the work has found its way into the modern repertory most prominently via Maurice Ravel's 1922 orchestration. You can see some of Hartmann's pictures here, along with a more in depth discussion of the work as a whole.

 

NEIU ENSEMBLES PERFORM

BEYOND THE CONCERT HALL

This fall, NEIU ensembles have found their ways beyond the usual settings of the Recital Hall and Auditorium here on campus to share their talents and love of music with audiences who might not have made the trip to campus for a concert. The NEIU Brass Quintet visited Adlai Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire Illinois and the NEIU Jazz Combo provided the soundtrack to the Medical Organization for Latino Advancement's (MOLA) Latino Health Symposium held at NEIU in October. You can catch the NEIU Brass Quintet on the Jewel Box Series on March 3, 2023. The NEIU Jazz program as two more performances this semester: the Combo performs on November 17 and then the Varsity Big Band closes out the Fall on the evening of December 1. 

LOOKING AHEAD TO AHEAD TO A BUSY END OF THE FALL SEMESTER!

STAY IN TOUCH!


Stay in touch with the NEIU Department of Music on facebook and youtube (click on the icons below) or visit us at neiu.edu/music anytime. Prospective students can share their information with us using this form and anyone can sign themselves up for our newsletters here. You can also visit NEIU's online Arts Calendar any time.
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