Composer in Residence
As part of Laura Jackson’s community-wide and artistically diverse musical vision, she forged a Composer-in-Residence program designed to showcase the orchestra, add an educational element of composing to our education programs, and pay homage to the state of Nevada — both its people and its landscape.
Reno native Sean Shepherd was selected as the first-ever Reno Philharmonic Composer-in-Residence, an honor funded by The Kennedy Foundation. His first commission for the Reno Philharmonic, Silvery Rills was premiered in March 2011. As part of that concert set, Mr. Shepherd presented workshops to young people of all ages, from elementary to university students. In addition to presenting a workshop at Sparks Middle School and Damonte Ranch High School, he taught two classes with the Reno Philharmonic’s Celebrate Strings violin students at Bernice Mathews Elementary, the Reno Philharmonic’s “Partner in Education” and a Title-One school. He visited the Reno Philharmonic Youth Orchestra rehearsal and conducted workshops at the University of Nevada’s Music Composition classes. Since March, Mr. Shepherd has been working via email, phone and Skype with three aspiring young composers from Reno.
In October 2011, the premiere of Mr. Shepherd’s second of two works, Desert Garden, was presented at the season-opener of the 43-season of the Reno Philharmonic’s MasterClassics.
