Please find here the programs for this summer’s events!
June 10 Starry Nights I Faculty Recital Program
June 11 Participant Recital Program
June 18 Starry Nights II Faculty & Participant Recital Program
June 22 Starry Nights III Faculty Recital
June 23rd, 3 PM: Final Participant Recital part I
June 23rd, 7 PM: Starry Nights IV Featured Recital: Jesse Blumberg, baritone & Martin Katz, piano
June 24th, 7 PM: Final Participant Recital part II
First United Methodist Church. 930 North Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70802
We’re thrilled to welcome Professor Anne Epperson to CPI this year! A current professor at the Indiana Jacobs School of Music, Professor Epperson has previously founded the Collaborative Piano programs at the University of Colorado Boulder and the University of Texas at Austin.
Pianist Anne Epperson enjoys a distinguished career as a performer, recording artist, teacher and clinician. She made her debut at age twelve with the New Orleans Philharmonic under Alexander Hilsberg. After studies at Louisiana State University and the Juilliard School, she entered graduate school at the University of Southern California and was appointed staff pianist for the master classes of renowned violinist Jascha Heifetz. This auspicious beginning led to a successful career as a collaborative partner. Ms. Epperson has appeared in concert with distinguished artists throughout the United States, Canada, South America, Mexico, Europe, Israel, Scandinavia, Taiwan and Korea. Critics have praised her collaborative artistry: New York Times “..an excellent partner…technical ability and musicality admirably displayed..”; Seattle Times “..extraordinarily sensitive and well-realized work…. a gifted accompanist..”; Los Angeles Times “…eloquent support..”; Cleveland Plain Dealer “…..Epperson is a chamber music pianist with few peers..”.
She has recorded for Vanguard, Musical Heritage Society, Nonesuch, Centaur, Koch International and Claves and has produced and edited recordings for Nonesuch and Azica.
Her career as an educator is equally impressive. She joined the illustrious faculty at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University in 2016 as Professor of Collaborative Piano, creating a new program offering three graduate degrees in collaborative piano. She has also been appointed Chair of the newly created Chamber and Collaborative Music Department. Prof. Epperson created and developed a graduate degree program at The University of Texas at Austin and was Professor of Collaborative Piano there from 2008 to 2017. From 2004-2008 she was Professor of Collaborative Piano at the University of Colorado at Boulder’s College of Music, where she also created and developed a new graduate degree program. She was Professor of Music and Director of Collaborative Arts at the University of California – Santa Barbara from 2001 – 2004 and from 1985 – 2001 she was head of the Collaborative Piano Department (a department and degree program that she created) at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Previous faculty positions include teaching appointments at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
She has been juror for many prestigious competitions, including the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation competitions, the Fischoff Chamber Music competitions, the Coleman Chamber Music Competitions, the Plowman Chamber Music competition, the New Orleans International Piano Competition, the Corpus Christi International Young Artists Competition and the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Awards. Ms. Epperson has been a panelist, lecturer, performer and master class presenter for the Music Teachers National Association, National Conference on Piano Pedagogy, the Colorado Music Teachers Association, the Oklahoma Music Teachers Association, the Indiana Music Teachers Association, the South Carolina Music Teachers Association, the Arkansas State Music Teachers Association and the Vocal Arts Resource Network in Ohio. She is active as a consultant and advisor in the development of collaborative piano programs nationally and internationally.
Anne Epperson was on the faculty of the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara from 1992-2006, teaching, performing and administering the collaborative piano program she designed. Since retiring from the Music Academy, she has been guest artist at various summer festivals, including the Colorado College Summer Music Festival in Colorado Springs and the Aspen Music Festival and School. She has been a guest performer and coach at the Sarasota Music Festival, the International Festival – Institute at Round Top, the Garth Newel Summer Festival, the Taos Chamber Music Festival, the Scotia Festival, Chamber Music Northwest and the Meadowmount School for Strings, among others.
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The Collaborative Piano Institute and the Vocal Academy are taking all precautions to ensure the safety of the participants, faculty, and audience members. We will be following CDC guidelines at all times, as well as the recommendations of the State of Louisiana and Louisiana State University, and we will take additional steps to ensure the safety of all who participate. We will also share a complete document of COVID-19 policies with our accepted participants and faculty after mid-May.
It is with great pleasure that we introduce Dr. Amy Petrongelli, the new Director of the Vocal Academy at the Collaborative Piano Institute!
Dr. Petrongelli has cultivated a diverse solo performance career, encompassing music from Haydn’s Creation in Carnegie Hall to Berio’s Sequenza III. She has premiered new works for organizations such as HGO, New American Voices, and AEPEX Contemporary Performance, and also had the opportunity to perform with members of leading contemporary ensembles such as Eighth Blackbird, the Metropolis Ensemble, Latitude 49, and Bent Frequency. In 2020, she was honored with the Emerging Artist Award from the University of Michigan for her significant contributions to the field of music performance.
Dr. Petrongelli, who is also a founding member and co-artistic director of the Khemia Ensemble, a chamber ensemble dedicated to promoting contemporary classical music by cultivating collaborative mentorships, and she is joining us remotely (for now!) from Baylor University in Texas, where she is currently an Assistant Professor of Voice.
We cannot wait to see the Vocal Academy flourish under her expert guidance!
We are just ecstatic at the thought of so many stars in one festival! In 2021, we will have a the privilege to learn from the phenomenal pianist, teacher, and vocal coach Warren Jones. He will work with both our pianists and singers, and we cannot wait to see him in action!
He enjoys a notably eclectic career that has taken him to virtually every corner of the musical world. He performs with some of today’s best-known artists such as Stephanie Blythe and Anthony Dean Griffey, and he is the Principal Pianist for the exciting California-based chamber music ensemble, Camerata Pacifica. In the past he has partnered such great performers as Marilyn Horne, Håkan Hagegård, Kathleen Battle, Samuel Ramey, Christine Brewer, Barbara Bonney, Carol Vaness, Judith Blegen, Salvatore Licitra, Tatiana Troyanos, Thomas Hampson, James Morris, and Martti Talvela; and he has appeared in concerts with both the Juilliard Quartet and the Borremeo Quartet. Mr. Jones is a longtime faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music and a former faculty member at the Music Academy of the West.
It has been a bit more than a month since CPI and the Vocal Academy Online ended, and we miss our participants! Both programs were a success, and it was our privilege to have been able to offer high quality content and instruction during such a challenging time. After a short vacation, we are already making plans for our fifth edition, and our first anniversary!
You can see what our participants have to say in our Testimonials page as well as our Facebook page, here is a preview, from our dear participant Fang Goh:
“Time really flies! It has been a year since that singularly remarkable experience at Shattuck St Mary’s in Minnesota. I have returned to The Collaborative Piano Institute and again left inspired and warmed by the experience, even under the awkward circumstances that we currently found ourselves in.
Aside from the unparalleled and world-class content on collaborative music-making, which others here have surely took care to mention in their reviews, I believe what makes this festival a truly special experience is the humanness of it. This quality shines through the festival’s founding idea of helping people in need and the organizers’ and faculty members’ tireless endeavor to turn that into a reality. It is a place where you meet and get inspired by people with not just brilliant minds, but also big hearts.
Being a foreigner myself, I deeply admire the audacity and tenacity of Ana Maria and Elena (directors of the festival) to overcome all the odds intentionally or unintentionally stacked against us to realize their dreams and find a place here in the United States. I can only imagine the untold amount of blood, sweat, and tears that was poured into building and nurturing a truly unique platform that connects the hearts and minds of esteemed and aspiring collaborative musicians from everywhere in the world. This serves as a timely reminder to me that it takes a great deal of time, patience, and heart to achieve something truly worthwhile. I would be the first in line if these inspiring tales were to be published someday.
I rarely express my thoughts on social media – but feel truly necessary to encourage anybody who is interested in collaborative music-making to take a serious look into this lifetime opportunity. I am very glad to witness how the festival has grown since last year and hope it would continue to inspire people for the years to come.
Thank you Ana Maria, Elena, and all the faculty and staff (and last but not least, Zoom) from the bottom of my heart!
We are elated to welcome the spectacular, stunning, and singular Jamie Barton to the Collaborative Piano Institute and Vocal Academy Online 2020! Ms. Barton career is what dreams are made of: a frequent winner at the world’s most prestigious competitions, a regular performer in the famous and most-loved opera houses and concert stages, and a successful recording artist!
In addition, Ms. Barton is increasingly recognized for how she uses her powerful instrument offstage – lifting up women, queer people, and other marginalized communities. Her lively social media presence on Instagram and Twitter serves as a hub for conversations about body positivity, diet culture, social justice issues, and LGBTQ+ rights. Jamie has recently brought her perspective to The Guilty Feminist, Slate, Studio 360, Front Row Live, The Times, Observer | The Guardian, San Francisco Chronicle, and cover stories in Classical Music Magazine and BBC Music Magazine. It is no wonder that she was named 2020 Personality of the Year at the BBC Music Magazine Awards.
We cannot wait to hear her discuss her career path, partnership, and social advocacy with the participants of the Institute!
