2008 Woodie Awards
Concerto concert showcases top musicians
Sara Gregory
Issue date: 3/5/08 Section: The Edge
Talent level in Western Illinois University's School of Music seems higher than ever. Normally four students would win the department-wide concerto competition, but this year yielded twice as many (and for good reason).
A packed house of family, colleagues and faculty members cheered on the dazzling performances with numerous standing ovations. Dr. Richard Hughey, a recent addition to Western's music program, brings a polish to the orchestra that allows the ensemble to really shine while accompanying the extremely talented winners.
Diana Miller, a grad student studying trumpet performance, opened the program. Her performance of "Concerto in D Major" by Giuseppe Tartini on piccolo trumpet sounded flawless and showed off one of her best qualities: consistency. Brass players know the difficulty of playing piccolo trumpet, but Miller makes performing sound as carefree as breathing (a true sign of a good performer). Miller's biography pointed out many recent accomplishments and awards, and her performance demonstrated why.
Following this astonishing opening was Hillary Brunner on oboe. She is a double major in oboe performance and music business who is no stranger to this competition. A third-time winner of the concerto competition, Brunner showed off a memorized concerto full of unbelievable runs and complicated tempo changes. "Gran Concerto on Themes from Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani" by Antonio Pasculli was full of difficult yet beautiful musical treats. Her musicianship has grown exponentially each time she has won, with this performance being one of many peaks in her musical career.
The third performer was a new face: law enforcement and justice administration major/music minor Mike Kociolek. From the first note to the end of "Clarinet Concerto No. 1" by Carl Maria von Weber, Kociolek proved one doesn't have to be a music major to be a successful musician. A gorgeous tone on clarinet projected easily in the College of Fine Arts and Communication Recital Hall and floated over the orchestra with difficult articulations and a brisk tempo.
A packed house of family, colleagues and faculty members cheered on the dazzling performances with numerous standing ovations. Dr. Richard Hughey, a recent addition to Western's music program, brings a polish to the orchestra that allows the ensemble to really shine while accompanying the extremely talented winners.
Diana Miller, a grad student studying trumpet performance, opened the program. Her performance of "Concerto in D Major" by Giuseppe Tartini on piccolo trumpet sounded flawless and showed off one of her best qualities: consistency. Brass players know the difficulty of playing piccolo trumpet, but Miller makes performing sound as carefree as breathing (a true sign of a good performer). Miller's biography pointed out many recent accomplishments and awards, and her performance demonstrated why.
Following this astonishing opening was Hillary Brunner on oboe. She is a double major in oboe performance and music business who is no stranger to this competition. A third-time winner of the concerto competition, Brunner showed off a memorized concerto full of unbelievable runs and complicated tempo changes. "Gran Concerto on Themes from Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani" by Antonio Pasculli was full of difficult yet beautiful musical treats. Her musicianship has grown exponentially each time she has won, with this performance being one of many peaks in her musical career.
The third performer was a new face: law enforcement and justice administration major/music minor Mike Kociolek. From the first note to the end of "Clarinet Concerto No. 1" by Carl Maria von Weber, Kociolek proved one doesn't have to be a music major to be a successful musician. A gorgeous tone on clarinet projected easily in the College of Fine Arts and Communication Recital Hall and floated over the orchestra with difficult articulations and a brisk tempo.
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