Second annual concerto competition accepting applications until Nov. 21

Lauren Ganger, Staff writer

The D’Angelo Department of Music and the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra have announced the second annual Aria and Concerto Competition.
This program was introduced by Jonathan Moser, instructor of music; violin, viola, string techniques, music history, chamber music, in his first year as the conductor of the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra.
The concerto competition culminated in a successful concert last year that featured Shelby Mayberry, voice; Isaiah Howard, flute; and Deven Shah, piano, as soloists.
Students who wish to audition for the competition must be either high schoolers who have participated in the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra or Mercyhurst Chamber Music for at least one semester, or Mercyhurst University students who are enrolled in private lessons.
College student soloists do not need to be Music majors to be considered for the competition.
One high school student and two college students will be selected to perform with the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra on May 6 at 4 p.m. in Walker Recital Hall.
The concert will be $5 for adults and $2 for students, faculty and youth 12 and under.
Soloists should demonstrate musicality, have a good presence on the stage and be good performers according to Moser.
Moser hopes that this program will raise the profile of the Mercyhurst Music department and provide students with the incentive to join the orchestra and enroll in private lessons.
For students, there is the added benefit of giving them the opportunity to perform with an orchestra, which is rare at the collegiate level.
Moser said that he hopes this will encourage prospective students to consider Mercyhurst.
The judges are yet to be determined, but Moser said that he will be “looking for colleagues who are not familiar with our program,” in the hopes that the selection of the winners will be as unbiased as possible.
In addition, he said he hopes that exposing Mercyhurst to professional musicians in this way will raise the college’s musical profile.
In this vein, he notes that one of last year’s judges, Rachel Stegeman, returned to Mercyhurst this semester as a Roche Guest Artist a few weeks ago after having voiced her admiration of Walker Recital Hall’s acoustics.
Auditions will take place at the start of the spring semester.
Pieces should be memorized and no longer than 20 minutes long; as audition slots are 10 minutes long, cuts should be made for the audition.
The deadline for applying to audition for this competition is fast approaching.
Students who wish to be considered for the May 6 concert must submit an application by Nov. 21.
The auditions will take place on Jan. 21. at 3 p.m. in Walker Recital Hall.
Feel free to contact Moser with any questions regarding the audition process.
The application form can be found online at: www.mercyhurst.edu/dangelo-department-
music/2017-18-concerto-competition.