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The Semper Pro Musica Solo and Chamber Music Competition is now in its third year of existence in the School of Music at Baylor University. In September of 2015, during my first semester as dean, I developed the conceptual framework for Semper Pro Musica. The goal of the competition is to identify the top talent in the school through two rounds of competition and to present a winners’ recital at a significant external venue to the school. Approximately 60 students participated in the 2015-16 competition. On Thursday, May 26, 2016 the solo and chamber winners were presented in recital at Highland Park United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas. More than 90 students participated in the First Round of the 2016-17 competition. The Final Round was held on February 12, 2017. The winners of that competition were presented in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York City on May 25, 2017.
As this academic year unfolds, more than 120 students are participating in the 2017-18 competition including 62 soloists and seventeen chamber groups composed of more than 60 students. The competition has grown in 2018 to include organ. We hope that you will consider coming to New York City May 22-26 in 2018 to hear the winners of the 2017-18 competition perform on two successive nights. On May 23, 2018 the winner of the Organ Competition will perform at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church on Park Avenue and the following night, May 24, 2018, the Solo and Chamber Music Competition winners will perform once again in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Both recitals will begin at 8:00 pm. To learn more about how you can come and experience Semper Pro Musica winners as they give their Carnegie Hall debuts, please visit the website that gives details on the trip to NYC (baylor.edu/music/carnegie).
I hope to see you in late May of 2018 at St. Bartholomew’s and in Carnegie Hall. It’s a great time of year to be in the city!
Musically Yours,
Gary Mortenson,
Dean School of Music
Baylor University
