World-Class String Orchestra Visits the Mount

3/22/2022

CMSV Conservatory and SONYC Host Concert on April 3

The University of Mount Saint Vincent Conservatory is proud to present the String Orchestra of New York City (SONYC)—a rarity among instrumental ensembles of its size—on Sunday, April 3 at 3 p.m.

The concert—which is also the inaugural presentation of the Conservatory, a new Mount music program and community music school in Riverdale—showcases the collaborative artistic initiatives of the reimagined music program at the College with a companion experimental video by Assistant Professor of Studio Art Laura Elayne Miller. And to further enhance the program, the event welcomes a production crew of students from the Mount’s Division of Communication, Art, and Media.

“As we establish the Conservatory, our goal is to elevate Mount Saint Vincent as a destination for students interested in musical growth, as well as establishing the College a destination for arts education and programming in Riverdale,” said Director for the Conservatory Keith Kreindler. “Our students, faculty, and local community are all represented in the presentation of this event—they are the artists, the composers, and the production crew.”

Led by Conservatory faculty Monica Bauchwitz, the program includes compositions by Matt Van Brink and a premiere by William Giegerich—who’s not only an impressive young musician and composer, but is also a local Riverdale high school student. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s grand “Souvenir de Florence” set for string orchestra will be featured as well.

With comprehensive artistic intelligence, passionate spirit, and a full, radiant sound, SONYC has been described as ‘expressive and smart’ by the New York Sun and as a ‘feisty string orchestra…played with an appealing deftness’ by The New York Times.

The performance will take place in the President’s Reception Room in Founders Hall at the University of Mount Saint Vincent, located at 6031 Riverdale Avenue, Riverdale, N.Y. 10471. The event is free and open to the public, and will be followed by a meet-and-greet reception with the celebrated musicians and artists.

“It is such a privilege to help bring the idea of this performance to life,” continued Keith, who in addition to his role as Conservatory director, is also a musician and teacher. “We want our audience to know that each and every one of them can be part of the University of Mount Saint Vincent Conservatory as we work together help enrich our community with the arts. We look forward to seeing the Mount Saint Vincent and Riverdale communities join us for this passionate Spring concert, that’s sure to explore the full breadth and emotional power of the string repertoire.”

Visiting campus for the first time? Please review our COVID-19 Resources for more information about vaccine requirements for visitors.

About the Artists

The String Orchestra of New York City (SONYC), founded in 1999, comprises some of this nation’s extraordinary string players in a critically acclaimed tour de force ensemble. A conductorless chamber group, SONYC’s members rehearse in a collaborative effort that allows each musician to have an impact on the artistic process. The flexibility and intimacy of a string quartet are thus fused with the power and scope of an orchestra.

SONYC is a pioneer of the concert hall as well as the classroom, having given over 350 performances and hundreds of master classes for children of all ages and backgrounds, nationally as well as in NYC’s public schools. The recipient of many notable grants and awards—and a herald of new music from around the world—SONYC has given 25 world and US premieres. Whether performing new music or the cherished string orchestra repertoire, SONYC strives to inspire and educate its audiences.

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Laura Elayne Miller’s research-based art practice employs a wide range of media to explore the relationship between the physical world and the intrinsic, phenomenological narrative we each maintain, as they are inherently intertwined. Incorporating diverse materials, mediums, and technologies, she investigates the conception that we create our own realities in relation to our surroundings. The outcomes of her artwork take many different forms, with consistent focus on film/video, installation art, sculpture, writing, and interactive performance. With each project, Laura continually reframes the interstitial spaces between binaries such as truth and fiction, history and memory, and physical space and perception, raising questions and creating experimental narratives that problematize these contradictions.

Over the course of her career, Laura has worked in the worlds of visual art, film, TV, digital media, theatre, architecture, dance, music, and creative writing. A passionate educator, she has taught contemporary art classes and filmmaking courses at a range of higher education institutions and community spaces. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Fine Arts at the University of Mount Saint Vincent.

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Composer, songwriter, educator, and performer Matt Van Brink is a musical pluralist. He has composed and arranged over eighty genre-crossing works, including orchestra, chamber, and solo instrumental pieces, choral and vocal compositions, plus musical theater, music for young performers and audiences, and arrangements. Matt heads the composition and songwriting department at the Concordia Conservatory in Bronxville, N.Y., where he mentors students in their quests to become professional musicians and musical citizens.

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Composer William Giegerich lives in the Bronx and studies at the Concordia Conservatory in Bronxville, N.Y. and at the Special Music School in New York City. At the Concordia Conservatory, he has studied composition with Matt Van Brink since 2017 and has studied chamber music and piano since 2011. William is inspired by film scores and other forms of media, and he is particularly fascinated with the way in which sound can accent or create movement within a story. Thematic in nature, his own work is often based on visual ideas—as simple as an owl hunting a mouse, or as complicated as running for the sole purpose of stopping. William has written over 15 pieces to date and has been the finalist in both the 2019 and 2021 Morton Gould Young Composer competition, as well as winning the 2021 New York State School Music Association’s Young Composers Award. His musical interests also include electronic music and William wishes to pursue a career as a composer of film scores.

About the University of Mount Saint Vincent
Founded in 1847 by the Sisters of Charity, the University of Mount Saint Vincent offers nationally recognized liberal arts education and a select array of professional fields of study on a landmark campus overlooking the Hudson River. Committed to the education of the whole person, and enriched by the unparalleled cultural, educational and career opportunities of New York City, the College equips students with the knowledge, skills and experiences necessary for lives of achievement, professional accomplishment and leadership in the 21st century.