Heather McGehee – for the Review.
The National Association of Schools of Music’s student sampler recital Nov. 3 was marked by a low turnout.
This was in part because of sparse advertisement and a noon start time but also because of the unusual nature of the recital — as it was meant for specific audience members — representatives from the National Association of Schools of Music, who are evaluating the Linfield music department for re-accreditation.
The decennial student sampler recital was held in honor of the NASM representatives and was meant to illustrate Linfield’s musical accomplishments. The result covered all musical bases and included a performance by the Linfield College Jazz Choir, a Bach piece played by senior pianist Heidi Vanden Bos and everything in between.
This assortment was received positively by students who attended the recital.
“It was kind of nice,” sophomore attendee Lynn Robinson said. “It did a great job of keeping my interest.”
Despite her enthusiasm for its structure, however, she said the event was not entirely what she had expected.
“Overall, I liked the song choices, but there were some that didn’t feature the musicians well,” she said.
One such song was “Feel the Samba,” performed by the Linfield Jazz Choir and written by director Dana Libonati. Robinson said she thought the song itself was enjoyable and that you could “feel the Samba,” but she said that the performance aspect lacked the verve to carry it.
Freshman jazz choir member Philip Yovetich, who was both a featured scat soloist and the only member to dance during the song, lent some insight into the lackluster spectacle.
“Usually we move a lot and bring it down, but we got there and the environment made everybody really uncomfortable,” Yovetich said. “We just froze up.”
In the face of such trials, members of the Linfield Jazz Choir remained undaunted and said they anticipate bringing more life to Libonati’s piece in the future.
“He said he’s really proud of us,” Yovetich said of their supportive leader.
Regardless, the jazz choir was not a tough act to follow.
Other concert pieces went as intended, much to the delight of audience members.
One such performance came from the Linfield College Cello Ensemble, also known as the Mellow Cellos.
The group performed Schubert’s “Die Erlkönig” with each cello providing dialogue for the characters from the original poem. Tenor John Paul Bierly, class of 2002, provided vocals for the piece.
“Don DeFrang being the horse was my favorite part of the show,” Robinson said.
Performances by many other Linfield students elicited similar praise.
“It brought a tear to my eye,” sophomore Evan Wingren said of junior Tracy Beaver’s moving cello solo “Prayer.”
Another central performance was a scene from Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro,” which featured senior Andrew Pohl and sophomores Logan Freitas, Chelsea Janzen, Kayla Wilkens and Jeremy Moll.
This recital was the fifth Linfield event at which the scene was performed.
“Yeah, we need to shelve it,” Jagen said, when asked if the vocalists had begun to get a bit tired of the piece.
However, the cast’s disenchantment didn’t come across during the actual performance, which remained as charming as ever.
The NASM student sampler recital culminated with much fanfare in an eight-handed piano ensemble rendition of “The Stars and Stripes Forever,” played by Ethan Barske, class of 2006, sophomore Kaia Machalek, junior Brynn Hurdus and Vanden Bos.
Lacking only in fireworks, the song created the pomp necessary to cap off a concert honoring the music department’s esteemed re-accreditors.