NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR
A very busy Autumn Quarter launches our 2023-24 academic year as we welcome new arrivals to our faculty, celebrate awards and distinctions, and host esteemed guest artists for performance and discussion. In this issue of Quarter Notes, we share news of exciting opportunities for UW Music students at Tacoma Opera, details of an upcoming School of Music residency by acclaimed pianist Garrick Ohlsson, and updates of recent accomplishments, distinctions, and honors of our students, faculty, and alumni. We also pause to acknowledge the passing of four beloved, longtime School of Music community members. Thank you for reading!
—Joël-François Durand, Acting Director
Tacoma Opera’s recent production of Carmen may as well have been staged on the UW campus for all of the current and past students and faculty involved on stage, in the pit, and in a host of roles behind the scenes.
Credit for this proliferation of UW-connected personnel lies in no small part with the leadership of Limuel Forgey, Tacoma Opera’s general director and a doctoral voice student at the UW. Since his appointment at Tacoma Opera earlier this year, he has noticeably—and... Read more
University of Washington doctoral candidate Lorin Green, a flutist and arts community leader who studies with Donna Shin, is one of only five students from across the country to be selected to join the League of American Orchestras’ newly created Student Leadership Council. The student council, the first in the League’s 81-year history, is intended to help the New York City-based service organization integrate the voices of young people into its work and thereby support the growth of student... Read more
The UW’s director of Orchestral Activities racks up another American Prize win with a recent first-place showing.
David Alexander Rahbee, senior artist-in-residence and director of the UW Symphony, has been awarded a 2023 American Prize for innovative programming developed for the UW Symphony Orchestra during the 2020-21 season. Rahbee and the UW Symphony Orchestra placed first in the collegiate division for Orchestral Programming, winning the Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award. Second and... Read more
School of Music students and alumni report recent academic appointments, honors, performances, and other artistic and scholarly accomplishments.
Jiannan Cheng (’14 MM, Wind Conducting) has been selected as a cover conductor for the Philadelphia Orchestra. Her responsibilities include understudying the scores for the music director and guest conductors, giving pre-concert lectures, and conducting in rehearsals and concerts as needed. Her first rehearsals with the orchestra were this week.... Read more
Honors, accolades, research highlights and other news from the School of Music faculty.
Robin McCabe, pianoThe UW piano professor recently completed a three-city tour of China with her sister, pianist Rachelle McCabe. The duo performed recitals and master classes at Xi’an Conservatory, in Xi’an, Remnin University in Beijing, and Tianjin Conservatory in Tianjin. McCabe sums up the tour succinctly, reporting “great halls, excellent pianos, scrumptious cuisine, and avid musical ‘... Read more
Scholar Mark Buford’s visit to the University of Washington on November 17 to deliver the School of Music’s 2023 Lecture in American Music is made possible by the generosity of a longtime School of Music friend whose ties extend back decades to his days as a UW student and his 20-plus years as a popular lecturer in the Music History program.
John C. Hanford’s (’03 PhD Music History) studies in musicology at the School of Music culminated in a PhD and two graduate dissertations, “Realities... Read more
By Julia ParkUW Faculty Staff Insider
For the more than 1,500 new faculty members joining the University of Washington this fall, adjusting to a brand-new community of colleagues and students may be daunting. But for four new American Indian and Alaska Native hires, many of those foundations have already been laid.
John-Carlos Perea (Mescalero Apache, Irish, German, Chicano) said that he first began visiting campus around 2013 at the invitation of professors in the School of Music... Read more
The New York Times reviewed favorably recent NYC performances by vocal ensemble Quince, featuring University of Washington Voice faculty Carrie Shaw. “The Approach,” the piece by composer Paul Pinto referenced in the review, received its world premiere in Fall 2022 at Meany Theater in a Quince recital presented by the School of Music. ... Read more
Read complete obituary in the Seattle Times
Abraham Kaplan, affectionately known to most of his family and friends as "Kappy," passed away peacefully in his sleep, surrounded by loved ones in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, the 6th of September, 2023.
Born in Israel before the founding of the country, he followed in the professional footsteps of his father, Shlomo... Read more
Obituary by Roger Kaza
Julian Christopher Leuba, 90, University of Washington French horn faculty from 1967 to 1979, passed away on December 31, 2019. An icon in the horn world, Chris held several leading orchestral positions before joining the UW, including the principal horn positions with the Chicago Symphony, the Minneapolis Symphony (now Minnesota Orchestra), Philharmonia Hungarica, the Aspen Festival, and the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico.
Chris’s rigorous regimen for his... Read more
Read full obituary in the Seattle Times
Distinguished music educator Dr. Barbara Reeder Lundquist died in Seattle on August 17, aged 89. Predeceased by beloved late husband Elon H. Lundquist, parents Rev. Ed and Lois Cooke, and sister Karen, Barbara leaves behind many dear friends and relatives.
A native of Hays, Kansas, Barbara earned a BM in cello... Read more
Read full obituary in the Seattle Times
Gloria Wilson Swisher died peacefully on July 23, 2023 from the ravishes of Alzheimer's that robbed her of her prodigious memory and intellect for the past several years. Her loving husband of 62 years, Don Swisher, and her brother, the Rev. George S. Wilson, were present at her passing at the adult family home in... Read more