Single Reed Day

Sunday March 2, 2025

Single Reed Day

EVENT REGISTRATION IS CLOSED – Single Reed Day 2025 is being sponsored by Vandoren

Clinicians

Dr. Iura de Rezende, University of Illinois
Dr. Janice L. Minor, University of Illinois
Dr. Nicki Roman, University of Illinois

Single Reed Day offers high school and collegiate clarinetists and saxophonists the opportunity to perform in master classes, attend workshops and clinics. All are welcome to participate in a group single reed choir with current University of Illinois students.

Exhibitors will include Buffet Crampon, The Music Shoppe, D’Addario Woodwinds, Vandoren/Dansr, Selmer, and Yamaha.

EVENT REGISTRATION IS CLOSED – EVENT REGISTRATION IS CLOSED

Eligibility

All clarinetists and saxophonists currently in high school or college are welcome to register. All registrants are invited to participate in the clarinet choir, saxophone choir, a combined choir, and selected participants will perform for the master classes.

Advanced middle school students are also welcome to apply.

Single Reed Day 2025 Schedule Overview

Smith Memorial Hall

8:30 AM | Registration- At Smith Memorial Hall

9:00 AM | Combined Clarinet/Saxophone Choir Rehearsal: Smith Memorial Hall

10:00 AM | Master Class with U of I Faculty

Clarinets: Smith Room 25
Saxophones: Smith Memorial Room (second floor)

11:15 AM | Guest Artist Recital: Otis Murphy, saxophone, Haruko Murphy, piano, and Cecilia Kang, clarinet, Casey Robards, Piano: Smith Memorial Room

12:30 PM | Visit Exhibits and Lunch. Pizza lunch provided by Vandoren.

1:30 PM | Vandoren Reed and Mouthpiece Workshop with Gary Winder: Smith Room 25

2:00 PM | Masterclasses with Guest Artists: Otis Murphy, saxophone and Cecilia Kang, clarinet; Smith Room 25

3:30 PM | Break/Visit Exhibits

4:00 PM | Combined Clarinet/Saxophone Choir Rehearsal: Smith Recital Hall

5:00 PM | Evening Concert-U of I Clarinet Choir, Saxophone Ensemble and Single Reed Festival Combined Choir: Smith Recital Hall

**Exhibits will be open throughout the day.

Smith Memorial Hall- 805 S. Mathews Ave, Urbana

Cecilia Kang

Cecilia Kang is praised for her “ethereal colors” and “effortless” clarinet playing (The Clarinet Journal), clarinetist Cecilia Kang enjoys a multifaceted career as a performer, educator, scholar, adjudicator, and curator. She has appeared as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral clarinetist, collaborating with members of the St. Lawrence String Quartet, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Royal Danish Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and the Louisiana Philharmonic.

Recipient of numerous top prizes from the Canadian Music Competition, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Standard Life Competition, and the International Clarinet Association Research Competition, Dr. Kang has also been awarded generous grants from New Music USA, the Louisiana Board of Regents, the Kingsway Foundation, the Hendrickson Foundation, the Metropolitan Arts Council, and the Canada Council for the Arts to support her artistic pursuits.

Renowned for her innovative teaching approach, Dr. Kang has given over 100 clarinet masterclasses worldwide, including at the Milan Conservatory (Italy), the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Kraków (Poland), National Taiwan University of Arts (Taiwan), Yonsei University (South Korea), Thailand International Clarinet Academy (Thailand), Beijing Central Conservatory of Music (China), University of Melbourne (Australia), University of Toronto (Canada), and University of Michigan (USA). She has presented at the Midwest Clinic, the Texas Music Educators Association Clinic, the College Music Society Conference, and ClarinetFest.

Her scholarly work has been published or is forthcoming in the Nineteenth-Century Music Review, The Clarinet Journal, and on the Digital Clarinet Academy and ToneBase online platforms. As an adjudicator, she has served for organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts, the International Clarinet Association, the Music Teachers National Association, the College Music Society, the Interflow Band Festival of Hong Kong, and the Vandoren Emerging Artist Competition.

Dr. Kang is deeply committed to merging her musical vocation with community building. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she founded the Silver Linings Initiative, organizing 25 virtual panel discussions with clarinetists, music educators, and arts leaders worldwide. In 2023, she curated the groundbreaking Han and Heung Festival at Louisiana State University, highlighting stories of resilience and optimism shared by Korean and African-American diasporas through the intersection of music and social dialogue.

Dr. Kang holds degrees from the University of Michigan (DMA), the University of Southern California (MM), and the University of Toronto (BM). She is an associate professor of clarinet at Louisiana State University and serves as an artist faculty member at the Aria International Academy and Sewanee Music Festival. Dr. Kang is a Vandoren and Buffet Crampon Performing Artist and Clinician. Visit Cecilia Kang’s Website

Otis Murphy

Otis Murphy is a professor of music in saxophone and chair of the Woodwinds Department at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Appointed at age 28, he became one of the youngest faculty members in the school’s history.

An internationally renowned soloist and clinician, Murphy has performed in over 20 countries across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. He is a prizewinner in the Adolphe Sax International Saxophone Competition (Belgium) and the Jean-Marie Londeix International Saxophone Competition (France). His performances include prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall’s Isaac Stern Auditorium, Merkin Hall (New York City), Casals Hall (Tokyo), Palau de la Música (Valencia), and Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ (Amsterdam).

Murphy has been featured on more than 15 recordings, including four solo albums that have received critical acclaim. His performance of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich’s Quintet for Alto Saxophone and String Quartet with the Pacifica Quartet is featured on the Grammy Award-winning album Contemporary Voices for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance.

He has taught at music schools and festivals worldwide, including the Paris Conservatory, Amsterdam Conservatory, Cologne Academy of Music, Hamamatsu International Wind Instrument Academy and Festival, and the London Royal College of Music. His students have earned numerous accolades and enjoy successful careers as performers, educators, and members of premier military concert bands.

Murphy holds Doctor of Music and Master of Music degrees from the Jacobs School of Music, where he received the Performer’s Certificate accolade. He also studied in France on a Fulbright Fellowship at the Conservatoire National Régional de Musique in Cergy-Pontoise, earning the Prix de Perfectionnement à l’unanimité.

Murphy and his wife, pianist Haruko Murphy, reside in Bloomington, Indiana, where they are proud parents of six children.

Haruko Murphy

Born in Japan, Haruko Murphy moved to San Jose, California with her family when she was 14. She received the Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance, both with Highest Distinction, from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, studying with Distinguished Professor Menahem Pressler. In addition, she studied at the Sweelinck Conservatorium in Amsterdam, Netherlands as a pupil of Jan Huizing. Ms. Murphy received many prizes as a solo pianist and now enjoys performing actively as a collaborative pianist and chamber musician. Specializing in the repertoire of the classical saxophone, she has appeared in concerts with numerous internationally renowned artists including saxophonists Jean-Yves Fourmeau, Arno Bornkamp, and the Masato Kumoi Saxophone Quartet, and her husband Otis Murphy. Ms. Murphy lives in Bloomington, Indiana, with her husband Otis, where she homeschools their six children.