This week’s episode of WMYA features an interview with Midwest Young Artists faculty member Gary Fry. Gary is the director of choral activities for MYA, and his ensemble Voices Rising recently returned from a performance at the United Nations. Getting a chance to be involved with a trip like this was a wonderful opportunity for this ensemble of middle school vocalists, and we discuss details from this trip, the formation of Voices Rising, and what’s in store for this ensemble in the future. After the interview, we feature recordings of the three pieces this group performed at the United Nations.

About Gary Fry:

Composer, conductor, and music educator Gary Fry brings a broad base of experience and expertise to Midwest Young Artists. As music director of the acclaimed children’s vocal ensemble EagleSong from the Sunset Ridge School in Northfield, Mr. Fry has developed a high-quality program that has taken his young singers to some of the most prestigious venues in America, including the White House (three invitations), the United Nations, and choral festivals across the country.

conducted vocal ensembles and taught classes in music theory and composition. He is also much in demand as a clinician and adjudicator for high school and college choral festivals and competitions. His unique career as a composer spans both serious concert music and commercial music. He is equally at home composing for the renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra (over 35 commissions) or television advertisements for companies such as McDonald’s and Kellogg’s. One might hear Mr. Fry’s music performed by the Boston Pops, the Dallas Symphony, or the Colorado Symphony, or find it every day on the Cartoon Network program “Baby Looney Tunes.” Travelers hearMr. Fry is a former faculty member of the University of Miami (Florida) and Northwestern University, where he his work in the pedestrian passageway at the O’Hare Airport United Airlines terminal and at exhibits in Sea World in Orlando. His recent settings of Shakespeare for the Chicago Symphony Singers and music for poetry by Carl Sandburg and Thomas Hornsby Ferril for the Colorado Children’s Chorale have received enthusiastic reviews.

Mr. Fry and his wife Carol have four children and live in Northfield, where they often open their home–including Mr. Fry’s professional recording studio–to the children of the community for music-making and recording projects.

Learn more about Gary Fry and Voices Rising at www.mya.org, and stay tuned for more great content each and every week from WMYA!

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This entry was posted on Monday, April 28th, 2008 at 11:01 pm and is filed under Interviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.