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Madison Carr

Dr. Price

Fundamentals of Music Theory

Concert Report

16 April 2019

Student Recital No. 2

At the beginning of the semester in February, I went to the first student recital I had seen

here in the recital hall at UAB. I had been in concert choir and I know many of the music major

students, so some of the performers were familiar faces. I had never heard them play their

instruments though, so I was so pleased to hear their talents. It was enjoyable to listen to

students playing pieces that I remembered my parents playing in the house when I was kid, and

my high school drum line and orchestra practicing after school. It was interesting to hear the

differences between my parents and my sister practicing, versus these students perform the

pieces I grew up hearing. It was cool to see these students perform music that they have been

practicing for months, or years, the same way my parents did in college, and the same way I did

when I played trumpet. I can imagine how nervous they might have been, but I could see and

hear how hard they worked on these pieces. I loved the diversity of each of the pieces in this

concert, and hearing instruments do things I had never heard them do before. I was pleased by

how nostalgic the concert was, reminding me of home, and how beautifully each of the players

performed.

I really enjoyed hearing the marimba players so much. Particularly, I enjoyed listening to

Christopher Bishop play his pieces. His performance of Michel Burritt’s Preludes, really made

me sit up in my seat. I had never heard this pieces before, so throughout the entire song I was
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invested in what notes were going to come next. I loved how different this piece was from the

rest of the concert. In my high school, my older sister was on the marching band drum line, and

my dad was the drum-line instructor. Every afternoon I would go in the band room and listen to

their rehearsals, so it was nostalgic to hear a marimba again. I really enjoyed how different that

piece sounded compared to other marimbas I have heard in a classical performance. I really

enjoyed his levels throughout the preludes. I could really hear every crescendo and decrescendo

in the piece without question. At times when the song called for long rests, at first I thought

maybe he was off on his rhythm, of course I did not know the piece. Other than those few

moments, I could tell that the rest of his timing and volume choices were on purpose and I could

see how confident he was throughout these pieces.The way he was dancing with the mallets was

beautiful to watch as well as listen to.

Along with the marimbas, I also really enjoyed listening to the clarinet player, Abigail

Codding play a piece I heard my mom play growing up. At first I was not sure if I knew the

piece she played, Sonata for Clarinet and Piano Op. 167, but I recognized so much of the piece

and the rhythms. She sounded so similar to how my mom sounds when she plays her clarinet,

and I could hear all the things she did with the piece that my mom always practiced. At the same

time, I could definitely tell when a note or rhythm did not sound the same as I remembered it. Of

course, every musician is going to make their own choices. I could tell that in some moments she

was running out of air, but she recovered very well and I do not think any of her timing suffered

from that, and I really enjoyed her performance over all. The way she moved with the notes,

again was beautiful to watch. I love not only to hear the musical choices musicians make, but the

physical choices. I can always see how they move is how they always practiced it. I really enjoy

this piece overall because of its long and smooth sustained notes. My favorite thing about the
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clarinet is that you can move fast and have a lot of diversity in your sound, but I will always

enjoy hearing pieces like this one that are smooth and beautiful.

In middle school I played the trumpet. I love the sound of the instrument and I absolutely

love hearing musicians do pieces like Christian Cowart played. His performance of Alexander

Goedicke’s Concert Etude really brought a smile to my face. Trumpet is probably my favorite

instrument to listen to, and hearing it live and watching the musician hit high notes and dance

with their trumpet is so amazing to watch. I always feel like trumpet players are always at one-

hundred percent when they are playing. I really loved this piece because it had the musician

playing every aspect of the trumpet’s sound that I love. The full, brassie sound played in eighth

and sixteenth notes that are slurred is my favorite thing to hear. I loved how smooth he made

each progression. Overall, I just love the trumpet and think it was of the most beautiful

instruments.

I really enjoy going to these types of concerts. I grew up going to concerts with my

family, and watching my family perform in these types of classical concerts. I have performed in

few classical concerts as a violinist for my high school orchestra. I remember when I was a kid,

every time I went to something like this, I would feel like I was not going to like it. I wanted to

mostly listen to, as well as, sing pop music. I did not think it was my type of music and I never

thought I would enjoy the concerts. During the concerts however, I would always love when I

could see my family play solos, and I would always light up when the trumpet players would hit

high notes that sounded impossible to play. I did not realize until I was older how important the

music is, and how lucky I was to have grown up surrounded by music of all types. Im grateful to

go to a school with such a great music program and I can go to these concerts for free. I am so

glad I can continue to grow up around the same music by which I have always been surrounded.
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I will always have a passion for musical theatre and contemporary music, but there is always

something so special about hearing and watching these talented musicians perform beautiful

pieces.