April 10, 2002
LMC to Present Faculty Music Recital
BENTON TOWNSHIP - The Lake Michigan College Music
Department will present a faculty recital on Sunday, April 21,
at 3 p.m. in the Mendel Center's Hanson Theatre on the Napier
Avenue Campus. The performance, featuring saxophonist Phil Barham
and pianist Elfie Schults-Berndt, will include duo music from
the saxophone/piano and clarinet/piano repertoire. Admission
is free and open to the public.
The program will feature a variety of Baroque,
Romantic and 20th Century works showcasing the versatility,
lyricism and power of this chamber medium. The recital will
open with the Sonata in G major, by Giovanni Platti, arranged
for soprano saxophone and piano. The Sonata for Clarinet and
Piano, Op. 167, by Camille Saint-Saëns, is one of the most
beloved works in the clarinet repertoire. Romantic in character,
it features lush harmonies and lyrical melodies that are typical
of Saint-Saëns late compositional style. The Spanish composer,
Enrique Granados, composed many dances for piano solo. Barham
and Berndt will perform four of these, in varying styles ranging
from slow and reflective to very fast with a driving force.
Ned Rorem, one of America's leading 20th century
composers, wrote the work Picnic on the Marne for alto saxophone
and piano in 1983. It presents the story of an afternoon rendezvous
in the countryside outside of Paris. This music is full of wit,
humor, technical virtuosity, lyricism, and daring harmonies.
The recital will conclude with the Sonata in D major, by Sergei
Prokofiev. Prokofiev composed this piece originally for flute
and piano, but was persuaded to make a transcription for violin
and piano, which became wildly popular with performers and audiences
alike. Phil Barham will perform this work on the alto saxophone.
A native of Michigan, saxophonist Phil Barham
received the Bachelor of Music degree in woodwinds from the
University of North Texas and the Master of music degree in
wind instruments/saxophone from the University of Michigan.
His performances have been critically acclaimed across the country,
and internationally. He has presented solo recitals in London,
Oslo, Geneva and Tokyo. He has also performed in New York (Merkin
Recital Hall and Carnegie
Recital Hall); Chicago (Dame Myra Hess Concert Series); Denton,
Texas; Northridge, California, and throughout the Midwest.
Barham is in demand as a clinician and adjudicator, and is presently
a clinician for the Selmer Company. He is on the faculty at
LMC, Andrews University, and Southwestern Michigan College.
He appears regularly with the Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra,
the South Bend Symphony and the Kalamazoo Symphony.
Elfie Schults-Berndt is Director of Music at LMC
where she also teaches piano, class piano and music theory.
She received Bachelor and Master of Fine Arts degrees in Piano
Performance from the State University of New York at Buffalo,
and completed a Ph.D. in Piano Performance, Music Theory and
Music History at Michigan State University.
An active collaborative and solo pianist, Dr.
Berndt performed in recent chamber recitals at Baker University,
Kansas State University, Western Michigan University, Andrews
University, and Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. She participates
frequently in recitals at LMC with faculty colleagues and guest
artists. She is in demand as an adjudicator, clinician, and
presents master classes regularly. Dr. Berndt recently served
as adjudicator for the Michigan Music Teachers State Piano Finals,
the Ann Arbor Bach Association, Holland Piano Teachers Forum,
Kalamazoo Area Piano Teachers Association, the Lansing Symphony
Concerto Competition, and the Hope College Concerto/Aria Competition.
For more information about this performance, the
LMC Performing Arts Office at (269) 927-8100 ext. 5237.
