Instrumental Conducting Symposium

Rhode Island College Instrumental Conducting Symposium

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Alger Hall, Rhode Island College

• Larry Rachleff, Clinician
• Robert Franzblau, Clinician
• Rhode Island College Wind Ensemble

Co-sponsored by the Rhode Island Philharmonic and Music School.

Symposium Schedule (subject to change)

• 8:00 a.m. Registration
• 8:30 a.m. Warmup
• 9:00 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. Conducting Sessions
• 12:00 p.m. Lunch (included in registration cost)
• 1:30 - 4:15 p.m. Conducting Sessions
• 4:15 p.m. Wrap-up, Questions, and Evaluation

Refine your conducting skills in a "user-friendly" climate and study with Larry Rachleff, one of America's most respected conductors and teachers. To encourage a mutually supportive atmosphere, all Symposium participants are encouraged to play their major instrument in the ensemble when not conducting. Lunch is included in the registration fee for all participants.

Two levels of participation are available:

Conductors seeking an intensive, hands-on experience will conduct the Rhode Island College Wind Ensemble in two separate 15-minute sessions (morning and afternoon). All conducting will be professionally recorded on DVD for you to keep. The clinicians will offer both live and taped critique. Repertoire will be selected by each Principal Conductor from the list below. Space is limited to ten Principal Conductors and will be assigned based on order of received applications and fees.

To encourage participation in the symposium by Observer/Participants, we have discounted the fee to $75! Those wishing to audit the workshop without actually conducting will gain valuable insight by observing Mr. Rachleff's work with the Principal Conductors. Observer/Participants will share in all Symposium sessions, and space is unlimited.

Repertoire will be selected by each Principal Conductor from the following list. Choose two works from among the following:

Professional Development Units (PDU's) are available from the Rhode Island Department of Education for all workshop participants. Six hours of Professional Development credit will be given by the Symposium.

Graduate credit from Rhode Island College is available.  One hour of graduate credit may be elected  by Principal Conductors.  Tuition for this option is in addition to the workshop fee.  A short paper is also required.  For details email rfranzblau@ric.edu.

Reduced Price Tickets to Rhode Island Philharmonic As a special offer to all Symposium participants, the Rhode Island Philharmonic is offering reduced-price main floor tickets for $45 apiece (limit 2) on the evening of the Symposium. Maestro Rachleff will conduct Stravinsky "The Fairy's Kiss," Mozart Piano Concerto No. 24, and Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5 at 8:00 pm at Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Providence, a ten-minute drive from the College.

Hotel Accommodations Participants coming to the symposium from out of town can find a list of nearby hotels here. The College is approximately 13 miles from Providence's T.F. Green Airport (PVD).

Larry Rachleff, Clinician

Larry Rachleff serves as the Music Director of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra and Director of Orchestras at Rice University 's Shepherd School of Music in Houston. Mr. Rachleff is a former faculty member at the University of Connecticut, the University of Michigan, Oberlin Conservatory, and the University of Southern California. He is in constant demand as a conductor and master class clinician and is frequently invited to lead the very finest American conservatory orchestras, such as the Juilliard School and New England Conservatory.

He is a regular guest conductor with the orchestras of Colorado, Utah, Indianapolis and Kansas City, with recent appearances at Charlotte, Ft. Worth, Columbus, Rochester, Florida, Grand Rapids, Seattle and Phoenix, among several others. He recently conducted a special gala concert with Itzhak Perlman and the Houston Symphony. His summers are spent guest conducting at the Music Academy of the West, the Aspen Music Festival and School, where Mr. Rachleff served as guest director of their summer conducting academy, the Sarasota Music Festival, the Chautauqua Music Festival and the Grand Teton Festival. Other summer festival engagements have included Tanglewood, Interlochen, Brevard, and Opera Theatre of Lucca, Italy.

Larry Rachleff is an enthusiastic advocate of public school music education. He has conducted All-State orchestras and festivals in virtually every state in the United States as well as throughout Europe and Canada. He has also served as principal conducting teacher for the American Symphony Orchestra League, the Conductors' Guild and the International Workshop for Conductors in the Czech Republic.

Robert Franzblau, Clinician

Dr. Robert Franzblau serves as Professor of Music and Director of Bands at Rhode Island College, a position he has held since 1997. In addition to conducting the Wind Ensemble and Chamber Winds, his duties include teaching courses in conducting, music theory, and music education at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Under his direction, the Rhode Island College Wind Ensemble has recently performed at regional conventions of the College Band Directors National Association and the Music Educators National Conference. In 2004 he founded the Music Institute at Rhode Island College, a summer honors camp for talented high school musicians. He is a contributing author to GIA Publications, Meredith Music Publications, and The Instrumentalist magazine.

Dr. Franzblau earned the Bachelor of Music in music education from the University of Iowa; studied conducting with John P. Paynter at Northwestern University, earning a Master of Music with a double major in conducting and music education; and received his Ph.D. in music education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

In December 2008, Dr. Franzblau was named as the third Music Director and Conductor of the Rhode Island Wind Ensemble, a community band originally founded in 1969. Previously, he has served as Assistant Conductor, Acting Artistic Director, and Guest Conductor with the Metropolitan Wind Symphony, a Boston-area community band. He is the founder and conductor of the Rhode Island Wind Orchestra, a chamber wind ensemble of professional musicians.

He continues to serve the band and music education professions as past president and board member of the New England College Band Association and as board member of the Rhode Island Music Educators Association. He is active in CBDNA and serves on the joint ABA/CBDNA Music Reprint Committee. He serves as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator for bands throughout the country.

Rhode Island College Wind Ensemble

The Rhode Island College Wind Ensemble functions as both a full wind band and as a pool of players for performing chamber wind repertoire. Open by audition to students of all majors at the College, it is nonetheless composed primarily of undergraduate music majors. The Wind Ensemble is committed to the performance of new music, having recently premiered works by James Bohn, Barbara Kolb, Alan Shockley, Michael DeQuattro, Michael Weinstein, and several student composers, in addition to participating in the National Wind Ensemble Consortium Group. The Rhode Island College Wind Ensemble has collaborated with the Roger Williams University Dance Theatre and the Rhode Island College Dance Company for premiere performances of original music and choreography. Recent guest conductors include Frank L. Battisti, Roger Cichy, and Gunther Schuller, and guest soloists include Ron Barron, (trombone), Otis Murphy (saxophone), Jens Lindemann (trumpet), and Tony Clements (tuba). Invited performances include appearances at the MENC Eastern Division Conference (2003) and the CBDNA Eastern Division Conference (2005 and 2009).