Students demonstrated their singing abilities, as well as musical instrument playing skills, at the Applied Music Recital presented by the Glendale Community College Music Department on Friday.

Throughout the 18 performances, the audience was delighted with the variety of ranges exhibited by the singers. The instrumental performances included tenor sax, piano, oboe, and jazz guitar.

The night started off with a performance by Paul Marmorstein, a baritone vocalist, who sang “Per la Gloria d’adorarvi,” by Giovanni Bononcini. Marmorstein’s emotional and lovely, yet powerful voice, captivated the audience with the sentiment that he put into his performance.

Marmorstein transmitted the emotional message of the song, “For the glory of adoring you/I want to love you.Loving you/I will suffer, yet I will love you always/Yes, even in my suffering.” He ended with a crescendo that stood out from the quieter parts of the song.

The sopranos of the evening showed off their tremendous voices through their songs as well. Katherine Bliss sang “Care Selve” by Georg Frideric Handel, as she demonstrated her dynamic range to the audience throughout the delicate song. Christina Eltrevoog possessed remarkable diction throughout her song, “Apres un Reve” by Gabriel Faure, and her soft and gentle voice, and beautiful green dress, focused the audience’s attention on her.

Another singer who immersed herself in her performance was Jessica Kesselring who sang “Dimmi, Crudele Amore,” also by Handel. Kesselring was very enthusiastic throughout her performance, transmitting the emotions of the song to the audience as she sang, “Tell me, thou cruel love, miserable human fate, always overflowing with grief and pain.”

Joy Jungwon Oh blew away the audience as she sang Giacchino Rossini’s “La Partorella Delle Alpi.” Oh’s voice and performance was smooth and clean throughout. “Oh! Quand Je Dors,” by Franz Liszt, was sung by Rachel Freed, who portrayed the sentimentalism of the music through her voice and her actions.

Amanda Lucia Rodriguez, a mezzo soprano, was engaging with her performance of “Habanera” from “Carmen,” by Georges Bizet. Rodriguez immersed herself into the character and moved across the stage showing off her imposing character. Rodriguez’s operatic voice was one of the highlights of the night.

The three tenors who sang at the recital showed the other side of the vocal spectrum to the audience with their extraordinary voices and presentations. Sevak Sulahian sang “If You Love Me,” by Margherite Mommot. His recital was vivid because he put his emotions into the song, especially when he sang “If you love me.”

Fernando Vega Cid demonstrated his dominant tenor voice to the audience with Robert Schumann’s “Widmung.” Cid’s piece was very strong.

“Panis Angelicus,” by Cesar Franck, was sung by Joenhel Cayanan, who delivered an enjoyable performance, because his voice was perfect for the song and he was clearly in touch with its meaning.

The instrumental presentations of the night included two jazz guitar performances. Alberto la Torre played “Groovin’ High” by Dizzy Gillespie and Bryan Avey played Miles Davis’ “Nardis.” Both La Torre and Avey transmitted the smoothness of the jazz guitar through their harmonious and rhythmic performances.

Sakiko Muno delivered a magnificent performance, playing her tenor sax to Burnet Tuthill’s “Andante from Sonata, Op. 56.” Muno demonstrated her ability to play the instrument well.

The oboe instrumental was performed by Sarah Bloxham, who played “Piece V” by Cesar Franck. Bloxham’s presentation was pleasant and she was gracious as she played.

The four piano players of the night demonstrated their astounding abilities with extremely fast finger movements.

Seonah Lee played Sergei Prokofiev’s, “Diabolical Suggestion,” and delivered a fast paced performance with her agile hands. Lee was delicate throughout her performance, but it was her fingers that showed her skill throughout the upbeat song. Varand Toros Adami played Franz Liszt’s “Rigoletto-Paraphrase,” and showed the audience his masterful ability at playing the piano. Adami’s performance was long, but it provided him more time to demonstrate his skills.

“Rondo Toccata,” by Revaz Laghidze, was played by Elene Kartvekishvili, who demonstrated that she is also very accomplished at playing the piano.
Kartvekishvili’s presentation was very entertaining because her ranges changed so quickly.

The night ended with Leon Thomasian playing “Transcendental Etude No. 10,” by Franz Liszt. When Thomasian started playing the first keys of the song, it was as if he had immersed himself into his playing. The fluidity of the music was very good.

Throughout the evening, all the performers conveyed their ability and dedication to the audience, whether it was through their singing or their instruments, which made the night even more enjoyable.

The performers were assisted throughout their presentations by Jungwon Jin, Brian Hanke, and Chris Rios.

For more information on the Applied Music Program, or to be added to their mailing list, contact Beth Pflueger at (818) 240-1000, ext. 5829, or at [email protected].