Four leading female percussionists from a wide range of backgrounds are coming to the University of Delaware for a series of workshops and master classes, culminating in a historic concert directed and co-produced by faculty percussionist Harvey Price. 

Angela Zator Nelson, Jeannine Remy, Valerie Naranjo and Ezgi Elkirmis represent a multitude of styles and a variety of specializations in the music field. The four artists will showcase their percussive virtuosity on a wide range of instruments played in collaboration with other guest ensembles. The concert, which is part of the Master Players series, will begin at 3 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 5, in Mitchell Hall.

Three concerts in the Master Players 2016-17 season have already sold out, so advance purchase of tickets is highly recommended. This concert is co-sponsored by the University of Delaware’s Artist-in-Residence Program as well as by the UD Department of Women and Gender Studies.

Four trailblazing female performers

These four women are not only at the top of their fields, they are among the first women to achieve that status. 

Nelson serves as the associate principal timpani and section percussion for the Philadelphia Orchestra. She joined the percussion section in 1999 as the first female percussionist ever hired by the orchestra. Nelson’s specialty is in new music – she has premiered and recorded the first five George Crumb American Songbooks written for Orchestra 2001 and has participated in numerous new music festivals.

Remy is a steelpan virtuoso who has has taught at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and Idaho State University. During the academic year 2000-01, Remy received a Fulbright Grant to further her research on the roots of ethnic music, particularly the steelpan, and to give lectures at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad, where she currently teaches. As a performer, she has played in numerous symphony orchestras including Green Bay, Idaho Falls, Oshkosh, Phoenix, Pocatello, Rockford and Tucson. 

“This project is very unique and important to the continued cultural growth and diversity of multicultural music and its global connection,” Remy said. “I am very proud to part of this concert as the University of Delaware due to the fact that the University of the West Indies (UWI) has formed a pipeline whereby my percussion and steelpan students from UWI have had the privilege to continue their studies in the Masters Program offered at in Music at UD. I am also very honored that Harvey Price is recognizing the contributions that women have made in percussion.”

Naranjo is a Colorado-based musician and a 20-year veteran of NBC’s Saturday Night Live Band. She is a percussionist, vocalist, composer and clinician and she is well known for her pioneering efforts in West African keyboard percussion music. In addition, Naranjo has recorded and performed with Broadway’s The Lion King, the Philip Glass Ensemble, David Byrne and Tori Amos.

Elkirmis is an acclaimed darbuka player and vocalist from Istanbul, Turkey. Originally a law student, she was drawn to become a full-time musician and studied with darbuka master Ustad MIsırlı Ahmet. She has performed a number of influential pieces addressing social issues, such as the Armenian Genocide, and performed at a number of political rallies including the Gezi Park Resistance and the Week of 8 March. Combining her love of music and social justice, she has led numerous workshops for disabled youth, women and minorities and participated in the Play For Peace project, which brings together female musicians throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East.

Public workshops and master classes

A series of workshops and master classes with the artists will be open to the public. All master classes and workshops will be held in Room 120 of the Amy E. du Pont Music Building at the University of Delaware, with the exception of Friday’s workshop:

• Monday, Oct. 31, 2:30-3:30 p.m.: Master class with Nelson.

• Tuesday, Nov. 1, 7:30-9:30 p.m.: Workshop with Naranjo.

• Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2:30-3:30 p.m.: Master class with Nelson.

• Thursday, Nov. 3, 7:30-9:30 p.m.: Workshop with Naranjo.

• Friday, Nov. 4, 1:25-2:30 p.m. in Gore Recital Hall in the Roselle Center for the Arts: Percussion Careers Symposium with Naranjo, Nelson and Remy.

Program support

This program is made possible, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency dedicated to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. Other sponsors include Vita Nova restaurant at the University of Delaware and the Marriott’s Courtyard Newark-University of Delaware (see a complete list on the Master Players website).