Ouachita Stories

Ouachita Baptist University will hold a Composers Symposium on Monday, April 25, at 7:30 p.m. in McBeth Recital Hall. The symposium will be free and open to the public.

The Composers Symposium will feature the original compositions of several students. Music composition students spend several weeks and months working on and perfecting their pieces to prepare them for performance.

“The symposium's purpose is to provide an opportunity for our student composers to have their works presented in a public performance,” said Dr. Patrick Houlihan, chair of OBU’s Department of Music Theory/Composition. “Although they receive suggestions from performers and directors during rehearsals, the real benefit comes from the student composers hearing and evaluating the music they’ve been working on.”

Throughout the composing process, students go through a variety of revisions in both the composing and the performance aspects. However, with the help of faculty and their fellow students, they are able to create their performance-ready work.

“It takes a lot of work to write a piece of music and then get it performed. Invariably, students not only become better composers, but better musicians overall,” Houlihan said.

The Composers Symposium is a unique experience for both the public and the performers. The public has the opportunity to hear works that have never been performed, and students have the chance to showcase their talent.

“Hearing a premiere is exciting. Members of the Ouachita community and the southwest Arkansas region who attend get the additional excitement of supporting artistic creation by composers in this area,” Houlihan noted.

For more information, contact Dr. Patrick Houlihan at [email protected] or (870) 245-5130.

 

By Caitlyn Barker