The Nova Southeastern University orchestra, a student group, provides a challenging opportunity for talented musicians to further develop their abilities, deepen their appreciation of concert music, and hone their musical skills. These student musicians share their talents with each other, the university community, and the general public. Students who participate in the orchestra are encouraged to enroll in MUSC 2000: Music Performance Ensemble to receive academic credit.
Schedule
The orchestra will prepare two concerts per academic year, one each in the fall and winter semesters, and may appear on occasion at other university functions, as well as with other university ensembles. Membership is through audition only. Students in any NSU college or school are encouraged to participate.
Rehearsals will be held weekly, at a regularly scheduled time, and will last three hours with a half hour break after 90 minutes. In addition to these rehearsals, private lessons and/or section tutorials may be required. These will also be scheduled in advance.
The orchestra’s performing home is the Miniaci Performing Arts Center, as well as the Performance Theatre in the Performing and Visual Arts Wing of the University Center. Practice rooms in the Performing and Visual Arts Wing of the University Center are also available to orchestra members.
Membership
The orchestra, led by Mark Cavanaugh, Ph.D., began performing in fall 2007 and is expected to grow over the next few years into a company of about eighty members. The orchestra will serve as one pillar of an expanding program in the arts that, starting in the fall 2008 semester, will include bachelor of arts degrees in theatre, music, dance, arts administration, and visual arts.
Students in any NSU college or school are encouraged to participate. Members of the orchestra admitted to the university through the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences are eligible to receive Performing and Visual Arts Grants, in addition to any other financial aid for which they qualify. An application and audition are required for these grants, which are awarded according to ability and level of artistry, as judged by the Music Director.
All members are required to audition at the beginning of each semester for placement in the orchestra.
Cavanaugh is a conductor, composer, arranger, and performer, whose teachers include Tsung Yeh, Kirk Trevor, Emil Simon, Marius Smolij, and others. His repertoire consists of works from the Baroque to the Modern. Under his direction, the orchestra will fill its ranks by concentrating on talented string players for the first year, to be followed by woodwind, brass, and percussion players in subsequent years. Potential students may apply to NSU online.
Auditions can be arranged and scholarships, if awarded, will be distributed on completion of all appropriate financial aid materials.
For more information, contact Mark Cavanaugh, Ph.D., at (954) 262-8206 or mark@nsu.nova.edu or Christine Jackson, Ph.D., at (954) 262-8209 or jackson@nsu.nova.edu.
