School of Music – Page 17 – College of Arts & Sciences

Voice Professor Sings in India for Human Trafficking Victims

June 6, 2017

Dr. Susan Williams singing at a concert in Kolkata.

From the June 2017 Desktop News | Over winter break, Dr. Susan Williams, assistant professor of voice and classically trained soprano, didn’t travel to visit family members for the holidays or remain in Tuscaloosa awaiting the spring term. Instead, she hopped on a plane to India to perform in a series of concerts with Kolkata Classics. Kolkata Classics is a concert series created by pianist Jennifer Heemstra, who also performs in each concert, intending to expose the people of Kolkata (Calcutta) to high […]

Alumna Works to Establish Music BA Amidst Conflict in Myanmar

April 13, 2017

Ten Yeen accompanies her colleague Aung at a concert they organized for Dr. Joanna Biermann.

From the April 2017 Desktop News | According to UA alumna Ten Yeen Chong, the Kachin State of Myanmar is in the middle of a humanitarian crisis and civil war. Just months ago, in Nawng Nang, a village 30 minutes from Kachin’s capital Myitkyina, she said fighter jets with bombing missions flew overhead and government soldiers began appearing around the local college campus. “People flee their homes with no food, no shelter, no warm clothing, no access to medical attention, and nowhere […]

Undergraduate Research Conference Adds Creative Showcase

March 9, 2017

From the March 2017 Desktop News | Inspired by the national effort to bring arts back into the research world, The University of Alabama’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Conference is kicking off its 14th year with an undergraduate Creative Showcase Wednesday, March 29 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Ferguson Center Theatre and Gallery on the UA campus. “The University of Alabama excels in research and creative activity,” said Dr. Kim Bissell, UA’s director for undergraduate research and associate dean […]

Piano Wing Named to Honor Alumna

November 15, 2016

From the November 2016 Desktop News | According to alumna Gloria Narramore Moody, her “love affair” with The University of Alabama’s School of Music began while attending Girl Scouts camp between sixth and seventh grade. She was casually playing the piano—as she so often did—for a group of girls who wanted to sing when a man came up to her and asked for her name and the name of her father. She answered without missing a note, and later found out […]

A&S in the News – September 23-29

October 3, 2016

Investigators said they killed for ISIS. But were they different from ‘regular’ mass killers? Washington Post – Sept. 23 Dahir Adan, a former Apollo High School honor student, walked into a mall here last Saturday and stabbed 10 people before an off-duty police officer shot him dead. The Islamic State hailed him as one of its soldiers. The FBI has hesitated to describe Adan’s rampage as an ideologically inspired terrorist attack and Thursday night called on witnesses – ideally with […]

A&S in the News – September 9-September 15

September 20, 2016

Shifting South: Why Alabama is Trump’s red-state constant Atlanta Journal-Constitution – Sept. 13 They’re mad at the stagnant economy, decaying infrastructure and deepening divide between the wealthy and the poor. And on a recent stormy night, the frustrated and furious in this central Alabama town of 1,250 made sure the local political elite heard them … How red is Alabama? Richard Fording, a University of Alabama political scientist, can’t find internships for his students because there are few campaign operations […]

Scholarships Matter: For the Love of Music

August 11, 2016

From the August 2016 Desktop News |Scholarships Matter is a series of stories highlighting students in the College of Arts and Sciences who have received and been impacted by scholarships. The student featured in this story is the recipient of one College-wide scholarship, The Camilla and Steve Johnson Endowed Support Fund for The Huxford Symphony Orchestra. Scholarships like these are made possible by generous support from our alumni and friends. Lindsey South was homeschooled her whole life. “I never had […]

Musician Recognized Internationally

April 27, 2016

From the 2016 Celebrating Excellence | When Cynthia Simpson was 10 years old, she had no intention of becoming a professional musician—and certainly not a professional French horn player. She was in fifth grade at the time, and her father was the band director at her school. He needed horn players, so she played horn. She couldn’t have guessed that 15 years later, as a graduate student at The University of Alabama, she would be ranked the second best French […]

Professor Brings Bluegrass, Folk to Pakistan as State Department Cultural Ambassador

April 7, 2016

From the April 2016 Desktop News | When Dr. Nikos Pappas and his four-man band went to Pakistan this summer to play the traditional music of the Deep South, they knew they’d be the only Americans in most of the places that they’d visit—but that didn’t keep them from going. “Just because something looks dangerous or threatening on the outside, doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth it,” said Pappas, an assistant professor of musicology at UA. “It means there is […]

Faculty Recognized for Outstanding Teaching

November 16, 2015

From the November 2015 Desktop News | Two professors in the College of Arts and Sciences, Drs. Paul Houghtaling and Timothy Snowden, received Outstanding Commitment to Teaching Awards from The University of Alabama’s National Alumni Association. These awards are the University’s highest honor recognizing excellence in teaching. Houghtaling is an associate professor of voice in UA’s School of Music and is the director of UA’s Opera Theatre. Under his leadership, UA’s Opera Theatre has gained national recognition as a training […]