Carleton University, Canada / Virtual

• presented the paper “Music Limitations in Political Crises: Lessons from Turn-of-the-Century France and Beyond”

Evensong programme will feature compositions by Lee Dunleavy, Clifford Woods, and others.

[Private event]

I will lead the Deansbank Singers in offering music for the Advent Eucharist.

I presented my new research with the paper ‘Debussy’s Sonata for Cello and Piano (1915): Pierrot and the Loss of Power in Music and Theatre in the Public Sphere’

We performed scenes from Richard Taylor’s opera Confucius Says.

I conducted the Deansbank Singers in performing Mozart’s Missa Brevis in D major, Eleanor Daley’s Paradise, and more.

I performed on the piano:

• Arvo Pärt, Für Alina (1976)

10 June 2019 (Monday)
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20

Singer Marija McKean and I performed cover songs of Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, and more. More details to follow.

13 May 2019 (Monday)
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20

I performed on the piano:

• J. S. Bach - Myra Hess, “Jesus, Joy of Man’s Desiring”

• J. S. Bach - Saint-Saëns, “Air from Cantata no. 36”

• Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre, excerpts from Suite in D minor (1707)

• J. S. Bach - Egon Petri, “Sheep May Safely Graze”

15 April 2019 (Monday)
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20

In my role as as the Music Director of the I Can Sing! Music Theatre, I collaborated with my colleagues and students to present scenes from The Greatest Showman, Pippin, Barnum, Singing in the Rain, and numbers such as “Handful of Keys” (Fats Waller), “Top Hat” (Irving Berlin), and “The Day the Circus Left Town” (Carolyn Leigh/ Harold Spina). I also conduct the parents’ choir, presenting “Londonderry Air/ An Irish Folksong.”

I led the Deansbank Singers in offering service music for the Lent Eucharist. The celebrant was the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Communion, Justin Welby.

Baritone Matthew Crowe and I performed

• Clara Schumann, “Geheimes Flüstern hier und dort” from 6 Lieder, op. 23

• Gerald Finzi, “Come Away, Death” and “It was a Lover”

• Madeleine Dring, “Come Away, Death” and “It was a Lover”

11 March 2019 (Monday)
12:40-12:55 ; 1:05-1:20

HMDT Music (Hackney Music Development Trust) is an award-winning non-profit organisation that commissions new compositions and stimulates the musical development of students from 5 to 15.

In my role as as the Music Director of the I Can Sing! Music Theatre, I collaborated with my colleagues and students to present scenes from Aladdin and Hairspray. I also conduct the parents’ choir, presenting music by the Beatles, Stephen Sondheim, and Nina Simone.

I led the Deansbank Singers in offering service music for the Advent Eucharist. The celebrant was the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Communion, Justin Welby.

The choir sang “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus,” “Of The Father’s Love Begotten,” “Lo! He Comes With Clouds Descending,” and “The Angel Gabriel” (the latter arranged by Malcolm Archer). 

I offered music for the visit of Bishop Susan M. Brown, Moderator of the Church of Scotland, to Lambeth Palace. She was the celebrant of the Holy Communion.

The music included two Scottish tunes, “Stroudwater” and “Ae Fond Kiss.”

For my debut performance in London, I am honoured to conduct the Deansbank Singers, a choir with 45 years of history in the heart of Westminster.

The concert celebrated Deansbank's late conductor, Francis Bassett with two works. It opened with "They Shall Not Grow Old," with text from Robert Laurence Binyon’s poem For the Fallen (a nod to the poppies, no less), set to music by Clifford Woods. The programme continued with Gabriel Fauré's Requiem, taking the listener on a journey from intense prayer, human flaws, and the fear of death to paradise and bliss.

I was thrilled to present a talk "Diversifying your Musical Portfolio." Just like a diverse investment portfolio, a diverse musical portfolio would reap benefit to the performers themselves and the audience. I shared how I do that as a performer and educator. I also shared resources on diversifying your piano repertoire (intermediate and advanced levels).

I also taught a piano masterclass  and presented a short piano recital, with the following program:

Amy Beach, Fireflies, op. 15, no. 4
Teresa Carreño, Prière (Prayer), op. 12
Cécile Chaminade, Pierrette, op. 41
Chinese traditional tune, Spring on Moonlit River
Arnold Schoenberg, "Minuet" from Piano Suite, op. 25
Johannes Brahms, Intermezzo in A, op. 118, no. 2

I performed Franz Schubert's piano work for four hands Fantasy in F minor with Ania Sundstrom. Other performers in the concert include Daria Binkowski (flute) and Kyle Rowan (clarinet)

Kirsten Ashley Wiest and I performed compositions by Southern California composers and by Ligeti. The concert is reviewed positively and generously by Sequenza21: The Contemporary Classical Music Community!

I served as Music Director for the first full-presentation of Josh Charney's opera Bula Matari: Breaker of Rocks. The opera is based on the true story of British explorer Henry Morton Stanley’s tumultuous expedition through the African Congo into the Sudan.

In our first collaborative performance together, we played Igor Stravinsky's Three Japanese Lyrics, excerpts from his opera The Rake's Progress, and a few other pieces by Erik Satie. Lauren also sang Luciano Berio's Sequenza and played more ensemble pieces with other collaborators. 

I played Robert Schumann's Piano Quartet in E-flat major with violinist Paivikki Nykter, violist Annabelle Terbetski, and cellist Cecilia Kim. Other pieces in the program include a Ravel trio and a Telemann sonata. Professor of Voice Philip Larson and I were going to performing Brahms's "Botshaft" and Richard Strauss's "Heimliche Aufforderung." Unfortunately, this part of the program cancelled due to Larson's sickness- we wish him well!

I performed Robert Schumann's Piano Quartet in E-flat major with violinist Paivikki Nykter, violist Annabelle Terbetski, and cellist Cecilia Kim. Kirsten Ashley Wiest sang Leo Delibes's "Bell Song" with my accompaniment. Other pieces in the program include a Ravel trio and a Telemann sonata.