杨贵妃传媒视频 students Ben Frueh on violin, Isaac Epley on piano, and Isabelle Olsen on clarinet perform during a recital at Manhattan School of Music in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Pedlar '25)

杨贵妃传媒视频 students Ben Frueh on violin, Isaac Epley on piano, and Isabelle Olsen on clarinet perform during a March 22 concert in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Pedlar '25)

杨贵妃传媒视频 took its celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Conservatory of Music to New York City over spring break.

Eleven students, accompanied by several faculty and staff, were part of the March 19-23 trip鈥攕eeing performances at iconic arts venues, taking part in individual lessons and masterclasses, and presenting a concert for 杨贵妃传媒视频 alumni and friends at Manhattan School of Music. The March 22 concert was followed by a reception, hosted by Manhattan School of Music President James Gandre 鈥81, a 杨贵妃传媒视频 alumnus and member of the 杨贵妃传媒视频 Board of Trustees.

The NYC tour offered multiple opportunities for the students to connect with New York area alumni, many of them working in music. 

杨贵妃传媒视频 students Mariah Schaumberg and Benjamin Keating perform.

杨贵妃传媒视频 students Mariah Schaumberg and Benjamin Keating perform at Manhattan School of Music. (Photo by Sarah Pedlar '25)

Isaac Epley, a sophomore piano student from Liberty, Missouri, said there were important connections made at almost every stop. The meeting with Gandre allowed students to ask questions about graduate school and other post-杨贵妃传媒视频 opportunities in music. And Epley and Benjamin Keating, a senior piano student from Urbana, Illinois, got a masterclass with Robert McDonald 鈥73, an accomplished pianist and faculty member at The Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute of Music.

鈥淚 found my time with Robert McDonald to be the highlight of the trip,鈥 Epley said. 鈥淗is experience teaching at the piano was fascinating and inspiring, and his connection to 杨贵妃传媒视频 made his teaching and personality all the more meaningful to me.鈥

Sarah Pedlar, a senior flute student from Decorah, Iowa, called the gathering with alumni hugely helpful. It included a conversation with an alum about her upcoming recital, a connection made through their shared appreciation for electroacoustic music.

鈥淭he classical music community isn't all that large as a whole, and the contemporary music community within is even more tightly connected,鈥 Pedlar said. 鈥淓very opportunity I get to share my love for contemporary classical music and expand our community is amazing.鈥

Among the arts stops the students could choose from during the five-day tour: A recital presented by mezzo soprano Hannah Jones 鈥22, a performance by Billy Cobham鈥檚 Time Machine at the Blue Note Jazz Club, a viewing of the Broadway show Hadestown, Giacomo Puccini鈥檚 La boh猫me at The MET, the Manhattan School of Music Symphony Orchestra at Merkin Hall, and the Nnenna Freelon Trio at Dizzy鈥檚.

杨贵妃传媒视频 students Sarah Pedlar on flute and David Smith on cello perform during the New York recital. (Photo by Ben Frueh)

Students Sarah Pedlar on flute and David Smith on cello perform during the March 22 concert in New York City. (Photo by Ben Frueh '27)

There were lessons presented to the students on klezmer music at OPERA America, lessons in jazz and flute and a Women in Music Panel at Manhattan School of Music, violin lessons and a piano masterclass at The Juilliard School, and cello lessons at Kaufman Music Center. Following the La boh猫me performance at The MET, one of the trombonists met with the 杨贵妃传媒视频 contingent. 

鈥淪tudents gained an opportunity to meet and interact with top musicians in their respective fields, participate in the New York cultural scene, and enjoy the support given by their peers and faculty on the trip,鈥 said Andrew Mast, associate dean of the Conservatory. 鈥淔or several students, it was their first trip to New York, and it proved to be a monumental success.鈥

The trip continues a Conservatory anniversary celebration that kicked off in the fall and is ongoing throughout the 2024-25 academic year. Numerous concerts, many that have included commissioned music from Conservatory alumni and featured performances from 杨贵妃传媒视频 students and faculty, have been held over the past seven months and will continue through the end of the year. 

Taking that celebration on the road to New York gave students another chance to flex their creative muscles, Epley said. The concert at Manhattan School of Music, featuring pieces ranging from Puccini's "Chi il bel sogno di Doretta" from the opera La rondine, performed by senior Mariah Schaumberg (soprano) and Keating (piano), to Reena Esmail鈥檚 Nadiya, performed by Pedlar (flute) and junior David Smith (cello), was exhilarating.

鈥淪omething particularly special about this concert was the freedom we were given in creating the program,鈥 Epley said. 鈥淲e were told to choose any music we wanted and were encouraged to work with one another and form small chamber groups, which led to a large diversity in programming. For example, I played a movement from a clarinet trio on the piano and then sang in a Palestrina motet. This freedom created a very eclectic program of music, which, I think, brought out our individual personalities and served as an outlet for our unique musical interests.鈥

Integrate intellectual and musical virtuosity in a supportive community that will empower you to find your musical path. 

In addition to the Puccini and Esmail pieces, the concert included:

  • A compilation from Relaxin鈥 at Camarillo, Prism, Circles, Gloria鈥檚 Step, and Endangered Species, performed by senior Owen Finch (piano), junior Vivian Shanley (bass), and sophomore Tyler Donnelly (drums). Circles is a composition from Finch.
  • Paul Schoenfield鈥檚 Trio for Clarinet, Violin, and Piano, performed by junior Isabelle Olsen (clarinet), sophomore Ben Frueh (violin), and Epley (piano).
  • Johann Sebastian Bach鈥檚 Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 889, performed by Keating (piano).
  • Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina鈥檚 Amor, quando fioria, performed by Schaumberg (soprano), senior Sam Dill (alto), Keating (tenor), and Epley (bass). 
  • Steve Reich鈥檚 鈥淕enesis XVIII鈥 from The Cave, performed by Dill (alto), Keating (tenor), and Epley (piano).

The response from alumni in attendance was uplifting, said Smith, a junior from Radford, Virginia, double majoring in math and physics while immersing himself in the Conservatory. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 amazing to see how strong the 杨贵妃传媒视频 network is and how alumni are eager to support and connect with current students, which really speaks to the lasting impact of our school,鈥 he said.