Orchestra students share first-semester offering

The Ripon College Orchestra, featuring only strings and minus — because of the coronavirus pandemic — players who are members of the off-campus community, rehearsed several pieces and recorded a performance of Franz Tunder’s “An Wasserflüssen Babylon” at the end of the fall semester. The recording can be heard below.

Adjunct Instructor of Music Mishan Han led the ensemble, and Assistant Professor of Music Erin Bryan was the soprano soloist.

Members of the chamber orchestra are:

• Violin: Brooklyn Landgraf ’21 of Sheboygan, Wisconsin; Isaac Tomaschefsky ’24 of Green Bay, Wisconsin; and Abbi Stitgen ’22 of Lodi, Wisconsin.
• Viola: Caitlin McNulty ’21 of Neenah, Wisconsin.
• Cello: Lydia Wiley Deal ’22 of Whitewater, Wisconsin; and Jacob Griggs ’24 of St. Louis, Missouri.
• Double bass: Madira Hall ’21 of Marshfield, Wisconsin.
• Organ: Caleb Klinzing ’22 of Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

“Given the necessarily smaller size of the ensemble in the present circumstances, Mishan Han and I thought it may be fun to look at some chamber collaboration opportunities,” Bryan says. “I’ve long loved ;An Wasserflüssen Babylon,’ by Franz Tunder (1614-1667), and conveniently, it’s scored for a chamber string ensemble, organ and soprano.

“After rehearsing together in person, we then set down to do the recordings. In order to allow me to record the voice part mask-less, the orchestra and organ recorded their track first, and then I went into Demmer (Recital Hall) alone to get a take of the soprano part sans mask. A student worker then mixed the audio recordings.”

(Photo: Brooklyn Landgraf ’21, foreground; Isaac Tomaschefsky ’24, background)