The School of Music is pleased to announce the 2023-24 Jacobsen Series concerts featuring Puget Sound music faculty and guests!
The Jacobsen Series was established in 1984 and named in honor of Leonard Jacobsen, former chair of Puget Sound's piano department. The series features our esteemed educators in action, with the spotlight focused on Puget Sound music faculty and their guests!
Proceeds from ticket sales support the Jacobsen Series Scholarship Fund, which awards annual music scholarships to outstanding members of the Sigma Alpha Iota international music organization.
Congratulations to the SAI Scholarship Award Winners for 2023-24!
Seren Hawtrey '24 and Annie Hochberg '25
Concert Schedule for Fall 2023 and Spring 2024
Friday, Sept. 22 | 7:30 p.m.
Maria Sampen, Violin and Friends: An Evening of Chamber Music for Strings
Featuring guest artists Timothy Christie, viola and violin; Alistair MacRae, cello; and Anna Jensen, bass; performing music by Kodály, Piazzolla, Montgomery, McClure, and more.
Maria Sampen is Puget Sound's director of strings and professor of violin.
Friday, Oct. 6 | 7:30 p.m.
Dawn Padula, mezzo-soprano
With Jessica Hall, collaborative pianist; and guests Brian Smith, drums; and Rob Hutchinson, bass.
Dawn Padula is Puget Sound's director of vocal studies and Opera Theater, and co-director of Songwriting.
Wednesday, Oct. 11 | 7:30 p.m.
Boris Berman, piano
Boris Berman heads the piano department of Yale University and conducts master classes throughout the world.
Berman regularly performs in more than fifty countries on six continents, is a Grammy nominee, and published author. Born in Moscow, he has established himself as one of the most sought-after keyboard performers. He presently lives in New Haven, Conn. Read his full bio.
Friday, Oct. 27 | 7:30 p.m.
Euphony: An Evening of Low Brass Sounds
Featuring Gail Robertson and Stacy Baker, founders of the SymbiosisDuo euphonium ensemble; with Jason Gilliam, euphonium; Ryan Schultz and Ilan Morgenstern, tuba; and David Krosschell, trombone.
Ryan Schultz is Puget Sound's affiliate artist, tuba and euphonium, and is principal tubist of the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra and the Auburn Symphony Orchestra.
David Krosschell is Puget Sound's affiliate artist, trombone, and is involved with such varied groups as the Seattle Symphony, Tacoma Symphony, Seattle Rock Orchestra, Rat City Brass, and Macklemore and Ryan Lewis.
Thursday, Nov. 2 | 7:30 p.m.
Covert Ensemble saxophone duo
Featuring guest artists Dave Camwell and Kateřina Pavlíková performing unique arrangements of popular classical music from J.S. Bach to contemporary composers such as Max Richter; blurring the lines between classical, rock, and pop worlds.
Sunday, Nov. 5 | 2 p.m.
Puget Sound Piano Trio
The Puget Sound Piano Trio is the ensemble-in-residence at the School of Music featuring Maria Sampen, violin; Alistair MacRae, cello; and Ronaldo Rolim, piano.
Friday, Jan. 26 | 7:30 p.m.
Ronaldo Rolim, piano
Brazilian pianist Ronaldo Rolim is Puget Sound’s assistant professor of piano, known for his "special ability to present touching interpretations" (El Norte); and is acclaimed for his "consummate elegance" (New York Concert Review) and "mastery of phrasing and dynamics" (Oberbaselbieter Zeitung).
Friday, Feb. 2 | 7:30 p.m.
Puget Sound Piano Trio
The Puget Sound Piano Trio is the ensemble-in-residence at the School of Music featuring Maria Sampen, violin; Alistair MacRae, cello; and Ronaldo Rolim, piano.
Friday, Feb. 9 | 7:30 p.m.
Resonant Interactions
A collaboration with Puget Sound's Department of Art and Art History, featuring Striking Music, a percussion ensemble with Dave Camwell, Rebeka Ko, and James Doyle, Kevin Blanquies, and Benjamin Marx; with Mare Hirsch, assistant professor of art and digital media.
Sunday, Feb. 25 | 2 p.m.
Dreaming Away the Winter Chill
An afternoon recital of lyrical music from the 20th and 21st Centuries by composers Hailstork, Wade, Bunch, and Clarke; featuring Joyce Ramée, viola; and Karen Ganz, piano.
Joyce Ramée is a viola professor at Puget Sound with a long and varied musical career. She is a founding member of the Pacific Northwest Ballet orchestra and Auburn Symphony.
Karen Ganz freelances at Puget Sound and elsewhere and offers private studies in Seattle and Tacoma.
Sunday, March 24 | 2 p.m.
Alistair MacRae, cello; with Ronaldo Rolim, piano
Alistair MacRae is Puget Sound’s Cordelia Wikarski-Miedel artist in residence, cello and chamber music.