From the chair:

Dear Friends,

What a fabulous year of performance and education at UTEP and the Department of Music! Our students are performing at the highest levels, which is a result of hard work, great talent and superb teaching by the faculty. We believe in a musical education through performance, no matter the degree title.

Our undergraduate Commercial Music degree is approved and active. We could not be more pleased than to have this degree plan and division headed by Mr. Steve Haddad. His expertise in performance, business and audio are without question. This degree plan will serve the needs of many music students that might not want to perform or teach in a full time capacity. Of course, our most popular degree offering at this time is Music Education. The department has taken time to refine our offerings to best serve the needs and expectations of new music educators.

Not to be overlooked are our strong offerings in Performance and Theory and Composition. Students in these programs are doing very well because of the personal attention they receive from faculty.

We were proud to have inaugurated our new Digital Keyboard Lab. This is a state-of-the-art keyboard lab with the best in technology, affording all of our students an innovative and high-quality experience in developing keyboard skills. Dr. Oscar Macchioni was instrumental in the vision and development of this outstanding educational tool.

To keep our facility current and safe for storage of instruments that our students use, new Wenger lockers were installed on all four floors of Fox Fine Arts. This upgrade was a wonderful face lift as well as being necessary for the daily functional use of the building.

The department's Music Theatre Company program is blazing new trails. This year’s offering of “Romeo and Bernadette” by Mark Saltzman was exceptional. In fact, our Music Theatre Company was asked by the publisher, Theatrical Rights Worldwide, to make the “Perusal Recording” to accompany score and parts for all those interested in possible performances of this work in a world-wide market. This is a milestone for our department. Our students who performed and recorded the show were stellar. In addition, our Commercial Music experts recorded this project as a reference for the publisher. Special praise goes to Dr. Elisa Wilson, director , cast member, and show producer, for the success of this venture.

The Wind Symphony had another outstanding concert year, highlighted by a recording session featuring the music of Roger Cichy (to be released on Mark Recordings). Mr. Cichy was able to spend several days with our ensemble during the preparation and recording process, lending great insight into the performance of his music.

Our Vocal Division had another spectacular year, with concerts featuring all of our ensembles as well as combining forces with the UTEP Symphony Orchestra to prepare and present Beethoven’s Mass in C in Magoffin Auditorium. Also on that program was the Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy featuring the artistry of the Chair of the Keyboard Division, Dr. Dena Kay Jones, the UTEP Symphony Orchestra and combined choirs. It was an evening to remember!

The UTEP Symphony Orchestra

presented many fine concerts

throughout the year. However,

their integral participation in the

UTEP Dinner Theatre's 25th

Anniversary Concert celebrating

the Songs of Sir Tim Rice held

in the Don Haskins Center

was a high-point for all.



This was the 5th anniversary of the UTEP Department of Music’s Gala. Always a special, capstone event for the department and students, we presented the premier performance of UTEP’s Mariachi los Mineros. They were certainly a hit with the audience and we look forward to their development and performances at UTEP and the area.

This year the Department of Music Outstanding Alumnus Award was presented to a local icon, mentor, educator and musician, Mr. Alphonse Mendez. We could not be more pleased with recognizing Mr. Mendez for his accomplishments in teaching, performing and administration. Congratulations to Al.

Several important collaborations materialized over the summer. Of particular importance is that the Department of Music now has a signed 10-year relationship with Conn-Selmer to provide over 2.4 million dollars of equipment to UTEP on a 2-yr. rotation. We look forward to providing our students the best of the best in equipment as well as instruction.

Another exciting possibility is a future collaboration with the El Paso Opera Company. While in discussion stages now, this result of this collaboration looks like a win/win for all, with students participating in EPO productions and outreach endeavors.

While I have only commented on a few highlights, faculty recitals, chamber and small group performances have rounded out a full and robust schedule of quality events.

Keyboard

In the 2007-2008 academic year, the Piano Area has seen amazing growth in number of students, facility improvements and faculty achievement. The largest recruiting class to date added nine additional piano students, with several more auditioning for possible future study in 2008-2009. The Piano Area welcomed performances and master classes with guests Dr. Ian Hominick (University of Mississippi) and Ms. Svetlana Nagachevskaya (University of Arizona), and two piano majors, Mr. Blake Duncan (sophomore) and Mr. Rodolfo Urias (freshman) attended the Ninety-third Annual Texas Music Teachers Association Convention in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. They joined other university pianists, gaining experience in running a festival competition (from organizing the audition times to giving critique to the students). Mr. Aaron Williams, Master of Music candidate, won the Concerto and Aria competition and was awarded with a live performance of the Grieg Piano Concerto with the UTEP Symphony.

The Piano Faculty continue to work with local and regional music organizations, offering master classes, recitals and lectures while presentations by their students also abound! In addition to their demanding roles within the Department of Music, these amazing professors offer their time and talents beyond our city. We are excited to introduce the newly appointed Professor Pia Bose, (Professor of Applied Piano and Class Piano), who obtained the Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Biopsychology from Oberlin College and Music Conservatory, received the Master of Music in Piano Performance from the Peabody Institute of the John Hopkins University and completed advance study at the Conservatoire Supérieur et Académie de Musique Tibor Varga in Sion, Switzerland bien’ in 2007. Ms. Bose attended numerous international piano festivals including the Festival Harmoniques Rencontres Internationales de Lausannee, the Banff Centre for the Arts International Keyboard Festival and the Gijón International Piano Festival, where she worked wtih Marc Durand, Julian Martin, Boris Slutsky, Robert McDonald and Dominique Weber.

Strings

Voice

The University Choirs completed a highly successful season in 2007-2008. The fall began with the Beethoven Mass in C for chorus, soloists and orchestra. The University Symphony Orchestra joined the UTEP voice faculty and Choirs for a memorable performance in Magoffin Auditorium. In December, the University Choirs performed to a packed house in the fox fine Arts Recital Hall. Joining the Choirs on the seasonal program was the University Wind Symphony. 200 musicians joined together at the conclusion of the concert for thrilling massed numbers and an audience singing-a-long.

The spring semester was highlighted by two concerts featuring each of the choirs individually. In addition to entertaining El Paso with beautiful choral music, the choirs were able to introduce a number of the wonderful pieces by Dr. Dominic Dousa. As professor of composition at UTEP, Dr. Dousa has provided the ensembles with music that inspires singers and audiences alike.

The year concluded with the Gala concert showcasing the outstanding students in the Department of Music. The University Choirs again combined with the University Symphony Orchestra for a rip roaring rendition of Aaron Copland’s Stomp Your Foot from his opera, The Tender Land.

Music Theatre Company has been very active in performance and outreach this past year, presenting three fully-staged productions: Elegant Excerpts, Haydn’s La Canterina, and Romeo and Bernadette by Mark Salzmann. MTCo. students performed La Canterina at several El Paso high schools to high acclaim, and appeared at various elder care facilities in cooperation with the UTEP Center for Civic Engagement. The cast of Romeo and Bernadette was fortunate to participate in a professional recording project in May 2008, recording the perusal/reference CD of that show for licensing company Theatrical Rights Worldwide.

BFA in Music Theatre students continued to perform major roles at the UTEP Dinner Theatre, with the Department of Theatre, Dance, and Film, and MTCo., including Miss Saigon, Hair, Ain’t Misbehavin’, A Christmas Carol, The Romance of Dance, Elegant Excerpts, La Canterina, and Romeo and Bernadette. Our students entertained regularly at university functions such as the 2007 Homecoming Golden Grads luncheon and 2007 and 2008 Women’s Auxiliary fundraisers.

A relatively new program, the BFA in Music Theatre has now graduated 5 students. These talented individuals have moved on to the following accomplishments:

Michael Stewart: recent appearance with Roosevelt University Opera Theatre, Chicago, IL; plans to enter Master’s program in Vocal Performance at Roosevelt

Anthony Michael Stokes: employed as an entertainer at Disneyworld, Orlando, FL

Belinda Saenz: dance teacher, EPISD

Marissa Trujillo: theatre teacher at Sanchez Middle School

Laura Sambrano: completed BFA, continuing studies at UTEP in Music Education, with plans to teach in choral/vocal music

Wind and Percussion

Faculty News

Melissa Colgin-Abeln- Associate Professor Melissa Colgin Abeln began the year as guest recitalist and clinician at the University of West Florida Flute Festival in January. In May she and colleague Dominic Dousa performed recitals in Paris at the American Embassy Residence, May 22, with Ambassador and Mrs. R. Craig Stapleton attending, and also at the Atelier Recital Series of the American Church, May 25. Upon returning she collaborated with Grace Cloutier, harpist, in a performance for the El Paso Summer Music Festival, June 14th .Colgin hosted the annual UTEP Summer Flute Sessions –bi-weekly techniques and master classes at Americas and UTEP campuses, Jun 9-July 24, for 25 advanced high school and college students, and 4 adult participants representing UTEP, EPCC, and Americas, Austin, Burges, Chapin, Coronado, Del Valle, Hanks, and Ysleta High Schools. A Final solo and flute choir recital was presented on July 24th at UTEP. In August, she attended the National Flute Association Convention, Kansas City to present “The Mega-Memory Map: Confronting Contemporary Literature.”

Dominic Dousa- Dominic Dousa presented a chamber music recital for viola and piano at UTEP with Texas Tech University faculty violist Renee Skerik as guest artist. The performance featured three of Dousa's compositions for viola and piano. Skerik and Dousa also performed one of those pieces at the College Music Society's 2008 Pacific Central/Pacific Southern SuperRegional Conference Composers Concert in Santa Barbara. In the spring of 2008, two of Dousa's compositions received international performances. Conductor Benjamin Loeb presented Dousa's overture "Christmas Morning" with the Wuhan Orchestra in China. UTEP faculty flutist Melissa Colgin-Abeln and Dousa performed three recitals that included standard repertory for flute and piano, as well as the premiere of Dousa's "Two Pieces for Flute and Piano". In addition to the Paris Preview concert at UTEP, Colgin-Abeln and Dousa gave presentations at the American Ambassador's Residence in Paris and at Atelier Series at the American Church in Paris. Dousa's band composition "Soaring" and string orchestra piece "New Day Dawning" were published by TRN Music Publisher, Inc.

Orit Amy Eylon- Dr. Orit Eylon traveled to Hong Kong in October of 2007 to perform a lecture recital at Hong Kong University and master classes at the Academy of Performing Arts in Hong Kong. The end result was that she recruited Helena IP to pursue her Master’s degree at UTEP and she is also our new Teaching Assistant for the 2008-9 school year. Orit was also a regional winner of the National Society of Arts and Letters Vocal Competition held in March, 2008 held at UTEP. Orit competed and received honors in the national competition in Bloomington,Indiana in May of 2008. One of Dr. Eylon’s vocal students, Jaqueline Marin (BM voice ’08) traveled this summer to Perigord, France to perform a role in the Franco American Voice Academy’s production of La Vie Parisienne.

Marcia Fountain- During the previous year and especially the summer, Dr. Fountain finally began catching up on a 3-year cataloguing backlog for the Music Library/Computer Lab. Thanks to several generous sheet music donations, the solo and chamber music section of our library is now at nearly 10,000 items available for music major student checkout. She also extensively revised the Music Department’s scheduling software. Thanks to efforts by Dr. Hufstader and Dr. Fountain, the Music Library/Computer Lab is also expanding the section of music graded as I, II, and III for band and orchestra available for music education and conducting classes. She continues a gentle performance schedule with the El Paso Early Music Consort and the Rio Baroque Ensemble, playing cello, viola da gamba, vielle and occasionally recorder.

Lowell Graham- Dr. Graham served as the invited guest conductor for the following ensembles and events: Region 8 Honor Band; Killeen TX; Tri-State Honor Band; SIU IL.; SIU Wind Symphony; Valdosta Symphony Orchestra; Valdosta, GA; South Central Regional Music Conference, LA; Idaho State University and Honor Bands; Richardson HS, Richardson TX; Tennessee State Festival; Fort Collins Wind Symphony, Fort Collins CO; Lakeland Community Band, Cleveland OH; and The USAF Band of Mid-America, Brookfield WI. He served as a clinician, lecturer and presenter at the national convention of ASBDA (American School Band Directors Association). While there he was presented the A. Austin Harding Award. Two commercial recordings were released with Klavier Music Productions and two commercial recordings for Altissimo Records. Also he recorded with the West Saxon Orchestra in Leipzig Germany making a CD Promo of orchestral and string orchestra music for LudwigMasters Music Publications Inc. “StringMasters” that was sent nationally to over 7000 high schools in the United States.

Ruben Gutierrez- Ruben Gutierrez performed engagements with some important names in Jazz, along with numerous functions in El Paso, East Texas, and southern New Mexico with his Latin Jazz ensemble. In Early spring he performed with the Harry James Orchestra (led by former lead trumpet player Fred Radke) in Silver City, NM. In Las Cruces he performed with Jazz legends Ritchie Cole and Ernie Watts on two separate occasions in the summer, and with Jazz fusion group BMP for a jazz festival in Albuquerque. He gave a presentation for Ysleta School District high school band directors the start of the fall Semester, offering points on how to choose a pianist and train them for their jazz ensembles. He was also commissioned to produce recordings of audition music for both Middle School and High School choirs city-wide. Mr. Gutierrez continues to his duties in the department in keyboard and commercial music divisions.

Steve Haddad- Steve Haddad maintained a busy, diverse schedule as the head of the Commercial Music Division and tuba professor with a faculty tuba recital in April, recording sessions with the UTEP Music Theatre Company for Theatrical Rights Worldwide, Inc., and a presentation at the Texas Bandmaster’s Association Convention in San Antonio in July.

Sang-In Han- Dr. Sang-In Han completed his DMA degree in Vocal Performance from University of Illinois, where he performed a recital titled "Korean Art songs" at Memorial Hall. He was tenor soloist with the UTEP choir in their spring 2008 performance of Beethoven’s Mass in C. In September, Dr. Han will perform the role of Ruiz in a production of Il Trovatore by the El Paso Opera Company. Future engagements include a collaboration with UTEP faculty guitarist John Siqueiros in a performance of Benjamin Britten's folk songs, as well as a soloist role in Bruckner’s Te Deum at UTEP. He was invited to work as a faculty member for the Nami Island 2008 Young Artist Opera Festival in Korea.

Ron Hufstader- Dr. Hufstader was the Guest Conductor for the Region XVI Symphonic Band in Lubbock, TX. Additionally he was an invited guest to the Conn-Selmer Institute on the Notre Dame campus in June. During that time, he was invited by Conn-Selmer to be a Rehearsal Clinician for the company. He was also appointed to the College Advisory Board for Texas Bandmasters Association. A highlight was a recording by The UTEP Wind Symphony of “The Music of Roger Cichy,” that is released nationwide by Mark Custom Recordings.

Dena Kay Jones- During the 2007-2008 season, Dr. Jones’ first solo CD album, Luces y Sombras (Lights and Shadows): The Piano Works of Joaquín Rodrigo, was published by Centaur Records. Following shortly thereafter, she traveled to Madrid and Andalucía, Spain, where she presented the recording as a gift to Cecilia Rodrigo, daughter of the esteemed composer, and offered a lecture and recital entitled, Domenico Scarlatti: Still an Influence 200 Years Later at the VII Festival Internacional de Música de Tecla Española (Eighth International Festival of Spanish Harpsichord Music) in Garrucha and Mojácar. El Paso projects included a performance of the Beethoven Chorale Fantasy with the UTEP Symphony and Choirs and a solo/chamber recital which included the Scriabin Fantasy in B, an early Vaughan Williams Piano Quintet and the Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion by Béla Bartók. Dr. Jones also performed in the ever-popular El Paso Pro-Música Bach to Lunch concert series and completed her sixth season as El Paso Symphony Orchestra Principal Keyboardist and Pre-Concert Lecturer. She performed in the Dame Myra Hess Historic Concert Series in July 2008 and has been chosen to debut a new commissioned piece, an innovative experience of which she is much anticipating.

Rick Lambrecht- This past spring the Coronado High School Fine Arts rehearsal hall was dedicated and named the Richard Lambrecht Rehearsal Hall. Rick performed as a horn soloist with the Roswell Symphony Orchestra in a performance of the Mozart Symphonia Concertante. Mr. Lambrecht served as a clinician for the Michigan Music Educators Convention and the New Mexico Music Educators Convention, as the conductor of the Ysleta ISD High School Honor Band, and participated in the Texas State Solo and Ensemble Contest as a French Horn Solo Adjudicator. As a member of El Paso Brass, Rick performed concerts for KRWG public radio, Mountain Annie’s Dinner Theater and in more than 40 performances for more than 15,000 elementary school children in the El Paso area as part of their “Brass In Class” series.

Oscar Maccioni- Dr. Macchioni had a busy schedule performing concerts and master classes. He performed a solo recital in Italy at the Seventh Quercetto International Piano Festival, and in his native Argentina he played at the National Music Conservatory in Buenos Aires, organized by the Latin America Association of Piano Pedagogues; and at the Universidad Nacional de Cuyo in Mendoza. He also was a guest artist at the Texas Woman’s University Concert Series in Denton; at UTEP he appeared with the Percussion Ensemble and in April he debuted with The Mesa St Trio performing works by Vivaldi, Debussy and Piazzolla. He completed the installation of UTEP’s new Digital Keyboard Lab (DKL) and Piano Pedagogy Library, a $250,000 facility to be the finest in the world and organized workshops with guest faculties. In demand as an adjudicator, Dr. Macchioni was invited to judge for The Most Wanted Piano Competition at the World Piano Pedagogy Conference in Las Vegas; the MTNA Southwest regional Piano Competition; the EPSYOs Concerto Competition and the EPMTA Sonatina Festival. Dr. Macchioni organized outreach programs which included free and open masterclasses for the local piano students and teachers, and presented his students in concert at the Woman’s Club of El Paso and the Branigan Center in Las Cruces, NM. His student Aaron Williams, master candidate, won the Concerto and Aria Competition and Xiaoping Wang (7 y.o) was invited to performed at Carnegie Hall and Steinway Hall in NYC. An extensive Artist/Educator interview with Dr. Macchioni appeared in the Piano Education Page and his live performance at the 2006 Myra Hess Concert Series in Chicago is available through YouTube. His recording Mostly Tangos. Piano Music from the Americas is soon to be released by Centaur Records.

William McMillan- William McMillan completed a busy year as the Director of Choral Activities, Assistant Chair of the Department of Music and Chair of the Voice Division. In addition to conducting the University Chorale and the Men’s Glee Club, he conducted the Ysleta Honor Choir and the Gadsden Honor Choir. His other activities included judging for Heritage Festivals and serving as Minister of Music at First Presbyterian Church in El Paso.

John Siqueiros-John Siqueiros, newly appointed Chair of the Guitar Division and director of UTEPs new mariachi program, received generous funding from the university to launch the new mariachi program. Mariachi Los Mineros premiered at the 2008 Music Department Gala where they received enthusiastic and sincere applause. The program will provide financial, performance, and travel opportunities to student participants and help build a bridge between the university and the community. Professor Siqueiros has also recently designed and taught an exciting and very popular class entitled Radio, Racism and Rebellion: A Social History of Rock. The course is an upper level, interdisciplinary course dealing with the influence of society on rock music and visa versa. Offered twice a year, the course has closed at capacity within a few days of pre-registration.

Curtis Tredway- In March, the UTEP Basketball Pep Band and Golddiggers accompanied the Lady Miners basketball team to their first NCAA tournament appearance at Stanford University. April and May saw the Band Division host several events, including the UTEP Concert Band Festival (28 performing ensembles), and the UTEP Beginning Band Festival (31 performing ensembles). In July, the Band Division hosted our 6th edition of Drum Corps International's "Drums Along the Border" in the Sun Bowl Stadium, with an audience of 3500. In September, Dr. Curtis Tredway started his 16th year as Director of the UTEP Marching Miners. This 255 member ensemble performed for over 53,000 as the UTEP Miners hosted the Texas Longhorns in the Sun Bowl Stadium, with national coverage on ESPN2.

Stephanie Schweigart- Dr Stephanie Schweigart presented a lecture at TMEA in San Antonio this past spring, and has been invited to return to the convention again in Spring ‘09 to deliver a lecture on performance anxiety. Her UTEP student Leslee Herrerra was the only violinist accepted into the El Paso Symphony at the recent auditions, and UTEP alumni and former student Vanessa Cedillos is currently performing in the El Paso Symphony and Las Cruces Symphony as well as teaching in the El Paso area. This Spring Dr. Schweigart presented a solo recital at East Central College in St. Louis, traveled to Houston to join the faculty of the American Festival for the Arts, and returned to the Chamber Music Conference and Composers’ Forum of the East to coach chamber music and perform with colleagues. This Fall she will perform a faculty violin/viola recital at UTEP’s Fox Fine Arts Recital Hall on October 12th at 7:30 pm with UTEP colleague Dominic Dousa.

Nancy Taylor- Nancy Taylor recently returned to El Paso and joined the music faculty at UTEP. In addition to teaching the trumpet studio and conducting the UTEP Trumpet Ensemble, she is a graduate student in the UTEP College of Health Sciences studying musician's injuries while pursuing a degree in Occupational Therapy. Before returning to El Paso, Ms Taylor was on the music faculty of the University of Alabama, Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and performed with "The President's Own" United States Marine Band in Washington, D.C.

Larry White- Professor Larry White performed on two faculty recitals at UTEP in the spring of 2008—the Bartok Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion with Dr. Dena Kay Jones in January and on Dominic Dousa’s Composer-in-Residence recital in February with Dr. Don Wilkinson. He will perform with fellow UTEP and New Mexico State University faculty members in September, 2008 in separate recitals on both campuses. Larry adjudicated ten band, orchestra, and solo and ensemble festivals in Anaheim, San Francisco, Austin, Dallas, Seattle, San Antonio, and Orlando, including the sole UTEP music representative at the Texas State Solo and Ensemble Festival at the University of Texas in May. He also conducted two percussion clinics at the “Job Alike” inservice presentations for the El Paso and Ysleta Independent School District music teachers in August, 2008. Professor White’s percussion studio includes two teaching assistants from Drake University, and has graduated eight percussion majors in the past two years. One of those graduates, Frank Gonzalez, won the Drum Corps International Marimba Competition in 2006 (Madison, Wisconsin) and placed third in the Percussive Arts Society Convention’s Keyboard competition in 2007 (Austin, Texas). Shelly Irvine, steel drum artist and tuner spent three days in April on the UTEP campus playing with UTEP Pandemonium and giving tuning master classes to the studio.

Don Wilkinson- Don Wilkinson retired from directing the UTEP Basketball Pep Band. In September, Dr. Wilkinson played a wonderful alto sax and Marimba duet composed by Dr. Dousa. The program also included a faculty/student saxophone quartet with piano, also by Dr. Dousa. Last February Dr. Wilkinson purchased band instruments from the El Maida Shrine and was also entrusted with their band library, which consisted of 1700+ pieces with copyrights dating to 1879. Dr. Wilkinson continues to play in local symphonies and has recently completed his book on instrumental pedagogy.

Ellen Wilson- Dr. Ellen Wilson just released a new CD of Jewish contemporary music titled Songs of Ascent. Additionally, she was a recipient of a CAP Grant for the current fiscal year for the voice and guitar program, "Across the Ages: Music of the English Baroque and Renaissance."

Elisa Fraser Wilson- Dr. Elisa Fraser Wilson, mezzo-soprano and director of the Music Theatre Company and Women’s Glee Club, was active as a performer, director, and clinician during the 2007-2008 academic year. With colleague John Siquieros, guitarist, she presented songs by John Dowland on recitals at UTEP and the El Paso Museum of Art. Additionally, she appeared as Camille Penza in Music Theatre Company’s spring production Romeo and Bernadette. She directed a music theatre/opera scenes presentation, Elegant Excerpts, and Romeo and Bernadette with MTCo., and conducted the Women’s Glee Club on various UTEP choral concerts throughout the year. She presented a seminar on the use of YouTube in the staged performance curriculum at the College Music Society Super-Regional Convention in Bloomington, IL, in February 2008, and served on a discussion panel there regarding the assessment and relevance of current university curriculums. She was active as a regional clinician with El Paso, Socorro, and Ysleta School Districts, and, effective Spring 2008, has joined the roster of clinicians for Heritage Festivals, Inc.

Steve Wilson- Dr. Steve Wilson has had a busy year both as a soloist and as a member of the Continental Trombone Quartet (CTQ). In the Fall of 2007, The CTQ represented the United States at the International Trombone Festival (ITF) in Beijing, China. This was the first ITF in China and included faculty members from across Europe and the four members of the CTQ. The CTQ was also featured at the University of Omaha at Nebraska’s low brass day in the spring of 2008, where they also recorded a CD scheduled for release in the fall of 2008. The CD features guest solo artists Jim Pugh and Brazilian recording artist Rategundis Feitosa. In the summer of 2008, Dr. Wilson selected the TMEA All-State bass trombone etudes and gave a clinic on them at the Texas Band Masters Association convention in San Antonio. Dr. Wilson’s article on bass trombone technique, Bringing Out the Inner Animal-Getting the Most Out of Your Bass Trombonist, was published in the January, 2007 issue of School Band and Orchestra Magazine. Upcoming events include a recital of trombone duets with Dr. Allan Kaplan from New Mexico State University on September 21 at UTEP at 2:30 PM and September 22 at 7:30 PM at NMSU. The CTQ will premiere a new work for trombone quartet, concert choir and dancers with the American Repertory Ballet company, with performances in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wyoming during the 2008-2009 school year. The trombone studio at UTEP continues to thrive and this year, we will feature recitals and master classes by world renown guest artists John Kenny and Abbie Conant, both in March of 2008.

Faculty Spotlight

Education
B.M. 1995, University of Houston
1995-1996, Manhattan School of Music
M.A. 1998, New England Conservatory
D.M.A. 2000, New England Conservatory

Career at UTEP, 2001-2008

How did you first decide to come to UTEP?
After I graduated from the New England Conservatory in December 2000 with my Doctoral Degree, I knew that I wanted to be a professor of music. Dr. Hufstader is primarily responsible for bringing me here. I decided to teach at UTEP because I met four wonderful UTEP professors at my interview: Dr. Hufstader, Dr. Fountain, Dr. Ross and Dr. Colgin. Once I arrived in El Paso for my job interview, I knew as soon as I saw all the cacti and friendly people that I loved it here. It has been a wonderful adventure ever since! I am very happy that I have the privilege of working at UTEP and it is an absolute joy to teach in this city.

What did you do after graduation?
I taught at the New England Conservatory as James Buswell’s teaching assistant and
played in the Portland Symphony and the Boston Modern Orchestra Project.

What changes have you seen in the Department of Music at UTEP since you started?
The wonderful addition of Lowell Graham, Department Chair, is the most pivotal development since I arrived in 2001. He has so much charisma and energy; it is very inspiring! He is a great mentor as well. I am also very pleased to see a lot of brilliant new faculty enhancing the wonderful professors that have already been at UTEP for many years. I have always felt that UTEP is a great environment for work and learning, and I have noticed a lot of improvement in my students’ attitude toward practicing and working hard to accomplish their goals and realize their dreams.

What are you most proud of?
First, I am most proud of accomplishing one of my major life goals, and that was to achieve tenure at UTEP. After that, I am very proud of the accomplishments that my students have made over these years. From being All-State musicians to gaining entrance into top schools for graduate work (for example: Longy School of Music and Boston University); from being invited to join the El Paso Symphony to becoming teachers in this district and others; to the simple moments, like last night, when I went to the symphony concert and heard some beautiful music being made by my students; these are all very fulfilling moments. I am also proud of my colleagues in the music department and the work we do together as a team. I am delighted thatI have premiered works by my colleague Dominic Dousa and that I have a lot left to learn in my lifetime (like how to cook)...

What are your plans for your the summer?
I plan to teach at the American Festival for the Arts in Houston for three weeks. The program is for high school students, and it includes chamber music, orchestra, and lessons. I will then go back to the Bennington Chamber Music Conference and Composer’s Forum of the East (Bennington, VT) for my fourth summer. The program in Vermont is all chamber music, and I will have the opportunity to perform with outstanding players on faculty in addition to coaching chamber music works. I will also practice a lot and travel!

The DKL

A Fusion of Music and Technology

by Oscar Macchioni

When I arrived to UTEP in 2003, I encountered a “vintage” piano lab which was three decades old and many of the pianos were not fully functional. Immediately I started to work on a grant proposal to upgrade the existing lab. Soon after Dr. Graham and Dr. Jones come on board and a team from IT, Glen Kelly, and Facilities, Gregory Cock and Carlos Torres, join us in the adventure. Also, Dr. Robert Nava and Roberta Cohen from the office of Development were pivotal securing $250.000 from the Brown Foundation Inc., of Houston. I was sure of one thing: UTEP needed to be at the forefront and have the best piano lab in the world. It took almost three years to acquire a piano lab that surpassed our expectations.

The $250.000 grant was distributed almost equally in three main areas: room renovation, keyboards and audio visual equipment. Today the DKL (Digital Keyboard Lab) has twenty Roland KR 103 student’s keyboards, one Roland KR 107 teacher’s keyboard and a Yamaha Disklavier acoustic piano. The audio/visual equipment includes the largest Smart-Board; three cameras capturing different hands’ angles and pedals; state of the art audio and video equipment including an image processor capable of dividing the projection screen into several quadrants enabling the teacher to show for example, pedaling, hands, and music score on the same screen. Since the DKL is a large room, each keyboard has a nineteen inches wide-screen monitor to facilitate the view. All the projected images are controlled by a touch screen located by the teacher's keyboard. We also have a PC and a Macintosh G5. The DKL hosts an Observation Room and a Piano Pedagogy Library with computer and software ready for music notation, sound and video editing. A camera in the back of the room allows video and live streaming of a class. Also, with this grant we were able to furnish the DKL Annex/Technology Lab with seven keyboards and four Macintosh G5s.

Today, with the incorporation of technology, we teach Group Piano differently than 10 years ago. New labs such as the DKL allow teachers to individualize, pair or group students, and to communicate with one or multiple students at once. Our students already benefit tremendously with the new DKL. For example, in all my piano classes I required at least two technology projects each semester. Last Fall, I asked students to choose one of the seasonal songs from their book. They were either for solo piano or just the melody with chords symbols. Students had to add 4 additional parts, in which they learned and applied orchestration, harmonization, improvisation, creativity and the use of technology, besides playing the piano. The final product was a five to six multi track recording with outstanding results. They are available to listen at

http://utminers.utep.edu/omacchioni.

The DKL not only benefits our faculties and students (majors and non-majors) but also the community at large throughout community classes and workshops with guest faculties and presentations for the local piano teachers and school districts teachers. Several faculties from major universities as well as Roland representatives have already visited the DKL and expressed, unanimously, that UTEP has "the most sophisticated" piano lab they have ever seen. Now, we can train our students competitively with other higher education institutions in the country.

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Mariachis Are Back

Viva La Musica

by John Siqueros