Kellogg Community College will showcase the talents of a pair of faculty musicians and colleagues at an upcoming Faculty/Guest Artist Recital on campus in Battle Creek.
The recital, titled “An Evening with Friends,” will feature KCC Music faculty Sara Cleland, an accomplished pianist, and Brendan McEvoy, an accomplished violinist, violist and composer.
The event, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, in the auditorium of the Davidson Visual and Performing Arts Center, on campus at 450 North Ave. in Battle Creek.
The recital program will feature classical selections by composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonin Dvořák, as well as several contemporary pieces composed within the last five years by McEvoy and his colleagues Gahyung Kim, Tyler Mazone and Jeremy Makkonen.
Featured players in addition to Cleland and McEvoy include cellist Ayako Pederson-Takeda; violist Christa Riter; and violinist Sarah Tobin.
For more information about the upcoming KCC Music Faculty/Guest Artist Recital or additional music events and initiatives at KCC, contact KCC’s Arts and Communication offices at 269-965-4126.
For more information about upcoming events at KCC, musical and otherwise, check out KCC’s online events calendar at kellogg.edu/events.
About the Artist: Faculty Pianist Sara Cleland
Pianist Sara Cleland is an adjunct piano instructor at KCC, where she is dedicated to fostering musical growth in students of all ages and skill levels. Known for her engaging teaching style and commitment to student success, she combines technical training with artistic development to inspire lifelong musicianship.
In addition to teaching, Cleland is an active collaborative pianist and accompanist widely recognized for her work with area high school choral programs, and she currently serves as the accompanist for the Battle Creek Community Chorus. Beyond her academic and community work, she is also the pianist at Garrison Hills Wesleyan Church, where she provides both solo and collaborative music for worship.
Cleland holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Indiana Wesleyan University.
About the Artist: Faculty Artist Brendan McEvoy
Brendan McEvoy is a music theorist, violinist, violist and composer originally from Fowler, Ohio. He currently holds adjunct teaching positions at KCC, the University of Olivet and the Michigan State University Community Music School, in addition to working as a private studio instructor.
In addition to various performances with music clubs, churches and pit orchestras in Ohio and Michigan, McEvoy has performed as a violinist with the Warren Philharmonic Orchestra in Ohio and the Greenville Symphony Orchestra in Pennsylvania, and as a violinist and violist in the Dana Symphony Orchestra at Youngstown State University. He is passionate about performing newly composed music, and his playing as both violinist and violist has been sought out for numerous performances and recordings of world premieres by composers in Youngstown, Cleveland and Lansing.
McEvoy has also worked with several nonprofit organizations to help spread his love of music through lessons, including the Warren Philharmonic Orchestra Strings of Joy program, Students Motivated by the ARTS, and the MSU Community Music School. His career as a scholar has taken him through MSU’s music theory program, where he pursued opportunities to teach not only across the undergraduate music curriculum, but also with non-music majors. He has maintained studios of violin, viola, piano and music theory/composition students at local music stores, including a multiyear stint with the Roth Academy of Music.
Also a music scholar, McEvoy has shared his research at regional conferences across the US and Canada, and was named a 2024 International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Emerging Scholar. He holds a Master of Music Theory degree from Michigan State University and a Bachelor of Music Composition from Youngstown State.
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