A first: CCU student ensembles invited to Piccolo Spoleto
by Prufer
Coastal Carolina University’s Flute and Chamber Choirs will perform “The Music of William Shakespeare” at the Piccolo Spoleto Festival on Sunday, May 31, at 3 p.m. at St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church in Charleston. The concert is free and open to the public.
“This is the first time our student ensembles have performed at Spoleto,” said Terri Sinclair, director of the choirs. “We’ve had faculty performances there for the last three years, but this is a first for our students. We are all very excited.”
The performance will feature two original, unpublished compositions by CCU music faculty members. “Two from Twelfth” by Donald Sloan, professor of music and former chair of the Department of Music, and “Sonnet 116” by Andrew Fowler, teaching associate of music theory.
Thirty-five students in the Chamber Choir and six students in the Flute Choir recently completed a regional tour during which they performed seven concerts in three days, according to Sinclair, who is completing her 10th year at CCU as choir director. Two Coastal Carolina alumni will also join the concert.
“When we were first told about our acceptance into Piccolo Spoleto, I was filled with joy,” says graduating senior Molly Fay, who performs in both the ensemble and chamber choirs. “Since it's the first time that an ensemble from CCU has been accepted, I'm sure you can imagine how exciting that was for all of us!
“For me personally, because I want to be a performer, this opportunity has such value. Not only do we get to represent our amazing school, but we also get to premiere two commissioned pieces from some of our very own professors. I believe that it's extremely important to expose the world to the type of music on our Shakespeare concert, and to continue to perform new and exciting music,” says Fay.
Emily Boronski, another student performer, says, "it's really cool to be a part of Piccolo Spoleto. Our group really enjoys the music we'll be performing, including pieces composed by two members of the music faculty, so we are looking forward to sharing it with more people. One of the best ways to prepare for a career in choral music is to participate in choral music!"
Amy Tully directs the Flute Choir. She is a flutist in the Long Bay Symphony in Myrtle Beach. She has also performed with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra and others. An associate professor of music, she received her doctorate in musical arts from the University of South Carolina.
