Hands fell to laps, mouths quieted, bodies became still in their seats. Steven Thompson began to play the guitar resting against his knee. His eyes were locked on the strings and his head moved with the notes through the entire piece. The silence of the audience only broke at the conclusion of Thompson’s performance for a thunderous applause to start off the afternoon’s recital series.
Students from the College’s music department performed on Wednesday, Oct. 24 at the Wednesday Afternoon Recital Series in the Mildred and Ernest E. Mayo Concert Hall.
The performance continued with Emma Peterson, a soprano, and Nick Gatto playing the piano for two pieces. During the second piece, “El Majo Timido,” Peterson’s voice took the audience on a journey to Spain. Smiling with her hands on her hips, she gave the piece life and animation.
Flutist, Kacie Miller, along with Kathy Shanklin on the piano, played Hungarian Pastorale Fantasy. The piece looped fluidly through different emotions and sounds, and Miller played ebulliently through the entire piece.
Miller left the stage but Kathy Shanklin remained on the piano to accompany the next performer, Sara Zuccarino, on the bassoon. At the end of the performance, Shanklin and Zuccarino turned and smiled at one another before each taking their bow to an applauding audience.
After the music stand was removed from the stage, James Tucker and Sally Livingston emerged from the side doors and walked out to face the audience. Tucker’s horn intertwined with the Livingston’s piano and filled every corner of the concert hall.
Replacing the power of Tucker’s horn, Katelyn Saxton, a mezzo-soprano, took the stage along with Livingston on the piano. Saxton was smiling for her entire performance — her voice was bright and graceful.
Finally, to bring the show to a close was Eden Roberts, a mezzo-soprano, and James Lubrano on the piano. Roberts’ voice was commanding and elegant, and her performance looked effortless and natural.
The hall fell silent once again and the audience filed out of the room.
“I like to see my peers play,” Cory Nickerson, junior music education major said. “(The recital) was awesome, very good.”
