Jamie Leigh Sampson, adjunct instructor and media production assistant in the School of Music, has been named executive director of the soundSCAPE Festival in Italy.
The blossoming of new music and the exchange of ideas and culture between musicians of tomorrow’s generation are facilitated through soundSCAPE. Each summer in Maccagno, Italy, soundSCAPE attracts composers, performers and conductors from around the world for two weeks of concerts, lectures, master classes and workshops. The essence of the festival is process and collaboration, and it’s become the starting point for new music initiatives that have flourished beyond the festival and throughout the world.
Faculty include renowned soprano Tony Arnold, pianist Thomas Rosencranz, flutist Lisa Cella, cellist Felix Fan, violinist Mark Fewer, guitarist Dieter Hennings and percussionist Aiyun Huang as well as composers Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon, Marcela Pavia and Daniel Pesca.
This year’s guest artist include: conductor Michael Lewanski -- best known for his work with Ensemble Dal Niente in Chicago -- and composers Luca Cori, Chris Paul Harmon and Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez. Additionally, the Eastman BroadBand Ensemble will continue its residency this summer. BroadBand, a flexible ensemble based in Rochester, features current students and recent alumni of Eastman School of Music.
Ms. Sampson's appointment comes at a time of growth for the festival, now in its 13th season. She is a composer, performer and author of “Contemporary Techniques for the Bassoon: Multiphonics.” Her works and research have been presented at internationally respected conferences and festivals, including the Society of Composers National Conference, Eastman’s NewBassoon Workshop, International Double Reed Society International Conference and Women Composers’ Festival of Hartford.
Music composed by Sampson has been performed by Ensemble Dal Niente, Quince Contemporary Vocal Ensemble, Columbus Ohio Discovery Ensemble and Toledo Symphony Youth Orchestras. She is the co-founder of ADJ•ective New Music, LLC, which coordinates the publication and distribution of contemporary music scores by 11 living composers.
