Beyond the Gates: Sea shanties, Finnish Jazz, a Juno nomination, and more Copy
Conducting and harpsichord lecturer Alexander Weimann and the Pacific Baroque Orchestra (PBO) received a JUNO nomination in the category of Classical Album of the Year for their album Nuits Blanches: Opera Arias at the Russian Court of the 18th Century with soprano Karin Gauvin. Prof. Weimann and the PBO also received high praise for their […]
Introducing Dr. Leigh VanHandel, Associate Professor of Music Theory
The UBC School of Music is happy to announce that Dr. Leigh VanHandel will join the faculty as Associate Professor of Music Theory, beginning in the 2020-21 school year. “We are very excited to welcome a scholar and pedagogue of Leigh VanHandel’s calibre to the School of Music. Her research interests both complement and diversify […]
Music students join Faculty of Medicine initiative to support seniors during COVID-19
Before the outbreak, Julie Cheng visited her parents almost every day, often joining them for lunch or a walk through the hallways of the long-term care home where they reside in Vancouver. Then, everything changed. “It all happened very abruptly,” recalls Cheng. “One day I was there helping my parents set up their trays for […]
Playlist: Jazz Piano in Transcription
Our Playlist column features music curated by our faculty, students, and staff and focusing on an interesting idea or theme. By Prof. Michael Tenzer The best jazz pianists are as inspiring as ever, but the art of transcribing what players play has really come into its own since the advent of scrolling scores on You Tube, […]
Playlist: The Natural World
Our Playlist column features music curated by our faculty, students, and staff and focusing on an interesting idea or theme. In this column, School of Music staff member Dina MacDougall shares music inspired by the beauty and rhythms of the natural world. By Dina MacDougall We start our journey with melodies inspired by the lunar cycle, then […]
Update on the Fall Semester
Update (05/20/20): UBC has posted a number of resources for students as they prepare for the 2020-21 school year, including Quick Tips for Preparing to Learn Online, an update on what to expect from your September classes, and some (slightly older) information about housing. Dear students, By now you may have heard that for the […]
Playlist: Comfort and Joy
Our Playlist column features music curated by our faculty, students, and staff and focusing on an interesting idea or theme. In this column, Prof. Alexander Fisher, a musicologist and Early Music specialist, shares comforting and uplifting music from 17th-century Europe. When we are living through challenging times like these, music always provides something of a salve. Many of […]
High Notes | Spring 2020 Edition
High Notes | Spring 2020 FEATURES Liberating the Queen in Me In their new play The Queen in Me, soprano Teiya Kasahara (BMus’07) reimagines one of opera’s most iconic villains — and challenges the industry’s centuries-old prejudices From Aerosmith to Van Halen: How UBC helped shape the hard rock era In the 1980s, Vancouver was […]
Playlist: Cantonese Music
Looking back on the Cantonese music I grew up with, I’m amazed by how broad and varied a genre it is — from Cantonese opera to folk song to pop, it’s a well-loved global phenomenon that captures an important sense of identity, history and heritage for members of the Cantonese diaspora.
From Aerosmith to Van Halen: How the UBC School of Music helped shape rock music history
In the 1980s, Vancouver was a rock ’n’ roll mecca. High Notes talks to Prof. Nathan Hesselink and Sharman King (BMus’70) about the UBC alumni who made some of the era’s best and boldest albums possible Here’s a little-known fact: Vancouver is the birthplace of some of the most important rock ’n’ roll records of […]