Alumna uses music to touch lives Pam Hersh For Rebecca Plack Ferguson, the speech she heard at her Princeton University Class Day ceremony was music to her ears. President Shapiro's message to graduating seniors in June 1991 contained a theme that moved her to pursue a career combining her talents as a musician with her commitment to community service. "At Class Day, President Shapiro expounded on the University's 'In the Nation's Service' tradition, and several students were recognized for their community service achievements," Ferguson said. "But no musician was honored. I wondered what I could do in my life that would allow me to use music to help improve the lives of others." "A Garden of Song," a lecture/demonstration by Rebecca Plack Ferguson      Ferguson, renowned as a singer with a zeal for teaching and scholarship, has used the Princeton service ethic as the key element in her special composition -- a concert that includes a participatory lecture. Her goal, she said, is to make the musical experience accessible to the general public -- to transmit the joy, the values and the discipline of the musical experience to non-musicians. The audience becomes an interactive participant with the music, not merely a passive recipient of the music, through singing and learning. At Cornell University where she is completing a Ph.D in musicology, she has fine-tuned her lecture-demonstration technique in classes she has taught. She now is prepared to take her classroom to the concert hall. The Princeton community will have an opportunity to experience Ferguson's lecture/recital, entitled "A Garden of Song," on Sunday, Sept. 24, in Taplin Auditorium. The program honors the recently deceased Princeton civic leader and Borough Council member Sandra Starr, whose life was fueled by a dedication to serving her local community and getting citizens to participate in the governing process. Ferguson has designed a musical event that explores songs about gardens and flowers in recognition of Starr's passion for gardening. "The way in which Sandra conducted her life had a profound effect on me," said Ferguson, who hails from Starr's hometown of Davis, Calif. "Our parents knew one another, but I really never knew Sandra until I came to Princeton University. Sandra and Paul (Princeton University Professor of Sociology Paul Starr) gave me a home away from home as soon as I set foot in New Jersey." The support and role model of Sandra Starr enhanced the "remarkable" Princeton academic experience, Ferguson said. "Princeton offered me many opportunities I would not have had elsewhere. (Music Professor) Peter Westergaard and (Orchestra Conductor) Michael Pratt gave me my first experiences performing opera -- fully staged with orchestra, costumes and lighting. I had a fantastic voice teacher, Martha Elliott. And then there was that first music theory course with (Music Professor) Steven Mackey," who influenced her decision to choose music, rather than physics or languages, as an academic pursuit. After Princeton planted the musical seed, Ferguson spent the five years between her graduation and her enrollment at Cornell growing as a musician. Her experiences included: two summers at the Aspen Music School, where she served as a member of Aspen Opera Theater; an invitation to Ferrara, Italy, to perform recitals of early 19th-century German song at the Aterforum Festival, which is dedicated to showcasing young performers and unusual repertoire; and completion of a master of music degree in voice from the Manhattan School of Music. Ferguson is looking forward to the concert at Princeton as an opportunity to meld her skills as a singer with her academic teaching and research experience, as well as her personal and spiritual connection to Starr. "A Garden of Song," a lecture/demonstration by Rebecca Plack Ferguson, will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 24, in Taplin Auditorium, Fine Hall, and will be followed by a concert at 3 p.m. For more information or tickets, call 497-1939 or e-mail <mailto:dkaple@princeton.edu>. The event is sponsored by the Sandra Starr Foundation and the University Office of Community and State Affairs.		September 18, 2000 Vol. 90, No. 2 previous   archives   next Contents • Shapiro: Take advantage of new beginnings • Awards fete student work • New faculty, staff bring many talents • Fuchs selected for leadership prize • HR seeks referrals from employees • Princeton Summer Research Experience • Graduate School turns 100 • Event event calendar available • Shapiro shares experience as student • Language program hits home run with international students • U-Store re-opens this fall with new look, commitment to service • Coach choreographs new game plan • Thompson takes the reins • Alumna uses music to touch lives • Community Day set for Oct. 14 • Local residents can audit classes • Garden Theatre undergoing renovation • Calendar of events • By the numbers • Spotlight / Retirements The Bulletin is published weekly during the academic year, except during University breaks and exam weeks, by the Office of Communications, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. Permission is given to adapt, reprint or excerpt material from the Bulletin for use in other media. Deadline. In general, the copy deadline for each issue is the Friday 10 days in advance of the Monday cover date. The deadline for the Bulletin that covers Oct. 2-8 is Friday, Sept. 22. A complete publication schedule is available at deadlines. Subscriptions. The Bulletin is distributed free to faculty, staff and students. Others may subscribe to the Bulletin for $24 for the academic year (half price for current Princeton parents and people over 65). Send a check to Office of Communications, Stanhope Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. Editor: Ruth Stevens Staff writer: Yvonne Chiu Hays Calendar editor: Carolyn Geller Contributing writers: Pam, Hersh, Marilyn Marks, Steven Schultz Photographer: Denise Applewhite Design: Mahlon Lovett, Laurel Masten Cantor Web edition: Mahlon Lovett