Dr. Lynn Vartan and Dr. McKay Tebbs from Southern Utah University’s Department of Music are performing “SoundScapes” on Tuesday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m. in the Thorley Recital Hall. The concert, featuring guitar and percussion instruments, is free and open to the community.
This is not the first time these two have collaborated. They recently performed on Feb. 15 at the annual music faculty recital “Abendmusik,” playing Timo Andres’ “You Broke it, You Bought it.”
“I always get excited when a composer like Timo Andres calls for guitar pedals like the octave pedal to be used in the score,” said Tebbs. “We’ll also be playing a jazz piece composed by Gary Burton.”
Tebbs is SUU’s director of Undergraduate Music Technology. He earned his doctorate from the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. Tebbs has performed with Tuacahn in St. George, Utah and Theater West Summer Repertory in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. He has also been a featured artist on the Nebraska public radio show “Friday Live” and in the contemporary guitar concerto “Chaos Theory” by James Bonney.
“This ‘ScoundScapes’ concert is an opportunity to hear the unique combination of electric guitar and vibes in a modern compositional setting,” said Tebbs. “Dr. Vartan is a prolific musician so I’m excited to perform this concert with her.”
Vartan is the director of Percussion at SUU and the director of the event series Ask. Ponder. Educate. [X]. that invites presenters from all over the globe. She is involved with several groups including Southwest Chamber Music, 61/4 with violist Shalini Vijayan, Exacta with Tambuco’s Miguel Gonalez and Duo LinLynn with percussionist Wei Chen Lin.
“Music is sound, of course, but the range of colors and styles you can make from the waves of sound is endless,” said Vartan. “For this program, Dr. Tebbs and I will be sharing colors and styles together as well as playing some solos to take the listener in many different directions.”
For more information about the concert and upcoming events, visit the music department website.
Story by: Addie Horsley
accent@suunews.net
Photo courtesy of SUU Department of Music
