This academic year's final performance of Catawba College's Music 515 Series is slated at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 11 in the Omwake Dearborn Chapel on campus. The performance will be a tribute to Mozart in his 250th anniversary year and features members of the Catawba Department of Music and the Catawba Brass.
"A Tribute to Mozart" will include music for piano, for brass ensemble, and for French horn with piano accompaniment. Dr. Renee McCachren, pianist, is the chair of Catawba's music department, where she teaches music theory, history, and piano. She also holds the Katharine W. Osborne Endowed Chair for Keyboard with the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra.
After receiving her Ph.D. in music theory at the University of North Texas, McCachren completed further studies at Harvard, Brandeis, and Arizona State through several grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. McCachren has presented her research at regional, national, and international conferences, has articles published in several music encyclopedias, and has served on the Editorial Review Board for the Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy.
Dr. Barry R. Sang, French horn, is chair of the religion and philosophy department at Catawba College and has actively participated in vocal and instrumental music since the fifth grade. In addition to teaching as adjunct professor of music in horn at the College, he is principle horn in the Catawba College Community Band and the Catawba College Wind Ensemble. He has played occasionally with the Catawba Brass and has accompanied several musical productions throughout the area, including "Into the Woods," "Oklahoma," "The Seven Last Words of Christ," "Peter Pan," "The Singing Christmas Tree" (Carolina Voices, Charlotte), and, most recently, "H.M.S. Pinafore." Sang is also co-founder of the Resurrection Brass at First Presbyterian Church, Salisbury.
Angela Lowry, accompanist, is currently staff piano instructor and accompanist at Catawba College. She also teaches group and private piano lessons through Catawba's Community Music Program. She holds a bachelor of music degree from Meredith College and master's of music degree in piano performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She often adjudicates for piano festivals in the region, and enjoys participating in various musicalEvents in the community.
The Catawba Brass Ensemble was founded by the late Dr. James Poolos, trombonist, and former chair of the Catawba College Music Department. The Catawba Brass has performed widely in the area, often for the Tuesday 515 Series, for Catawba's Thanksgiving, Baccalaureate and Commencement Programs, and for the College's annual Service of Lessons and Carols every year since 1991. Members of the Catawba Brass are Mickey Driver and Greg Hall, trumpets, Barry Sang, horn, Steve Etters, trombone, and Brad Gulley, tuba.
The Tuesday Music 515 Series is sponsored by the Catawba Music Department, with Rosemary Kinard serving as program coordinator. It is a concert series spotlighting area musicians in brief programs on the second Tuesday of the month, beginning at 5:15 p.m. and lasting for approximately 30 minutes.
All performances in the series are free and open to the public.
