Congratulations to  two students from UGA who placed in the MTNA Southern Division Competitions! Tubist David McLemore, a student of David Zerkel, was declared Winner in the MTNA Young Artist Brass Performance Competition. Martha Gardner, violin, a student of Levon Ambartsumian, was declared Alternate in the MTNA Young Artist String Performance Competition. The competitions were held at Mississippi College in Clinton, MS, on Jan. 13-16.

After a national election held in December, Mitos Andaya was elected to the office President-Elect of the National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO). The organization serves approximately 800 members and addresses specific needs of university/collegiate choral conductors and other choral professionals through various forums and biennial national conferences.

Congratulations to musicology professor Stephen Valdez, who was named a recipient for this year’s Sandy Beaver Excellence in Teaching Award. The award honors outstanding faculty in the Franklin College who show a sustained commitment to high-quality instruction.

The Hugh Hodgson School of Music and the Musicology-Ethnomusicology Student Association co-sponsored a colloquium on one of the School of Music's most influential figures, Edwin Gerschefski (1909-1992). "(Re)introducing Edwin Gerschefski," presented by Dr. Craig Parker of Kansas State University and Dr. Franklin Greene, director of Georgia Singers, was a discussion of Gerschefski's life, works, and teaching. The colloquium was organized by Associate Professor of Music David Schiller. Gerschefski, a composer and pianist, graduated from Yale with degrees in music and philosophy.

Associate Professor of Music Jean Kidula and Associate Professor of Music and Women's Studies Susan Thomas attended the annual Society for Ethnomusicology (SEM) conference held in Philadelphia earlier this month. Dr. Kidula presented a paper on old time popular classics from Kenyan and Tanzania. Ph.D candidate Robin Harris presented a paper titled "Attenuation, Revitalization, and Transformation in an Intangible Cultural Heritage Treasure: The Siberian Epic Olonkho".

Matthew Sellers, a former member of the Chamber Choir and Collegium Musicum, has been awarded a 2012 Marshall Scholarship to pursue graduate studies in the United Kingdom. He is the fifth UGA student to earn this prestigious award in the past decade.

Matt, a UGA Foundation Fellow and Honors student, plans to pursue a master of studies program in modern literature followed by a doctor of philosophy program in English language and literature at England’s Oxford University.