Winter 2011/2012 - Tiffin University

Art, Music and Theatre34 | WINTER 2011 / 12 | CHALLENGEMusicRees Travels to BelgiumBrad Rees, TU’s Music Department Director, was invited toteach at the 2011 Halewynstichting Summer Jazz Workshopheld in Dworp, Belgium. This week-long course for conservatorystudents and adult professionalsis one of the longest-runningand leading jazz events in Europe,and features a faculty composed ofleading jazz teachers and performersin Europe, the US and SouthAfrica. Rees worked with a groupof twenty vocalists on solo jazzperformance, improvisation andensemble singing.Brad ReesVazquez CompletesNew ProjectElijah Vazquez, TU’s Director ofInstrumental Music, recently completeda new project for ClevelandTapes Records, the digital album …off the vigorous by Odysseus Brown& the Midnite. Eli (AKA e.React)serves as the house engineer forElijah Vazquezthe record label, and is the creativemuse behind this body of workby the legendary Odysseus Brown. Like many of ClevelandTapes’ productions, this album is available for a “name yourprice” download.The album is receiving some great buzz, having beennamed Bandcamp.com’s Album of the Week. The releaseclosely follows Vazquez’ recent album Nowaystired – A Tributeto Bobby Womack, also on Cleveland Tapes Records.Up in the Air Alum Writes Future“Pop-Classic”Atlanta singer-songwriter and former member of Tiffin University’s‘Up in the Air’ is on her way tomaking a huge splash in the musicindustry. Prisca Strother has beenworking with hitmaker and megaproducerTricky Stewart on the debutrelease from the Swedish singerUlrika. Stewart produced Beyonce’s“Single Ladies,” Mya’s “Case of theEx,” Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” MaryJ. Blige’s “Just Fine” and JustinPrisca StrotherBieber’s “Baby,” and now turns his RedZone Entertainmentresources to the Swedish singer as his next pop star — doingso with the help of Strother and her co-writers at NamasteStudios in Atlanta.The first single from Ulrika’s upcoming album is Strother’ssong “Time Will Tell,” which Phillipa Young of Huffington Postcalls a “pop classic in the making.” Strother also co-wroteseveral other songs on Ulrika’s debut album, including “IConfess,” which is currently being performed and recorded byTU’s Up in the Air. The song includes a catchy pre-chorus thatwas inspired by the vocal harmony experience Strother had inthe TU a cappella group.Up in the Air has toured the Atlanta area twice in the pastyear, and spent some time at Namaste Studios working withUlrika and Prisca. Strother also appeared in a 2010 Tiffin showpresented by the TU Concert Production Team.TU Groups Open for RockapellaTiffin University’s a cappella groups Up in the Air and HigherGround served as opening acts for the acclaimed vocal groupRockapella in their November concert in Macedonia OH.Members ofTU’s HigherGround withRockapella aftertheir Novemberperformancetogether.One of the the most successful and lasting pop vocalgroups in the world, Rockapella was an innovator of themodern a cappella style. The group leapt to fame more thantwo decades ago as cast members of the PBS kid-TV smash“Where In the World is Carmen Sandiego?”, on the Spike Leedocumentary “Do It A Cappella”, and recording jingles forFolgers coffee and Almond Joy. In the years since the grouphas built on its fame touring the world and recording twentyalbums.The concert by Rockapella and the TU groups was theculminating performance of an all-day vocal festival hostedby Nordonia Hills High School. TU vocal directors Brad & AliRees served as clinicians for participating high school vocalgroups that performed during the daytime program.[photo: Members of TU’s Higher Ground with Rockapella aftertheir November performance together.]