Music Conservatory recital showcases talents of area students

Twenty-two area students will showcase their vocal and instrumental talents Sunday in Augusta University’s Music Conservatory spring recital.

The recital is free and open to the public, and selections range from the piano piece Ecossaise, Op. 18, No. 4 by Franz Schubert and the cello piece Sonata in E minor, Op. 14, No. 5 by Antonio Vivaldi to musical selections from Broadway and the jazz era.

CT Walker Magnet School fourth-grader Ana Cortinez, a voice student of Natasha Choe, will present Giacomo Puccini’s aria O mio babbino caro and jazz classic Fly Me to the Moon, popularized by crooner Frank Sinatra.

“Opera really allows me to experiment with my voice. It’s also so elegant,” Cortinez said.

It was her mother who encouraged Cortinez to start taking lessons. “I love singing a lot. I was singing a lot around the house. Mama said she really loved my voice, and that’s how I got enrolled in lessons,” she said.

The Music Conservatory offers private lessons for most instruments and voice types, various large and small ensembles for children and adults and summer music camps. Instructors include faculty members of the Augusta University Music Department as well other highly qualified local professional musicians.

“The Conservatory also has ensembles for children and adults including the Youth Orchestra of Greater Augusta, the Sand Hills String Band, the Conservatory Jazz Ensemble, the Conservatory Wind Symphony and the Middle School Wind Symphony,” said Music Conservatory Director Kate Jenkins.

Cortinez said, “The voice teachers there are amazing. The students that I also work with, we’re really cooperative. Whenever we go up on stage, we’re cheering each other on.”

William Smith, a junior at Augusta Preparatory Day School, has been taking piano lessons from Music Conservatory instructor Dr. Clara Park since he was a freshman. Smith will not perform in Sunday’s recital, but has in previous recitals.

“When I first started, I didn’t really have a good musical sense. My technique wasn’t all that good either. Dr. Park really kind whipped me into shape. She really taught me what music really is – the power and effect it can have on other people,” Smith said. “I’ll be auditioning for music school when I graduate. Dr. Park inspired me to do that.”

The recital will start at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 20 in the Grover C. Maxwell Performing Arts Theatre on the Summerville Campus, 2500 Walton Way.