Browns to Perform Faculty Recital Feb. 15

Feb. 4, 2011

FLORENCE, Ala. – The University of North Alabama's new director of vocal studies, Dr. Terrance Brown, and his wife, Tiffany Bostic-Brown, an adjunct faculty member at UNA, will perform a faculty recital Feb. 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the university's Music Building Recital Hall. They will be accompanied by pianist Laurelie Gheesling of Auburn University.

While visiting UNA, Gheesling is also providing master classes for UNA music and theater students on the Alexander Technique, a method for improving the ease and freedom of movement, balance, support and coordination important for performance.

Dr. Terrance Brown

Brown, an operatic singer with a strikingly rich baritone voice, is an assistant professor of music and director of vocal studies at UNA. He received his musical training at Louisiana State University, where he earned Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees under the instruction of Dr. Lori Bade, and Samford University, where he received a bachelor's degree in music under the instruction of Dr. Sharon Lawhon. He is a native of West Blocton.

Brown's opera performance credits include the role of Peterin Humperdinck's "Hansel and Gretel," Sarastro in Mozart's "Die Zauber Floete, "Collatinus in Britten’s “Rape of Lucretia," Boaz in Jame's "Niblock's "Ruth andNaomi," Germont in "La Traviata," Voltaire in "Candide," Salieri in Rimsky-Korakov's "Mozart and Salieri," Jake/Robbins in Gershwin's "Porgy andBess," Le Baili in Massenet’s "Werther," Le Marquis in Poulenc's "Dialogues of the Carmelites" and Dashwood in Mark Adamo's "Little Women."

As an active recitalist and concert artist, Terrance has traveled extensively throughout the southeast working with conductors and coaches such as John Keene, Dennis Jesse, Rufus Mueller, Frank Nemhauser, Duaine Wolfe, Kyle Marrero, Jerome Shannon and Donald McCullough. His concert repertoire includes works by Beethoven and Haydn, and he has appeared as a soloist in Hendel's "Messiah" with the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and the Brahms's "Requiem" with the Louisiana State University Symphony and Memphis Symphony Orchestra (Southern ACDA Convention). Brown has recorded select works by Dinos Constantinides with the Louisiana Sinfonietta.

Has was named a regional finalist for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in New Orleans as well as a regional finalist for the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) Artist Awards last spring. He recently appeared in the title role of the thief in Menotti's "OldMaid and the Thief" with Blue Lake Opera and will appear again with the company this summer in James Niblock’s “The Last Leaf.” Brown’s appearance in theopening gala concert of Opera Louisiane in fall 2008 was nationally broadcast on PBS in 2009. He will close his 2010-11 season with a performance of Brahms’s “Requiem” at the Lincoln Center with Bostic-Brown.

Laurelie Gheesling

Gheesling is the accompanying coordinator and Alexander Technique specialist at the Auburn University Department of Music. She previously served as accompanist in the voice, instrumental and choral areas in the School of Music at Louisiana State Universit. IN addition, she was the musical director and pianist for the LSU Opera Outreach Program (LOOP), which performed for area schools and other community venues in Baton Rouge. She was also the accompanist for the Baton Rouge Symphony Chorus for 15 years.

Gheesling, certified by Alexander Technique International, performed at the seventh International AT Congress in Oxford, England. She was the recipient of the National Association of Teachers of Singing Southern Division James Ronald Brothers Achievement in Accompanying Award. She has performed frequently in New Orleans as a recitalist at Loyola and Tulane universities, including her inclusion as a regular member of the Tulane Summer Lyric Theater orchestra, and concerts with the Louisiana Vocal Arts Chorale. Gheesling was a featured performer in the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation’s documentary “Musik am Mississippi” and has played in the orchestra with Broadway touring shows at the Saenger Theater.

A native of Atlanta, Gheesling holds a Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance from Mercer University and a Master of Music degree in accompanying from Florida State University. Her opera and musical theater credits include work with the Atlanta Repertory Opera, Savoyards Light Opera, The New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players, Vineyards Opera, Asbury MusicTheater, The Florida State Opera, South Georgia Opera and Seaside Music Theater in Daytona Beach, Fla.

For More Information

For more information on the faculty recital at UNA, contact the Department of Music and Theatre at 256-765-4375.