In an age of cell phones, the Internet, cable television and nearly limitless entertainment venues, Peggy Chiu wanted her children, Jeffrey and Jasmine, to have a creative outlet that relied on little more than their own knowledge, skills and imagination. "Sometimes there is no iPhone, no computer and even no electricity, but there is always music," the Oakland University computer facility manager said. With this in mind – and as hundreds of parents have done over the last decade – Chiu registered her children for music lessons in the Music Preparatory Division of the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance at OU. Managers of this innovative program – which pairs students with highly accomplished, college level music instructors in a variety of structured educational settings – are planning a grand celebration of its 10th anniversary with a student gala recital and community open house on Sunday, December 16.

Recent B.F.A. dance graduate ('12) Kayt MacMaster presented her work at the highly prestigious National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) conference in Los Angeles last month. Faculty members in attendance at the conference were very proud of her. Instructor Debra Bernstein-Siegel said, "Kayt's presentation was terrific and watching her field questions and interact with others was wonderful. She is a great representative of the education students receive at OU." Assistant Professor Ali Woerner said, "We could not be more proud of her professionalism and maturity. She spoke of her trip to Ghana and her experiences through her choreography cross culture. She represented Oakland beautifully! Because of the scholarship she received to come to NDEO she was presented an award at the morning brunch."
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Young musicians and dancers wanting to sample arts education in a college setting should consider the six workshops the OU music and dance programs are offering in the 2013 winter semester. Young artists will have the opportunity to work with OU faculty, as well as some of the area's finest musicians and dancers. Current OU students will also attend, allowing workshop participants the chance to get a feel for the Oakland life, and we are confident they will find it an extraordinary experience. The new semester will begin with Double Reeds Day on Saturday, January 5, 2013. High school students are invited to come and spend the day working with Marcus Schoon (Detroit Symphony Orchestra), Timothy Michling (Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra) and OU students in a supportive and encouraging atmosphere.

Assistant Professor Rodney A. Brown, a member of the dance faculty at the Ohio State University and a highly respected choreographer, planned to be an opera singer. He attended Colonel White Performing Arts High School in Dayton, Ohio, and a performing arts middle school before that, because he was a member of the Dayton Boys Choir. Not that he hadn't always danced. He has powerfully strong early childhood memories of standing on his mother's feet while she danced at family gatherings. "Dancing was viewed as a way to build community," he says. And when as a teenager he joined a drill team, he quickly abandoned the traditional male role of drumming and began to dance with the girls. But he came to studio dance quite late.

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