This Week at the College of Music: Student Edition - Feb. 24, 2022

“As with anything in life, it’s important to remember that the road to success is rarely a straight line,” says Reuben Kebede, one of this year’s Honors Competition winners. “Things are likely to work out in your favor eventually if you put in the work.” In this edition of our monthly Dean’s Downbeat, John Davis reflects on our students’ successes, introduces new violin faculty—welcome, Alex Gonzalez!—and celebrates Susan Thomas’ BFA Excellence Award. Transcending pandemic burnout, “our faculty offer anchorage through their teaching excellence, and their wonderfully consistent artistic achievements as performers, composers and researchers,” he writes.  

Photo: Flutist Courtney Badura (BM ’23) and violinist Reuben Kebede (AD ’22) took the “gold” in this year’s Honors Competition. Honorable mentions include cellist Matthew Wiest and mezzo soprano Gabrielle Razafinjatovo. Congratulations to all who participated! 

• In Search of Inspiration: Interviews with Notable Choral Conductors—a new book by the college’s Director of Choral Studies Gregory Gentry—features 15 highly respected choral conductors from around the world, each answering fundamental questions about how they shaped their achievements. Contributors include former faculty (Joan Cantoni Conlon, George Lynn) and alumni (Charlene Archibeque, Eph Ehly); interviewers also include alumni (Emile Bertram, Corie Brown, Aaron Harp, Paul Thompson). 
• Music Professor Rebecca Maloy to deliver Distinguished Research Lecture: Maloy, professor of musicology and director of the Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies, will deliver her in-person Distinguished Research Lecture, “Constructing Sanctity Through Sound in Early Medieval Iberia,” on March 8. Join us!
• Women’s Leadership Symposium 2022, coming up on March 2: This year’s theme is Filling Each Other’s Cups—Collaboration and Compassion. Learn more + register
• Our Diverse Musicians’ Alliance (DiMA) invites performers of music, dance, poetry and other forms of art to participate in “Roots and Branches,” an annual show featuring diverse voices and art forms. All types of performances are welcome. Learn more + apply by March 5
• Office of the President’s Annual Diversity, Equity + Inclusion (DEI) Award: Honoring individuals and units who have demonstrated outstanding commitment and made significant contributions to advance DEI within the University of Colorado community. Learn more + apply by March 11
• This weekend in our community: NAACP Boulder County presents the Grammy-Award winning Fisk Jubilee Singers on Feb. 27, 2 p.m. at Macky Auditorium. Learn more + register for this free, public event 

• Spring 2022 campus commencement at Folsom Field stadium: Check out ceremony details + logistics … and stay tuned about the College of Music’sin-person commencement festivities!
• Stay current with the College of Music in our online newsroom
• COVID-19 protocols on campus: CU Boulder’s indoor mask mandate remains in effect in public indoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status or Boulder County mask requirements.