News

Boaz Sharon

WILSON, N.C. - Internationally renowned concert pianist, educator, and recording artist Boaz Sharon will perform Beethoven's first piano concerto as guest soloist with the Barton College / Wilson Symphony Orchestra, as members make their debut performance in the new Lauren Kennedy and Alan Campbell Theatre. The annual Fall Concert is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 22, at 3 p.m.

The orchestra will also perform Haydn's symphony no. 100, the "Military Symphony," so titled because of Haydn's unusual use of wind and percussion instruments. "We are so excited about presenting this concert with such a dynamic soloist in our wonderful new performing venue," shared conductor Mark N. Peterson. "The acoustics, sight lines and lighting are wonderful, and the audience is sure to be delighted with the program."

Sharon is Professor of Piano and Chair of the Piano Department at Boston University and also serves as Director of Piano Studies at the Tanglewood Festival in Lennox, Mass. The Israeli-born Sharon moved to Brussels, Belgium, at the age of 13 to study with renowned Mozart and Chopin interpreter Stefan Askenase for five years. He later continued his studies in the U.S. with William Doppmann, and with Leonard Shure at Boston University.

He served as artist-in-residence at Duke University in Durham prior to joining the University of Florida faculty in 1986. In 1996, he launched the annual Prague International Piano Master classes and has served as its artistic director since its inception. From 2002 to 2007, Sharon was a founding member and faculty member of the artist faculty for the International Certificate for Piano Artists program, affiliated with the École Normale de Musique de Paris-Alfred Cortot and held in Brussels, Paris, and at the University of Florida.

Among his many awards and recognitions, Sharon is a first-prize winner and Gold Medalist at Spain's Jaen International Piano Competition. He also is an Honorary Fellow at Prague's Charles University, one of the oldest universities in Europe. In 1998, Charles University presented him with the Jubilee Medal for outstanding contributions in the piano field upon the university's 650th anniversary celebration, and he was awarded the 2005 Distinguished International Educator Award from the University of Florida. Sharon also has served on the jury of the Firkusny International Piano Competition in Prague and at the Composers of Spain International Piano Competition in Madrid.

He maintains an active performance schedule and has performed at the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., at the National Recital Hall in Taipei, as part of the Steinway Celebrity Series at Britain's Kingston University, at the Gasteig Recital Hall in Munich, at the International Liszt Festival in Rio de Janeiro and at Prague's National Museum. He also has been featured with the Israeli Symphony Orchestra and has been heard on the "Steinway Hour" radio program and on National Public Radio. In 2004, Sharon presented 14 recitals and concerts with orchestras from Russia's Far East, Siberia, the Ural Mountains, European Russia, and Moscow. During that year, he also appeared at Steinway Hall in New York City. Each year since, he has returned to Moscow to participate in a piano festival at the Composers House of Creativity.

During the past two years, Sharon has performed in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Prague and has given master classes at the Seoul National University and other universities in South Korea. He also is a founding member and judge of the Liszt International Piano Competition, Moscow, and he has served on the jury of the Jaen International Piano Competition, Spain. Sharon teaches at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, the China Conservatory in Beijing, and at the Shenyang and Guangzhou Conservatories where he is a piano faculty member.

Following the concert, the audience is cordially invited to meet the musicians at a reception, hosted by ARAMARK Higher Education, in the Bridgestone Americas Atrium of the Lauren Kennedy and Alan Campbell Theatre.

Admission for the fall orchestra performance will be $10 at the door or by season ticket. All students within the community will be admitted free of charge as well as faculty, staff and students of Barton College. For additional information, please contact Arlene Bishop-Giese at 252-399-6309 or email: albishopgiese@barton.edu.
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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

Steve and Ruth Smith

WILSON, N.C. - Barton College is pleased to welcome Steve and Ruth Smith as the featured guests for the 2009 Allan R. Sharp Religion in Life Series set for Thursday, Oct. 15, at 7 p.m. The Smiths' performance and lecture, to be held in Hardy Alumni Hall, will focus on "The Role of Music in Religion in Appalachia."  This event is open to the public at no charge, and the community is invited to attend.

Steve and Ruth Smith have been playing Celtic and Appalachian music together for over 30 years. For this year's Allan R. Sharp Religion in Life Series event, the duo will perform and discuss Celtic influences on Appalachian religious music. Ruth plays the hammered and Appalachian mountain dulcimers, while Steve joins in on acoustic guitar and banjo.

Ruth studied music at the University of Illinois, and her hammered dulcimer compositions have been featured on NPR's "All Songs Considered."  Steve earned a Master of Arts degree in Appalachian Studies with an emphasis in Appalachian music and folk life from Appalachian State University.  Since 1997, he has taught audio production/recording at Appalachian State University.  Steve is an American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers award winner, and both Ruth and Steve have worked in the music industry in Nashville, Los Angeles, and Hawaii, and they have traveled internationally as ambassadors of Appalachian music. Their 2007 CD, "Dancin Cross the Strings," was featured on Fiona Ritchie's "Thistle & Shamrock." For additional information about the Smiths, visit their web site at www.steveandruth.com.

Established in 1991, the Allan R. Sharp Religion in Life Series brings to campus each fall semester distinguished performers and lecturers who focus on topics of practical Christian significance for the general public relating to contemporary issues. This lecture series was named in honor of Dr. Allan R. Sharp, professor emeritus of religion and philosophy, at the time of his retirement.  The late Dr. Sharp served on the Barton College faculty from 1953 - 1991.

For additional information, please contact Dr. Rodney A. Werline, Marie and Leman Barnhill Endowed Chair in Religious Studies at Barton College, at 252-399-6447 or email: rawerline@barton.edu.

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Questions?  Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu

WILSON, N.C. - The Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra's fall signature dinner concert "Symphony and Soul" will open a spectacular 2009-2010 concert season on Thursday Oct. 8 with a delightful program of musical selections and food to warm the soul. Featured soloist Melvin Tunstall III will return to Wilson for an encore performance on the heels of his superb portrayal of Peter in the world premiere musical "Drift" by Jeremy Schonfeld and directed by Lauren Kennedy for the grand opening of the new Lauren Kennedy and Alan Campbell Theatre on the Barton campus. Music director Mark N. Peterson will be conducting.

The evening will begin with a wine and cheese reception at 6:30 p.m. followed by the symphony performance at 7 p.m. After the concert, a sumptuous dinner buffet will conclude the evening. The event will be held at the Darden Alumni Center at 1600 Lipscomb Road.

Tickets are $25 per person, and reservations may be made by calling Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309. The deadline for reservations is Tuesday, Oct. 6.

Singer, songwriter, actor, playwright, dancer, and director Melvin Tunstall III is described as a triple-threat times two.  A native of North Carolina, Tunstall earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Musical Theatre at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. His favorite roles include Jesus in "Godspell," Judas in "Jesus Christ Superstar," Andy Lee in "42nd Street," Victor in "Smokey Joe's Café," and Flick in "Violet."  Also a budding playwright, Tunstall's debut musical, "BlOOm!" with music by Peterson, made its world premiere this past spring.

Tunstall will be performing four songs from musical theater with the orchestra, with three of these songs drawn from shows written in the 1970s. "Corner of the Sky" comes from Stephen Schwartz's 1972 hit "Pippin." With direction and choreography by Bob Fosse, "Pippin" stands as the 29th longest-running Broadway show.  The Rock Opera "Jesus Christ Superstar" was first appeared as a record album in 1970 and was later adapted by its composer Andrew Lloyd Webber for the Broadway stage. Sung by Judas, "Heaven on their Minds" opens the show and sets the tone for all that is to follow.  Produced first in 1970, Stephen Sondheim's "Company" is considered among the greatest achievements in American musical theater. The song "Being Alive" occurs at the end of the show where Bobby admits he wants to find someone to share his life, and to experience together all that is "Being Alive."  Also to be performed by Tunstall will be a song from his own creation "Bloom." "Growing Up" has been specially arranged and orchestrated for this concert.

The orchestra will also be performing works of Rimsky-Korsakov, Sibelius, Hayman, and Thelonious Monk.

For additional information about the 2009-2010 concert schedule, tickets for events or season membership, please contact Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309 or email: lmedlin@barton.edu.

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Questions?  Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

Wire-wrapped vase by Mark Gordon

WILSON, N.C. — The 2009-2010 exhibition season for the Barton Art Galleries begins with Mark Gordon: Recent Works.  The ceramics exhibition will open on Monday, Aug. 24, and will run until Friday, Sept. 18. An opening reception for the exhibition will be held on Sunday, Aug. 30 from 2-4 p.m. This event is open to the public at no charge, and the community is invited to attend.

A professor of ceramics at Barton College, Gordon fills the Virginia Thompson Graves Gallery with many of his iconic vessels. Forms in the exhibit, placed on individual pedestals and lining the walls, create a monolithic display evoking a quiet reverence as if in a place of worship.

"Clay is a universal medium; potters' vessels have formed an essential part of material culture, shared Gordon. "Often, in the vessels, Greek or Chinese forms seem to be echoed in my clay shapes." Works presented range from more traditional smooth-surfaced vessels to composite, coagulate encrusted versions. In these latter pieces, the surfaces retain a comfortable tension somewhere between chaos and structure. Their forms resemble things one might find in nature, but on the molecular level.

Gordon's inspiration is often derived from an eclectic mix of nature and plant growth, animal skeletons, machinery, scrap yards and through travel. He sees his artwork as a melding of idea and action, of inspiration and impulse. "I approach claywork as the creation, pulling form out of inchoate matter, as an ongoing experiment in seeking new direction through variation," Gordon said. "The physicality of clay, along with its remarkable ability to freeze action and respond to physical impact or retain any fleeting impression, immediately and permanently captured my interest."

From 1980 to 1983, Gordon taught at Altos de Chavón in La Romana, Dominican Republic, creating a vocational workshop for local youth. He later traveled throughout the Mediterranean observing and documenting traditional pottery and brickmaking.  "Knowing these traditional clay artisans has contributed to my education," Gordon added. "I continue to make ceramic vessels to celebrate and maintain a connection to traditional potters worldwide."

In contrast to the vessels, Gordon's installations in the Lula E. Rackley Gallery refer to architecture and industrialization. For Gordon, these works represent fragments, combined geometries, and biomorphic musings. "Geometry, being a form of math, has always served as a universal language for sculpture," shared Gerard Lange, director of exhibitions at Barton. "Gordon's use of these pure forms has placed the work in a global context, where many interpretations can be drawn by evaluating the sculptures from different cultural points of view. Influence of his time spent abroad is clearly evident in Gordon's complex manipulation and integration of these otherwise simple forms."

Gordon has presented over 100 lectures and workshops in 19 states and seven foreign countries. He has been recognized with numerous awards and grants and has held numerous art residencies across the nation as well as in Caracas, Venezuela; Cairo, Egypt; Madrid, Spain; Jerusalem, Israel; and La Romana, Dominican Republic.  In 1991, Gordon was a Fulbright Lecturer at the Facultad de Artes, Universidad Nacional in Obera, Argentina.

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Questions?  Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations at Barton College, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

Elizabeth Winstead

WILSON, N.C. - Barton College is pleased to announce a faculty voice recital to be performed by Elizabeth Winstead on Saturday, Aug. 29, at 4 p.m. The performance will be held at Howard Chapel on the Barton campus.  The recital is open to the public free of charge and the community is invited to attend.

Winstead is a lyric soprano who has performed extensively as a soloist in oratorio, opera, and musical theatre. She frequently appears in recitals and concert series singing a variety of music including classical, operatic, jazz, and musical theatre. Winstead serves as an adjunct lecturer in music at Barton College and an adjunct professor of music at Methodist University in Fayetteville.

The afternoon program will include the famous Mozart motet Exultate, Jubilate as well as the iconic aria Un bel di vedremo from Puccini's Madame Butterfly. Winstead will also perform art songs by Faure, Schubert and American composer John Duke.

Pianist Janie Bostick, associate professor and chair of the Department of Communication and Performing Arts at Barton, will be Winstead's accompanist.

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Questions?  Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations at Barton College, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

WILSON, N.C. - The Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra will present its Spring Concert on Sunday May 3, at 3 p.m., in Howard Chapel on the Barton College campus.  The orchestra, under the direction of Mark N. Peterson, will feature Barton College professor Phillip J. Valera performing George Frederic Handel's sprightly Concerto in F Major for Organ and Orchestra, Op.4 No.5.

Valera is the assistant professor of audio recording technology in the Department of Communication and Performing Arts at Barton College and the music director of St. Timothy's Church in Wilson.  Prior to moving to Wilson, he worked as an instructor of recording technology at the University of Arkansas in Pine Bluff.  He also held the positions of organist at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Lakeland, Fla., and music director for St. David's Episcopal Church in Lakeland.

Valera has performed numerous organ recitals in Florida, Arkansas, and in his native Massachusetts.  In 2006, he performed a concert at St. Timothy's Church entirely comprised of his own arrangements and compositions for electronic music and organ.

He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in organ performance from Boston University where he studied organ under Jack Fisher and Max Miller.  In 1998, Valera was an award-winning graduate from the Audio Recording Technology program at Full Sail Real World Education in Winter Park, Fla., from which he embarked on a second career that combines his love of music and music technology.

Handel was best known in his lifetime as a composer of operas and oratorios.  In order to fill the time between the scenes and acts of these dramatic productions, he would frequently perform movements from his wonderful concertos for organ and orchestra.  Handel was one of the first composers to use the organ in this manner, and these works were often adaptations of concertos and sonatas he wrote for other instruments.  The concerto to be presented at the spring concert will be familiar to many as an often-performed flute sonata.  Because of their lively, tuneful nature, these pieces became quite popular, and served to draw English organ music away from the solemn style of previous generations.  Because of Handel's influence, English composers began writing voluntaries and other organ works that were much livelier, often longer, and increasingly secularized.

The orchestra will also be performing Elgar's "Pomp and Circumstance March" No. 4 and Mozart's brilliant Symphony No. 40 in G minor.

Sir Edward Elgar wrote a series of six "Pomp and Circumstance" marches. The first four, composed between 1901 and 1907, helped to firmly establish his reputation as the preeminent English composer of his generation. Marches No.5 and No.6 were created much later with No.6 being assembled from sketches after the composer's death. The title is taken from Shakespeare's "Othello," Act III, Scene iii, which reads, "Farewell the neighing steed, and the shrill trump, The spirit-stirring drum, the ear-piercing fife, The Royal banner, and all quality, Pride, Pomp, and Circumstance of glorious war!"

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Symphony No. 40 in G minor is undeniably one of the most familiar and beloved works in the entire symphonic repertoire.  This popularity is a result of the immediately captivating nature of the melodies that fill every movement, the restrained romanticism of the first movement, and the astounding chromatic harmonies that foreshadow music of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.  All of these elements coalesce within a concise form, which is perfectly in keeping with the symphonic style of the late 18th century.  Mozart wrote his final three symphonies (No.39, No. 40, and No. 41) during an eight-week period in the summer of 1788, and these works stand among the great pillars of western art.

Following the concert, the audience is cordially invited to meet the musicians at a reception in the Barton Art Galleries hosted by ARAMARK Higher Education. Admission for the orchestra performance will be $10 at the door or by season ticket. All students within the community will be admitted free of charge as well as faculty, staff, and students of Barton College.

For additional information about the concert, please contact Lynn Medlin at 252-399-6309 or email: lmedlin@barton.edu.

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Questions?  Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

WILSON, N.C. - Plan to make Saturday, Feb. 14, a special Valentine's Day, and celebrate in gala fashion with the Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra at the eighteenth annual "Love the Symphony." The evening's performance, under the direction of Mark N. Peterson, will feature Stefano and Nina Tanchietti, the magical American Dramatic Tenor and Soprano Duo, performing musical scenes from their Grande Romanza®.

One of Wilson's premier social events of the year, this dinner concert will be an evening guaranteed to please both the ear and the palette. The event will begin with a wine and cheese reception at 6:30 p.m. followed by entertainment at 7 p.m. The delectable buffet, prepared by Barton's own master chefs, will be served at 8 p.m. following the concert.

Love the Symphony's program will begin with the Suite from "The Magnificent Seven," scored by Elmer Bernstein for the Academy Award-winning film. This will be followed by Stefano and Nina Tanchietti's performance of a vignette of scenes from Victor Herbert's Operettas. A second tribute to music in film will feature the orchestra's rendition of George Gershwin's "An American in Paris." And, Stefano and Nina Tanchietti will return to the stage to perform selections from Andrew Lloyd Weber's "Phantom of the Opera."

This distinguished tenor and soprano duo, combine their talents to provide a powerful and unforgettable experience for their audiences. They both possess glorious operatic voices, extraordinary physical beauty, incomparable acting ability and innate artistic expressiveness. From their first joint venture as college sweethearts as Marco and Gianetta in Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Gondoliers," to their first operatic pairing as Don Jose and Micaela in Bizet's "Carmen," to their most recent performances as Otello and Desdemona in Verdi's "Otello," their audiences have marveled at the special chemistry they share onstage.

Their story began in Massachusetts where they were born and raised. They both showed exceptional musical gifts at very early ages. Stefano's beautiful boy alto gradually developed into a young dramatic tenor with world-class potential. His formal musical studies began at age17, and he won a full scholarship to Boston University School of Fine Arts.

Nina's musical development began with ballet lessons at age eight, piano lessons at age 10 and voice lessons at age14. Dancing was initially her principal love and when she auditioned for the Boston Ballet at age 16, the director told her that she had the talent to become a great ballerina. But the following year the beauty of her young dramatic soprano also won her a scholarship to Boston University School of Fine Arts.

Over time, they have built extensive repertoires in opera, light opera, and musical comedy, and they are equally at home in all three mediums. And, because of their tremendous versatility and their love for various types of musical expression, the couple decided to create a special show that would highlight their numerous gifts. They also wanted to reach out to audiences that are not accustomed to experiencing the thrill of live voices coming directly at them without the aid of microphones and amplifiers. Thus was born "GRANDE ROMANZA®" musical scenes of love and passion from Broadway, Operetta, and Opera.

The popularity of "Love the Symphony" continues to grow following the change in venue four years ago to accommodate the ever-increasing number of guest reservations each year. Wilson Gymnasium on the Barton campus provides a spacious and elegantly transformed environment to provide the perfect backdrop for sweethearts and friends to enjoy the delightful classics performed by the orchestra.

"Love the Symphony" tickets are $50 per person, and reservations may be made by calling Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309. Please note that tables for eight are available by reservation. No tickets will be mailed.

Thanks to the generosity of the BB&T Wealth Management Division, a portion of your contribution is eligible for a tax deduction as a charitable gift.

Mark your calendars for this truly festive occasion.

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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations at Barton College, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

WILSON, N.C. - The Lighting of the Luminaries, a long-standing tradition for the Barton College community, will usher in the Christmas season on Tuesday, Dec. 2. The College family invites the surrounding community to join them for this festive celebration.

The celebration will begin with a festive candlelight dinner served in the Hamlin Student Center Dining Hall at 5 p.m. Cost for the meal is $6 for adults and $3 for children and students not on the meal plan.

At 5:45 p.m., join students as they light over 1,500 luminaries across 32 acres of the main campus. At 6 p.m., students, faculty, staff, friends of the College, and members of the community will gather on center campus for the blessing and lighting of the Christmas tree. The outdoor program will include brief remarks by Dr. Norval C. Kneten, president of Barton College, as well as musical selections performed by the College's Gospel Choir and the Sign Choir.

Immediately following the blessing and lighting of the tree, participants will move to Howard Chapel for the annual Hanging of the Greens, and a Christmas Program of Lessons and Carols featuring the Barton College Choir. There is no charge for the program.

For additional information about the Lighting of the Luminaries program, please contact Ashley Lutterloh in the Office of Student Activities at 252-399-6372 or the Rev. Hollie Woodruff, chaplain of the college, at 252-399-6368. For additional information about the choir program, please contact Mark Peterson, director of music, at 252-399-6535.

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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

WILSON, N.C. - The Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra welcomes acclaimed piano virtuoso Beth Levin to Wilson for the orchestra's Fall Concert on Sunday, Nov. 23, at 3 p.m. in Howard Chapel on the college campus. Levin will be performing Beethoven's boldly dramatic "Piano Concerto no. 3″ with the orchestra under the baton of Barton College music director Mark N. Peterson.

A native of Philadelphia, Levin is an acclaimed concerto soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, and recording artist. At age 12, Levin made her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and soon after was selected to study with Rudolf Serkin at the Curtis Institute of Music. "Mr. Serkin was an inspiration the moment he walked into a room." Levin recalls. "A single word evoking the eloquence of a poem."

As a concerto soloist, Levin has appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Boston Pops Orchestra, the Boston Civic Symphony, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, and numerous other symphony orchestras throughout the Americas, working with noted conductors such as William Smith, Arthur Fiedler, Benjamin Zander, Tonu Kalam, Sidney Rothstein, Milton Katims, Silas Huff, and Joseph Silverstein.

Levin made her New York solo recital debut in 1982 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Chamber music festival collaborations brought her to the Marlboro Festival, Casals Festival, Harvard, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the Ankara Music Festival, and the Blue Hill Festival. As a "Music from Marlboro" artist, she toured the United States and Canada.

The Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra also will be performing works by Bach, Mascagni, and Rossini. Orchestra member Steven Lewis, who is a graduate conducting major at East Carolina University, will conduct the overture to Rossini's opera "Semeramide."

Following the concert, the audience is cordially invited to meet the musicians at a reception in the Barton Art Museum hosted by ARAMARK Higher Education.

Admission for the fall orchestra performance will be $10 at the door or by season ticket. All students within the community will be admitted free of charge as well as faculty, staff and students of Barton College. For additional information, please contact Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309 or email: lmedlin@barton.edu.

The Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra is a college/community ensemble, and features professional musicians performing alongside a core of amateur and student musicians.

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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

WILSON, N.C. - The Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra's fall signature dinner concert "Symphony and Soul" will open a spectacular 2008-2009 concert season on Thursday Oct. 9 with a delightful program of musical selections and food to warm the soul. Music director Mark N. Peterson will be conducting, and featured performer and Wilson native Joel A. Martin will bring his trademark show "Jazzical" to the symphony audience for this event.

The evening will begin with a wine and cheese reception at 6:30 p.m. followed by the symphony performance at 7 p.m. After the concert, a sumptuous dinner buffet will conclude the evening. The event will be held at the Darden Alumni Center at 1600 Lipscomb Road.

Tickets are $25 per person, and reservations may be made by calling Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309. The deadline for reservations is Monday, Oct. 6.

"Jazzical," a marriage of classical and jazz, is an innovative genre, which bridges the gap while remaining true to both forms. Martin has released four Jazzical CDs to critical acclaim in such publications as "TIME Magazine," "The Washington Post," and "Piano Today Magazine" as well as feature articles for his Jazzical Arts-in-Education programs in "The New York Times."

Martin has performed as soloist with the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony, and the Delaware Symphony, as well as with the Springfield Symphony in Massachusetts, and the Hartford Symphony Orchestras premiering "Jazzical: Dueling Orchestras." Martin was the youngest competitor in the 1985 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, and he has toured Japan, Finland, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Germany, Austria, England, and France.

The year 2007 proved an extraordinary year for this composer and pianist who recorded his fifth CD titled "A Jazzical Christmas" featuring the Brooklyn Youth Chorus in all original Christmas and Hanukkah music. The CD will be released nationwide in 2008. Martin also collaborated and performed at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill and at the Kennedy Center with famed operatic singer Kathleen Battle. His debut of the eight movement "Requiem for Peace," featuring the poem "Caged Bird" by Maya Angelou and six other compositions, at Meymandi Hall in Raleigh was met with critical acclaim. And, in December 2007, "Jazzical" went on a concert tour in Russia and Kyrgyzstan.

Martin has had an equally busy year in 2008. He was a featured guest artist/composer on WCNY-PBS's live concert DVD with the YMCA Center for the Creative Arts Music Program with the Boys and Girls Choir of Harlem Alumni Ensemble, released in January. In March, Martin won a gold medal for the third consecutive year, with singers from the American Traditions Vocal Competition, at the Savannah Music Festival. In October, Martin will debut his own Jazzical Symphony Orchestra, and his not-for-profit Jazzical Arts, Inc., concerts in Sun Valley, Idaho, and Palm Beach Fla., as well as several additional high-definition television projects for PBS.

On November 15, Martin will debut his latest creation, the Jazzical Symphony Orchestra at its new home base, the Darien Arts Center, in Darien, Conn. This unique ensemble is comprised of 35 musicians from New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey who are equally adept at classical, jazz, musical theater, and rock music. The Jazzical Symphony Orchestra aims to blur all the parameters that comprise the traditional symphony and to program innovative concerts that are truly inclusive of the multi-cultural world in which we live. To this end, the Jazzical Symphony Orchestra will expand its roster in 2009 to include 25 of the area's finest young talent playing alongside professional musicians in a unique mentoring program.

For additional information about the 2008-2009 concert schedule, tickets for events or season membership, please contact Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309 or email: lmedlin@barton.edu.

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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.