Spring Break: Moscow, Russia!

While most students headed to the beach for spring break in March 2015,  Dr. Connie Frigo and the MILK Saxophone Quartet were on a 14-hour flight to Moscow, Russia to participate in a week-long exchange with the Gnessins Russian Academy of Music.  During the week, Dr. Frigo gave a solo recital with pianist Marina Tyakht and a three-hour master class for the Russian students.  MILK performed for masterclasses led by Russian saxophone professors Margarita Shaposhnikova  and Vladislav Vals.  MILK was also featured in a recital and Q&A full of enthusiastic and curious students and community members.  A favorite piece of the audience was “Pypes” (mvmt. II) from William Albright’s Fantasy Etudes, which the audience demanded to hear again as an encore to their performance.

Daily cultural adventures included going to the Bolshoi Theater to see the famous Russian opera Boris Godunov, visiting Red Square and St. Basil’s Cathedral, touring the Kremlin, seeing the Moiseyev Dance Company in performance, and hearing the Svetlanov Symphony Orchestra in concert. Their main mode of transportation through the city was on the metro and by foot, which afforded them the chance to really get to know the city.  While languages and musical styles differed between saxophonists, a resounding love for the instrument and learning about one another connected everyone involved, including the Russian translators from Gnessins international office who were crucial to the success of the exchange.