Congratulations to Hugh Hodgson School of Music graduate student Elizabeth Whittenburg Ozment, recipient of UGA's 2014 Graduate School Excellence in Teaching Award.

The award recognizes graduate student teacher of the highest level, selecting only five winners from across the entire university each year.

Ms. Ozment was nominated for this award by the Institute for Women's Studies, for whom she has taught for the past few years. Ms. Ozment also held instructional TA positions in the HHSOM during the course of her degree.

The Athens Music Project, a Willson Center Faculty Research Cluster co-directed by HHSOM professor Susan Thomas and Jean Kidula, will present a symposium on Thursday, April 17 at the Richard B. Russell Special Collections Libraries Auditorium.

Composer Claude Baker, Chancellor's Professor of Composition at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, will visit the Hugh Hodgson School of Music for a residency this week, featuring performances and lectures open to the public.

Last weekend, several music therapy students from the University of Georgia presented their work at the Annual Conference of the Southeastern Region of the American Music Therapy Association.

The presentation, entitled, "Music Therapy Around the World," illustrated "the use of music therapy in various countries and the value of multicultural music in clinical settings."

Congratulations to Christopher Leslie and the UGA Graduate Tuba Euphonium Quartet, who were recent runners-up in the 2014 National Music Teacher National Association competition!

The quartet, comprised of Christopher Leslie, Patrick Geren, David McLemore, and Chris Gurtcheff, finished in 2nd place in the MTNA Chamber Music Competition. Meanwhile, Leslie was runner-up in MTNA's Young Artist Competition.

All are students of Hugh Hodgson School of Music professor David Zerkel.

Congratulations to Hugh Hodgson School of Music PhD student Mary Helen Hoque, whose paper "'A Good Band is Much Needed Here': Reconstructing Community through Music in the Reconstruction South" won the Ray H. Longyear award for the best student paper at the American Musicological Society chapter meeting on March 22!

The paper examines the work of Athens musician George Davis, organizer and leader of Athens' greatest post-Civil War era band, chronicling the way his music "bound black and white communities together in the Reconstruction South."

Congratulations to the UGA Trumpet Ensemble, which recently competed in the finals of the National Trumpet Competition - Trumpet Ensemble Division in Pennsylvania. The ensemble placed 5th overall. Hodgson School students Victoria Bethel and Anderson Romero were also invited to the National Trumpet Competition Undergraduate and Graduate solo competitions, where they competed in their respective semi-finals.

Internationally-renowned tabla player Zakir Hussain, the 2014 Gordhan L. and Virginia B. “Jinx” Patel Distinguished Visiting Professor in Indian Musical Arts at the University of Georgia Hugh Hodgson School of Music, will present a special performance at the UGA Performing Arts Center April 2 at 8 p.m. in Hodgson Concert Hall.

Tickets for the program are $25, $5 for students, and can be purchased at the Performing Arts Center box office, by calling 706-542-4400, or online at pac.uga.edu.

Congratulations to Christopher Leslie, Alex Avila, and the UGA Graduate Tuba Euphonium Quartet, who recently secured semi-finalist positions at the 2014 International Tuba Euphonium Conference competitions!

The quartet, comprised of Christopher Leslie, Patrick Geren, David McLemore, and Chris Gurtcheff, will travel to Indiana University this May to compete in the conference's Quartet Competition.

The University of Georgia African American Choral Ensemble will celebrate its 25^th anniversary on Saturday, April 12 with a special reunion concert in Hodgson Concert Hall at 7:00 p.m. The performance is presented free and open to the public.

“There is a lot to celebrate at this concert,” said Gregory Broughton, AACE director and Associate Professor of Music at the Hugh Hodgson School of Music. “Some outstanding leaders and musicians have come out of this group.”