Between the Lines

Furman Music Alumni perform works by Composer-in-Residence and Professor of Music Mark Kilstofte

Several choral works by Mark Kilstofte, Professor of Music and Composer-in-Residence, have been presented by Furman music alumni recently. In May, Knox Sutterfield (’12) conducted the Florilegium Chamber Choir (pictured here with Dr. Kilstofte on his left) in a performance of “To Music” in New York City’s Trinity Lutheran Church. In November, Nathan Fryml (’09) led the Amarillo Master Chorale in the Southwest premiere of Kilstofte’s oratorio “Of Rivers Within” (flyer below) featuring soprano soloist Jazmin Black Grollemund (’10). Nathan Fryml and Jazmin Black dedicated their joint performance with the Amarillo Master Chorale to the memory of Judy Vick. (Bing Vick commissioned and premiered the oratorio with the Greenville Chorale some years ago.) Finally, Vernon Huff (’97) and the SUNY-Fredonia Chamber Choir will present Kilstofte’s “Peace” in April.

Kilstofte’s “Everyone’s Voice,” commissioned in honor of Professor Emeritus Bingham Vick, will be featured by Vick and the Herring Chamber Ensemble in February and by the Vocal Arts Ensemble of Durham at the ACDA Southern Region Conference in Louisville. Kilstofte’s “Here,” a new work for SSA and cello obbligato, was premiered by Jonathan Hirsch and the Smith College Chamber Singers in October. The SATB version of the work received Honorable Mention in The Singers (MN) recent call for scores.

Coming full circle

David Stanley ’14 returned to his Alma Mater as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music/Associate Director of Bands and has completed his first semester of teaching at Furman. We are so fortunate to have David on the music faculty at Furman.

Raised in Emory, Virginia, Stanley is an eleventh-generation Southwest Virginian who knows rural Appalachia is frequently stereotyped as simple or unsophisticated—characteristics he was encouraged to challenge.  It seems appropriate to note that David was an overly inquisitive child.  His father (probably just hoping for quiet) offered the sage advice, “sometimes you learn more just by listening to people than by asking them a lot of questions.”  A healthy combination of curiosity and listening proved meaningful.  Developing these skills as a teacher in an urban high school, Stanley came to understand seemingly opposite communities as more connected than separate.  Together, they underscored the importance of musicians who listen, invest, and act: artistic citizens of place.

Now, Dr. Stanley aims to empower such citizenship.  As Associate Director of Bands at Furman University, he helps lead a comprehensive ensemble and music education program.  Prior to his appointment at Furman, he was a conducting associate at the University of Georgia, where he earned the Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts, studying with Cynthia Johnston Turner and Nicholas Williams.  Interdisciplinary work in conducting, music education, and justice culminated with his dissertation, “Listening for Community: Ensembles of Purpose and Place,” which explored an ensemble’s potential to create community and teach artistic values supportive of a democratic society.

From 2014-2018, Stanley served as Director of Bands for William Fleming High School in Roanoke, Virginia and was responsible for overseeing the program’s complete structural reorganization.  An alumnus of Furman during the tenures of directors Leslie Hicken and Jay Bocook, he completed the Bachelor of Music Education, serving in a variety of leadership capacities including Drum Major.

Dr. Stanley is a member of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), the South Carolina Music Educators Association (SCMEA), and the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA).  He recognizes these institutions must listen honestly to their past, and he is focused on using his membership to pose direct questions about work toward a more just future.  David and his wife, Molly (McClure) ’14—who is also a musician and educator—have a young son, Tucker.