ClarinetFest® 2019: Welcome to Good Ole Rocky Top!

Originally published in The Clarinet 46/2 (March 2019). Printed copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members.

Welcome to Good Ole Rocky Top!

by Victor Chavez, Jr. and Gary Sperl
The Knoxville artistic team is honored to present the 2019 ClarinetFest®, “Embracing the World”! This year’s theme inspired many unique proposals covering a diverse range of topics and wonderful new repertoire to be premiered. We can’t wait to share these presentations with the membership, and we hope that each attendee leaves Knoxville feeling uplifted and inspired.

Thank you to our 2019 sponsors: Buffet Crampon, D’Addario, Rovner, RZ Woodwinds, Selmer Paris, Vandoren and Yamaha for their generous contributions to the International Clarinet Association.

Cox Auditorium

The conference begins with the opening recital featuring legendary ICA honorary members Stanley Drucker (ret. New York Philharmonic); 2019 honorary membership inductees Eddy Vanoosthuyse (ret. Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra) and international jazz soloist Ron Odrich; and the 2018 ICA Young Artist Competition winner, Pablo Tirado Villaescusa from Spain.

Wednesday night’s headlining chamber music recital with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra Principal String Quartet includes Mariam Adam (formerly of Imani Winds), Stanley Drucker, Bil Jackson (Vanderbilt University) and international soloist Milan Rericha.

The Thursday evening concert features clarinet soloists performing with the Air Force Band of Mid-America. Featured artists include Sauro Berti (Teatro dell’Opera di Roma), Parker Gaims, Laura Grantier, Sylvie Hue of the French Garde Républicaine and Ricardo Morales (Philadelphia Orchestra).

Tennessee Theatre

Friday night’s Knoxville Symphony Orchestra concert under the direction of James Fellenbaum will take place at the historic Tennessee Theatre in downtown Knoxville. Headliners include William and Cathy Hudgins (Boston Symphony Orchestra), Kathy Jones (Puerto Rico Conservatory), Korean prodigy Han Kim, Anton Rist (The Metropolitan Opera), Eddy Vanoosthuyse (ret. Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra) and Gabor Varga (Hungarian Radio Symphony).

The Saturday night concert features the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra with soloists Mark Nuccio (Houston Symphony Orchestra), Ron Odrich and Ken Peplowski.

Other exciting events planned for ClarinetFest® 2019 include the second annual Guido Six Clarinet Choir Festival. There will be several clarinet choirs performing throughout the five-day ClarinetFest® with a very special performance by the Venner Clarinet Choir. Franklin Cohen (ret. Cleveland Orchestra) will debut a new clarinet choir arrangement of the Mozart Concerto for Clarinet, K. 622.

Master classes will be presented by Sauro Berti, Franklin Cohen, Julie DeRoche (DePaul University), Ken Peplowski and Jerome Simas (San Francisco Symphony Orchestra). Martin Vaysse will present a recital as the premier prix winner from France. The ICA will recognize its new honorary membership inductees, Ron Odrich, Alan Stanek and Eddy Vanoosthuyse. AND … many, many more interesting and inspiring presentations and performances.

The convenient and comfortable host hotels for ClarinetFest® 2019 include the Hilton Garden Inn, the Sheraton Four Points and the Holiday Inn, World’s Fair Park. All three host hotels are conveniently located within a short walk to the ClarinetFest® venues. However, there are free trolleys that pass directly by the Sheraton Four Points hotel and the Holiday Inn and make stops at the ClarinetFest® venues. The Hilton Garden Inn is also a short walk to the venues but has a free shuttle service for their guests. Visit the ClarinetFest® 2019 page at www.clarinet.org for details on travel, lodging and more.

Knoxville is located in East Tennessee and is one of the most beautiful and visited areas in the United States. There are many family-oriented destinations in the area and also activities for the adventurers among us. Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge (home of Dollywood!) and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are all within an hour’s drive of Knoxville. To discover additional opportunities for recreation in the Knoxville and East Tennessee area, refer to www.visitknoxville.com.

Tanzanian primary students planting Mpingo trees as part of the Daraja Music Initiative and Clarinets for Conservation

ClarinetFest® 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee is going to be an extraordinary event! We invite all conference attendees to participate in the Guinness World Records attempt to break the current record for the largest clarinet choir ever assembled. There will be artists new to ClarinetFest® alongside favorite returning performers. We will explore the fascinating work that Clarinets for Conservation and the Daraja Music Initiative offer to young students in Tanzania (this is the non-government organization that inspired the theme “Embracing the World” for ClarinetFest® 2019). There will be countless interesting lectures and recitals throughout the five-day event, and there is much, much more planned for this exciting time. We are anticipating a record turnout for ClarinetFest® 2019. We hope to see anyone and everyone who has an interest in clarinet in Knoxville, Tennessee from July 24 to 28, 2019. You will become truly inspired!

Presenters/Performers

Mariam Adam
Jon Agazzi
Anthony Aguayo
Jason Alder
Liz Aleksander
Diana Alvarez
Jeffrey Anderle
Nancy Angerstein
Lori Ardovino
Kelly Austermann
Taiki Azuma
Kris Bachmann
Santiago Baena Florez
Gabrielle Baffoni
Christy Banks
Diane Barger
Michael Bartnik
Daniel Becker
Dave Bennett
Sauro Berti
Joanna Birchfield
Timothy Bonenfant
Laura Bouffard
Richard Boukas
Erin Bray
Jeffrey Brooks
Nicola Bulfone
Craig Buying
Jacob Campos
Thomas Carroll
Sylvain Carton
Martin Castillos
Victor Chávez, Jr.
Andrea Cheeseman
Nophachai Cholthitchanta
Anastasia Christofakis
John Cipolla
David Ciucevich
Katrina Clements
Frank Cohen
Jarom Coleman
David Cook
Shawn Copeland
Brian Corbin
Karen Craig
Mark Cramer
Elizabeth Crawford
Cheyenne Cruz
Vanessa Davis
Andrew DeBoer
Renzo Decarlo
Julie DeRoche
Lara Diaz
Pamela Diaz
Zachary Dierickx
Vincent Dominguez
Margaret Donaghue Flavin
Michael Drapkin
Stanley Drucker
Mary Druhan
Shawn Earle
Luke Ellard
Jane Ellsworth
Rosemary Engelstad
Patrick Englert
Suzu Enns
Oskar Espina-Ruiz
Mitchell Estrin
Wesley Ferreira
Yvonne Fisher
Yasmin Flores
Jennifer Fraley
Kip Franklin
Catina Franklin Sweedy
Daniel Frazelle
Christa Frye
Parker Gaimes
Denise Gainey
Joshua Gardner
Peter Geldrich
George Georgiou
Michael Gersten
Lucas Gianini
Jesse Gilday
Lacey Golaszewski
Stanislav Golovin
Laura Grantier
Andrew Grenci
Dickson Grimes
Gail Grimes
Debbie Grohman
Timothy Haas
Barbara Haney
Jessica Harrie
Janette Harriott
Gregory Harrison
Caroline Hartig
William Hayter
Julia Heinen
Jaren Hinckley
Annaka Hogelin
Jonathan Holden
Tina Holmes-Davis
Sylvie Hue
Bill Hudgins
Cathy Hudgins
Andy Hudson
Taneea Hull
Scot Humes
Albert Hunt
Bil Jackson
Sarunas Jankauskas
Csaba Jevtic-Somlai
Kathleen Jones
Robyn Jones
Cecilia Kang
Cassie Keogh
Tod Kerstetter
Hyon Suk Kim
Wonkak Kim
Melissa Kindy
Julianne Kirk-Doyle
Christopher Kirkpatrick
Rick Kissinger
Thomas Kmiecik
Karl Kolbeck
Keith Koons
Boja Kragulj
Maryanne Lacaille
Jean Lake
Charlotte Layec
Jack Liang
Julie Linder-Gaulin
Jessica Lindsey
Abby Lloyd
Dylan Lloyd
Wolfgang Lohff
Kenneth Long
Julia Lougheed
Evan Lynch
Corey Mackey
Jenny Maclay
Eugene Marquis
Demian Martinez
Amanda McCandless
Amy McCann
David McClune
Dawn McConkie
Shannon McDonald
Jacqueline McIlwain
Emily McIvor
Olivia Meadows
Jacques Merrer
Erin Miesner
Joshua Mietz
Audrey Miller
Janice Minor
Lara Mitofsky Neuss
Osiris Molina
Shiana Montanari
Madelyn Moore
Ricardo Morales
Paulo Cesar Morocho
Amanda Morrison
Matthias Mueller
Kathleen Mulcahy
Jared Mundell
Lauren Murphy
Matthew Nelson
Christopher Nichols
Keith Northover
Mark Nuccio
Pat O’Keefe
Bill O’Neil
Gregory Oakes
David Odom
Ron Odrich
Cathy A Ogram
Phillip Paglialonga
Katherine Palmer
Sheila Patterson
Ken Peplowski
Dmitry Perevertailenko
Yamileth Perez
Carla Perrotta
Lisa Perry
Katherine Peters
Bret Pimentel
Trevor Pittman
Alyssa Powell
Spencer Prewitt
Thomas Puwalski
Jun Qian
Juan Andres Quilaguy
Carrie RavenStem
Aileen Razey
Anton Rist
John Reeks
Milan Rericha
Rebecca Rischin
Michael Rowlett
Luca Saracca
Michael Scheuerman
Samuel Schreiber
Lee Seidner
Jeff Sherwood
Megan Shumate Beaumont
Severine Sierens
Carlos Silva
Sunshine Simmons
Timothy Skinner
Amelia Smith
Gary Sperl
Robert Spring
Andrew Sprung
Jana Starling
Vanguel Tangarov
Greg Tardy
Shannon Thompson
Margaret Thornhill
Pablo Tirado Villaescusa
Suzanne Tirk
Mark Tucker
Ian Tyson
Tiffany Valvo
Adrianna van Leeuwen
Eddy Vanoosthuyse
Gabor Varga
Luis Enrique Vargas Guevara
Jorge Variego
Martin Vayasse
Cecilio Vilar Alpuente
Brian Viliunas
Javier Vinasco
Wallis Vore
Andrea Vos-Rochefort
Todd Waldecker
Michael Walsh
Robert Walzel
Wesley Warnhoff
Tasha Warren
Sarah Watts
Michael Webster
Michael Westmoreland
Jeremy Wohletz
Catherine Wood
Alan Woy
Meghan Yankowskas
Guy Yehuda
Rachel Yoder
Jonatas Zacarias de Oliveira
Stephanie Zelnick
Jennifer Zimmerer
James Zimmermann
Michele Zukovsky

Clarinet Choirs

775 Peruvian Clarinet Ensemble
Atlanta Clarinets
Austin Peay State University Clarinet Choir
Baylor Clarinet Choir
Coro de Clarinetes del CMPR
Emporia State University Clarinet Choir
Los Angeles Clarinet Choir
Madison Clarinet Ensemble
MTSU Clarinet Choir
Murray State University Racer Clarinet Choir
Nicholls State University Bass Clarinet Choir
North Mississippi Clarinet All-Stars
Orquestra Pernambucana de Clarinetes
Prickly Pear Clarinet Ensemble
San Francisco Conservatory of Music Clarinet Ensemble
Tara Winds Community Band Clarinet Ensemble
Tennessee Clarinet Choir
Tennessee Tech Clarinet Choir
Texas A&M University-Commerce Clarinet Ensemble
The Crimson Squawk Ensemble
The Eastman-Rochester New Horizons Clarinet Choir
The Furman Clarinet Ensemble
The Houston Symphonic Band Clarinets
The LCO – The Licorice Sticks Clarinet Orchestra
The Windermere High School Clarinet Choir
Tullahoma Clarinet Choir
UNC Charlotte Clarinet Choir
UNF Clarinet Choir
UTKlarinetten Chor
UTRGV Clarinet Symphony
Venner Clarinet Choir

Ensembles

A/Tonal Ensemble
AdZel Duo
Ambassador Trio
Amicitia Duo
Aria Reed Trio
Atlanta Clarinets
C3-Cross Continental Clarinets
Capstone Trio
Clarinet Meets Guitar
Click
Cypress Winds
Diálogos Duo
Domino Ensemble
Duo Esplanade
Égide Duo
Ensemble Sori
Four Beats Clarinet Quartet
Frost Duo
Gemini Winds
GreensDuo
Grenazilla Clarinet Quartet
Greyline Duo
Harbinger Duo
International Counterpoint
Ironwood Trio
Kairos Trio
Lake Effect Clarinet Quartet
LCD Woodwind Trio
Mackey-Leinert Duo
MiamiClarinet
Novacane Quartet
Phoenix Down RPG
Quinteto AMICI
Sirocco Reed Quintet
Sopros de PE
Spatial Forces Duo
The AMKE Clarinet Duo
The Clarinet Project
The Dayton Double
The Devil Sticks
The Holden-Olin Duo
The Küffner Gals
The Lebaron Trio
The Lyrique Quintette
The Prestige Clarinet Quartet
The Quattratonic Quartet
The Telos Trio
The Webster Trio
Trio Capitolino
United States Navy Band Clarinet Quartet
University of Louisville Alumni Clarinet Duo
Vientos Dulces
Violetta Duo
Wilton-McIvor Duo
WoodWired

Panels

Military Band Clarinet Panel moderated by Gary Sperl
Team Teaching Panel with Robert Spring and John Cipolla moderated by Joshua Gardner

Master Classes

Sauro Berti
Franklin Cohen
Julie DeRoche
Ken Peplowski

Lectures/Lecture Recitals

Nicola Bulfone
Thomas Carroll
Anastasia Christofakis
Brian Corbin
Mark Cramer
Lacey Golaszewski
Janette Harriott
Gregory Harrison
Caroline Hartig
Annaka Hogelin
Tina Holmes-Davis
Melissa Kindy
Thomas Kmiecik
Julie Linder-Gaulin
Wolfgang Lohff
Eugene Marquis
Mark Nuccio
Katherine Palmer
Yamileth Perez
Carla Perrotta
Katherine Peters
Bret Pimentel
Alyssa Powell
Thomas Puwalski
Aileen Razey
John Reeks
Luca Saracca
Samuel Schreiber
Tiffany Valvo
Cecilio Vilar Alpuente
Andrea Vos-Rochefort
Michael Westmoreland
Meghan Yankowskas
Jennifer Zimmerer
James Zimmermann