Wed, April 17
Tenor Josaphat Contreras ’22 MM has won a 2024-25 Fulbright-García Robles grant to study mariachi at the National Mariachi Conservatory in Mexico City. Contreras graduated from New England Conservatory with a Master of Music in Vocal Pedagogy, where he was chosen as the commencement speaker for his graduating class of 2022.
Wed, April 17
New England Conservatory is delighted to announce that three musical luminaries will receive honorary degrees during its 153rd Commencement exercises on May 19 in Jordan Hall. Songwriter, recording artist, and philanthropist Paul Simon, who will also be the featured speaker; five-time Grammy-winning soprano, educator, and MacArthur Fellow Dawn Upshaw; and conductor Robert Spano, a four-time Grammy winner who is Music Director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Music Director Laureate of the Atlanta Symphony after 20 seasons at the helm, and who has served as Music Director of the Aspen Music Festival and School since 2011, will all receive honorary Doctor of Music degrees.
Wed, April 10
In an insightful reflection, NEC voice faculty member J.J. Penna shared his reactions to March's Liederabend performance,
This is the Place - Voices of Exile and Exodus. Curated by Tanya Blaich and featuring NEC student vocalists and pianists, this Liederabend explored displacement through the voices of travelers, immigrants, and refugees across the ages.
Tue, April 2
Soprano So Young Park ’12 MM, ’14 AD sang the role of Juliette in the Metropolitan Opera's final performance of Gounod's
Romeo and Juliette on Saturday, March 30, under the baton of conductor Yannick Nezet-Seguin. Park took the leading role after a casting change
Wed, March 13
NEC faculty member, composer, and music theorist Andrew Schartmann interviewed Erica J. Washburn, NEC’s Director of Choral Activities, on preparing a choir to sing Dmitri Shostakovich’s “Babi Yar” for the latest edition of the DSCH Journal, a biannual publication dedicated to the life and work of Shostakovich. Schartmann serves as Associate Editor for the DSCH Journal.
