Conference Information

November 7-9, 2024

Georgia State University - Perimeter College Department of Fine Arts
Clarkston, GA

Make plans now to attend the 2024 GMTA State Conference held on the beautiful campus of GSU-Perimeter College!

Conference Recitalist and Masterclass Clinician:

Lauded as “exquisite” by The Philadelphia Inquirer and "a pianist of sterling artistry" by Gramophone, Michelle Cann has become one of the most sought-after pianists of her generation. She made her debut in 2021 with The Philadelphia Orchestra and has recently performed concertos with The Cleveland Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Orquestra Sinfônica Municipal de São Paulo, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the symphony orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, and Cincinnati. Highlights of Cann’s 2023-24 season include appearances with the Charlotte, Hawaii, Indianapolis, Québec, Sarasota, and Winnipeg symphony orchestras, and recitals in New York City, Portland, Berkeley, Beverly Hills, and Denver.

Recognized as a leading interpreter of the piano music of Florence Price, Cann performed the New York City premiere of Price’s Piano Concerto in One Movement with The Dream Unfinished Orchestra in July 2016. Her recording of the concerto with the New York Youth Symphony won a Grammy Award in 2023. Her acclaimed debut solo album Revival, featuring music by Price and Margaret Bonds, was released in May 2023.

Cann was the recipient of the 2022 Sphinx Medal of Excellence, the highest honor bestowed by the Sphinx Organization. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and an Artist’s Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music. Cann joined the Curtis piano faculty in 2020 as the inaugural Eleanor Sokoloff Chair in Piano Studies, and she joined the piano faculty of the Manhattan School of Music in 2023.

Conference Pedagogy Headliner:

Victor Labenske is professor of music at Point Loma Nazarene University where he has been on the faculty for over 35 years. He teaches courses in piano and composition. A summa cum laude graduate of PLNU, he earned his master's degree in piano performance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Conservatory of Music where he studied with Joanne Baker. He also earned the Doctor of Musical Arts in piano performance at the University of Southern California where he studied with Stewart Gordon.

He has been honored with such distinctions as playing in the opening ceremonies of the 1984 Olympic Games and being named an Academic All-American Scholar. His compositional output, nearly 800 published compositions and arrangements, includes sacred piano collections, educational piano music, and also chamber, vocal and handbell works. Dr. Labenske remains active as a concert artist both as soloist and as a collaborative performer.

Commissioned Composer:

James A. Devor

2024 GMTA Commissioned Composer

James A. Devor is an American composer, sound artist and double bassist whose music searches to implement an array of experimental sounds while grappling with human emotions. He recently completed his MM in music composition at The Hart School – University of Hartford in 2023 and has received BMs in music theory/composition and music education from West Chester University of Pennsylvania. James' private instructors include Libby Larsen, Robert Carl, Ken Steen, Daron Hagen, Robert Maggio, and Gilda Lyons and he has been a participant at Song Source – MNSong, New Music on the Point, Wintergreen Composer's Retreat, Sō Percussion Workshop, Sewanee Winterfest, and the European American Musical Alliance.

Most renown for his lyrical yet modern approach to American art song, James has had his music performed across the globe. Most recently, his work has been heard at NACUSA National Conference, the Annual Research on Contemporary Composition Conference at University of North Georgia, and the Contemporary Music Lab at the European University of Cyprus.

Above all, James' music finds manners to implement a vast set of experimental sounds, timbres, and colors, all the while being solidly focused on collaborating with performers and audience engagement. His recent work has delved into how live electronics can enhance and supplement the sound of musicians in real time.

Find more at: www.jdevormusic.com