Faculty member performs on bayan
Music Faculty Adjunct Marko Petricic appeared in his own show called “Marko & Friends” on April 1 as part of the Faculty Artist Concert Series. Marko performed with several music professors and one of his pupils.
Freshman business administration major and usher Lauren Smith noted the size of the crowd, which she said was unusual.
“This is a bigger crowd than we are used to seeing, especially for a Monday. I think it’s because he’s [Petricic] so well known,” Smith said.
The concert began with Petricic on the organ and Music Faculty Adjunct Thomas Gerber on the harpsichord. The duo played “Concerto No. 1 for two keyboards” from Antonio Soler.
The next arrangement was “Voluntary in G Minor” from George Berg. This piece featured Music Faculty Adjunct Tamara Thweatt on the flute.
At this point, Petricic switched from the organ to his bayan, a large accordion with its buttons closer to each other than on a traditional accordion.
The first song was a short duet played with Thweatt. “Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B minor” was upbeat and fun but only lasted three minutes. The bayan, combined with the flute, made for a very cheery sound.
After Thweatt exited the stage, Petricic came back to perform his solo, which was Nikolai Chaikin’s “Sonata No. 1 in B minor.”
“I have been working on it [his solo]. I just learned it and was very excited to play it for the first time,” Petricic said.
After the song was finished, Assistant Professor of Music Elisabeth Hoegberg and Music Instructor Mitzi Westra joined Petricic on stage. Hoegberg, a soprano, and Westra, a mezzo soprano, performed two arrangements by American satirist and pianist Tom Lehrer.
“When You Are Old and Gray” was a humorous song between the two singers which brought laughs for audience members, such as freshman psychology major Sharaya Woodmansee.
“The song was funny. At a concert that started out with classical music with a harpsichord, I wasn’t expecting that kind of humor,” Woodmansee said.
The concert closed with a performance by Petricic’s student Mark Mozina on his bayan. “Italian Polka” from Sergei Rachmaninoff was a fun piece with a traditional Italian sound.
Some students, such as undecided freshman Patrick Raftery, were impressed by the bayan.
“It just has so many buttons that are so close together. It’s really impressive that he can play it so quickly,” Raftery said.
Petricic talked about the benefit of the bayan’s design.
“Having the buttons closer together means you have a smaller range to play. It means the notes are closer together,” he said.
The playing and the intensity of some of the songs can sometimes make for a tired bayan player, Petricic explained.
“I’m exhausted,” he said. “It’s not always like that. It all depends on the night and how I play.”
