A frequent violin clinician, Ms. Yon has given masterclasses at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul and the Universidade Federal do São João del Rey (Brazil) in addition to numerous schools in the United States and Honduras. She was also a founder and the faculty advisor of Cuerdas de Enlace (String Connection), a Texas Tech University pedagogical outreach program with ties to Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Through the assistance of the United States Embassy in Honduras, Texas Tech University, and private fund-raising efforts, Ms. Yon and several graduate students were able to make two trips to Tegucigalpa, bringing donated and collected musical supplies to the local musicians and children.
During the summer months, Ms. Yon has taught at the Interlochen Center for the Arts as an assistant to William Preucil in the Valade Program and at the Texas Tech University Orchestra Camp. In the summer of 2009, she will be teaching at the International Music Academy in Pilsen, Czech Republic, and in Brazil. Ms. Yon frequently concertizes with her husband, organist and keyboardist Sigurd Øgaard.
Sigurd M. Øgaard Biography
Born in Bergen, Norway, in 1978, Sigurd M. Øgaard began studying the organ with his uncle, Kristen Øgaard, at age ten. In 1996, he attended the International Summer Academy for Organists in Haarlem, Holland. While there, he studied with Professor Piet Kee. From 1997-2002, Sigurd was an organ performance major at the Grieg Academy in Bergen, studying organ under Tor Grønn and Karstein Askeland, and choral conducting under Magnar Mangersnes. As part of his undergraduate work, he spent a semester at the Birmingham Conservatoire in England, where his teachers included David Saint and James Parsons. During his time there, he worked as organ scholar at St Mary's Collegiate Church, Warwick.
In 2002, Sigurd moved to the USA to work as Organist and Assistant Director of Music at First United Methodist Church, Lubbock, Texas, while pursuing a Master's Degree at Texas Tech University. He recently completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in choral conducting. His teachers have included Dr. John Dickson and Dr. John Hollins.
Sigurd has performed extensively in Norway and abroad. Performance venues have included St. Bavo Church, Haarlem; St. Paul's, Westminster, Birmingham and Coventry Cathedrals (England); and Central Lutheran Church, Minneapolis (USA). He has been a featured soloist in the Bergen International Music Festival and the Oslo Church Music Festival.
To contact Kirsten Yon, email kirsten.yon@ttu.edu
To contact Sigurd M. Øgaard, email sigurd.m.ogaard@ttu.edu.
Source: http://www.TexasTechUniversitySchoolofMusic.com/press |