University of North Texas Symphony Orchestra
The University of North Texas Symphony Orchestra was established in 1920s at the University of North Texas College of Music—then known as North Texas State Teachers College School of Music. In 2008, the student musicians in the orchestra represented 25 states and 12 countries.
David Itkin became Music Director of the UNT Symphony Orchestra and Director of Orchestral Studies, effective fall 2008.[1]
Performance samples
Symphony Orchestra
- New World Symphony, Scherzo (Molto vivace) (live), Antonín Dvořák (2005)
- Anshel Brusilow, conductor
- Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra - Mvt III, Eric Ewazen (1999)
- Ming-Jen Suen, solost
- Hyunseok Chang, conductor
- Rehearsal, Concerto for Trumpet, Henri Tomasi (2002)
- Anshel Brusilow, conductor
Conductors
| 1924–1925 | Raymond Stubblefield Riggs (1884–1933); Dallas, Texas (founded 1926).[3]
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| 1925–1927 | Amos Elbert Barksdale (1894–1963); born and raised in Chico, TX, was a graduate of Baylor University (BA 1921) and in 1930, studied at the University of Chicago .
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| 1927–1944 | Floyd Freeman Graham (1902–1974); Although the Symphony Orchestra had existed since 1924, it gave its first public performance under the direction of Floyd Graham in 1927. Beginning that same year, student musicians received college credit for participation. In the fall of 1939, when the School of Music was experiencing a surge in enrollment, the caliber of student musicians in the Symphony rose and deepened.[4] The orchestra performed several times a year and was regarded as outstanding.[5]
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| 1936–1944 | Robert Lincoln Marquis, Jr. (1910–1990), conducted the symphony orchestra during the summers. He was the son of the former UNT President Robert Lincoln Marquis (1880–1934). Robert Marquis, Jr.'s, mother, Mrs. R. L. Marquis (née Lula Mae Parkey; 1878–1957), held two degrees in music: a Bachelor of Music from the Sallie Thornley (1854–1921).
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| 1944–1947 | Joseph Kirshbaum (1911–1996) was a violinist, composer, conductor, and an alumnus of Cornell. His wife, Gertrude Morris Kirshbaum (1912-1973) taught harp at Texas Woman's University. Kirshbaum, for 25 years, was a celebrated conductor of the East Texas Symphony Orchestra. He retired from the ETSO in 1978.[8][9][10][11][12]
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| 1947–1948 | Walter Hutchinson Hodgson, PhD (1904–1988), was the Dean (see University of North Texas College of Music) |
| 1948–1972 | George Ellers Morey, PhD (1915–1995), conducted the University of North Texas Symphony Orchestra for 25 years. He earned an Artist Diploma from the autism through music
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| 1973–1982 | Anshel Brusilow (1928-2018) inherited a high caliber symphony, and transformed it into an internationally acclaimed student orchestra. University concerts under his direction never performed to less than capacity audiences; and the capacity overflow – people sitting on the floor and in the isles, even on the stage and in the wings – amplified the urgency to build a long overdue larger, superior concert hall. The Murchison Performing Arts Center, which houses Winspear Auditorium (a 928-seat & 97 choral seat concert hall) and a 400-seat Lyric Opera Theater. Brusilow also greatly intensified and expanded orchestral conducting studies. Brusilow made his Philadelphia Orchestra debut on violin in 1944. He served as Philadelphia Musical Academy at sixteen, becoming the youngest conducting student ever accepted by Pierre Monteux .
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| 1982–1984 | Igor Markevich .
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| 1984–1989 | Serge R. Zehnacker, born in North Carolina School of the Arts .
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| 1989–2008 | Anshel Brusilow (1928-2018) returned to conduct the UNT Symphony and teach conducting, filling the longest artistic appointment of his life. Before returning, he had served as Professor and Director of the Symphony Orchestra at Southern Methodist University. His tenure at North Texas was highly acclaimed and spanned 28 years. |
| 2008–present | David Chester Itkin (born 1957) became the conductor of the UNT Symphony in the fall of 2008. He holds a bachelors (1980) and master's degree (1982) from the Eastman School of Music .
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Major tours
- 1992 — The UNT Symphony Orchestra performed in Mediterranean.
- 1993 — By invitation, the Symphony Orchestra performed .
References
- ^ UNT Names New Orchestral Director, The Dallas Morning News, April 14, 2008.
- ^ Gravestone in Llano East Cemetery, Potter County, Texas, www.findagrave.com
- ^ Officials of the New College of Music, The Dallas Morning News, February 28, 1926 (article features a photo of Riggs
- ^ Teachers College Hopes to Develop Outstanding Symphony Orchestra; Much New Talent Enrolling in School, Denton Record-Chronicle, Sept. 21, 1939
- ^ North Texas State Symphony Orchestra: Outstanding ... , Denton Record-Chronicle, September 10, 1945
- ^ Mrs. Marquis Dies at Denton, The Dallas Morning News, Nov. 6, 1957
- ^ Kirshbaum is Named String Teachers Head, Denton Record-Chronicle, February 12, 1950
- ^ Who's Who in the South and Southwest, 14th edition, 1975-1976, Marquis Who's Who, Wilmette, Illinois (1975)
- ^ Who's Who in the South and Southwest, 15th edition, 1976-1977, Marquis Who's Who, Wilmette, Illinois (1976)
- ^ Who's Who in the West. 16th edition, 1978-1979, Marquis Who's Who, Wilmette, Illinois (1978)
- ^ Who's Who in the West. 17th edition, 1980-1981, Marquis Who's Who, Wilmette, Illinois (1980)
- ^ Who's Who in the West. 18th edition, 1982-1983, Marquis Who's Who, Wilmette, Illinois (1982)
- ^ David Cummings, International Who's Who in Music and Musicians Directory, 17th Ed. Routledge (pub) (2000)