NMS 2017-2018 / SEASON PROGRAM
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MEET THE ARTISTS
NICOLE JORDAN
Soprano
Trinidadian, Nicole Jordan, brings songs to life with her warm voice and intimate expression. With her interest in song repertoire and interdisciplinary performance, the Rotterdam-based “singer-scholar” has a PhD in Music Performance Studies from the University of Sheffield (UK). A lover of lyrics and a writer of words herself, in spring 2018, Nicole published her first book of poetry, 89, inspired by the poetry of her deceased grandmother. Nicole sings varying genres and repertoire from baroque to world and pop. Her vocal flexibility has led to many cross-over collaborations around the world, with musicians and artists from varying fields. Her passion for song and her warm presence on stage has taken her to many international concert stages. She has recorded and sung as a soloist with ensembles including The Harp Consort, Concerto Copenhagen, the Doelen Ensemble, Chineke! Orchestra, and in 2014 she made her debut as the Strawberry Woman in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess at the Royal Danish Opera under the direction of Michael Boder. Nicole directed her interdisciplinary group, Alchemy Ensemble, from 2009 – 2018, and with her new group, the Dr. Jordan Institute (Stefan Kruger, drums and Mark Tuinstra, guitar), will be releasing an album of experimental pop in late 2018.
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Alongside her PhD, Nicole has a Master of Music Psychology from Keele University (UK) and an honours Bachelor of Music degree in vocal performance from Acadia University (CAN).
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In 2012 – 2013 she was a Visiting Artist in Voice at the University of Trinidad & Tobago, Academy for the Performing Arts. Nicole’s fascination with the psyche of the performing artist has resulted in published research and journal articles. Nicole lectures Music Psychology and is a Masters Artistic Research and Arts therapies coach at Codarts Conservatory in Rotterdam.
Nicole brings her multifaceted musical background in classical music, Caribbean rhythms and folklore, and harmony singing to the Dr. Jordan Institute. Sometimes soothing, sometimes wild, Nicole's voice and performances mix her quirky sense of humor with her reflections on the darker sides of life. She likes science fiction – particulary those about dystopian futures, walking in the forest, and eating with her hands as often as possible!
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This is Nicole’s first time performing for the Nassau Music Society and she looks forward to sharing her artistry with the people of the Bahamas.
ALARIC SMEETS
Film Director
Alaric Smeets (1980) was born in New York City and raised on the Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao. He holds a BA in Media & Culture from the University of Amsterdam and a MFA in screenwriting from UCLA where he went on to win first prize in the Samuel Goldwyn Writing Awards.
The feature length documentary Nostalgia: The Music of Wim Statius Muller, which he directed and produced, premiered at the 2013 Curaçao National Culture Week.
His writing credits include the feature film adaptation of Double Play, based on the novel by Frank Martinus Arion and directed by Ernest Dickerson, which premiered at the 2017 International Film Festival Rotterdam.
He is a co-founder of the Curaçao Film Institute, a non-profit dedicated to developing the local industry, and is currently writing a post-apocalyptic feature set entirely on the island of Curaçao called, the Coast.
ALEXANDER
KRAFT VAN ERMEL
Pianist
Born in The Netherlands in 1990, Alexander Kraft van Ermel’s roots lie in the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao. He grew up on Curacao, and from an early age he received piano lessons from his grandfather, the Antillean pianist and composer Willem Statius Muller. At age 18 Alexander moved to The Netherlands to continue his piano studies under Alan Weiss at the Utrecht Conservatory. His love for music did not stop at listening and performing, but extended to pursuing the truth behind art. This pursuit led him to study philosophy at the University of Amsterdam. Alexander is a familiar face at Antillean events in The Netherlands and regularly performs as the musical feature. He also performs concert- lectures where he discusses philosophical concepts with classical music.
In February of this year Alexander lectured and performed at the 2nd Chopin in the City Festival in Chicago, Il.
Duo Turgeon
Piano (Four Hands)
2019 marks Duo Turgeon’s 25th anniversary. After completing doctorates in solo piano performance at Yale, their collaboration began with encouragement from James Anagnoson and the late Karl Ulrich Schnabel, who upon hearing the Turgeons, invited them for masterclasses and private coachings in New York. The Turgeons received additional mentoring from Peter Serkin, Richard and John Contiguglia.
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Duo Turgeon won first prize in the International Schubert Competition (Czech Republic) and Murray Dranoff International Two Piano Competition (Miami), plus additional special prizes at both events. This led to performances at Carnegie Hall, the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, many prestigious festivals, Fulbright sponsored visits to Europe, tours of Russia, recordings for Marquis/EMI, Albany and Vanguard Classics, several of which have received 5-star ratings. The Turgeons have been heard on radio throughout the world including CBC, BBC, ABC (Australia), Public Radio International, NPR, and PBS. They are featured in the PBS documentary “Two Pianos – One Passion”. Strong advocates of their chosen craft, they have premiered works by Aaron Copland, John Corigliano, Libby Larsen, Manuel Valera, Derek Charke and Alex Pauk. They have appeared with orchestras in Toronto, Brno, Scarborough, Sault Ste. Marie, Austin, Rockford, Novosibirsk, Minsk, Kranoyarsk and Miami.
Their commitment to teaching has included positions at Yale, Mount Holyoke, Harid Conservatory and Florida Atlantic University. They currently serve as Artists in Residence and faculty members at Algoma University in Canada, where Edward serves as Chair of Music and Visual Art. The Turgeons have served as senior mentor examiners for the Royal Conservatory of Music. Present and past students have earned prizes in competitions, national high grades on exams and admittance to schools such as Indiana, Eastman, Juilliard, Miami, Louisiana, Arizona, Washington, UC Berkley and Dreyfoos. The Turgeons are in demand as judges for international, national and regional competitions.
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The Turgeons received Bachelors degrees in piano performance from University of Toronto along with the Dean’s Prize and Forsyth Memorial Scholarship for top graduating pianist (Edward; 1988); Dean’s prize and Eaton Graduate award for top overall graduate (Anne; 1989). Their Toronto teachers included Marietta Orlov and James Anagnoson. They earned Master of Music, Master of Musical Arts and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from Yale, as well as prizes for best recital (Anne), best chamber group (Edward) and the Dean’s Award for top graduate (Anne; 1994). Their Yale professors included Donald Currier, Peter Frankl, Claude Frank, Boris Berman and Joan Panetti. Additional summer studies at the Banff Centre included masterclasses with Claude Frank, Jean-Paul Sevilla and Marek Jablonski. The Turgeons have been members of Steinway and Sons International Artist Roster since 2005.
Rowland Sutherland
Flute
Flautist Rowland Sutherland enjoys an international career in many different fields of music. He regularly performs and guests in new music ensembles, jazz groups, symphony orchestras, various non-Western groups, pop outfits and as a soloist. Many of Rowland’s solo contemporary flute performances have been broadcast on BBC Radio. He has composed and arranged music for bands, large ensembles and the BBC. He made his BBC Henry Wood Proms debut at the Royal Albert Hall London as a soloist during the 2006 season.
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Rowland has performed at the Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Centre, North Sea Jazz Festival, Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam and Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall.
Jazz and World Music stars Rowland has performed with include such international artists as Frank Wess, David Murray, Flora Purim, Henry Threadgil, Carla Bley, Manu Dibango, Airto, Courtney Pine, King Sunny Ade, Olodum and Rebirth Brass Band (New Orleans).
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As bandleader, Rowland’s Brazilian influenced jazz band Mistura, has an album out called ‘Coast to Coast’ on the FMR label.
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Photographed by Richard Kaby
Rowland has recorded for a diverse range of pop artists such as Incognito, George Benson, Joss Stone, Omar, William Orbit, Marc Almond.
He has played and recorded with various new music ensembles and dance companies in Britain. These include: Lontano, Icebreaker, Colin Currie Group, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Phoenix Dance and Rambert Dance.
As a freelance musician Rowland is also active in the orchestral field and has played with such orchestras as: Philharmonia, Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic and European Community Chamber Orchestras.
Jazz Vocal and Jazz Piano
Jacqui Naylor is not an easy artist to categorize. There are times when she performs straight-ahead vocal jazz, but at other times she favors more of a folk-rock/adult alternative approach. Depending on the mood she is in at a given moment, the northern Californian can bring to mind anyone from Cassandra Wilson or British jazz vocalist Claire Martin to Sarah McLachlan or Shawn Colvin -- she is as comfortable among jazz improvisers as she is in the singer/songwriter world. During one of her live performances, Naylor has no problem singing smoky jazz one minute and folk-rock or adult alternative the next -- and there are times when she blurs the line between the two.
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Naylor, who is very jazz-friendly but far from a rigid jazz purist, brings a long list of influences to her introspective work -- influences ranging from Billie Holiday, June Christy, and Nina Simone to Tracy Chapman, Natalie Merchant, Carole King, and Sheryl Crow. That is an unlikely combination of influences, certainly, but it is one that works well for Naylor (who has used all of them to fashion a personal, recognizable style of her own). Naylor has a highly diverse repertoire; on-stage, she is likely to perform a Tin Pan Alley standard right after something by the Rolling Stones or Talking Heads (in addition to performing songs of her own). Naylor is not an overly aggressive or forceful type of singer; she favors subtlety, restraint, and understatement, which are things that Holiday and Christy (one of the goddesses of jazz's cool school) were both masters of.