Faculty Recital opens Spring schedule

Cynthia OrtizMusic at Pitt-Greensburg presents its first performance of the Spring semester with a Faculty Recital on Friday, February 2. The program, which is free and open to the public, begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Mary Lou Campana Chapel and Lecture Hall.

The program will feature four members of the Pitt-Greensburg faculty who are all accomplished musicians: Chris Bartley, baritone; Pilar Herr, flute; Matthew Klumpp, piano; and Cynthia Ortiz, soprano.

Music highlights of the concert include Bartley performing Purcell’s Anacreon’s Defeat and Handel’s Arm Ye Brave from “Judas Maccabeus”;  Herr performing J.S. Bach’s Eb-major Flute Sonata; Klumpp performing Haydn’s Partita in E-major; Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in D-major Opus 23 No. 4; and Liszt’s Transcendental Etude in C minor S. 139, no. 8 “Wilde Jagt”; and Ortiz performing Puccini’s Donde lieta usci from “La bohème” and Massanet’s Il est doux, il est bon from “Hérodiade.”

Chris Bartley is music director and instructor of music at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. He conducts the Pitt-Greensburg Chorale and Chamber Singers, featuring works such as the Faure Requiem” in collaboration with the Kassia Ensemble of Pittsburgh, while also commissioning and premiering new choral works for the Chorale, including To Joy” by Tyler Stampe and Shine” by Peter Fischer. He also serves as music director for campus musical productions, conducting performances of Man of La Mancha,” “Urinetown! The Musical,” and “Eleanor—An American Love Story” at the Palace Theater in Greensburg. He has recently conducted the PA Consort of Bedford in their annual “Messiah” productions. At Pitt-Greensburg, he teaches both Western classical and contemporary popular music, and has developed cross-disciplinary curricula for the University, including Music and Film, Music and Society, and Music, Culture, and Technology. A baritone/bass, he has sung professionally with the Westmoreland Chamber Singers, the Tucson Chamber Artists (now True Concord Voices) and Tucson Symphony Orchestra Chorus. He also serves as president of the Friday Evening Music Club.

Pilar M. Herr, PhD, is an assistant professor of History at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, where she has been on the faculty for the 19 years. She teaches courses in Latin American and Spanish history and has led students in study abroad trips to Spain and Cuba. She is also the Coordinator for the Vira I. Heinz Program for Women in Global Leadership. Her musical endeavors at Pitt-Greensburg include playing in the pit for “Eleanor—An American Love Story” and “Man of La Mancha,” as well as in performances for the Friday Evening Music Club, of which she is a member. Pilar is also a member of “Flute Cocktail,” an adult flute choir in Greensburg.

Matt Klumpp earned his Bachelor of Music Education (2007) at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Masters in Performance with an Emphasis in Collaborative Piano (2012) from Duquesne University. Currently he serves as a piano teacher for Bentley and Romito Professional Music Lessons in Irwin, PA, music director for Delmont Presbyterian Church, and adjunct instructor of piano at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. Klumpp has enjoyed a successful playing career in both the classical and jazz genres, including performances with the Westmoreland Symphony, Pittsburgh Opera Theatre, Opera Ignite, vocalist Gary Racan and trombonist Harold Betters.

Cynthia Ortiz, soprano, teaches voice and music theory at University of Pittsburgh Greensburg and is a candidate for a doctor of musical arts degree in voice performance at West Virginia University. In Western Pennsylvania, she has performed and covered the role of Maurya in Riders to the Sea by Vaughan Williams with Microscopic Opera of Pittsburgh. She has sung as core member and soloist with the Bach Choir of Pittsburgh as well as for the Friday Evening Music Club. As featured artist on the Joan Chambers Concert Series at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, she has performed works of Berlioz, Brahms, and Bellini. Cynthia has also performed in Barcelona, Spain, for the Barcelona Festival of Song, and in Alamos, Mexico for the Ortiz-Tirado Music Festival. She is an active voice teacher and performer as both classical and jazz singer, currently living in the Pittsburgh area.

Future offerings of Music at Pitt-Greensburg (programs begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Mary Lou Campana Chapel and Lecture Center unless otherwise noted) include:

  • February 23 -- the Friday Evening Music Club at the First United Methodist Church (Greensburg, PA);
  • March 23 – the Friday Evening Music Club;
  • April 6 – the Joan Chambers Concert Series presents Layali Al-Sham;
  • April 12-13 – Pitt-Greensburg Chorale and Chamber Singers Spring Concert;
  • April 18 – Voice and Piano Recital featuring the students of Matt Klumpp and Cynthia Ortiz;
  •  April 20 – the Joan Chambers Concert Series presents the renowned Heinz Chapel Choir (8 p.m. start);
  • April 27 – the Friday Evening Music Club.

 

Publication Date

Thursday, January 1, 1970 - 00:00