FALL 2009 String Audition Information
FALL 2009 Wind/Brass/Percussion Audition Information
The Appalachian Symphony Orchestra
James Allen Anderson, Director of Orchestral Activities
The Appalachian Symphony Orchestra is an 80+ member auditioned ensemble comprised of undergraduate and graduate students from the distinguished Hayes School of Music as well as talented student musicians from across the campus and community. The ASO presents five to six concerts a year and performs literature from the standard orchestral repertoire spanning the baroque to the contemporary. Recent performances have included masterpieces such as Brahms Symphony No. 4, Shostakovich Symphony No. 5, Saint Saëns Symphony No. 3, Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4, Beethoven Symphony No. 5, as well as works from contemporary composers such as Libby Larsen, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, and Christopher Rouse. Our world premiere performance of David Maslanka's Symphony No. 6: "Living Earth" was released in August of 2006 under the Albany Records label. Click this link to view our upcoming season and to see programs from past years. Featured performances can be heard across the state on public radio stations on programs such as "Carolina Live" and in the PBS specials entitled "An Appalachian Showcase" and "Holiday Sounds from Appalachian".
The Appalachian Symphony Orchestra frequently participates in international tours. In the summer of 2009, the ASO visited China and paired with Fudan University's Symphony Orchestra. The 2-week tour featured highly acclaimed performances in Shanghai and Beijing. The year 2006 marked the 250th Anniversary of the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The Appalachian Symphony Orchestra was invited to perform in both festivals and prestigious workshops at
The orchestra rehearses on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 5:30 PM in room 119 of the Broyhill Music Center. Students enrolled in Symphony Orchestra receive one hour of academic credit by registering for MUS 1105. Should you need additional information or have questions, please feel free to contact the Hayes School of Music at (828) 262-3020 or Dr. Anderson at andrsnja@appstate.edu.
The Appalachian Chamber Orchestra
James Allen Anderson, Director of Orchestral Activities
The Appalachian Chamber Orchestra is an auditioned ensemble designed to help students prepare for more sophisticated music making. The ACO is open to all students at Appalachian State University and to members of the community. The ACO meets once a week on Fridays from 4:00 - 6:00 PM and present one concert a semester. Students placing into the Chamber Orchestra receive one hour of academic credit by enrolling in MUS 1106.
The Appalachian Philharmonia
James Allen Anderson, Director of Orchestral Activities
The Appalachian Philharmonia is the Hayes School of Music's premiere Student/Faculty ensemble and is open for participation by invitation only. Modeled on a professional system of four to five blocked rehearsals, the AP provides students with intensive ensemble experience. Faculty members hold the principal posts and model for the students the responsibilities expected of such positions. Highlights of past seasons include the Beethoven Symphony No. 3, Schumann Symphony No. 4, Bach Brandenburg Concerto No. 2, Ravel Le Tombeau de Couperin, Ginastera Variacionnes Concertantes, Atterberg Concerto for Horn and Orchestra, and Zwilich Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra to name a few. For more information about the Appalachian Philharmonia, contact Dr. Anderson at (828) 262-6445.
Appalachian International Music Exchange
China Tour 2009
Appalachian Symphony Orchestra
Program Description
The Appalachian Symphony Orchestra is proud to announce the successful completion of its 2009 tour to China. Part of the Appalachian International Music Exchange (A.I.M.E.), this unique project was designed to blend both musical and cultural opportunities for students of Appalachian State University with collegiate music programs in China. In an attempt to completely immerse the musicians in each other's respective culture, the program paired Appalachian State University participants with students from Fudan University’s Symphony Orchestra in Shanghai. The orchestras presented two highly acclaimed concerts in Shanghai and then the ASO travelled to Beijing for an enthusiastic farewell performance in the Beijing Concert Hall. Excursions to important cultural sites in China were also included; locations such as, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, Hangzhou Tea Villages, Suzhou Silk Factory, and many more.
Participating Faculty
Dr. James Allen Anderson, Assistant Professor of Music, Appalachian State University, Program Director
Dr. Laurie Semmes, Assistant Professor of Music, Appalachian State University
James Allen Anderson
Music Director and Conductor
Destined to make his mark in a highly competitive field in which many are called but few are chosen." - John W. Lambert, The Spectator
"Ovation after ovation rang from the standing audience, growing louder and louder as the leading ballerinas came forward. But when the conductor was led onto the stage, the roar rivaled that of the music he had led." - Kate Dobbs Ariail, Classical Voice of North Carolina
James Allen Anderson is the Director of Orchestral Activities at the distinguished Hayes School of Music at Appalachian State University. He received his formal training as conductor, composer, and pianist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. His principal conducting mentors include David Effron, Mark Gibson, Tonu Kalam, Pierre Hetu and Otto Werner-Mueller, with studies in piano under Michael Zenge and Francis Whang.
His commitment to new music developed early in his career and led to collaborations with composers such as Joseph Schwantner, Augusta Read Thomas, David Liptak and Robert Moore. In 1997, as part of Eastman's 75th anniversary, Dr. Anderson was selected to conduct the world premiere of the newly revised Overture in Praise of Folly by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer George Walker. This commitment to new music endures, with recent world premiere performances of works by Daniel Bukvich (The Glittering Hill) and David Maslanka (11:11 A Dance at the Edge of the World, Symphony No. 6 “Living Earth”; A Child’s Garden of Dreams: Book 2; offered under the Albany Records label).
James Allen Anderson has held positions with the Eastman Opera Theatre, Triangle Opera (NC), Theater on the Ridge (NY), Pauper Players (NC), University of Montana’s Music Department and Missoula Children's Theatre, and Appalachian State University Opera Workshop. Dr. Anderson remains committed to a variety of outreach projects and is a frequent adjudicator and clinician on the state, region, and national levels. He is in demand as a guest conductor and has served as Music Director of the Butte Symphony Association and Director of Orchestral Activities at the University of Montana.
Dr. Anderson received the 2005 Miriam Cannon Hayes School of Music Outstanding Teaching Award. In 2003, he was selected by the American Symphony Orchestra League to participate in the National Conductor Preview with the Jacksonville Symphony (FL). This program showcased eight conductors that had been “carefully chosen for their talent, accomplishments, and qualifications, who are ready to assume important professional conducting responsibilities with American orchestras.” In 2001, Dr. Anderson competed in the first Vakhtang Jordania/New Millennium International Conducting Competition in Kharkov, Ukraine and “was a Third-Round diploma laureate and major prize winner.”
James Allen Anderson is an officer in the Conductors Guild (the largest international service organization devoted exclusively to the art and craft of conducting), holding the office of President-Elect. He currently lives in Fleetwood, NC with his wife Davina and their children, Mitchell, Hannah,