Setnor alumni, local students to present collaborative compositions at Hendricks Chapel June 8

Two compositions written by alumni of the Rose, Jules R. and Stanford S. Setnor School of Music in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, in collaboration with local public school students and their teachers, will be performed in Hendricks Chapel on Friday, June 8, at 12:30 p.m. The concert is free and open to the public. Parking is available in SU pay lots.

“Once Upon a Time” is a collaboration between composer Paola Marquez G’11, who is also on the Setnor School faculty, and fourth-grade students of music teacher Kalli Essig at Moses DeWitt Elementary in DeWitt. Composer Diane Jones G’08 worked with Nottingham High School’s World Music Ensemble and teacher Ray Sturge ’81 G’87 on “Travels.”

“Once Upon a Time” is an original Orff composition inspired by the creative storytelling of the fourth-grade students, who worked together to write and illustrate an elaborate, original fantasy about animals, royalty and a giant. Marquez brought their ideas to life in “Once Upon a Time,” which features leitmotifs, or musical themes, for each character. Similar to Sergei Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf,” the composition’s character “voices” are also represented by specific instruments. The students at Moses DeWitt, who are trained on Orff instruments, will perform.

“Travels” traces elements of world drumming from Guinea and West Africa to Cuba to New Orleans and Los Angeles. Originating from a common rhythm, each culture adds and alters rhythms to its own unique style. The Nottingham World Music Ensemble will layer all of the styles into one unit, returning to the common rhythm.

In addition to the Hendricks Chapel concert, “Travels” will be premiered at an outdoor concert on Wednesday, June 6, at 6:30 p.m. at Nottingham High School, 3100 E. Genesee St., Syracuse. In the case of inclement weather, the concert will take place in the Nottingham High School Auditorium. “Once Upon a Time” will be premiered on Thursday, June 7, at 1:45 p.m. at Moses DeWitt Elementary, 201 Jamesville Rd., DeWitt. Both concerts are free and open to the public.

Marquez and Jones are part of the Billie Burdick Composers in the Schools program. The composer residencies were funded by a grant to the Society for New Music from the New York State Council on the Arts’ Arts in Education in addition to private donations.

For more information, contact Neva Pilgrim of the Society for New Music at nevapilgrim@gmail.com.