Case finalizes agreement with Apollo's Fire
Students to participate in pre-professional training orchestra
November 15, 2004 | For more information: Susan Griffith (216)-368-1004
 Case
Western Reserve University’s Department of Music has formalized
a partnership with Apollo’s Fire, Cleveland’s professional baroque orchestra, for a pre-professional baroque training orchestra.
Since last spring, principal members of Apollo’s Fire have been
leading the Case Baroque Orchestra on a trial basis.
Because of the success of the pilot, Case, which
administers the joint program with the Cleveland
Institute of Music, recently finalized the collaborative
arrangement.
Case already has an established degree program in early music and CIM students frequently participate in the ensembles, but the newly formalized arrangement will serve as an attractive new option for all students.
“This new opportunity for instruction and experience under Apollo’s Fire Music Director Jeannette Sorrell and her colleagues marks an exciting step forward for our program,” said Georgia Cowart, associate professor and Case music department chair. “Students can now look forward to meeting the exacting standards of national leaders in the historical performance field.”
Apollo’s Fire is pleased to be involved with the new arrangement and for the opportunity to contribute its expertise to the Cleveland community.
“We expect to reap the benefit of a larger pool of talented young players in the area who are ready to play professionally in an historically informed style,” said Sorrell.
Already, Case students like Debra Nagy (baroque oboe) and Christina Babich (cello), as well as CIM students like David Ross (baroque flute) and Carrie Krause (violin), are beginning to play with Apollo’s Fire.
Ross Duffin, director of the Case early music program, was the founder of the orchestra, which started as the Case Baroque Orchestra in 1984. With three successful public concerts since the pilot partnership began, Duffin says the new Case/CIM Baroque Orchestra is making beautiful music.
“The student orchestra’s most recent concert was terrific and shows that the arrangement is already working quite well,” he said.
Cleveland audiences have their next opportunity to hear the orchestra when it performs at 7:30 p.m. Monday, November 22, in Harkness Chapel, 11200 Bellflower Road on the Case campus. Featured on the evening’s program, which is free and open to the public, will be Bach’s Orchestral Suite No.2 in B minor.
The primary director of the Case/CIM Baroque Orchestra this year is Miho Hashizume, violinist with Apollo’s Fire and a member of the first violin section in the Cleveland Orchestra. Other Apollo’s Fire members who teach on a regular basis include concertmaster Cynthia Roberts, harpsichordist Sorrell, and principal second violinist Julie Andrijeski, herself a doctoral candidate at Case. Renowned early violinist David Douglass is also involved in instruction this year as a Kulas artist-in-residence at Case.
Case has a number of baroque instruments available for the orchestra students as part of its Kulas Instrument Collection, but there are hopes that area players with unused but excellent string instruments might consider donating them for retrofitting to baroque specifications.
“Our instruments are fine for beginning baroque players,” says Cowart, “but this new arrangement raises the level of musical expectation, and we’d like to be able to supply the students with instruments that are a joy to play.”
About Case Western Reserve University
Case is among the nation's leading research institutions. Founded in 1826
and shaped by the unique merger of the Case Institute of Technology and Western
Reserve University, Case is distinguished by its strengths in education, research,
service, and experiential learning. Located in Cleveland, Case offers nationally
recognized programs in the Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine, Engineering,
Law, Management, Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work. http://www.case.edu.
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