

Dr. Emily Schaad conducts the College Symphony Orchestra.
Dr. Emily Schaad conducts the College Symphony Orchestra.
Alumni String Orchestra Weekend and Concert slated for July
SUNY Fredonia string alumni will gather on campus for a weekend of making music, reminiscing and performing a string orchestra concert.
The final concert is slated for Sunday, July 20, at 12:30 p.m., in Harry A. King Concert Hall on campus. The concert is free, and the public is invited to attend.
String alumni can sign up online to participate.
Questions should be directed to Dr. Emily Schaad via email at emily.schaad@fredonia.edu, who is the School of Music’s Director of Orchestras.
Rehearsals begin the evening of Friday, July 18, and continue through Saturday, with a dress rehearsal Sunday morning. Social activities are also planned.
The final concert will feature SUNY Fredonia cello professor Dr. Natasha Farny and recent School of Music graduate Ché Dixon in a performance of Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Cellos.
The orchestra will also play Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s fourth “Novellette,” “Song Without Words” by Fanny Mendelssohn, Romance in C major by Jean Sibelius, and the final two movements of “Souvenir de Florence” by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The group will be joined by viola professor David Rose and piano professor Fr. Sean Duggan.
The final concert will be livestreamed.
Alumni participants have the option to stay in the University Commons residence hall and purchase meals in the Cranston Dining Center. There is a link on the alumni reunion registration form for the rehearsal schedule and dining hours. Starbucks will also be open at University Commons.
For those who would like to stay on campus, housing has been reserved in University Commons at a cost of $58/per person/per night. The accommodations are 2 single rooms, or 2 double rooms sharing a bathroom. The rooms are air conditioned and include sheets, towels, blanket and pillow. There is also a micro-fridge in each room. Guests are encouraged to bring anything that would make their stay comfortable. Members of the Fredonia Residence Life staff will assist alumni during their stay.
Campus housing is first-come, first-served, and participants are asked to please reserve and pay by July 1 using this link for housing in University Commons on Friday and Saturday night.