Rhapsody in Blue Highlights Barton’s Love the Symphony on Feb. 14

(Wilson, N.C.) Plan now to make Thursday, Feb. 14, a special Valentine’s Day this year, and celebrate in gala fashion with the Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra at the seventeenth annual Love the Symphony, one of Wilson’s premier social events of the year. The evening’s performance, under the direction of Mark N. Peterson, will feature noted pianist Eric Mazonson performing George Gershwin’s 20th century masterpiece Rhapsody in Blue.

This dinner concert will be an evening guaranteed to please both the ear and the palette with additional music selections from Wagner, Mendelssohn, Strauss Jr., Leroy Anderson and Shostakovich. The event will begin with a wine and cheese reception at 6:30 p.m. followed by entertainment at 7 p.m. The delectable buffet, prepared by Barton’s own master chefs, will be served at 8 p.m. following the concert.

Guest pianist, Mazonson received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from Boston University, where he studied piano with Anthony di Bonaventura. He has played many recitals in the U.S., Canada and Europe and performed concerti with several orchestras. Mazonson was a member of the United States Military Academy Band, during which time he founded a touring piano-woodwind sextet. He also was an associate of Maestro Peterson’s at Bradford College where he taught piano, accompanied the chorus and arranged scores for musical theatre productions. Mazonson also has served as an adjunct faculty member at Roger Williams University and at the University of Rhode Island, where he accompanied the URI Concert Choir on two European tours. He is currently staff accompanist at Providence College where he teaches class piano. Mazonson also is the pianist for the renowned Lexington (MA) Master Singers.

The Valentine concert will open with Richard Wagner’s march “Arrival of the Guests at Wartburg.” Drawn from his fifth opera “Tannhäuser,” this work has all the pomp and flourish emblematic of Wagner’s early style.

Peterson’s notes about the selections artfully describe Felix Mendelssohn’s grand tour of Europe in the 1820s, and his reflections on the places he visited that inspired some of his greatest compositions. On his visit to Scotland, Mendelssohn went to the Hebrides Islands and saw the famous “Fingal’s Cave.” “Tremendously impressed by the beauty and immensity of the place, Mendelssohn quickly jotted down what would become the opening notes of the overture, including them in a letter written that same evening,” said Peterson. “A year later, he began work on his ‘Hebrides Overture,’ and it has since become a well known standard in the orchestral repertoire.

“The ‘Perpetuum Mobile,’ by the ‘Waltz King’ Johann Strauss Jr., is a rollicking little bob-bon which features solo moments from almost every instrument in the orchestra,” Peterson continued. “The term ‘Perpetuum Mobile’ suggests a piece of music characterized by a continuous steady stream of notes at a rapid tempo, and this ‘musical joke’ does just that.”

Leroy Anderson is famous for his charming compositions written in large part for the Boston Pops Orchestra. Peterson reflects that audiences have been delighted for generations by Anderson’s lighthearted touches in works such as “The Typewriter,” “Bugler’s Holiday,” “Fiddle-Faddle,” and “Syncopated Clock.” “Sleigh Ride,” to be presented at this performance, is a time-honored seasonal favorite featuring jingle bells, whip cracks, and horse whinnies.
“Rhapsody in Blue,” written by George Gershwin in 1924 for solo piano and jazz band, successfully combines elements of classical music with jazz. The composition was orchestrated by Ferde Grofé three times, originally for the “Paul Whiteman Orchestra” and later in a variety of symphonic revisions. The version for piano and symphony, to be presented at this concert, was orchestrated in 1942 and has become one of the most popular American concert works.
“The ‘Waltz No. 2’ finds Dmitri Shostakovich in an uncharacteristically light mood,” shared Peterson. “Written for what the composer called ‘Variety Orchestra,’ the work is a traditional Viennese waltz with several contemporary twists. This piece has been a favorite encore with André Rieu and his ‘Johann Strauss Orchestra,’ often bringing audiences to their feet with a nostalgic sing-a-long.”

This distinguished event’s popularity continues to grow following the change in venue three years ago to accommodate the ever-increasing number of guest reservations each year. Wilson Gymnasium on the Barton campus provides a spacious and elegantly transformed environment to provide the perfect backdrop for sweethearts and friends to enjoy the delightful classics performed by the orchestra.

Tickets are $50 per person, and reservations may be made by calling Lynne Medlin at 252-399-6309. Please note that tables for eight are available by reservation. No tickets will be mailed.

BB&T loves the symphony. Thanks to the generosity of the BB&T Wealth Management Division, a portion of your contribution is eligible for a tax deduction as a charitable gift.

Mark your calendars for this truly festive occasion.

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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations at Barton College, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.

Wilson/Barton Partnership Sets Example for NCAA DII Program

(WILSON, N.C.) The support that the Wilson community continually offers Barton College athletics has not only gained regional but national attention.

Wilson has not only benefited from a recent NCAA DII media blitz, but the Wilson/Barton College partnership is being highlighted as a prime example of a family-friendly community supportive of high level athletic competition. And, this is an important message that DII is spending upwardly of a million dollars to share – the importance of college-community partnerships across the nation and how that raises the level of support and encouragement for educating student-athletes in a healthy and balanced environment.

The recent meeting of the NCAA Division II Editorial Board in Charlotte emphasized Division II Athletics’ thriving sense of mission and purpose and focused on the distinguishing characteristics and attributes related to the program.

Norval Kneten, president of Barton College and vice president of Conference Carolinas, was invited to be a spokesperson at this most recent of several editorial board tours scheduled across the country including Denver and Charlotte, among others.

“I was pleased with the media’s receptivity to understanding the new ways in which Division II Athletics is being defined,” said Dr. Kneten. “I am excited to represent both Barton and Wilson in these discussions, and I want to express my gratitude to the Wilson community for making it possible for us to be a part of this major NCAA initiative. I think it’s absolutely terrific that Wilson, along with us, is being recognized in national forums as a result of how this community has embraced its partnership with Barton. Wilson certainly deserves the recognition.

“I am participating in this initiative because the sports media needs to know that DII is not a second choice but is, increasingly, a first choice for some of our best and brightest student-athletes,” continued Dr. Kneten. “This effort is national in scope and one that will become increasingly visible in the coming months. During this media conference, we met with executives and staff at the Charlotte Observer, the Sports Business Journal, and ESPN-U, to help them understand the reality of DII competition, regionally and nationally.”

Division II athletics has changed significantly in recent years, and there are plenty of reasons for the public to take notice.

Student athletes, who are highly competitive, are changing DII Athletics, and here is the reason: in DII athletics, students have the opportunity to participate in extremely challenging athletic competition and, because of the balance they experience with their academic pursuits, they also have the opportunity to support volunteer efforts that include community service projects and mentoring programs, just to name a few.

Dr. Kneten also shared that student-athletes involved in DII programs not only have the opportunity to participate in high-level athletic competition at DII institutions, but they are able to pursue degree programs, like biology and athletic training, that would be inaccessible to them in other more restrictive athletic environments. “We are focused on the overall development of the student-athlete, as we are for all of our students,” he said. “As a result, many highly qualified student-athletes are now choosing to attend DII schools like Barton College. In fact, the brand platform for DII is ‘I chose DII.’

Almost 75,000 student-athletes compete at Division II schools each year. They are part of a burgeoning athletics division that emphasizes six defining traits: balance, learning passion, resourcefulness, service and sportsmanship. The emphasis on these traits is an attempt to carry out the Division II student-athlete credo, which emphasizes a comprehensive program of learning and development in a personal setting. This approach provides growth opportunities through academic achievement, learning in high-level athletic competition and development of positive societal attitudes in service to community. Balance and integration are key components of this philosophy of preparing students for their futures.

Fiscal responsibility in DII Athletics is another reason to take notice. A 2005 study by Jonathan and Peter Orszag demonstrated that the average net cost incurred by a school moving from Division II to Division I is approximately $3.2 million each year. This study has been confirmed by subsequent financial studies, including one by researchers at Purdue University in 2006. More recent work indicates that schools moving to Division I status experience average annual net losses in their athletic programs of about $2.5M. Division II schools, in keeping with the overall Division II philosophy, maintain that the real value in higher education is provided through fiscally responsible decisions. Keeping athletics expenses manageable and ensuring that the program is fully integrated into the overall collegiate culture are key components.

The platform of Division II is not based on size. (DII schools vary in size from those with an enrollment of a few hundred to some with nearly 30,000.) Rather, Division II athletics emphasizes the student-athlete experience that provides a comprehensive program of learning and development in a personal setting — goals which Barton College proudly affirms. Additionally, because Division II is committed to regional competition, student athletes spend more time on campus and in classes. This commitment to regional competition combined with the DII philosophy of academic achievement and community service is likely the reason that Division II student-athlete graduation rate is consistently 10 to 15 percentage points higher than that of the total student body.

What happened at Barton College and in the Wilson community this past year is an excellent example of what the Editorial Board is highlighting. Barton’s men’s basketball national championship brought excitement and pride to this growing community.

The Editorial Board is seeking to advance the message of the changes to Division II athletics. The Board believes that the athletic programs of Division II schools can be a boost to their communities because they provide high-level, passionate athletic competition in an intimate, affordable, family friendly environment.

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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.