Celebrating the convergence of business and arts, the finals for the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville’s first annual Music City Corporate Band Challenge were held at the Massey Performing Arts Center at Belmont University on Sun., March 15. Competing were Avenue Bank’s “The Hummingbirds,” AllState Insurance Company’s “The Good Hands Band,” The Myers Company’s “Next of Kin,” BMI/Landmark Digital’s “Royal Tea$e,” Nashville Symphony staff’s “Phil and the Harmonics,” Vanderbilt University’s “Soul Incision” and winners MTA’s “Transit.” In addition to bragging rights, Transit earned prize money and an opportunity to perform at the 2009 CMA Music Festival. Net proceeds from the Challenge will benefit Belmont University’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Business Scholarship Fund, as well as the Arts & Business Council Community Engagement Programs.
Belmont Hosts Corporate Band Challenge
Slay Participates in Law Panel at Vanderbilt
Cheryl Slay, assistant professor of music business, participated as a panelist for Vanderbilt University Law School’s Spring Symposium for its Journal of Entertainment and Technology Law. The panel, “Maintaining the Musician: Protecting Music, Image and Technology Today,” explored topics relating to artist branding and business model changes in the music industry.
White Invited to Join NSF Committee
Cindy White, director of the office of sponsored programs, was recently invited to join the National Science Foundation (NSF) Business and Operations Advisory Committee. The committee addresses a range of issues related to the oversight, integrity, development and enhancement of NSF’s business operations. It has also been integral to major initiatives in areas such as electronic government, financial management and performance measurement. Her appointment to the committee will be for three years.
Belmont Hosts Regional Math Association Meeting
Under the leadership of mathematics faculty members Dr. Andy Miller and Dr. Sarah Ann Stewart, Belmont’s Department of Mathematics and Computer Science hosted nearly 400 mathematics faculty members, graduate students and undergraduate students on Belmont’s campus for the 88th Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Section of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA-SE) Meeting March 12-14. The MAA-SE section covers Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina; almost 100 colleges and universities were represented at this year’s meeting. Miller and Stewart had worked for two years to make all the necessary preparations, including working with Belmont staff to set up events, overseeing Belmont students and faculty volunteer efforts, and communicating with MAA officials to organize the program of talks and other activities.
There were more than 90 contributed paper presentations on a wide variety of topics, including presentations by Belmont faculty members Dr. Danny Biles and Dr. Mike Pinter. Activities for undergraduate students included sessions for presentations of undergraduate research, a Poster Session with nearly 25 posters presented, a Treasure Hunt and Math Jeopardy. Belmont mathematics majors Amy Valentine and Cat Simpson received the Walt and Susan Patterson Award for their paper presentation on “Ugly Curves and the Loewner Equation,” which was the result of their work supervised by Belmont faculty member Dr. Joan Lind. Both of Belmont’s Math Jeopardy teams tied or won their preliminary round of the competition; the team with members Cat Simpson, Amy Valentine, Hank Carter and Neil Kowalewski came in Second Place overall during the Final Round.
Akin Wins First Prize in Guitar Competition
Belmont guitar student Mark Akin recently won First Prize in the 2009 Beethoven Guitar Competition in Memphis. Akin performed works by Isaac Albeniz, Johann Sebastian Bach and Sergio Assad. He took third place in last year’s competition.
Professor, Alum Featured in Tennessean Story on Human Spirit
Associate Professor of Art Teresa Van Hattan Granath and alumnus Sam Davidson were recently featured in an article in The Tennessean about how the “Slumbering economy awakens human spirit: Rather than worry and wilt, many among us find new ways to give, to help, to care.” Click here to read the story.
Everett Appears on ‘Make Me a Supermodel’
Belmont public relations major Gabriel Everett is a finalist in Bravo TV’s “Make Me a Supermodel” show. Click here to read his bio on the show’s Web site.
Scarlett Leadership Institute Hosts Cam Marston on Campus
The Scarlett Leadership Institute at Belmont University hosted generational expert Cam Marston for a special, invitation-only appearance Wednesday in the Frist Lecture Hall. Marston, founder and president of Generational Insight, is a consultant, author and speaker who has worked with Fortune 500 companies and small businesses throughout the world to improve multigenerational relations and communications.
During his hour-long lecture Marston compared and contrasted the Matures (born prior to 1946), the Baby Boomers (1946-64), Generation X (1965-79) and the Millennials (born since 1980). In describing characteristics of each era, Marston noted that economic situations contribute to forming each generation’s personality. “Parents want their children to have things they didn’t have. In an age of affluence, that means options.” This, in part, can lead to the delayed adulthood and “what’s in it for me” attitude seen in Generation X and the Millennials.
In the workplace, Marston suggested it was important to keep different traits in mind, especially when working with diverse age ranges. With issues that arise due to generational differences, he noted, “Ninety percent of the solution is understanding your own bias.”
Marston has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer, Entrepreneur Magazine and Money Magazine, among others. In addition to his presentations, workshops and targeted coaching, Marston has written a book on his findings titled Motivating the “What’s In It For Me” Workforce: Managing Across the Generational Divide.
Boan’s Play Selected for FutureFest 2009
Dr. Devon Boan’s play Darkroom has been selected one of 12 semi-finalists for FutureFest 2009, the festival of new plays at the Dayton Playhouse in Dayton, Ohio. Boan is professor of honors and director of the Honors Program. This year is the 20th anniversary of the festival, which has nearly 300 submissions each year and has launched the careers of more than 90 professional playwrights. Over the three days of FutureFest, six finalists are staged and publicly adjudicated by a panel of five theatre professionals from New York and the midwest. This year’s festival will run from July 24-26.
Alumnus Clifton Forbis to Receive Encore Award
World-class tenor Clifton Forbis will return to Belmont University to accept the inaugural Encore Award on March 31 at 7:30 p.m. in Massey Concert Hall. “Clifton is a natural choice for the first presentation of this award,” said Dr. Jeffery Kirk, associate dean for performance studies. The award has been created to honor a School of Music alumnus for achievement in the field of classical music. “With performances with opera houses and symphonies around the world, Clifton is one of Belmont’s most distinguished classical alumni,” said Kirk. “He is a great example of what we hope all of our alumni achieve both personally and professionally.”
In addition to receiving the award, Forbis will present a recital program of arts songs and arias and a master class with four Belmont students. The event is free and open to the public.
A 1985 graduate of Belmont and native Nashvillian, Forbis has performed demanding tenor repertoire around the world including the title roles in Samson et Dalila, Otello and Tristan und Isolde. He is a leading artist with the Metropolitan Opera, Opéra National de Paris, Canadian Opera Company and Teatro all Scala. The School of Music plans to present the Encore Award annually to an alumnus in the field of classical music.
