Faculty

This academic year marks the launch of a three-year pilot program titled Presto! The Concert Tour Reimagined, and the continuation of the successful Inside Lawrence events due to a generous grant from the Caerus Foundation.

Both projects provide the Conservatory the opportunity to reconnect with alumni, grow our applicant pool and engage students and faculty in exemplifying 21st-century musicianship through preparation and execution of these tours.

Planning for both Presto! and Inside Lawrence began last October. The Conservatory selected the Lawrence University Wind Ensemble to tour in Minneapolis and the brass faculty to visit Chicago. From March 22 to 24, 57 wind ensemble students, under the direction of Andrew Mast and Matthew Arau, will engage in school visits, outreach and a final public concert. Central High School in St. Paul, Maple Grove High School and Eden Prairie High School band students will work with Lawrence wind ensemble students by watching them perform and participating in question-and-answer sessions. These students will learn more about Lawrence firsthand and what it takes to be a college/university musician.

The wind ensemble’s outreach efforts also focus on those who face mental illness in the Minneapolis area. Chamber ensembles will perform for homeless shelter meals and also serve meals at one of the shelters. Wind ensemble students will also work directly with students at Karner Blue Education Center, a school devoted to addressing the specific needs of students with autism, emotional and behavioral disorders, and cognitive disabilities.

The entire tour will culminate in a free public concert at Trinity Lutheran Church in Stillwater, Minn., on Friday, March 24 at 7:30 p.m. Alumni, students interested in Lawrence, the Stillwater community and Minnesota’s concert-going public will form the audience as the ensemble celebrates its successful tour.

The Lawrence brass faculty kick off the continuation of the Inside Lawrence program by visiting the Merit School of Music in Chicago on Saturday, April 8. John Daniel, Jeffrey Stannard, James DeCorsey, Tim Albright and Marty Erickson will work with brass students in the Alice S. Pfaelzer Conservatory, a tuition-free music school, through workshops, sectionals, chamber music coaching and ensemble work.

In addition to working directly with students, Lawrence alumni from the Chicago area and all Pfaelzer Conservatory students will witness a mid-day performance by the Lawrence brass faculty as part of Merit School’s Live From Gottlieb series. Conservatory faculty are looking forward to continuing to work with Merit School students who will hopefully one day be future Lawrentians. We are thrilled to witness the excitement and support from our students, faculty and the entire campus as we prepare to take the Conservatory on the road to make a difference in these metropolitan communities through ways only Lawrentians know how.

—Aleeh Schwoerer
Conservatory of Music

Four area young professionals with Lawrence ties are among this year’s Future 15 winners. Pulse Young Professionals Network and the Appleton Post-Crescent announced the 2017 class, which includes:

• Paris Wicker ’08, associate dean of students for campus programs
• Elyse Lucas ’10, lecturer of education and art teacher in the Appleton Area School District
• Fanny Lau ’14, a field organizer with the Democratic Party of Wisconsin
• Oliver Zornow ’10, community engagement manager for the Building for Kids Children’s Museum and the Fox Valley Symphony Orchestra

The winners will be honored March 2 at the Hortonville Opera House.