School Notes: School of Music
September/October 2009

Symposium examines music education

The second biennial Symposium on Music in Schools, held on campus this past June, brought together 51 public school music educators from 37 states and 60 music teachers from New Haven public schools to discuss critical educational issues, build skills through panels and workshops, and draw national attention to the value of music and music teachers in the lives of our children. Panels focused on two main topics: "El Sistema," the Venezuelan program that has infused music into every level of its education system, and "Linking Music to the General Classroom"; workshops dealt with storytelling and songwriting. The symposium's keynote speaker was Lucia Brawley ’02MFA, an actress, writer, and advocate of arts education who blogs for the Huffington Post. The biennial symposium is cosponsored by the School of Music and the Yale College Class of ’57 as part of the Music in Schools Initiative.

Renowned violist joins faculty

After a lengthy international search, the school has appointed Ettore Causa as associate professor (adjunct) of viola. Since 2001 Causa has been professor of viola and chamber music at the International Menuhin Music Academy in Switzerland, and he regularly presents master classes throughout Europe and South America. He performs throughout the world as a member of the Aria Quartet and has appeared at major music festivals, such as Salzburg, Tivoli, Perth, and Festival de Estorial (Portugal). Mr. Causa studied at the International Menuhin Academy with Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Johannes Eskar, and Alberto Lysy. His advanced studies were with Michael Tree at the Manhattan School of Music. In 2000, he was awarded both the Schidlof Prize and the J. Barbirolli Prize at the prestigious Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition in England. His appointment began this semester.

School celebrates Goodman centenary

Legendary clarinetist Benny Goodman would have turned 100 this year. In observance of this milestone, the School of Music is presenting a Benny Goodman Centenary Festival during the month of September. Musical tributes include a spotlight on Goodman's classical legacy (with music by Copland, Poulenc, Bartok, Gould, and Shulman that Goodman commissioned and/or premiered) and several jazz concerts. The Gilmore Music Library, home to Goodman's archives, is featuring a display selected from his papers.