Music Major

Albion College Professor and Director of Choral Activities Clayton Parr, ’80, has long viewed the Republic of Georgia as something of a second home so when the chance was presented to take his Briton Singers, a 12-member a capella group, to the country in May to perform and learn about the culture, it was an opportunity not to be missed.

Her voice recently resonated through Goodrich Chapel during her junior recital, and this summer it will resonate in Europe—in particular, Austria. Ikpemesi Ogundare, ’20, was accepted to the prestigious American Institute of Musical Studies, or AIMS Graz, located in Graz, Austria. It is a world-renowned program designed to prepare individuals for a career as a music professional.

The four-year wait for new music from Jane, ’14, and Brian Spencer, ’13, is over. The married couple, now based in Los Angeles, have also seen their journey go from indie/folk to electronic soul/pop. Three new songs in 2018 will be followed up with F I N K E L’s first full-length album in 2019.

The Richard and Marilyn Vitek Center for Musical Arts moves another step toward creation with the hiring of Northeast-based Acoustic Distinctions as acoustician. Says Albion College music professor David Abbott, “We are now on track to build a first-class recital hall.”

When Harim “Sunny” Kim prepared for a ministry mission trip to Mexico just weeks before starting her first year at Albion, she packed her violin, not wanting to miss a week of practice. Three trips and some 40 instruments later, Kim has left a musical mark in Mexico.

Richard and Marilyn Vitek, ’56 ’56, have shared their lives together for more than 60 years. Part of that sharing has come in the form of years-long generosity to their alma mater. Now, the couple is celebrating the timelessness and universality of music through their largest gift to the College. The Viteks have formally made a significant gift commitment—the biggest by an individual or couple in Albion College’s 182-year history—that will result in a new campus building to be called the Richard and Marilyn Vitek Center for Musical Arts.

On January 23 at the Michigan Music Conference in Grand Rapids, two Albion alumni conducted statewide high school honor choir concerts before a packed house of more than 2,000 in DeVos Performance Hall. Associate Professor Clayton Parr, ’80 (far left), and Wendee Wolf-Schlarf, ’83, who teaches in the Traverse City Public Schools, were selected by a statewide ballot of their vocal music teaching colleagues across the state of Michigan.