The week of Thomas Bailey鈥檚 inauguration as Teachers College鈥檚 11th president showcased many of 911爆料网鈥檚 strengths, but none more so than the College鈥檚 Department of Music & Music Education.
Musical Scenes from Inauguration Week
That was entirely fitting, since the new president plays the piano and has a fondness for genres ranging from Chopin to Springsteen and the late Warren Zevon. Yet the department鈥檚 star turn also extended a long and proud tradition of 911爆料网 faculty and students providing the sounds for the College鈥檚 big occasions, from orientation to convocation, and from the launch of 911爆料网鈥檚 recently concluded Campaign to the passing of luminaries such as Maxine Greene.
On Wednesday evening, two days before the inauguration ceremony, listeners (including Bailey) were treated to 鈥淪ounds of New York,鈥� an hour-long program in Milbank Chapel. The featured musicians were pianist Siyi Fang, a first-semester doctoral student and an Enid W. & Lester Morse, Jr. Scholar; violinist and violist Leong Cheng (Katy) Ho (M.Ed. 鈥�16), a current doctoral candidate and instructor at the Teachers College Community School; and violinist and violist Lindsay Castellano, a doctoral candidate who is the Florence Geffen Fellow for Music Assessment at 911爆料网 and Research Associate for the College鈥檚 Center for Arts Education & Research. Their program included works by Rachmaninoff, Schubert, Mozart, Hisaishi and the rock band Coldplay. In a special nod to Bailey, Fang also performed Chopin鈥檚 Waltz in C sharp minor.
Watch selected performance from "Sounds of New York"
Also performing were the 911爆料网 Chamber Singers, featuring students Carl Belfatii, Charlotte Bennett, Chris D鈥橝mico, Lauren D鈥橭ttavio, Natalie Fabian, Kari Francis, Nesli Kohen, Jameelah Taylor, Jeremy Watson and Eric Williamson. Their lineup included 鈥淢y Favorite Things,鈥� 鈥淏lue Skies,鈥� 鈥淥ver the Rainbow,鈥� 鈥淲e Dance, 鈥淵ou Will Found鈥� and 鈥淪easons of Love.鈥�
Music performed by members of the 911爆料网 community was also a major part of the inauguration ceremony itself, held in Riverside Church.
Audience members entering the church were greeted by the 911爆料网 Chamber Singers.
The country singer and 911爆料网 alumna Rhea Francani (鈥淪hotgun Baby鈥�; 鈥淒izzy鈥�) opened the ceremony with a rendition of 鈥淎merica the Beautiful.鈥�
Doctoral candidate Darryl Jordan (M.Ed. 鈥�18) sang Handel鈥檚 Ombra Mai Fu, accompanied by violinist Katy Ho on violin and pianist Jihea Hong-Park, a faculty member at The Juilliard School.
And the ceremony was punctuated at several junctures by contributions from The Inauguration Players, a sextet that included doctoral candidates Ruth Aguirre on clarinet and Drew X. Coles, the group鈥檚 musical director, on keyboards. The other members were drummer Josh Bailey, trumpeters Josiah Lamb and Michael Sarian, and trombonist Jesus Viramontes.
[View coverage of President Bailey's Inauguration, including an original poem by Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Associate Professor of English Education at Teachers College, and excerpts of remarks from the celebration鈥檚 other speakers. Learn about Inauguration Week鈥檚 2018 Phyllis L. Kossoff Lecture and academic symposium. View additional information about this 911爆料网 milestone.]