This weekend, on November 2nd, at 2 PM and 7:30 PM, Texas Performing Arts and Fusebox present Kid Koala: The Storyville Mosquito at the McCullough Theatre. David Campbell (MM ’10, DMA ’14) performs on cello with the touring team.
In The Storyville Mosquito, the audience will experience a live movie made before their eyes, in a production that combines live puppetry, cinematic camera techniques and music. The action is filmed and edited in real time on over a dozen miniature sets and projected on a movie screen, backed by an ensemble of strings, piano and turntables. Montreal-based DJ and composer Kid Koala returns with the enchanting follow-up to his live graphic novel Nufonia Must Fall with The Storyville Mosquito—an ambitious staging of a charming tale that follows the adventures of a mosquito who moves to the big city to pursue his dream of one day becoming a great jazz musician.
For more ticket, venue and more information, visit texasperformingarts.org.
Next week, on Saturday, October 26th, at 2pm PT, in Benaroya Hall, Soohyun Juhn (DMA ’18) performs her first concert as Principal Cellist of the Seattle Philharmonic Orchestra. The program, “In sweet music is such art,” features Liszt’s fourth symphonic poem, “Orpheus,” along with works by Saint-Saëns, Vasiliauskaitė, Verdi and Walpurgis.
This past weekend, junior Javy Chie-Wei Liu (BM ’26) won the audition for acting Principal Cello with the Valley Symphony Orchestra in McAllen, TX, to fill in for Benjamin Ponder while he is on a leave of absence. The VSO, now in its 73rd season of classical music performances in the Rio Grande Valley, is a resident ensemble at the McAllen Performing Arts Center, the City’s state-of-the-art performance hall that opened in 2017. Annually, the VSO presents five to six masterworks concerts, educational concerts, several special chamber and community events, plus Bravo! VSO, their annual fundraising gala.
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Frank Jenkins (DMA ’13) has been appointed as Managing Director of Austin Chamber Music Center. Frank has been an influential figure in Austin’s classical music scene for over a decade. In his previous role as Program Director for Austin Soundwaves, Frank led the day-to-day operations and strategic growth of school and community-based programs, benefiting over 1,100 students and community members annually. Frank has also previously held administrative positions and served on committees with the Austin Symphony Orchestra.
Aili Kangasniemi (BA ’25) has been selected for an internship with Primo Artists. Based in New York, Primo Artists is one of the top artist management agencies in the world. Founded in 2015 by industry leader Charlotte Lee, Primo Artists’ select roster includes some of the world’s finest classical musicians: Violinist/conductor Itzhak Perlman, violinists Joshua Bell, Nicola Benedetti and Randall Goosby, pianists Seong-Jin Cho and Beatrice Rana, conductors Cristian Măcelaru, James Gaffigan, Christian Reif and Gemma New, and composers Valerie Coleman and Wynton Marsalis. With nearly 25,000 followers of its channels, Primo Artists recently launched a Social Media and PR Division and represents a growing roster of clients to optimize and build their presence in an ever-evolving digital world.
After a 3-month long trial, Seulki Lee (DMA ’19) has been offered a Co-Principal Cello position with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra (Eesti Riiklik Sümfooniaorkester, ERSO). Celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2026, ERSO occupies a unique position in the intersection of cultures, bringing together Nordic, Western and Russian musical traditions and has become the most prominent orchestral ambassador of Estonia abroad. Since the 2020/21 season, its Chief Conductor and Artistic Director is Olari Elts. Neeme Järvi, the longest-serving chief conductor of ERSO, continues with the orchestra as an Honorary Artistic Director for Life.
Longhorn Cellos 