Fall 1999 Visiting Artists

This fall, many esteemed guests came through the college as visiting artists for various departments. Space permits only a partial list of guest speakers.

The Film Scoring Department hosted award-winning composer/songwriter Alan Menken. He shared anecdotes about his celebrated work for Disney (The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast), for Broadway musicals, and more. Suzana Peric also stopped by for a clinic on film music editing. She has worked on films like Primary Colors, M. Butterfly, Silence of the Lambs, and others.

The Music Technology Department presented a workshop with producer and engineer Frank Filipetti. He won a Grammy Award for his work on James Taylor's Hourglass CD, and brought a track from Taylor's forthcoming album to demonstrate issues involved in making a surround sound mix.

Among the many notable singers who gave clinics for the Voice Department during Voice Week was Patti Austin. In addition to Austin, the Berklee Gospel Choir performed with faculty guest singer Donna McElroy. Earlier in the semester, the department sponsored a clinic with the New York Voices.

For November's Winds Day, the Woodwind Department brought in trombone legend and Berklee honorary doctorate recipient Curtis Fuller and saxophonist Javon Jackson for clinics and a Berklee Performance Center evening concert.

The Brass Department invited two renowned trumpeters, Mike Vax and Mark Van Cleave, to the campus. Vax has played on over 40 albums, including 15 under his own name. Van Cleave has performed with a diverse roster of jazz and pop music artists.

The Songwriting Department hosted clinics on publishing, SESAC (performing rights organization), and song crafting with Linda Lawrence, John Braheny, Kurt Denny, and Kathleen Cahill.

The Music Business/Management Department hosted a panel discussion with record producer Steve Gibson, studio musician Rick Hammet, and musicians' union representatives Mark Pinto, Clint Valladares, and Dick Gabriel. Other clinics brought in Cuban music market specialist Ariana Hernandez-Reguant and music business authors Jeff and Todd Brabec.

Among the others coming to Berklee were Irish fiddler Brendan Bolger, pianists Giovanni Ceccarelli and Eric Reed, percussionist Steve Houghton, vibist Bill Molenhof, the Esterhazy String Quartet, electronic music specialist Christopher Hegstrom, drummer/bandleader Gregg Bendian, composer Henk Alkema, the Fabulous Bud E. Luv Show, and Ellington biographer Janna Tull Steed.