Chamber Orchestra
Chamber Orchestra General Information
The University of Rochester Chamber Orchestra's (URCO) 40 student musicians present four free concerts each year in the University of Rochester's Henry Alvah Strong Auditorium on the River Campus. Led by Dr. David Harman, The orchestra also performs in satellite locations throughout the Rochester community and tours both in the United States and internationally. During the spring of 1996, the all-student orchestra toured the island of Jamaica, performing and working with the Jamaica Orchestra for Youth and the Alpha Boys Band as well as giving a gala performance in Kingston's Ward Theatre. During July of 1997, the Chamber Orchestra toured the island of Grand Cayman, B.W.I. In Georgetown, they performed concerts and served as the core orchestra and teaching mentors for the first International Festival for Music Education. One of the performances from the festival was broadcast by Cayman Television. The Orchestra returned to Grand Cayman again in the summer of 1998. In May 1999, the Orchestra toured Italy. Pictures from the Chamber Orchestra's return trip to Grand Cayman in June 2000 are on the website. URCO toured in Montreal, Canada in May 2002, Cleveland, Ohio in May 2004, and Buffalo in 2006.
Performing music from the Baroque to the Contemporary, the Chamber Orchestra showcases the versatility of the University's students. This season the Chamber Orchestra will perform major works by Mendelssohn, Ravel, Mozart, and Weber, as well as new contemporary pieces. The orchestra also performs at the annual Viennese Ball, held each November in Wilson Commons.
Membership is open to qualified University of Rochester students. This year, auditions for Chamber Orchestra and for Symphony Orchestra will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, September 2 and 3. You'll be able to sign up at Todd Union for an audition time beginning on August 29. Please prepare two to three minutes of your favorite solo that represents your musical and technical abilities. There will also be some sight reading. The entire audition should take about seven minutes.
Rehearsals are held Mondays from 4:50 to 6:00 p.m. and on Wednesdays from 4:50-7:00 p.m. in Strong Auditorium.
Chamber Orchestra Members
Dr. David Harman, Musical Director and Conductor
A native of northern California, David Harman began his serious musical studies as a clarinetist. He was the assistant conductor
of the University Orchestra while earning a B.A. and M.A. in Woodwind Performance from California State University at Sacramento. In 1971
he was awarded a scholarship as a Boursier de l'Etat français by the Fulbright Foundation for advanced study in France
at the Paris Conservatory. He also attended master classes given by Erich Leinsdorf, Daniel Lewis and Jorge Mester at the Aspen Music Festival
as an orchestral conducting scholarship student. Harman earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The Eastman School of Music of the
University of Rochester in 1974 at age 25.
Following graduation from Eastman, he assumed the position of coordinator of woodwind instruction, and conductor of the chamber orchestra and opera program at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins. He left that position for a similar post at The University of Connecticut in Storrs in 1981. During that time, Dr. Harman also enjoyed an active solo career as a clarinetist with three solo recordings, recital appearances at Carnegie Recital Hall, London's Wigmore Hall and Purcell Room. Other performances included national concert tours and recorded broadcasts for the B.B.C. Radio Three, France’s O.R.T.F., WGBH in Boston, WQXR in New York City, and National Public Radio. The New York Times review of his 1981 Carnegie Hall debut recital mentioned that, “Everything he touched turned to music.”
In 1986, Harman assumed the post of Director of Orchestras at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, a professorship that he held until returning to Rochester in 1993. At U of L he was conductor of the University’s Symphony Orchestra, and Opera Theater. As Executive Director of The Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, he collaborated closely with composers Harrison Birtwistle, John Corigliano, György Ligeti, Witold Lutoslawski, Krzysztof Penderecki, Joan Tower and Chinary Ung . He also served as Music Director of The Louisville Civic Orchestra and as assistant conductor of the Louisville Orchestra.
He continues to appear both as a guest conductor of professional orchestras and as a music educator at university and high school levels. Professional appearances include return engagements with The Louisville Orchestra, The Cincinnati Symphony, The Tucson Symphony, The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, The Lake Placid Sinfonietta, Opera Theater of Rochester. Harman was also conductor of the Orchestra of the Spring Festival of Contemporary Music in Ljubljana, Slovenia under the sponsorship of Arts America. He also served as guest conductor of The Shanghai Conservatory Symphony ( China), The Jamaica Orchestra for Youth (JOY) in Kingston, Jamaica, The Grand Cayman International Music Camp, and the New York All-State String Orchestra.
In 2005, he was named by the Monroe Country School Music Association as recipient of the Richard H. Snook Award for his contributions to music education in the greater Rochester area.
Since 1993, Dr. Harman has held the posts of Professor of Music and Director of Orchestral Activities at the University of Rochester River Campus where he conducts the Symphony and Chamber Orchestras. For the past fourteen years he has also served as Conductor and Music Director of the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and has conducted the RPYO in concerts in England, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, and Slovakia. In addition, for the past eight seasons he has served as the Music Director of the Penfield Symphony Orchestra.
Violin
Hannah McDonough, concertmaster
Henry Henderson, principal second
Aoi Bae
Christina Coronado
Marc Karasek
Eunice Leung
Willem Lutter
P. Henry Namkung
Ruth Ann Scoles
Deborah Song
Victoria Yam
Viola
Colleen Kellenberger, principal
Kate Cieply
Kim Etingoff
Cathy Fromen
Andrew Weller-Gordon
Cello
David Agia, co-principal
Leah Rankin, co-principal
Alex d'Auteuil
Arthur Chang
Bekah Goldstein
Andrew Niles
Kevin Yamashta
Bass
Peter Andrews
Greg Wood
Maryann
Mikucki
Stefanie Trop
Andrew Sak
Oboe/English Horn
Erin Bollacker
Joel Green
Stephanie Herrlinger
Clarinet
Amy Carvallo
Rachelle Vosburg
Jennifer Tsang
Bassoon
Jenny Goldhammer
Kevin King
Horn
Kelly Cosman
Calle Fitzgerald
Greg Savich
Trumpet
Joshua Jaramillo
Deborah Stamm
Trombone
Ben David Aronson
Aaron Levy
Lindsay Gardner
Timpani/Percussion
Michael Aronson
Orchestra Staff
David Harman, Music Director
Josef Hanson,
River Campus Concert Manager
Chamber Orchestra Audio Samples
Poco Sostenuto-Vivace from Symphony No. 7, Opus 92 (1812) by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Allegretto from Symphony No. 7, Opus 92 (1812) by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
"Kyrie" from Mass in C (1807) by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
performed by the Choir and Chamber Orchestra
SivaSakthi (2000) by Todd Coleman (b. 1970)
performed by the Chamber Orchestra with James VanDemark, bass
Check out the streaming audio performance archives here: http://www.lib.rochester.edu:82/Mur/500Performances/URPerformancesArchive.htm
The University of Rochester Chamber Orchestra released its premiere studio production the fall of 1997. The compact disc included fresh and invigorated performances of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 in A major as well as an inspired composition by Eastman School of Music graduate Jeremy Gill entitled Yet the Star and Lilac Hold Me. This recording is the first such project by an orchestra on the River Campus.
Want to hear more?
Click below for audio samples of the recording:
Beethoven: Symphony No. 7, Mvt 1
MP3 (41 Seconds; 0.64 MB)
Real Audio (41 Seconds; 0.080 MB)
Gill: Yet the Star and Lilac Hold Me
MP3 (43 Seconds; 0.67 MB)
Real Audio (43 Seconds; 0.085MB)
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Real Audio: free player for both Mac and Windows
Founded in 1993 by music director David Harman, the all-student Chamber Orchestra strives to introduce audiences to new and exciting performances while maintaining the ideals which are so vital to the integrity of their music. Comprised of 40 musicians of diverse academic backgrounds, the student-managed orchestra performs four concerts each year in addition to outreach programs throughout the greater-Rochester Community and around the world.
Chamber Orchestra Photos
URCO Cayman trip, July 2000
Dr. Harman (Conducting)
Chamber Orchestra Jamaica Trip Photo
Children's Concert at Medley Centre: bass drum
Children's Concert at Medley Centre: bass drum close-up
Children's Concert at Medley Centre: violin
Children's Concert at Medley Centre: budding conductor
Children's Concert at Medley Centre: timpani
Children's Concert at Medley Centre: violin II