Lawrence University - Conservatory of Music

09/01/2026

🎻 Congratulations to Ben Frueh ’27, one of three recipients of the prestigious Fritz Ge**er Award 2026 👏

Lawrence University

08/31/2026

L-R (Row 1, standing): Yvie Pacatang ’27, Anna Milton ’27, Adam Korber ’18 (Curator), Morgen Moraine ’16 (Director or Operations and Co-curator), Sarah Phelps ’07, Daniel Quiroga ’18; (Row 2, standing): Shan Rowe ’23, Jacob Hanekamp ’25, Cooper Luedtke ’26, Kenni Ther ’16, John Henderson ’26, Finn Sullivan ’29, Eli Grover ’11, Lauren Thompson Ringeisen ’13; (Seated): Jelani Jones ’22, Iris Hakes ’24; (Not pictured): Casey Frenz ’14 – The Mile of Music Music Education Team (MET) wrapped up some incredible work four weeks ago. We facilitated over 40 workshops across 4 days during Mile of Music, reminding nearly 6000 people that music is their birthright. Our team got participants in the festival to become part of the amazing music making that happens in Appleton every summer!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will post the remaining student/alum summer adventures through the end of this week, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

Lawrence University
Lawrence University Alumni

08/29/2026

Tomás Avilés ’27 – This summer I got to work in the lab of Dr. Mriganka Sur under the mentorship of Dr. Kyle Jenks as part of MIT’s Summer Research Program in biology and neuroscience! We investigated the mechanisms that allow the visual cortex to react to changes in internal and behavioral state. We used a lot of calcium imaging which allowed us to see neuronal activity in real time. I had a great time exploring Boston, watching the World Cup, and enjoying the summer with some incredible scientist friends!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

08/28/2026

Congratulations to Lawrence alumni Theresa Gruber-Miller ’23 and Sam Johnson ’24, who will be leading the Hartford City Band as co-conductors.

Lawrence University
Lawrence University Alumni

The Hartford City Band Inc., now in its 145th year of providing our community with instrumental music for numerous occasions, scholarships to middle school, high school, and college students, and musical mentoring to area youth, is delighted to announce the addition of two new co-conductors to our family of musicians.

Theresa Gruber-Miller and Samuel Johnson will be conducting our band for the remainder of 2026 and beyond.

Theresa is a graduate of Lawrence University, where she majored in Music Education, Trumpet Performance, and Spanish. She studied abroad in Spain and Argentina. Theresa is the Band Director at Central Middle School, District of Hartford Joint #1. She teaches 145 students in grades 6-8 through small-group lessons, full-band ensembles, and concerts. Theresa leads and directs the color guard, marching band, jazz band, and pep band ensembles. Her duties include professional engagement with parents, school administrators, and the Hartford community.

Samuel (Sam) is a graduate of Lawrence University with a Bachelor of Music, Music Education. He studied and lived abroad in Austria, traveling to Germany, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. He has done coursework in Spain and the U.S. Virgin Islands for Experienced Centered Seminars. Sam is the Instrumental Music Director at Harford Union High School. He directs Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, Marching Band, Pep Band, and Orchestra. Sam is a lesson teacher for the concert band, an adaptive music class, and a recording and production class. He has previously worked as a substitute teacher, band camp instructor, and string repair technician

Please join us in welcoming these two most qualified and enthusiastic people to our community band.

08/27/2026

Addison Littlefield ’24 – This August, I performed as Blonde in “Die Entführung aus dem Serail” by W.A. Mozart with Winter Harbor Music Festival in Maine. In June/July, I was a voice teacher at Belvoir Terrace Girls Camp in Massachusetts, where I taught 20 private voice students grades 3-10!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

08/25/2026

L-R: Agnes Huang ’27, Scout Fridell ’29, and Celia Goldstein ’26 – This summer we attended Brevard Music Center in North Carolina for the orchestra program and it was so wonderful! We were able to challenge ourselves in their fast-paced orchestra cycles, play and perform chamber music, have weekly lessons, and attend many masterclasses. Some highlights were playing with Nancy Zhou, Gil Shaham, Yo-Yo Ma, and also Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in concert. Being surrounded by nature was so special! 🎻🌳 Not pictured: Jonathan Bass ’24 and Ella Zou ’29 also attended the piano program at Brevard. 🎹

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

08/23/2026

Gilliana Hope Gaines ’26 – I graduated from Lawrence as the inaugural recipient of the Brian and Leila Pertl Conservatory of Magic Fund, which supported my folk-pop-punk band’s touring endeavors this summer! We embarked on two tours including around the Midwest in June and became an international touring act in July as we traveled to the inaugural SolaceFest in Quebec, Canada. Tape and Tears is currently on a four-week tour, all DIY planned and funded, spanning mid-August to September across the South, Northeast, and Midwest!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

08/21/2026

L-R: Nayantara Vyas ’29 and Gabriela Beltran Rybak ’29 – This summer, we spent four weeks at the Chicago Summer Opera program, hosted on the Roosevelt University campus! While preparing for performances in the pit orchestras of “L’incoronazione di Poppea”, “Cendrillon”, and “Carmen”, we participated in masterclasses and workshops hosted by faculty from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. We’re so grateful for the time we were able to spend there and miss the people and music we got to know!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

08/19/2026

L-R: Lucy Croasdale ’23, Mikayla Frank-Martin ’22, and Zoe Markle ’20 – We were performance fellows at the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA. At the festival, we premiered works by composition fellows and faculty as well as played alongside the Bang on a Can All-Stars. Learning Ghanaian drumming and dancing was an integral part of the Bang on a Can summer programming and was taught by none other than LU Conservatory’s own Nani Agbeli!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.

08/17/2026

Matthew DeChant ’23 – I’ve spent the last two years living and working on traditionally-rigged sailing ships! My current job is a deckhand on the schooner Adventure out of Gloucester, Massachusetts. She was originally a dory fishing schooner (the last of her kind still around) built in 1926, but is now used for educational and tourist sails. I also still write and perform music (mostly folk music) all the time, which you can find at matthewdechantmusic.com. Most notably, I’m going to be performing at this year’s Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival in September!

Thank you for sharing your summer adventures with us! We received an overwhelming number of submissions and will continue to post student/alum summer adventures through the end of the summer, but we are no longer accepting new submissions.