Thomas Edward Morgan: 2019 Distinguished Alumnus
Lauded by the Daily Camera as āa many-splendored musician who can shape a line to realize to the fullest extent the intentions of the composer,ā Thomas Edward Morgan (MM ā87)āfounding artistic director and conductor of the āis this yearās recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award, to be conferred by the College of Music at its spring commencement ceremony on May 9.
Under Morganās leadership, Ars Nova (Latin for ānew artā) is widely recognized as one of the regionās premier ensembles. Specializing in a cappella music of the Renaissance and the 20th and 21st centuries, Ars Novaānow in its 33rd yearācomprises selectively auditioned choral musicians from the Boulder-Denver metro area. To date, the group has presented more than 400 performances of 100-plus distinct concert programs.
āI came from a really strong choral music program at Macalester College in Minnesota,ā says Morgan, reflecting on how his undergraduate degree ultimately pointed him toward continuing his studies at the CU Boulder College of Music. āAlongside a challenging academic liberal arts degree, I studied choral and orchestral conducting with Dale Warland.ā
Indeed, Morgan stepped in as assistant conductor for the renowned choral composer and conductor, and also sang under his direction. From there, he decided a graduate degree in composition would round out who he was becoming as a musician. At the same time, he forged a bond with Professor Emeritus of Music Giora Bernstein, conductor, classical violinist, and founder and artistic director of the Colorado Music Festival.
āThe opportunity to gain different perspectives from working with both orchestral and choral musicians really helped me in my career,ā says Morgan. āIn the first year of my masterās, I studied with Richard Toensing. In my second year, I studied with Charles Eakin. And my masterās thesis was with Luis Gonzalez. Iām very much indebted to each of them.ā
Morgan also studied with American conductor Joshua Rifkin and German conductor Helmut Rilling, and heās taken master classes with Swedish conductors Eric Ericson and Herbert Blomstedtāall of great renown in their own right. āWorking with these scholars at CU and beyond the university was really formative for me,ā he says. āI wouldnāt have had any of that if I hadnāt been in the masterās program at the College of Music. The opportunities and connections I made further positioned where I was headed in my career.
āCU gave me an incredible foundation.ā
Morganās more recent accomplishments include a residency with the Lucas Artists Residency Program at Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, as well as a collaboration with New York visual artist Lesley Dill in the production of āI Heard a Voiceāāan extended work for a cappella chorus premiered by Ars Nova. Additionally, Morganās composition āPsalm 88ā for orchestra and chorus received the prestigious BMI Award, and his choral work āFour Poems of e. e. cummingsā was presented on the opening program of the eighth Internacional Musica Nueva festival in Mexico City. Several of his works have also been performed internationally by the Peiyang Chorus of Tianjin, China.
Acknowledged as a leading interpreter of new music in Colorado, Morganās leadership of Ars Nova has elevated its reach and reputation nationally, including being selected as a semifinalist for The American Prize in choral performance (2010). The ensemble has been heard in radio broadcasts throughout the world, including such National Public Radio programs as Performance Today, The First Art, Music from the Hearts of Space, and locally on Colorado Spotlight and Colorado Matters. All told, Ars Nova has released 10 independent recordings, and performed on seven internationally released recordings with Boulder composer and instrumentalist Bill Douglas.
āFrom the beginning, our focus has been on really early music and discoveries still to be made in the vast repertoire of Renaissance music, along with contemporary, more unusual music,ā Morgan says. āWe bring to the forefront the outer ends of the spectrum of repertoire, often requiring many different parts.
āWe do a lot of 16-part music. Across the country, the artistic level required to do that is fairly rare, as is the ability to commit to it.ā
Moreover, Morgan is committed to building community, including collaborative performances withāamong othersāFrequent Flyers Aerial Dance and the Fiske Planetarium, plus a world premiere of Peter-Anthony Togniās āWarrior Songsā with legendary jazz percussionist Jerry Granelli, the U.S. premiere of Arvo PƤrtās āSalve Reginaā with Sphere Ensemble and a rendition of Giya Kancheliās āAmao Omiā with the Colorado Saxophone Quartet. Further collaborative feats for Ars Nova include Morten Lauridsenās āLux Aeternaā with the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra, the Colorado premiere of Carol Barnettās āThe World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass with Jake Schepps and Expedition,ā Osvaldo Golijovās āOceanaā cantata with Pro Musica Colorado, and a critically acclaimed performance of Terry Rileyās āSun Ringsā with the eminent Kronos Quartet at the Colorado Music Festival.
āWe have a very stable organization right now,ā concludes Morgan. āWeāve hired a new executive director, and weāre developing an endowment that will allow Ars Nova to survive me and to remain stable for many years to come.
āGood things are happening. Iām looking forward to being artistic director emeritus someday and seeing how someone else will build on what weāve done.ā
In addition to his dedication to the Ars Nova Singers, Morgan serves as music director of St. Johnās Episcopal Church in Boulder, a position heās held more than three decades.
Daniel and Boyce Sher: Distinguished Service Award recipients
The college will also recognized two familiar members of the College of Music family with the annual Distinguished Service Award at commencement. Dean Emeritus Daniel Sher and his wife Boyce will return to the Grusin stage for the honor.
Sher, who was dean of the college from 1993 until 2013, says he and his wife did not expect the award. āBoyce and I felt profoundly honoredātaken aback, reallyāwhen Dean Shay told us about receiving the Service Award,ā Sher explains. āWe are gratified to be a part of a college that has continued on a steady trajectory to greater levels of excellence.ā
Dean Sher earned degrees in piano performance and pedagogy from Oberlin, Juilliard and Columbia University Teachers College before becoming an award-winning teacher and later dean of the Louisiana State University School of Music. During his time at CU Boulder, the College of Music establishedāamong other noteworthy initiativesāthe Entrepreneurship Center for Music, degrees in jazz studies and collaborative piano, and the Pendulum New Music and CU NOW programs.
Boyce studied piano performance at Eastman School of Music and was a Fulbright Scholar in Rome before enrolling in the Doctor of Music Education program at Columbia Teachers Collegeāwhere she met Daniel Sher. The two have performed as a piano duo throughout the country, including at Alice Tully Hall in New York. The two have performed as a piano duo throughout the country, including at Alice Tully Hall in New York. Boyce juggled raising the coupleās two sons with performing and teaching for many years. She and her sister established an endowed scholarship for a graduate voice student at the College of Music in honor of their mother. Boyce has been an active partner throughout their marriage, hosting and organizing many events and trips for faculty, staff and friends of the college.
āWe are so very proud of this faculty, supported by a wonderful staff, who work collaboratively and cooperatively together,ā Dean Sher says. āThis collegiality has become a signature value of the college that, maybe more than any other, has contributed to its success.
āWe have also been privileged to engage with an ever growing āfamilyā of volunteers who have a deep personal investment in all that we do,ā Sher says of the extended group of supporters who have become dear friends to his wife and him.
The Shers remain actively involved in the collegeās activities. Receiving this award, Dean Sher adds, is especially gratifying after nearly three decades of time spent in the college community. āWe have seen the positive impact that the College of Music has had on generations of students and the community.ā
College of Music commencement is Thursday, May 9, at 3:30 p.m. in Grusin Music Hall.