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to accompany his compositions. He began composing in high school but didn’t take his first lesson until PLU. “Before it was an impassioned hobby,” Whatley said. “It was important coming here because I knew I could take lessons in the area I was most passionate about.” And now he credits his instructors—specifically Youtz and Clement Reid—with helping him grow into the composer he is today. Youtz has encouraged Whatley since their first lesson. “It was the first time I had lessons with him, and he

Preparation, organization, punctuality and respect is how Barry Johnson leads his singing, teaching and directing in the PLU music department Posted by: Kate Williams / December 6, 2017 December 6, 2017 By Kate Williams '16Outreach ManagerBarry Johnson has performed in over 25 roles in the Seattle and Tacoma Operas, while also teaching voice and opera lessons at PLU for over 20 years. Today, you can find him teaching full-time to music students at PLU. What is your background? I was born and

Trinity Lutheran Church in Parkland, WA. The Lyric Brass Quintet is the resident faculty brass ensemble at PLU. Its members teach private lessons at PLU and are all active solo, chamber, and orchestral performers throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond. The players enjoy performing a wide range of repertoire from the Renaissance to the twenty-first century, including several works that have been commissioned for them. The members of the Lyric Brass get along surprisingly well with each other given

talented people of color,” she said. “It’s just like being at summer camp. Everyone is there with the same interest, and you’re not the odd duck anymore.” Before coming to PLU, McIntyre, 36, characterized herself as shy. But the voice lessons and the support here brought her out of her shell. Once she started teaching, she found it difficult to continue to find the cash to pay for voice lessons. But after the “Porgy and Bess” experience, she intends to find the time, and the money to groom her talent

PLU to Welcome Grammy-Winning Organist Nathan Laube Posted by: Mandi LeCompte / August 9, 2016 August 9, 2016 By Mandi LeCompteOutreach ManagerPacific Lutheran University welcomes internationally renowned organist Nathan Laube to campus on September 11, 2016 at 3 pm. Described as one of the world’s elite organ performers, Laube will kick off the Richard D. Moe Organ Series. Laube is a Grammy-winning organist, who tours and performs internationally. His most recent album won for the Best

and conducts a few pieces. He also encourages students to learn a secondary instrument, as versatility is important for music educators. When asked for his best advice for students embarking on a career in music education he had a few words of wisdom. “Become the best musician you can. Take that role seriously,” Gerhardstein said. “Start developing your teaching resume in small ways, whether it’s going back to your home town to teach lessons, or coaching students here on a secondary instrument

International Star Imparts Wisdom to Operatic Lutes Posted by: Sandy Dunham / March 3, 2015 Image: Opera star Stephanie Blythe works with student Eric Olson ’15 during a master class at PLU. (Photo: Matthew Salzano ’18) March 3, 2015 By Matthew Salzano ’18PLU Marketing & CommunicationsTACOMA, WASH. (March 2, 2015)—Internationally known mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe gave more than just singing lessons to five lucky Lutes.When Blythe visited campus on Feb. 23 to deliver a master class, she held

Sakai 2.9: A Look-Ahead to New Features Posted by: Jenna S / April 22, 2014 April 22, 2014 by Layne Nordgren and Sean Horner  New in Sakai 2.9 In a previous blog post and a corresponding email sent to all PLU employees last month about the Sakai upgrade to version 2.9 on Fri., June 6, we had alluded to forthcoming details about the new Lessons tool and other new features to expect from Sakai 2.9. Those details are now available. You can refer to them in the Sakai support site on a new page: New

. Our keyboard students, and most especially those interested in organ music, will benefit greatly from this wonderful harpsichord that now resides in the office of Dr. Paul Tegels, Associate Professor of Music. Dr. Tegels studied the harpsichord while earning organ diplomas from Stedelijk Conservatorium in the Netherlands. Organists are frequently asked to play harpsichord as they are more similar to organs than to pianos, both in the way harpsichords are played and in their music repertoire. While

Tegels, organ, and PLU’s Choir of the West directed by Richard Nance. The idea of perspective is explored through two compositional views of the Prodigal’s humility in his return: Debussy with piano, and Arthur Sullivan’s oratorio, performed with organ and Choir of the West. The two versions give the same perspective from different compositional voices. Jim Brown, director, explains the differences. “Sullivan (of Gilbert & Sullivan fame) is a real Victorian era compositional voice. There are moments