Eighth Blackbird up for a Grammy

Oberlin Conservatory congratulates the numerous faculty and alumni whose work has been nominated for the 54th annual Grammy Awards. Oberlin faculty and alumni from groups such as the International Contemporary Ensemble, So Percussion, and the Pacifica Quartet are representing Oberlin in several categories, from Best Small Ensemble Performance to Best Jazz Vocal Album.

Eighth blackbird, a contemporary sextet formed at Oberlin Conservatory, has received three Grammy nominations for Lonely Motel: Music from Slide, its most recent recording. The album is in the running for Best Engineered Classical Album and Best Small Ensemble Performance; the composition itself – a contemporary music-theater piece composed by Steven Mackey with libretto by Rinde Eckert – is up for Best Contemporary Classical Composition. David Frost, the recording’s producer, has also been nominated for Classical Producer of the Year.

The “birds” formed at Oberlin in 1996 under the tutelage of Timothy Weiss, director of the division of conducting and ensembles. Five original, Oberlin-trained members remain with the group today – Michael Maccaferri ’95, clarinets, Nicholas Photinos ’96, cello, Matthew Duvall ’95, percussion, Lisa Kaplan ’97, piano, and Tim Munro ’02, flutes.

Several recordings featuring Oberlin alumni and faculty have also received Grammy nominations. Music of Randy Newman, the latest from jazz vocalist Roseanna Vitro, features Professor of Advanced Improvisation and Percussion Jamey Haddad and has been nominated for Best Vocal Jazz Album. Teresa Wakim ’02 features as a soloist in a recent recording of Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem by the Seraphic Fire chorus, which has been nominated for Best Choral Performance. Sound the Bells!, the most recent recording from the Bay Brass, was also nominated for Best Small Ensemble Performance and features french hornists Robert Ward ’77 and Jonathan Ring.

Oberlin-hailing musicians have also performed on recordings by several of this year’s Grammy-nominated producers. A recording of John Adams’ Son of Chamber Symphony and String Quartet featuring the International Contemporary Ensemble was produced by Classical Producer of the Year nominee Judith Sherman. ICE members with Oberlin roots include Professor of Violin David Bowlin, Claire Chase ’01, Campbell MacDonald ’99, Joshua Rubin ‘99, Kivie Cahn-Lipman ’01, and Nick Masterson ‘01.

Sherman has also produced records for Simin Ganatra ‘95 and Sibbi Bernhardsson ‘95, of the Pacifica Quartet, and Adam Sliwinski ‘01, of the So Percussion ensemble. Professor of Piano Peter Takács and alum Annalisa Pappano ’97 recorded with Blanton Alspaugh and Peter Rutenberg, respectively, both of whom have also been nominated for Classical Producer of the Year.

Nominees are selected by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences from recordings submitted by the recording industry and individual artists.

The 54th annual Grammy Awards ceremony will be held on February 12, 2012.