“His first official act will be to join us for auditions in May,” says Executive Director Jamie LaFreniere, “so he gets to meet all our wonderful students right away.” Though the Youth Orchestra was unable to meet during COVID-19 restrictions, they are looking forward to being in person again in the fall for rehearsals and concerts and are currently seeking new students for their May auditions.
“We are excited about what Mark will bring to the group and love his vision for the future,” adds LaFreniere. “We just recently added Marisol Kuborn to our staff as our first Youth Orchestras Executive Director, and I can’t wait to see what they build together. Both have amazing dedication to our programs and unlimited ideas.”
For more information on Youth Orchestra auditions, visit www.foxvalleysymphony.com.
About Dr. Mark Dupere:
Mark Dupere is Assistant Professor
of Music at Lawrence University Conservatory of Music, where he is the Director
of Orchestral Studies. A native of Arizona, he studied cello with Phyllis Young
at the University of Texas at Austin before moving to the Netherlands to
complete his cello studies with Jaap ter Linden at the Royal Conservatoire in
The Hague. Dupere specialized in Baroque cello and performance practice of the
Romantic era. He completed his Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting at Michigan
State University with Kevin Noe.
As a cellist, Dupere was a 'New
Young Artist' at the Victoria Bach Festival, performed in the Leipzig Bach
Competition, and was an apprentice with the Orchestra of the Age of
Enlightenment in London. He performed with many groups throughout Europe
including Anima Eterna Brugge (BE), Arte Dei Suonatori (PL), and the Amsterdam
Baroque Orchestra (NL). Dupere performed in major European concert halls
including the Southbank Centre (London), Konzerthaus (Vienna), Concertgebouw
(Amsterdam), Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, and Opéra Royal de Versailles (Paris).
Dupere has appeared at various festivals including La Folle Journée Festival
(Nantes), Holland Festival (Amsterdam), Le Festival Berlioz (La
Côte-Saint-André), Oude Muziek Festival (Utrecht) and Le Festival L’abbaye aux
Dames (Saintes). He has worked with directors Mark Wigglesworth, Yannick
Nézet-Séguin, Neeme Järvi, Gunther Schuller, Bruno Weil, Jos van Immerseel,
Robert Levin, Elizabeth Wallfisch and Ton Koopman. As a founding member
of the chamber music ensemble Haagsche Hofmuzieck, Dupere performed and gave
masterclasses throughout Europe and the USA. The group made several recordings
and was a finalist in the International Telemann Competition in Magdeburg,
Germany.
Dupere has performed on BBC Radio
and Arte TV and has made numerous recordings. These include discs of Debussy,
Ravel and Mussorgsky with Anima Eterna Brugge, Marcello Psalms with Voces8 and
Les Inventions (FR) and a recording of the complete chamber works of Locatelli
with Ensemble Violini Capricciosi (NL) for Brilliant Classics.
After many years of performing as a professional cellist, Dupere decided to pursue his great passion for conducting and directing. He was a conducting fellow at the Oregon Bach Festival in 2015 and is the Co-Musical Director of the Musica Redemptor Orchestra (Austin, TX), a period instrument ensemble made up of international musicians. He has conducted the Haydn Orchestra (The Hague, NL), the Choir of St John and St Philip in The Hague (NL), the Cypress Symphony (Houston), the Michigan State University Symphony Orchestra and the Michigan State University Concert Orchestra. Mark enjoys conducting various honor orchestras around the country and most recently, he has been named a National Semi-Finalist in the American Prize for Conducting.
Dupere is a passionate educator and hopes to impart a love of music-making and active engagement with audiences in the performance of music from all periods. His areas of research have included: tempo rubato in Romantic chamber music, and pedagogical approaches to teaching period performance concepts in the modern music academy.
About the Fox
Valley Symphony Orchestra:
The
Symphony's mission is to enrich and nurture the human spirit through inclusive symphonic
music and education. Founded in 1966, the non-profit provides the community
with orchestra concerts, community outreach programming, and three Youth
Orchestra programs. Music Director Dr. Kevin Sütterlin leads the adult
orchestra, with Mark Dupere conducting Youth Orchestra, Greg Austin conducting Concert
Orchestra and Adam Brown conducting Philharmonia.
