On April 12, the USM School of Music will host their 31st annual honors recital. Each year, a jury of faculty and outside guest judges select six to twelve of the finest solo performers the school has to offer.
“She or he can be a freshman, senior-it doesn’t matter. Nor do grades matter,” said Mary Snell, the arts promotion director for the university. “What’s important is their talent in performance”
In 1978, the faculty of the music department first selected the best solo performers in the music student body, which at the time included about 50 students.
Outside the main office in Corthell Hall hangs a brass-plated plaque with the names of every honors recital performer from the past three decades.
Some of the names of the plaque include those who are now professors of music across the country, music teachers in public schools, students who went on to perform in major military ensembles and orchestras, women who have careers in major opera companies in New York, Colorado and Santa Fe, and some who have founded vocal ensembles and jazz groups in New York.
“There’s no reason to believe that many of the students performing this year will not do just as well,” said Snell.
Teachers of individual instruments nominate the students, which gives them an audition before the panel of judges.
Students can perform alone or with piano accompaniment.
“This is the event through which we honor excellence in solo performance,” said Scott Harris, the director of the music school. “This year’s program is especially varied and ranges from opera arias to jazz to musical theatre to contemporary concert music.”
The university distributes letters personally signed by Harris, informing parents, relatives, and former teachers that the students have achieved the honor.
The audience is always filled with those who have been supportive over years of practice and learning.
“Every year, I hear from the panel of audition judges that the selection of honorees from such a deep talent pool of nominees is a real challenge, and this year was no exception,” Harris said. “It is my favorite concert of the season.”
The 31th Annual Honors Recital will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday April 12, 2008, in Corthell Concert Hall on the USM Gorham Campus. The Recital is free and open to the public, and reservations are being taken. Call the Music Box Office at 780-5555.