Dr. Frances Gray Music Performance Competition Finals, January 22
The Dr. Frances Gray Music Performance Competition 2015 Finals concert will be held Thursday, January 22nd at the Dr. Steel Recital Hall, UPEI at 7:30 pm. This annual competition was recently renamed in honour of Dr. Gray's retirement from the UPEI Music Department.
The six students chosen from the preliminary round to perform in the finals are: Rebecca Apps, soprano; Jillian Clow, mezzo soprano; Leah Inman, piano ; Lucas MacPhail, alto saxophone; Kailey Norris, clarinet and Hannah Rollwage, mezzo soprano.
Originally from St. Catharine's, Ontario, Rebecca Apps is currently in her final year of the Bachelor of Music program at UPEI, majoring in voice under the tutelage of Prof. Sung Ha Shin-Bouey. She holds a Diploma in Musical Theatre Performance from St. Lawrence College (2010). Rebecca has been a featured soloist with the UPEI Concert Choir, the UPEI Chamber Ensemble, the UPEI Jazz Ensemble, the Kirk of St. James Senior Choir, and the Charlottetown Jazz Ensemble. Rebecca's master-class experience has allowed her to work with some of Canada's top classical musicians. Her hard work and dedication to the craft have led her to numerous competitive opportunities, including the CFMTA National Voice Competition (2013), the Atlantic Young Artist Tour Competition (2014) and the UPEI Music Performance Competition.
Jillian Clow is a mezzo-soprano in her fourth year as a UPEI voice major. Originally from New London, she attended school in Kensington where she played trumpet in the Jazz and Concert bands. She was a cast member in the Confederation Centre of the Arts Young Company production of Les Feux Follets in 2012. She has also performed with the UPEI Concert Choir as a featured soloist in works such as Vivaldi's Gloria and Bach's Christmas Oratorio. In 2014, Jillian was invited to compete at the provincial level of the Kiwanis Music Festival after being awarded the Robert C. Schurman Memorial Trophy for being the most outstanding individual performer at the East Prince Music Festival. She also had the pleasure of being featured in the Indian River Festival as a part of the Youth Legacy Program.
Leah Inman, originally from Augustine Cove PEI, is a 4th year piano student studying under the instruction of Dr. Frances Gray. Leah is the pianist for the UPEI Wind Symphony and has been performing annually in the PEI Kiwanis music festival for over 10 years. She has represented this festival multiple times on the provincial level in both piano and vocal categories. Leah is also passionate about art, musical theatre and animals.
Lucas MacPhail, a native of Warren Grove, PEI, is in his fourth year of the Bachelor of Music program at UPEI, studying Saxophone Performance with Kevin MacLean. He is currently the Principal Alto Saxophonist for the UPEI Wind Symphony and a member of the UPEI Jazz Ensemble. Through the PEI Kiwanis Music Festival, Lucas was the recipient of the Suzanne Brenton award to perform with the PEI Symphony Orchestra in the 2014-2015 season and was the winner of the 2014 UPEI Music Department Performance Competition. Lucas has competed twice in the FCMF National Music Festival, where he received the Honourable Mention in Woodwinds in the 2014 competition. This past summer, he attended the American Saxophone Academy at the Eastman School of Music, where he had the opportunity to work with six saxophone professors from the United States. Upon graduation from UPEI, Lucas intends on pursuing graduate studies in saxophone performance.
Kailey Norris is a fifth-year clarinet student in the Bachelor of Music Education program at UPEI. From Long Creek, PEI, Kailey has been playing the clarinet for eleven years and has taught intermediate music both as a senior instructor with Cadets Canada and as director of the Bluefield High School Choir. Kailey has studied under Dr. Karem Simon for five years and is currently the principal clarinetist with the UPEI Wind Symphony. Her future plans include teaching music internationally, and eventually returning home to Prince Edward Island as a public school instrumental and choral instructor.
Hannah Rollwage, mezzo soprano, is in the fifth and final year of her Bachelor of Music degree at UPEI. Originally from Toronto, she moved to PEI in 2006 and attended Colonel Gray Senior High School. She has been featured as a soloist in many recitals in the UPEI Music Department and in programs across the Island. In addition to her studies in the classical field, which have involved performances in UPEI ensembles and the PEI Symphony Orchestra, Hannah enjoys performing in folk, roots, and jazz capacities. A multi-instrumentalist, Hannah has studied piano, cello, and string bass. She works as a session musician, private instructor, church music director, and choral conductor. Hannah was proud to be the recipient of the Lynn Grishko Memorial Bursary at the 2013 Metro Credit Union Music PEI Week. She was selected as the alto representative for P.E.I. in the 2014 National Youth Choir which included a tour of Atlantic Canada. Hannah studies with Sung Ha Shin Bouey and Stephen Bouey.
Judges for the competition are well-known PEI musicians and educators: Reg Ballagh, Peter Bevan Baker, Ken Fornetran, Karen Graves and Anne White.
Tickets are $15 / $10 for Students & Seniors and are available at the door or in advance online at www.upeirecitals11.bpt.me or by calling 902-566-0507 or by email at music@upei.ca.
UPEI Music Department contact: Sue Williams, 902-626-8059
