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José Antonio Abreu, founder of El Sistema, has often said that “El Sistema is not a system but a process.” He encourages all of us not to copy the work of El Sistema but to create solutions that fit the needs of our own communities throughout the United States and... Sistema Fellows Program

Hello, everyone! My name is Amanda, and I am a Soprano in Chamber Singers this year. Being a freshman in a music conservatory with talent spewing from every possible angle of our little community of NEC can be quite overwhelming at times. Not only are we trying to adjust to a new environment, but we’re trying to manage homework from all areas of our education, whether it be practicing for Solfege class or making sure we’re supporting our voices the right way after hours of lessons and choral rehearsals. We are surrounded by a tremendously talented student body day after day, and we aspire to eventually gain the level of musicality that these students have.

Chamber Singers has made this transition from “high school level” to “conservatory style” musicianship so much easier in several ways. First of all, Erica, our conductor, makes the environment so welcoming and easy to work in every Wednesday. I feel that we have a very balanced amount of fun and hard work (and we get rewarded with baked goods…not saying this is the best part! haha.) She is extremely picky when it comes to making the group in sync and perfect, so when she compliments us, we know that we’ve finally been able to achieve the ultimate sound for whatever piece we may be doing.

Second of all, the older students in the group are extremely talented and seasoned chamber singers, and raise the bar for the group’s overall musical aura. As a freshman, I appreciate this so much because every time I come out of a rehearsal, I feel inspired to better myself in terms of vocal preparation and technique.

And lastly, this choir has helped me in all of my other classes; my solfege skills have vastly improved because we had used them to help us learn notes whenever we began a new piece, and I now know so much more about diction in various languages such as English, Russian, Hungarian and German.

Wednesdays are always a treat because I get to start them with CS rehearsals!

The tour is nearing for us, and we cannot wait to express our passion for music with all of you! Stay tuned for more updates on our group, and I hope you enjoy reading about our journey (and hopefully see the end results!) :)

1. I am a senior vocal performance major
2. I am from Connecticut
3. I am a Libra.

The February edition, including an article by current Sistema Fellow Xochitl Tafoya, of Tricia Tunstall and Eric Booth's monthly publication chronicling the emerging field of El Sistema-inspired activity in the US and beyond is found here. Sistema Fellows Program

Photo by Xochitl Tafoya Sistema Fellows Program

I am a Senior Classical Vocal Performance Major, this is my 4th year in Chamber Singers and I have a cat (Abe) and a turtle (Nicodemus).

1.  I am a second-year Undergraduate Vocal performance major.
2.  I love early music as well as opera, but musicians like Frank Sinatra and Nat-King Cole, and bands like Fleetwood Mac and Journey all have a special place in my heart.
3.  I love cooking tremendously.

1.  I am a second-year Undergraduate Vocal performance major.
2.  I love early music as well as opera, but musicians like Frank Sinatra and Nat-King Cole, and bands like Fleetwood Mac and Journey all have a special place in my heart.
3.  I love cooking tremendously.

With the close of the fall semester on Jan. 26th NEC’s School of Continuing Education presented end of semester and certificate recitals.  Here are some more highlights.

Venkatesh Balasubramanian’s Professional Studies Certificate in Composition final recital.  Just one of his many original works performed on the evening of February 2nd, 2013.

 

The Composer in NEC’s School of Continuing Education Professional Studies Certificate program, Venkatesh Balasubramanian.

A few of the many NEC College students performing on the evening’s certificate recital.

Venkatesh and all of the NEC players.  Congrats to all!

Hello, my name is Tim Ayres-Kerr, and I sing first tenor in the NEC Chamber Singers.

Being a part of Chamber Singers is simply different than being in any other choir. The difference being that each member is training primarily for a career as a soloist, in opera, oratorio, and even jazz. We all are in the process of mastering the art of bel canto and learning to use our voices in the healthiest way possible, whether it be for classical singing or otherwise. What is especially unique about the Chamber Singers is that as an ensemble, we accept our healthy singing for what it is  and all strive individually to find our efficient placement and ring and spin in the sound (we sing with vibrato). We have never been asked by our director to squeeze our voices into a mold to create that “choral” sound we are so likely to hear in the music of modern composers. We take time out of our lessons with our private voice teachers to learn how to mark for rehearsal, and make our unique solo voices work for us in the ensemble, rather than allow us to stick out. Straight tone may make ensembles sound “blended,” but if one were to ask Lamperti, the author of Vocal Wisdom, or any of the old Italian voice teachers whose genius is preserved in their writings, straight pressed tone is not healthy singing, and that’s as simple as it gets.

We are the Chamber Singers. We are training to use our instruments in the most efficient way, and our method of singing choral literature is simply the right way. And we’re going on tour.

My top priority -- of course -- is to protect the young people who study here, our faculty and staff, and all the many thousands of concert visitors we have every year. But this mandate necessitates negotiating a way through a challenging Scylla and Charybdis of choices. Tony Woodcock http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-woodcock/

1. I am a Undergraduate Vocal Performance major in the Class of 2016.
2. I was so grateful to have the chance to perform in both Women’s Choir and Mixed Choir for the past two years at NY All State in Rochester.
3. I’m a total musical theatre junkie and proud!

Once again, we find ourselves at the end of a long football season of the National Conservatory Athletics Association (NCAA) in which New England Conservatory has emerged victorious. This year’s NCAA Super Bowl was a hard-fought battle between the NEC Penguins and the Colburn Cougars. NEC pulled off the thrilling 24-17 victory with the help of their star quarterback, Paul Lueders, who threw for two touchdowns, ran for another, and dazzled the crowd with the big oboe solo from Don Juan.

The road to the championship was a long one. NEC edged out The Curtis Institute in the semifinals after a comeback led by the electric and eclectic halfback, Billy McShane, who ran for two touchdowns, kicked the winning field goal, and amazed coaches and audience members alike with a sideline saxophone serenade. Colburn ousted Juilliard in the previous round to advance to the championship. The victory was decided when a Juilliard player fumbled the ball and refused to pick it up because it touched the ground, allowing a Colburn Cougar to recover the fumble seventy-nine yards for the go-ahead touchdown.

At the beginning of the year, it seemed that Berklee College of Music would be a force to be reckoned with, but as the season went on, it was clear that Berklee was only good at ultimate Frisbee. The preseason number-one-ranked team, the Eastman Eagles, faltered down the stretch, losing to the Cleveland Institute of Music, Peabody, and Indiana University’s Jacobs School before getting smashed like the hammer in Mahler 6 by Curtis in the first round of the playoffs.

The Penguins were led by their bold and talented coach, Hankus Netsky. When asked to comment on the victory, Netsky replied, “I didn’t know we had a football team or a newspaper.”

The road to a repeat will be lengthy and difficult. Juilliard, Colburn, and Curtis will all be restocked with new recruits, and Boston Conservatory is coming very close to closing a deal with Keith Lockhart to be their new head coach. However, the NEC football team will be at it again once fall rolls around, primed to defend their trophy— a golden bust of Ludwig von Beethoven.

Hello, everyone!

Thanks so much for joining all of us on this adventure! The Chamber Singers (CS) are a group of highly energetic, eager and passionate musicians and are so excited to bring you along on our tour, be it literally, virtually or both! I’ve been a part of the CS since my freshmen year at NEC and can’t believe that it’s been almost four years. This group of people have not only been a source of creating music and artistic endeavors, but also an incredibly close, loving, supporting and caring family. With every rehearsal, performance and everything in between, they remind me how lucky I am to wake up in the morning and say “I get to do what I love every single day.” They push me to every corner of my comfort circle and WAYYYYYYYYYYYYY beyond it. We laugh, we cry, we talk in accents, and we get to sing music from all over the world in an abundance of different languages. The best part of it all, is that we get to share it with all of you. This tour for me is so much more then just going to a number of different venues and performing some songs. It is a piece of my story that I get to share with all of you and connect through the universal language of music. So, from the bottom of my whole mind, heart and soul, thank you for taking time to read about us, to listen and to share your joy in the beauty that is music. Sending big hugs to all of you! See you on the road! :)

P.S. We are a big hugging group, so don’t be afraid to meet us, talk with us and share in a hug. We will happily return the love!

Hugs and smiles,
Julia

Have you seen the newest issue of the Penguin floating around NEC in the last couple of days? It’s finally here, and you can pick up your very own free copy in Jordan Hall, the St. Botolph building, or the Student Activities Center!

This issue is all about spreading the love in every form possible. We’ll start with the traditional definition of love by speaking with married NEC faculty members. We’ll introduce you to our new writers, with whom you might fall in love! We’ll tell you how to spark your own romance in the Jordan Hall elevators. And we’ll cover anonymous love with an exclusive interview with NEC Compliments.

Special thanks to our amazing Penguin Penmen for helping make this issue fantastic!

Read it online here:

 

 1.) Am a sophomore (class of 2015); my major is classical voice (tenor)

2.) Am half-Pakistani on my Dad’s side.

3.) LOVE GOOD FOOD/am kind of a food snob haha :)

This past week has been packed with end of semester recitals for NEC’s School of Continuing Education.  Here are a few pictures to highlight the week.

 

Jazz faculty Gary Fieldman (drums) coaches his School of Continuing Education ensemble in their final recital in NEC’s Pierce Hall.

 

NEC’s School of Continuing Education Certificate student Migle Zaliukaite gives her final voice recital in fulfillment of the Certificate of Merit.

 

 

Jazz faculty Gary Fieldman (drums) coaches his School of Continuing Education ensemble in their final recital in NEC’s Pierce Hall.

 

Amy Knight (center), Stefan Riley (right), Xixi Zhou, piano (not pictured) perform along with Migle Zaliukaite on her final voice certificate recital.

 

Amy Knight (center), Stefan Riley (right), and Xixi Zhou (piano) perform Soave sia il vento from Cosi fan Tutte along with Migle Zaliukaite (left) on her final voice certificate recital in NEC’s Pierce Hall.

 

Migle Zaliukaite and Stefan Riley perform Il core vi dono from Cosi fan Tutte

 

Post performance.  From left: Xixi Zhou, Migle Zaliukaite, Stefan Riley and Amy Knight

As a student (classical vocalist) at New England Conservatory, I treasure the opportunity to be a part of a musical family and community where there seems to be a general understanding that consummate musicianship is more important than talent. Sure, we are all talented at NEC; that’s why we got in here in the first place. However, talent in and of itself is not what being a student at this prestigious institution is about. It is about acquiring the invaluable skills and the discipline necessary to succeed as an artist in contemporary society. Being punctual, having sight-reading skills, aural skills, respect for colleagues and a sense of ensemble –all of these will carry a musician much further than simply being able to sing or play an instrument reasonably well, and as such are crucial to success.

I strongly feel that no aspect of my studies has allowed me to apply good musicianship skills I have begun to acquire more than being a member of the NEC Chamber Singers. I truly feel blessed to be a part of a small ensemble of dedicated and gifted singers, but with this comes responsibility.  It requires being on time, because absence or tardiness in such a small group is much more readily noticed. It requires excellent sight-reading ability in order to quickly learn the notes of a lot of music in order to move on to the much more difficult task of interpretation. It requires excellent listening skills, in order to be aware of other voices and create a unified sound as an ensemble. However, most importantly of all, being a Chamber Singer requires maintaining a great deal of respect for your fellow members. All of us could easily stand on our own as soloists, but that is not the point of the group. If anyone tried to make their voice more easily heard than others, they would be undermining the group, plain and simple. It is amazing to have such a great group of humble singers willing to contribute their talent only as is necessary to create a homogenous sound. What a thing to behold.

 

-Evan Rizvi

Tony’s latest blog for Huffington Post is all about scary books and movies that we love to fear. Read it now HERE.

Tony’s latest blog for Huffington revisits what makes the Berlin Philharmonic so great. Read about it HERE.