The Spring 2024 Voice Intensive will take place from Thursday, March 21-Wednesday, March 27.  

Designed in the spirit of collaboration and exchange, it is intended to add depth and breadth to the traditional voice curriculum.

Voice Intensive seeks to promote the Center of Music's mission to educate students who transform the human condition through the art and practice of music.

SIGN-UP TO ATTEND A WORKSHOP

Some of the workshops have an attendance cap. Participants are encouraged to sign-up in advance.

WORKSHOP SCHEDULE

Collaborative Piano Masterclass with an Emphasis on Voice

4-6PM, Hockett Family Recital Hall

Presented by Madeline Slettedahl

Madeleine Slettdahl, Pianist for Will Liverman’s recital will present a masterclass for piano/vocal duos. 

Q&A with Will Liverman

6-7:30PM, Hockett Family Recital Hall

Baritone Will Liverman engages students in a 50 minute Q&A. 

The Manley and Doriseve Thaler Vocal Concert Series presents: Will Liverman, baritone in recital with Madeline Slettdahl, pianist 

8:15-9:45PM, Hockett Family Recital Hall

Called “a voice for this historic moment” (Washington Post), Liverman is the recipient of the 2022 Beverly Sills Artist Award by The Metropolitan Opera and is the co-creator of The Factotum, an opera first premieres at Lyric Opera of Chicago. 

Singing Improvisation for Everyone

4-5PM, Beeler

Presented by Patrice Pastore

Engaging in improvisational activities relaxes the mind, fires up the circulatory engines, and leads to a greater sense of wellbeing.  Even the initial fear about improvisation, once the group experiences the fun of not knowing what to anticipate, can effect a reduction in anxiety. 

YOUSAIDSHESAIDHESAID

5-6PM, Zoom

Presented by composer Molly Joyce, Librettist Christopher Oscar Peňa, and composer Austin Regan.

Written to be performed in rep with the classic work, Die Schöne Müllerin, YousaidShesaidHesaid traces the same timeline but from the other character in the story, who historically has had no voice – the “girl of the mill” herself. The new work asks the unresolved question that has existed since Wilhelm Müller wrote the text for Schubert’s original: how does the mil l-girl feel about the situation? Yousaid provides a dramatic and musical juxtaposition that deepens understanding of Schubert’s work and its relevance in our time, while offering possibilities for the other character. Composed for a single female voice and pianist, the work utilizes textual and musical elements of the original through textual connections, distortions, and repeated echoes. 

PERFORMANCE OF YOUSAIDHESAIDSHESAID

7-8PM, Nabenhauer

Presented by Athena Rajnai ‘23, soprano and Mary Holzhauer, pianist
 

Conceived by playwright Christopher Oscar Peña, director Austin Regan, pianist Patrick Jones, and composer Molly Joyce, YousaidShesaidHesaid juxtaposes modern perspectives with Schubert's song cycle Die schöne Müllerin. Performed by IC alum Athena Rajnai and IC Pianist Mary Holzhauer.

Good diction is good vocalism

4-5PM, Iger

Presented by Patrice Pastore

Working on a song through the rules of the International Phonetic Alphabet in language dictions can improve the quality and clarity of one's sound. Nothing substitutes for learning vocal technique, but working on diction through the IPA can be an additional benefit to your singing.

SELF CARE FOR THE PERFORMING MUSICIAN

12-1PM, Nabenhauer

Presented by Ron Dow

Ithaca College Social worker Ron Dow, passionate about the use of the expressive arts in counseling, leads a session on self-care for the performing musician.  

HEALING THROUGH THE POWER OF THE VAGUS NERVE

1-2PM, Nabenhauer

Presented by Seiko ‘21

This session engages experimental and evidence-based practices that will encourage artists to explore their bodies as living, breathing instruments in the form of healing through the power of the vagus nerve. All attendees may participate in basic exercises, and 3-4 singers persession will prepare (1) art song and/or operatic aria to engage with tangible practice methods. 

MASTERCLASS: THE SONGS OF DIE SCHONE MULLERIN

4-5PM, Hockett Family Recital Hall

Presented by tenor Colin Ainsworth, pianist Laura Loewen, Dr. Carol Wiebe and Counsellor Danna McDonald

The music of Die Schöne Müllerin will be explored in this 2-hour masterclass through a health and wellness lens, sharing practicing and performance insights that focus on processes and techniques that foreground selfcare. Led by tenor Colin Ainsworth, pianist Laura Loewen, Dr. Carol Wiebe, and Counsellor Danna McDonald. 

HEALING THROUGH THE POWER OF THE VAGUS NERVE

3-4PM, Beeler

Presented by Seiko ‘21

This session engages experimental and evidence-based practices that will encourage artists to explore their bodies as living, breathing instruments in the form of healing through the power of the vagus nerve. All attendees may participate in basic exercises, and 3-4 singers persession will prepare (1) art song and/or operatic aria to engage with tangible practice methods. 

Performance - Die Schone Mullerin: The Radical Connection between Music and Wellness 

7-8PM, Hockett Family Recital Hall

Featuring IC student  duos and guest performers 

Post-concert round table with Ron Dow/Guests from the Die Schöne Müllerin Project 

As a culmination of the three-day Die Schöne Müllerin Project, our guests will perform the song cycle in collaboration with voice/piano duos from Ithaca College.  Carol and Danna will start the concert by introducing the wellness and self-care processes we explored throughout the workshop. A post-concert roundtable discussion at 8pm of the process and pitfalls exploring this kind of work will end the evening.  

THE DIE SCHÖNE MÜLLERIN PROJECT

Explore the seminal song cycle “Die Schöne Müllerin” by Franz Schubert, a work for voice and piano, through the lens of healthcare and wellness. Students will have the ability to participate in a 3-day residency culminating in a shared performance of the work by student duos and the team of invited professionals.

Masterclass: Tuesday, 3/26 at 4PM  in the Hockett Family Recital Hall

Performance: Wednesday, 3/27 at 7PM in the Hockett Family Recital Hall

There will be a post concert discussion facilitated by Ron Dow and the guests from the Die Schöne Müllerin Project.

COLIN AINSWORTH

Colin Ainsworth

Colin Ainsworth has appeared with various opera companies including the Canadian Opera Company, Seattle Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, Pacific Opera Victoria, and the Royal Opera (London) performing as Lensky in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, Tom in Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress, and Steuerman in Wagner’s Der Fliegende Holländer. On the concert stage, he has worked with conductors Leonard Slatkin, John Nelson, Nicolas McGegan, Leon Botstein, and Dame Jane Glover.

Lauren Loewen

Praised for expressivity, virtuosity, and committed playing, Canadian collaborative pianist Laura Loewen is an extremely versatile pianist equally comfortable in traditional and contemporary idioms.   Dedicated to sharing her passion for ensemble playing and coaching, she is Professor of Collaborative Piano and the Vocal Coach at the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Faculty of Music and was appointed to the position of Associate Dean (Undergraduate Programs) in 2020.

Carol Weibe

As a family physician, chamber musician, and former hospital executive, Dr. Carol Wiebe uses her broad training and experience to design opportunities and spaces where people can find meaning and heal. Carol studied music performance (piano, flute) before becoming a family physician and continues to enjoy performing.

Danna McDonald

Danna McDonald is a Registered Marriage and Family Therapist and is a Counsellor at the University of Manitoba. She is honoured to be the embedded counsellor in the Desaultels Faculty of Music, which allows her to work with music students in their personal, educational and musical journeys. Some of her areas of expertise include eating disorders and body image, self-compassion, trauma and emotion work. She enjoys being outdoors, volunteering in the community, and spending time with friends, family and her two dogs, who keep her life both messy and full of love.