FAMED ACCOMPANIST PERFORMS

Legendary American accompanist John Wustman delighted an audience in Trinity Chapel of the Margre Henningson Durham Center on Sept. 10, with the first in a series of dedication performances on Dana’s newly restored 9-foot concert grand piano. Wustman was joined by Dr. Lucinda Sloan, mezzo soprano, and Dr. William Shomos, baritone.

Wustman, who has been called the “dean of American accompanists,” has collaborated with many of the great singers of the second half of the 20th century in the leading concert halls of five continents. He has performed with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Birgit Nilsson, Regine Crespin, Christa Ludwig, Nicolai Gedda, Carlo Bergonzi and Luciano Pavarotti. Along with Maria Callas, Wustman served as a member of the jury at the Fourth International Tschaikovsky Competition in Moscow, Russia. His students are engaged as singers, conductors and répétiteurs at the Metropolitan Opera Company, Houston Grand, San Francisco Opera, Chicago Lyric, Munich Staatsoper and La Scala, to name but a few.

This performance was the first in a series of events to dedicate the newly acquired concert grand piano, donated last spring by Dana alumnus Don Poh ’50 of Green Bay, Wis. The piano is a restored, 1973 9-foot concert grand Baldwin piano, one of the finest instruments available to college students in the region.

Another dedication concert was held during Homecoming. Alumni, including Iris (Frey ’78) Doolittle and Barry Anderson ’73, as well as Dana faculty and students, gave a concert on Oct. 10.