Please join us for our Dewberry School of Music Fall 2026 Concert Series! We are excited to announce our terrific opening concert of the Series—the Grand Piano Celebration on Sunday, September 27 at 3 pm.

Our Dewberry School of Music faculty and students have been performing, teaching, and presenting research locally, nationally, and internationally throughout the summer, as highlighted in this newsletter.  Additionally, we have partnered with Mason Community Arts Academy to present many outstanding music camps, workshops, and teacher-training symposiums throughout the 2026 summer session on our beautiful George Mason campus.  

We are pleased to announce two new adjunct classroom faculty in music composition and music technology for our upcoming fall semester.  We greatly appreciate the Friends of Music at Mason for their enthusiastic support of our Dewberry School of Music students and faculty throughout the entire year.

With my best wishes for a restful and rejuvenating summer,

Dr. Linda A. Monson, Director
Reva and Sid Dewberry Family School of Music

Join us for a spectacular opening of our 2026 Fall Concert season with A Grand Piano Celebration on Sunday, September 27 at 3 p.m. in Mason's Center for the Arts. This concert honors Mason's All-Steinway School and features outstanding student and faculty artists of the Reva and Sid Dewberry Family School of Music in exciting and dramatic solo piano and collaborative piano works.

Faculty performances will include Saint-Saens "Carnival of the Animals" featuring Linda Apple Monson and Anna Balakerskaia, duo-pianists, and witty verses by poet Ogden Nash narrated by Rick Davis, Dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts. Jennifer Casey Cabot, soprano, will join with Linda Monson in a performance of Fernando Obradors "Classical Spanish Songs". The program will highlight a brilliant 8- hand finale showcasing Mason piano faculty Eunae Ko Han, John Paul Healey, Anna Balakerskaia, and Linda Apple Monson.

The Grand Piano Celebration concert promises to be a memorable and thrilling concert opening to our 2026 Fall Concert Series. Tickets will be available for purchase on August 1.

John Healey, Eunae Ko Han, Anna Balakerskaia & Linda Monson, 8-hand piano

Jennifer Casey Cabot, soprano

Lena Rice, student artist

Originally from Bordeaux, Dr. Jean-Patrick Besingrand is a French-American composer and musicologist based in Washington DC. Dr. Jean-Patrick Besingrand holds a PhD in composition from The Graduate Center, CUNY where he studied under Professor Jason Eckardt, a Master of Arts in Musicology from the University of Bordeaux, and diplomas in Analysis, Harmony, Counterpoint, Fugue, Composition, and Soundpainting from the Bordeaux Conservatory where he notably studied composition under Jean-Louis Agobet. 

He also holds an Advanced Certificate in Composition from Carnegie Mellon University where he studied under Leonardo Balada. Since 2018, he has served as co-artistic director and co-founder of the composers' collective Tesselat. His music is published by Artchipel and on BabelScores.

As a composer he received several awards and recognition in France and abroad such as the International Composition Competition organized by SaxOpen and Musica (Strasbourg, France, 2015, First Prize), New Music Generation (Kazakhstan, 2020, 2nd Prize), SunRiver Prize (Chengdu, China, 2017), International Composition Competition Città di Udine (Italy, 2016 and 2023, First Prize absolute), ISB David Walter Composition Competition (USA, 2024), and Robert Starer Composition Award (New York, USA, 2016) among others.

His music has been performed by ensembles such as the Orchestre National Bordeaux-Aquitaine, Tokyo Sinfonietta, Court-Circuit, Dal Niente, Linéa, Les Percussions de Strasbourg, Klangforum Wien, Mivos Quartet, JACK Quartet, Molinari Quartet, Platypus, Barcelona Modern Ensemble, Quince, Moscow Contemporary Music Ensemble, Meitar Ensemble, Suono Giallo, and Mise-En. Jean-Patrick's music has also been performed by many soloists, notably Ryoko Aoki, Pierre Dutrieu, Yumi Suehiro, Aurélienne Brauner, 
Geoffrey Deibel, Carla Rees, Mamiko Someda, Thomas Piercy, Remi Miura, Tsugumi Yamamoto, and Reison Kuroda.

His music was featured at festivals such as Festival Musica (France), Voix Nouvelles Royaumont (France), Shanghai New Music Week (China), St. Petersburg International New Music Festival (Russia), OutHear New Music Week (Greece), Barcelona Modern Festival (Spain), IlSuono Contemporary Music Week (Italy), Mixtúr (Spain), CEME (Israel), Thailand International Composition Festival (Thailand), Tokyo Media Interaction (Japan), and Red Note (USA), among others.

Dr. Jenny Beck is a composer and sound designer whose work spans a wide spectrum of sound art, from acoustic concert music and electronic ambient pieces to music for dance, meditation, and interactive media. She currently works in game audio, creating music and sound design for video games, crafting rich, atmospheric worlds that deepen player experience.

She holds a Ph.D. in Music Composition from Princeton University, where her research explored immersive listening and sound as a tool for shaping creative processes. Her music has been performed internationally, and she has received honors including recognition as a finalist for the Gaudeamus Award. Dr. Beck is excited to share her passion for composition, creativity, and listening with the next generation of artists.

Growing up in rural Pennsylvania, Dr. Beck developed an early fascination with the sounds of the woods, a connection that continues to shape her creative work. Inspired by the natural world—as well as meditation, ambience, and ambiguity—she creates sonic environments that invite alternative modes of awareness, presence, and perception.

Article Published in
The George
July 1, 2026

By Alyson Foster

"The commission provides $2,500 in funds to support the composition of a piece, five to seven minutes in length, that will combine jazz with Persian pop and folk music influences. It's one of several scholarships that The Chadab Foundation—which provides financial assistance to promising young artists—has awarded since its creation in 2012, and it is the first time the commission has been offered at George Mason. 

DeMarco said he was delighted and honored to receive the foundation's support. "The opportunity to write for large ensemble as a young composer is rare," he said. "I am also grateful for the ongoing mentorship of the George Mason music faculty. Their support and guidance are and will continue to be crucial in the composition of this work." 

Congratulations to Samuel Beckett Kim, undergraduate senior pianist, for being awarded an OSCAR (Office of Scholarship, Creative Activity, and Research) Summer Research Grant. Samuel's research is entitled "Fascinated Derision: The Containment of Blackness on Early Radio." Under the mentorship of Dr. Emily Green, this research will investigate how Americans used caricature rooted in minstrelsy and stereotype to maintain racial hierarchy from the 1920s through the 1930s. By categorizing the methods used to contain blackness, this project will highlight how early radio set black performers apart, aided the assimilation of white European immigrants, and paved the way of contemporary consumption of radicalized culture. 

Dr. Megan Lavengood, Director of Music Theory at George Mason, and Malcom Taylor, DMA Candidate in Percussion Performance, presented at the 4th International Conference on Timbre in Montreal, Canada on July 2-4. 

Dr. Lavengood's presentation was entitled The Timbre Is the Instrument: The Imagined DX7 and 1980s Nostalgia.

Malcolm Taylor's presentation was entitled Two Rappers: Recreating Vocal Patterns through Percussion in George Lewis' North Star Boogaloo.

Dr. Caroline Steiger, Director of Brass in the Dewberry School of Music, recently traveled to Krakow, Poland to perform with the NuCorno Jazz Ensemble. Dr. Steiger performed 10 pieces that included 6 premieres on a featured guest artist recital and performed with world-renowned Jazz hornist Arkady Shilkloper.

Dr. Linda Apple Monson, International Steinway Artist, performed in Luxembourg in June at the Deifferdenger Museksschoul with solo piano and collaborative piano recitals. Additionally, she presented three masterclasses/workshops for faculty and students in Luxembourg. 

This year’s Mason Orchestra Conducting Symposium was led by Dr. Soo Han, Director of Orchestral Studies on June 29 - July 3.  Dr. Han stated:  "This week was amazing, not simply because of the conducting work itself, but because of the remarkable people who came together to create such a supportive and inspiring community."  

One hundred forty young musicians. Countless dreams. One unforgettable week.  On June 22 - 26, these Junior High and Senior High Band students filled the halls of George Mason University with music, laughter, curiosity, and the kind of energy that reminds us why we teach. Founded and coordinated by Dr. William L. Lake, Jr., Director of Concert Bands, in collaboration with Mason Community Arts Academy.

Our biggest George Mason Jazz Camp ever welcomed nearly 90 incredible campers for an unforgettable week (June 22-26) of learning, creativity, collaboration, and outstanding performances. We couldn’t be prouder of the passion, talent, and energy these musicians brought to campus. Coordinated by Dr. Darden Purcell, Director of Jazz Studies and Jazz Voice and Prof. John Kocur, Jazz Studies. 

The Mason Summer Piano Academy, July 6 - 10, was a comprehensive music experience for dedicated and passionate piano students. Throughout the week, students enjoyed masterclasses, dedicated practice time, concerts, and more. Dr. Anna Balakerskaia and Dr. Linda Apple Monson performed a Duo-Piano Recital for the Mason Summer Piano Academy.  Masterclasses throughout the week were presented by Brian Ganz, Linda Apple Monson, and Ina Mirtcheva Blevins.