BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.2.3.1//EN TZID:America/Denver X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/Denver BEGIN:VEVENT UID:17-19153@music.colostate.edu DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250928T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250928T180000 DTSTAMP:20250922T212512Z URL:https://music.colostate.edu/events/guest-artist-concert-takin-souls-du o-megan-ihnen-mezzo-soprano-and-darrel-hale-bassoon-free/ SUMMARY:Guest Artist Concert: Takin’ Souls Duo- Megan Ihnen\, mezzo sopra no and Darrel Hale\, bassoon / FREE DESCRIPTION:I Know What My Heart is Like\n\nTakin' Souls features mezzo-sop rano Megan Ihnen and bassoonist Darrel Hale. Their collaboration began wit h a shared passion for exploring the rich possibilities at the intersectio n of classical and contemporary classical music. Megan and Darrel first jo ined forces in a recital of new music alongside Elena Lacheva and Stephani e Gustafson Amfahr\, featuring works by Alec Wilder\, William Winstead\, M ara Gibson\, Hannah Rice\, and Jenni Brandon. This collaborative experienc e catalyzed the formation of Takin' Souls\, allowing Megan and Darrel to d elve deeper into the nuanced interplay of their respective instruments.\n\ nMegan Ihnen’s versatile and expressive mezzo-soprano voice\, coupled wi th Darrel Hale’s brilliant and lyrical bassoon playing\, creates a disti nctive listening experience that honors and expands traditional chamber mu sic paradigms. Their repertoire is characterized by a commitment to the wo rks of living composers\, reflecting their dedication to contemporary musi c and its evolving landscape.\n\nThe duo frequently collaborates with harp ist Stephanie Gustafson Amfahr\, enriching their sound world and broadenin g their artistic reach. Takin' Souls is not only committed to exceptional performance but also to the advancement of new music through commissions a nd premieres. Their thoughtful approach to music-making ensures that each performance is meticulously crafted and intellectually engaging\, making s ignificant contributions to the field of contemporary classical music.\n\n Program announced from stage featuring selections from the following works :\n\nWashing Water Buffalo in the Ocean (2020)                          Gregory W. Brown (b. 1974)\n\nWhite Ash (2019)                                                    Mara Gibson (b. 1972)\n\nThe Wind Will Takes Us (2019)                                      Ni loufar Iravani (b.1990)\n\nMillay Songs                                                       Dan a Kaufman (b.1992)\nFigs from Thistles: First Fig\nI think I should have l oved you presently (Sonnet IX)\nEbb\nAfternoon on a Hill\nFigs from Thistl es: First Fig Reprise\n\nEverybody’s a Picasso                                              Eric Malmqu ist (b. 1985)\n\nAurora (2019)                                                      Hannah Rice  (b.2000)\n\nBound III (2015)                                                   Garrett Schumann   (b.1987)\n\nThe Centipède – Le Mille-Pattes (2013)                           David W. Solomons (b. 1953)\n\nMegan Ihnen is a New Orleans–based mezzo-soprano praised for her “impressive set of p ipes” (Take Effect). She treats the voice as both ritual and instrument\ , moving fluently among contemporary classical chamber works\, experimenta l and graphic scores\, live electronics\, and site-responsive performance while remaining tethered to the tactile presence of the acoustic body. “ Her voice seems to emerge from the waves of the ocean\,” writes Giorgio Koukl for EarRelevant.\n\nIhnen has inspired over 100 works specifically w ritten for her voice. Appearances include International Contemporary Ensem ble\, Fifth House Ensemble\, Great Noise Ensemble\, and festivals such as Houston Grand Opera’s Religare series\, where she performed John Cage’ s iconic 4′33″\, Tuesdays @ Monk Space\, Access Contemporary Music’s Thirsty Ears\, and NEXTET. Her multi-album Sleep Songs commissions wordle ss lullabies from living composers\, she performs works for voice and bass oon in Takin' Souls with Darrel Hale\, and her duo Neonautica’s touring show Black Meridian weaves voice\, saxophone\, and electronics into a medi tation on cosmic distortion and human fracture.\n\nA committed interpreter of hybrid and graphic practices\, she has voiced Tristan Gianola’s live chamber score for the silent horror classic Häxan\, tackled Adam Scott N eal’s acrylic-splotched Splatter Score\, and premiered Jason Barabba’s Phonetical Lullaby. Equally at ease in staged/operatic works and chamber music\, she has performed Mara Gibson’s pastiche opera Galatea’s Dream \, Amy Beth Kirsten’s Ophelia Forever\, Kate Soper’s Here Be Sirens\, and Julia Perry’s Stabat Mater. Improvised jazz inflections color Matthe w Evan Taylor’s Joyful Noise: Sound of Defiance\, while Ryan Carraher’ s demanding …most of us… pushes her vocal and physical limits into “ New Sincerity” extremes.\n\nIhnen’s work often aligns music with visua l narrative. She toured Kurtág’s Kafka Fragments with violinist Martha Muehleisen\, commissioning Rome Prize artist Karen Yasinsky to create hand -drawn\, stop-motion films reframing the cycle through mountaineer Junko T abei. Cross-disciplinary ventures include Erik Spangler’s site-specific Devonian Geometry in Iowa’s fossil gorge\, Debra Loewen’s Into the Gar den with Nick Zoulek and Wild Space Dance Company\, and an early version o f Nathan Davis’s Hagoromo with International Contemporary Ensemble for t he Guggenheim’s Works &\; Process series.\n\nShe curated the New Musi c Shelf Anthology for Mezzo-Soprano\, runs the non-profit the Live Music P roject\, teaches in the Peabody Institute’s Professional Studies Departm ent\, and is a Voting Member of the Recording Academy’s Memphis Chapter. You can follow Megan's artistic exploits at meganihnen.com\n\nDarrel Hale joined the University of North Texas College of Music in August 2021 as A ssociate Professor of Bassoon. A native of Denver\, Colorado\, he is Princ ipal Bassoon of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra. Prior to his appointme nt at UNT\, he served on the faculty at Louisiana State University and was Acting Principal Bassoon of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra under Lucas Richman.\n\nAn active orchestral performer\, Hale has also served as Princ ipal Bassoon of the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra and Springfield Symphony O rchestra\, and has performed with numerous other ensembles\, including the Fort Worth Symphony\, Dallas Chamber Orchestra\, Cincinnati Symphony Orch estra\, Louisiana Philharmonic\, Dayton Philharmonic\, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra\, Gulf Coast Symphony\, Shreveport Symphony\, Meridian Symphony\ , Chattanooga Symphony\, and Cincinnati Symphony Chamber Players. As a fel low at the Aspen Music Festival\, Hale performed with the Aspen Academy of Conducting Orchestra under Maestro David Zinman and spent three summers a s Second Bassoon in the Aspen Festival Orchestra alongside Per Hannevold.\ n\nA dedicated teacher\, Hale has presented masterclasses in a variety of venues\, including the International Double Reed Society Conference (2019) \, the Meg Quigley Symposium Pre-College Camp (2021)\, the Hot Springs Fes tival\, and the Midwest Musical Imports Master Class Series. He has also t aught at numerous universities and conservatories across the United States \, including the College-Conservatory of Music\, the University of Texas a t Austin\, Baylor University\, The Ohio State University\, the University of Kentucky\, the University of Southern Mississippi\, and the University of Georgia at Athens.\n\nAn advocate for expanding the bassoon repertoire\ , Hale has commissioned several new works for bassoon and voice with his d uo partner\, mezzo-soprano Megan Ihnen. These include Ahead of All Parting (2019) by Jenni Brandon\, Aurora (2019) by Hannah Rice\, White Ash (2019) by Mara Gibson\, Washing Water Buffalo in the Ocean (2019) by Gregory Bro wn\, and Millary Songs (2020) by Dana Kaufman. Hale has also participated in consortium commissions of works by Drew Baker\, Jenni Brandon\, and Nic o Muhly. In May 2021\, he premiered a new concerto for bassoon and orchest ra written for him by Mara Gibson\, entitled Escher Keys.\nAs a recitalist \, Hale has performed at several International Double Reed Society Confere nces\, including those in Spain and Tokyo\, as well as at the Meg Quigley Symposiums in 2019 and 2021\, and the International Clarinet Association C onferences in 2014 and 2016. As a soloist\, he has appeared with ensembles at Louisiana State University\, performing Mozart’s Concerto in B-flat Major\, K. 191\, Weber’s Andante and Hungarian Rondo\, and Ellen Taaffe Zwilich’s Concerto. In January 2020\, Hale appeared with his colleagues in the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra to perform Mozart’s Sinfonia Conce rtante under the direction of Maestro Timothy Muffitt.\n\nHale earned his Bachelor of Music degree in bassoon performance from the University of Col orado at Boulder\, studying with Dr. Yoshiyuki Ishikawa. He completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the College-Conservatory of Music in Cinc innati\, Ohio\, where he studied with the late William Winstead. His other teachers include Per Hannevold\, Martin James\, and Chad Cognata. ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.libarts.colostate.edu/music/wp-conte nt/uploads/sites/17/2024/06/2024-GuestArtist_Generic_Screen_2024.jpg CATEGORIES:College of Liberal Arts Featured Events LOCATION:Organ Recital Hall\, University Center for the Arts\, 1400 Remingo n St.\, Fort Collins\, CO\, 80524\, United States GEO:40.5692704;-105.07477849999998 X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=1400 Remingon St.\, Fort Co llins\, CO\, 80524\, United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X-TITLE=Organ Recita l Hall\, University Center for the Arts:geo:40.5692704,-105.07477849999998 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Denver X-LIC-LOCATION:America/Denver BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20250309T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0600 TZNAME:MDT END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR