Husband and wife faculty duo present recital

KALAMAZOO—Western Michigan University School of Music faculty members Bruce Uchimura, cello, and Susan Wiersma Uchimura, piano, will present a recital at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15, in the Dalton Center Recital Hall.

The program includes the "Seven Variations on 'Bei Mannern' From Mozart's 'Magic Flute'" by Ludwig van Beethoven and both cello and piano sonatas by Johannes Brahms; "Sonata No. 1 in E Minor," Opus 38, and "Sonata No. 2 in F Major," Opus 99. The concert is free and open to the public.

Bruce Uchimura

Uchimura received a bachelor’s degree from The Juilliard School of Music and a master’s degree with an Artists Diploma in cello from the Cleveland Institute of Music. He has also studied at the Aspen Music Festival, the Meadowmount School of Music and the Banff School of Fine Arts, and he has held an orchestral fellowship at the Spoleto Festival.

Uchimura has performed with the Charleston Symphony, Honolulu Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, South Carolina Philharmonic and Macon (Ga.) Symphony. He served as principal cellist of the Augusta (Ga.) Symphony and was the first person ever to be named associate conductor of that ensemble. Uchimura joined the WMU faculty in the fall of 1987, having taught previously at the Augusta College Center for Creative Arts, the Augusta Country Day School, Michigan State University, and the Preparatory and Adult Education department of the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Susan Wiersma Uchimura

Wiersma Uchimura is a resident artist with the Merling Trio and a member of the piano faculty and staff accompanist at WMU. Previously she served on the piano faculties of the Cleveland Institute of Music and Augusta College in Georgia, and the accompanying faculties of the Meadowmount School of Music and the Aspen Music School. She graduated as class valedictorian from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she received bachelor of music degrees in theory and piano.

Wiersma Uchimura has performed with notable young artists as resident collaborative pianist for the Stulberg International String Competition, Music Teachers National Association-Wurlitzer Collegiate Artist Competition, Encore School for Strings and the Pensacola Summer Music Festival. She is currently official accompanist for "Cello: An American Experience in Minnesota," where she collaborates with such prestigious cellists as Anthony Ross, principal cellist of the Minnesota Orchestra, Turtle Island String Quartet cellist Mark Summer, and Joshua Koestenbaum, associate principal cellist of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra.

For more information about the concert, visit wmich.edu/music or call (269) 387-4667.