Texas A&M University Kingsville

KINGSVILLE, TEXAS (News Release) — For the first time, three separate clarinet proposals by two individuals and one ensemble from the School of Music at Texas A&M University-Kingsville have been selected for inclusion at Clarinetfest 2024 to be held this year July 31-Aug. 4 in Dublin, Ireland.

Dr. Andrea Vos-Rochefort, assistant professor of clarinet, was accepted to perform in a 25-minute recital slot featuring Brace Yourselves for an Impact! for solo clarinet and ensemble that was commissioned and performed by the Texas A&M-Kingsville Wind Symphony. She also will perform works for the bass clarinet choir by Sinead O’Conner.

Dr. Karen Bronson, adjunct instructor of clarinet, also was accepted to perform in a recital slot featuring Monólogo by Javier Zalba, Cinco Bocctos by Roberto Sierra, Cabangueando by Samuel Robles and Choros No. 2, by Heitor Villa-Lobos.

A student group, Los Padres del Clarinete Bajo, were chosen to perform in a recital slot featuring Black by Marc Mellits, Dread by Jonathan Russell, Va Larga by Cornelius Boots and a premium arrangement of Gaelic Offering by Catherine McMichael. Students in Los Padres del Clarinete Bajo include Kevin Perez from Harlingen, Rodolfo Rodriguez from Eagle Pass, Leonardo Palma from Fort Worth/Eagle Pass and Daniel Troncoso from Brownsville. They are all music performance or music education majors.

“This is an incredible achievement for a student group to compete with professionals for performance slots at an international conference under their own ensemble name while performing challenging works,” said Vos-Rochefort.

 Clarinetfest is held every year and alternates between North America, Europe and other countries. There are approximately 130 performance slots with over 1,000 musicians applying to participate, she added.