When Music, Media, and Management Merge

By Laura Ilioaei ’23, November 5, 2021

Three schools collaborate on production of a live music performance.

Conductor in front of an orchestra, and a student in front of a computer

With the help of students from Park Productions, footage from October 7 concerto is going to be packaged and distributed by the students from the Entertainment and Media graduate program in the School of Business.

(Photos by Noy Kremer)

Each semester, the Ithaca College School of Music puts on countless amazing live performances courtesy of students, faculty and staff. But one performance in early October highlighted something else: a strong spirit of collaboration

The October 7 Concerto for Drum Set and Wind Ensemble performance featured new work by Dana Professor emeritus of music theory, history, and composition Dana Wilson, and drum solos by assistant professor of musical performance Greg Evans.

This was no ordinary performance. Behind the cacophony of sound, a larger production was underway. Students from the Entertainment and Media graduate program in the School of Business, and students in Park Productions, housed from the Roy H. Park School of Communications were working together to create a short feature of the work to broadcast and stream.

“Intentional, interdisciplinary opportunities like this one honor our roots by embracing creative collaborations that provide students from across campus with unique experiences. This celebrates not only who we are, but who we can be, as we continue to evolve in ways that prioritize connection and holistic learning.”

Interim President La Jerne Terry Cornish

While members of the Entertainment and Media cohort knew they wanted to work with the School of Music to create a large-scale class project, they knew that they couldn’t do it alone.

“In order to execute that, and to bring the vision to fruition, we had to work with Park Productions in order to get the equipment and the production value we’ve wanted,” said Alex Kosick, MBA ’22.

The night of the performance, several students from Park Productions were dispersed throughout Ford Hall to film the performance.

“We are really delighted to bring the premiere of Dana Wilson's new work, ‘Concerto for Drum Set and Wind Ensemble,’ featuring Greg Evans, to a wider audience,” said Steve Rathe, executive in residence of the MBA program and lecturer in the School of Business. “Wilson is a beloved emeritus professor of the Music School, a nationally respected modern composer, and a fitting subject for this first official collaboration between the School of Music, Roy H. Park School of Communications, and the MBA/EM production company South Hill Entertainment.”

The ability of Park Productions students to produce professional-level work made the decision to partner with them clear.

(Photo by Alex Kosick '22)

The footage is in the process of being edited by members of the Entertainment and Media cohort. Once it’s been edited, the cohort will build a marketing campaign and release schedule and take it to regional broadcasters. The current plan is to release the finished product in early spring.

“The real thing is to take everything they’re learning in the Business School about accounting, statistics, marketing, international marketing, and global business, and bringing it together and actually saying ‘I was a part of producing, and bringing a product to the market,’” said Rathe.

More than merely allowing students to complete a class project, this endeavor embodied the collaborative spirit that’s envisioned by the college’s strategic plans. It’s one of the first time the three schools have teamed up to make a production.

“It's great to see this collaboration ... It’s both good experience and reflects the real professional world, where multi-media is the norm. They can learn collaboration, of course, but also that the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts.”

Dana Wilson, Dana professor emeritus, music theory, history, and composition

The collaboration wasn’t without its challenges, however.

“The biggest challenge would be the timing of the performance because our class started on August 23, and we had to ramp up pretty quickly to plan and execute,” said Johnine McCartney, assistant professor of marketing. “I have to say, we’ve had tremendous cooperation. We’ve emphasized initializing our team and clearly establishing student roles.”

Wilson believes this partnership is beneficial for everyone. “It’s great to see this collaboration,” he said. “There should be much more of it in that it's both good experience and reflects the real professional world, where multi-media is the norm. They can learn collaboration, of course, but also that the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts.”