Inspired by the image of a woman from a photography collection titled, “The Family of Woman” and by his own recurring images as a child of a brush fire, Henry Stewart composed an original piece titled “Threnody/Images” as a second-year GC student and submitted the piece to the London-based New Works Competition. Fresh-faced and green, Stewart discovered to his great astonishment that his piece was selected as one of six finalists from among 54 entries. After the top six entries were selected, the voting became public, and Stewart found himself in the competition’s top three; buttressed by the support of...

By Nina Fox • November 4, 2013 • Arts

On the first Friday of every month, downtown Goshen is brimming with people of all ages engaging in the act of busking. Some do it for fun, some for money; but what exactly is busking? Caleb Sawin, a sophomore at Goshen College, explained it as “a term for going out and playing on streets, in public, usually for festivals or large gatherings of people.” An experienced busker, he can be seen playing and singing on First Fridays in Goshen; since this reoccurring event draws more people than the usual downtown crowd, he feels it “gives him more reason to play.”...

By Brynn Godshall • October 22, 2013 • Features

Steve Martin, owner of Ignition Garage, a music Mecca in downtown Goshen, has two daughters who both listen to music. The eldest is 34 and has one of the largest CD collections he has ever seen, and the youngest is 26 and until recently didn’t own a single CD.  With the advent of digital music, the consumption of music has changed dramatically over the last few years. “Digital music is like fast food,” said Martin, “but if people want an experience there is still the really good restaurants.” Ignition Garage is a smorgasbord of fine dining. The store offers CDs...

By Elizabeth Derstine • October 22, 2013 • Arts

From Sauder Concert Hall to the streets of downtown Goshen, Lavender Jazz—Goshen College’s jazz ensemble—plays an assortment of styles including salsa, funk, Latin, rhythm and blues, as well as standard jazz repertoire. You may have seen them recently during October’s First Friday event. John Miller, senior said,“It’s the longest and most public performance we do, and it’s only a month into school.” Miller has been in Lavender jazz all four years, and plays the upright as well as the electric bass. “My high school had a fantastic jazz program, and through playing in it, I gained an appreciation for the...

By Kate Friesen • October 13, 2013 • Arts

The Wailin’ Jennys will be on familiar ground when they take the stage Friday in Sauder Concert Hall. For the second time in three years, the girl-trio known for their haunting acoustic harmonies is returning to Goshen College to give the Mennonites a run for their four-part chords. The Wailin’ Jennys, also known as Nicky Mehta, Ruth Moody and Heather Masse, are an internationally-known folk group who first began making music together in 2004. They have since released four albums, including their latest, Bright Morning Stars; several of them won Juno awards (Canadian equivalent of a Grammy). Their sound is...

By Kate Stoltzfus • September 18, 2013 • Arts

The Goshen College choirs will usher in spring with their ninth annual Earthtones concert this Saturday, April 13 at 7:30 p.m. in Sauder Concert Hall. Chorale, Chamber Choir, Men’s Chorus and Women’s World Music Choir will sing songs centered around the theme “Songs from Many Cultures.” The concert will feature choral music from not only a variety of composers, but a variety of cultures and countries. Works include music from the African-American spiritual tradition, a First Nation chant from Canada, a Balinese Monkey Chant and songs from Haiti, India, Venezuela, South Africa, Northern Ireland and Finland. “The energy of the night...

By Emily Kraybill • April 10, 2013 • Arts

Next weekend, Goshen College will celebrate the birthday of Mary K. Oyer, a former GC music professor, who turned 90 on April 5. The birthday celebration is an opportunity for the college to celebrate a life well lived, but also to pay tribute to Oyer for her legacy after the 40 years of service. Even though she retired almost 30 years ago, people still remember the great teacher she was. “She is a genius,” said Dr. Debra Brubaker, a professor of music at GC. “You talk to her for five minutes, and you feel smarter because of her knowledge and...

By Madi Ouedraogo • April 10, 2013 • Arts

The Stray Birds, an Americana trio from Lancaster County, Pa., combine old-time and folk styles in their eponymous debut album. Noteworthy is the album’s recent recognition on NPR’s “Top 10 Folk & Americana Bands of the Year,” a list that includes renowned folk artists like The Lumineers and The Carolina Chocolate Drops. Also notable is the momentum the trio has gathered in only the last two years. Since the release of their EP, “Birds of the Borderland,” in 2010 and the release of “The Stray Birds” in 2012, the Stray Birds have played for venues ranging from concert halls in...

By Becca Kraybill • April 3, 2013 • Features

Twelve Goshen College musicians became professional recording artists last week by collaborating on a new hymn CD with Adam Tice, a hymn composer and GC alum. Tice has published two volumes of 50 hymns and is set to publish another one soon. GIA Publications, a major publisher of sacred choral music, asked Tice to make an accompaniment CD using GC choir members and St. Joseph Valley Camerata, a community choir directed by Scott Hochstetler, professor of music. Tice invited Goshen students because “he knows the halls and acoustics that Goshen has and knew this would be the perfect place to record,”...

By Drea Mast • March 20, 2013 • Arts

On Friday, Peter Yarrow, who first gained international recognition in the 1960s as a member of the folk music group Peter, Paul, and Mary and now works in issues of social justice through his organization Operation Respect, will spend the day on campus, collaborating with the GC community in several different venues for a “day of peace.” The day begins in the College Church Chapel at 10 am where Yarrow and co-worker Mark Weiss will give basic context for their work and discuss the motivation they have found for continued activism. The goal of Operation Respect is to help schools...

By Mara Weaver • March 13, 2013 • News

Philip Proctor’s family first realized he had a gift for music when, at four months old, Phillip hummed back the hymn his grandpa was singing to put him to sleep. This, jokes Proctor, was quite likely his first and last free performance. Now, after 63 years of acting, music, writing and producing, Proctor is returning to Goshen for a concert with the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet in the community he once called home. Proctor’s career includes a wide range of award-winning work, from founding and performing with the three-time Grammy-nominated comedic quartet, Firesign Theatre, to Broadway and off-Broadway shows, to...

By Vanessa Jones • March 7, 2013 • Arts

On Sunday, Goshen College choir students performed “A Night of Opera” — a high-energy operatic choral concert that featured three GC choirs, Fairfield High School’s choir and soloist Allison Yoder (’11). The choirs, directed by Scott Hochstetler and Deb Brubaker, performed selections from a number of different operas, including “Otello,” by Giuseppe Verdi and “The Pirates of Penzance,” by Gilbert and Sullivan. The GC choirs perform an annual winter concert, but this was the first year they gave an opera-themed concert. The decision to do opera was one that Hochstetler was eager to make. While in college, Hochstetler found a...

By Christina Hofer • February 21, 2013 • Arts

The Goshen College Chamber Choir departs this weekend for a whirlwind two-day, three-concert tour in Ontario, Canada, that will conclude with the traditional home concert in Sauder Concert Hall on Sunday, March 3, at 7:30 p.m. According to Debra Brubaker, Goshen College professor of music and Chamber Choir director, the tour, titled Giving Glory, “uses music that emphasizes God’s spaciousness as well as God’s willingness to dwell within and among us.” The group will start their Ontario tour at Steinmann Mennonite Church in West Baden on Saturday evening, and then continue to Erb. St. Mennonite Church in Waterloo and Valleyview...

By Vanessa Jones • February 21, 2013 • Arts

This past Saturday, eight Goshen College students performed at the 53rd Annual Goshen College Concerto-Aria Concert. The soloists were accompanied by the GC orchestra, under the direction of Christopher Fashun, assistant professor of Music. The concert featured Josh Yoder, a junior (violin) and Chelsea Wimmer, a senior (viola); Hillary Harder, a sophomore (violin); Stephen Graber, a sophomore (tenor saxophone); Sophie Lapp, a senior (piano); Rachel Mast, a senior (mezzo soprano); Madeleine Ruth, a junior (piano); and Emily Grimes, a junior (soprano). Just under one hour, the concert included musical selections from a variety of composers — from Mozart to Puccini....

By Christina Hofer • February 13, 2013 • Arts

Seven students and the Goshen College orchestra, under the direction of Christopher Fashun, will collaborate their musical talents in the 53rd Annual Goshen College Concerto-Aria Concert. The concert, which will take place this Saturday evening, will feature Josh Yoder, a junior (violin) and Chelsea Wimmer, a senior (viola); Hillary Harder, a sophomore (violin); Stephen Graber, a sophomore (tenor saxophone); Sophie Lapp, a senior (piano); Rachel Mast, a senior (mezzo soprano); Madeleine Ruth, a junior (piano); and Emily Grimes, a junior (soprano). To have the privilege of performing at the concert, students had to audition in November with one musical selection, competing against a group of...

By Christina Hofer • February 6, 2013 • Arts