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The Music Department at ����Ӱ�� is pleased to announce that the Sunday Recital Series continues at 3 p.m. on February 7. This recital will feature sopranos Kathleen Bell and Anne Wick joined by pianist Clement Acevedo in Mary Baldwin’s Francis Auditorium.

The three musicians have prepared a diverse and interesting program. Bell and Acevedo will begin the recital with “Una Notte in Venezia” by composer Luigi Preti Bonatti. Unfamiliar to many concertgoers, Bonatti was an Italian violinist, composer, and conductor who moved to Uruguay during the second Italian civil war. He also happens to be Bell’s maternal great-grandfather.

“He composed this in the Bel canto style reminiscent of Rossini,” adds Bell. “I found this piece in the Lauro Ayesteran collection at the Library of Congress. Needless to say, I am very excited to perform it!”

Following this piece, the musicians will perform art songs from renowned composers Lili Boulanger and Richard Strauss. Wick will close the first half of the recital with the powerful “Magda’s aria” from Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Consul. Wick explains that this aria addresses “the dehumanizing effects of refugees being reduced to paperwork.” She notes that it is “especially relevant in this day and age.”

On a much lighter note, the second half of the recital will feature several works by modern American composers, such as Libby Larsen’s Cowboy Songs, Leonard Bernstein’s I Hate Music!, and a number of musical theatre pieces. As a special treat to conclude the recital, Acevedo will perform La Valse by Maurice Ravel, demonstrating his ability as not only a brilliant collaborator but also a soloist.

Both Bell and Wick are on the voice faculty at ����Ӱ�� and direct student vocal ensembles. Bell also teaches at the Barbara Ingram School for the Arts and Shenandoah Conservatory Arts Academy. In addition to her duties as vocal area coordinator at ����Ӱ��, Wick also teaches voice at James Madison University (JMU) and serves as director of music ministries at Christ United Methodist Church in Staunton. An avid teacher himself, Acevedo is on the faculty at the Horowitz Studio in Falls Church where he teaches private piano lessons. He has performed most notably in New York’s Merkin Hall and the Cultural Center of the Philippines, and has recently been featured with the JMU Symphony Orchestra.

Tickets for February 7 may be purchased at the door and are $5 for the general public and $4 for seniors and students. Mary Baldwin students are free. For more information call 540-887-7294 or visit .