Dear Mason Music Family,

Please join us this week for outstanding concerts with our Dewberry School of Music students!  It is not too late to purchase tickets for our Mason Bands concert tonight December 4 at 7:30 pm in the Center for the Arts. Come early to hear a pre-concert chamber winds performance at 7:10 pm tonight in the lobby!  

We are excited to present our Mason Opera with four performances of Puccini's Gianni Schicchi on Friday and Saturday, December 5-6, at 3 pm and 8 pm in the Hylton Performing Arts Center's Gregory Theater in Manassas.  Please purchase your tickets now and join us at the Hylton this weekend for Puccini's soaring melodies! 

How thrilled we are to present our Mason Symphony Orchestra and Choirs Winter Festival concert this Sunday, December 7 at 7 pm in the Center for the Arts Concert Hall. Tickets are going fast for this finale Winter Festival concert featuring our marvelous orchestra and choirs. 

Many free concerts featuring our Dewberry School of Music chamber ensembles are highlighted throughout this newsletter, including the Electronic Composition Concert, Guitar Ensemble Concert, Electronic Music Ensemble "Neo-Litho Spheres," New Sound Collective Concert, and Green Machine Ensembles Historical Showcase. You are invited to join us (free admission) for our daytime Departmental Recitals and Student Recitals on the Fairfax campus, as well as Community Events with performances by our GMU Tuba & Euphonium Ensemble, as showcased throughout this newsletter. 

I recently returned from the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) Conference in Orlando, where I was representing our Dewberry School of Music. I have been honored to serve a three-year term as NASM Chair of Region 7 (includes all accredited music institutions within Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, and Puerto Rico.) 

Our Dewberry School of Music was well-represented at the Virginia Music Educators Association conference in Norfolk in late November.  Please see exciting announcements and photos in this newsletter related to awards and presentations of our amazing faculty, students, and alumni! 

We are thrilled to celebrate the Friends of Music at Mason 20th Anniversary throughout this Fall 2025 season of concerts. Thanks to our steadfast Friends of Music at Mason for your ongoing support of our students!

Warm regards,

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

In the second concert of the Mason Bands' 55th Anniversary season, the Mason Symphonic Band and Wind Symphony reflect on perseverance, remembrance, and the radiant arrival of joy after struggle. Titled “But Joy Comes...,” this evocative program journeys through music that speaks to loss and longing, resilience and remembrance, light and triumph.  The Symphonic Band opens the evening with Brian Balmages’s Joy in All Things—an uplifting work that sets the tone with infectious energy and a message of gratitude. That spirit continues in Rossano Galante’s Life Eternal, a cinematic and deeply heartfelt tribute to enduring memory and love. Richard Saucedo’s Heroes Near and Far honors everyday acts of bravery and service, while Harrison Collins’s Unstoppable pulses with determination and optimism, capturing the drive of a new generation.  

The Wind Symphony offers Richard Wagner’s Trauersinfonie, a solemn and majestic work composed for large wind band. Shuying Li’s Luminance follows with striking contrast—its shimmering textures and propulsive rhythms illuminating the space between darkness and light. The concert culminates in John Mackey’s The Frozen Cathedral, a powerful sonic monument inspired by majestic landscapes. 

The Mason Bands are proud to welcome the Independence High School Wind Ensemble as a featured special guest for this concert, under the direction of Kyle Harrington (Mason BM alumnus – Music Education ’14).   But Joy Comes... is a reminder that in the face of sorrow and silence, we continue to rise, to sing, to shine.

Hilarity and glorious music abound in Puccini’s one-act comedic masterpiece as the Donati family’s grief over their “Dear Uncle Buoso’s” death quickly turns to greed as they scheme to keep their inheritance. The clever and creative Gianni Schicchi comes to the rescue – or does he? Featuring the beloved aria “O mio babbino caro,” brilliant ensembles, and lively characters, it’s no wonder that Gianni Schicchi remains a perennial favorite among opera lovers and newcomers alike. 

The Dewberry School of Music is proud to present: Winter Festival, an exhilarating concert featuring the Mason Orchestras and Choirs. The orchestras will perform dynamic works, including Karl Stamitz’s Concerto in Bb for Clarinet, Bassoon, and Orchestra, featuring Dr. Kathleen Gardiner Mulcahy on clarinet and Christopher Jewell on bassoon. Mason Choirs are proud to perform traditional music of the season including contemporary settings of O Come Emanuel,  Ose Shalom, Gretchaninoff's Cantate Domino and Felix Mendelssohn's There Shall a Star from his oratorio Christus. Join us as we perform selections of diverse styles, culminating in a combined performance featuring the Mason Symphony Orchestra and the Mason Choirs performing some of your holiday favorites.

 This performance will take place in the Concert Hall at the George Mason University’s Center for the Arts on Sunday, December 7th at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are available online and at the door. Additional information and tickets are available at music.calendar.gmu.edu. We hope you’ll join us for this exciting performance!

Come enjoy this concert of all original music, presented by the students in this semester's Electronic Composition course (MUSI 354) under the direction of Dr. Robert W. Gillam. 

Come hear solos, duos, and trios of all styles performed on guitar. This performance is coordinated by Professor Matthew Trkula, Classical Guitar Faculty.

The Mason Electronic Music Ensemble will present an eclectic concert of original student compositions of Metal, J-Pop, R&B, and Electronic Dance Music. The performance is coordinated by Dr. Robert Gillam, Director of Music Technology.

New Sound Collective specializes in the performance of music by living composers and is directed by Dr. Andrea Reinkemeyer, Director of Composition. The concert is free and open to the public. 

The Historical Showcase is the annual final performance of the fall semester for the Green Machine Historical Ensembles. This year, the Historical Showcase will be held on Tuesday December 9th at 7pm in the deLaski Performing Arts Building room 3001 and will feature chamber music from the 1840's 'Boston Collection of Instrumental Music', 19th-century brass band music, 18th-century fife and drum music, a premiere performance of a choir work by Mason student Samuel B. Kim, and a performance by special guest Neil Burke on banjo from the folk music ensemble 'Hardtack & Sea Biscuits.'

Kayla Boodoo, Piano, Non-Degree Recital
Saturday, December 6 at 5:00 p.m.
deLaski 3001

Huijie Sun, Voice, Doctoral Recital
Tuesday, December 16 at 6:00 p.m.
Harris Theatre

Congratulations to Prof. June Huang who has been selected as this year's recipient of the Virginia String Teachers Association's 2025 Outstanding String Teacher of the Year Award! Her hard work and dedication to String Music Education has profoundly impacted many young musicians, and we are proud to celebrate her achievements. Alyssa Cabassa (Dewberry School of Music violist) was honored with the Future Music Teacher Award and pictured with Mary Lechter, Mason Community Arts Academy Director (center).

Mason Music Students attended the Virginia Music Educator Association Conference in late November in Norfolk, Virginia along with Dr. Tina Beveridge, Director of Undergraduate Music Education. Pictured. from top left to bottom right: Noah Yager, Xolani Tesla, Jack Papandon, Dillon Johnson, Annah Nikolova, Mykia Buford, Ricky Munoz, Sage Prinstein, Ivanna De Leon Casas.

Dr. Willam L. Lake, Jr., Director of Bands and Dr. Andrea Reinkemeyer, Director of Composition both presented sessions along with several of our Mason Music Alumni. Many thanks to Christina Ortiz, Recruitment and Audition Coordinator for proudly representing Mason.

The Dewberry School of Music hosted Brass Day in November and hosted over 60 trumpet, horn, trombone, euphonium, and tuba students from the community.

The event was coordinated by Dr. Caroline Steiger, Director of Brass and featured George Mason Trumpet Ensemble and guest artist Aliyah Danielle, French Horn.

Congratulations to Mason Music Alumni Bill Podolski (2005, BM Music Education) for being named a 2026 semi-finalist for the Grammy Music Educator Award. A joint partnership and presentation of the Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum, the Music Educator Award honors current U.S. music educators — from kindergarten through college, and across public and private institutions — who have made a lasting impact on students and demonstrated a deep commitment to keeping music education thriving in their schools. Mr. Podolski teaches at H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program in Arlington, Virginia. 

Dr. Emily Green, Professor of Music History, presented at  the University of Pennsylvania on their Workshop in the History of Material Texts in early December. Her lecture was titled “Of Bad Candles and Glasses, Earthquakes, and Headaches: Reasons for Musical Error around 1770.” Dr. Green also serves as a  Faculty Fellow for Curricular Innovation at the College of Visual and Performing Arts. 

Congratulations to Dr. GaYoung Lee on winning the American Classical Music Awards (ACMA) in the Outstanding Professional Level category. She performed a selection of Chopin Études, including Op. 10 No. 4, Op. 10 No. 8, and Op. 25 No. 10. The ACMA is an international competition dedicated to nurturing musical creativity, inspiring talented artists, and promoting the ongoing growth and appreciation of classical music in today’s society. 

Through its global online platform, ACMA offers musicians the opportunity to showcase their artistic excellence and interpretative skills to audiences worldwide. Participants include vocalists, instrumentalists, and chamber ensembles representing a wide range of nationalities and artistic backgrounds. Dr. Lee’s achievement at the 2025 ACMA highlights her exceptional artistry, musical sensitivity, and collaborative excellence. Her performance demonstrated not only remarkable technical mastery but also profound musical expression—qualities that align with the competition’s mission to celebrate and support both emerging and established classical musicians.