By Margit Resch
For The Island News
Come to Fripp Island on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024 and participate in a musical celebration of life: a celebration of the past year of life which we are all fortunate to carry into the New Year, into 2024; a celebration of a life ahead of us that we hope is going to be happy; and most importantly, a celebration of life for Judith Teehan, whom we expected to play the flute for us in the Encore Trio, but who passed into eternal musical venues on November 11.
Judy Teehan played the flute, piccolo and recorders. In her obituary, she is portrayed as an “enthusiastic chamber musician” and professional flutist. Her passion was “to teach, coach, and play new and old works.
Judy deeply believed in the role that music could play in people’s lives and she lived that out with her friends, always making time to make music together. She brought this vision to her teaching, investing with care in each new aspiring musician.
Some of Judy’s most prized accomplishments include co-founding Infinities Chamber Ensemble and the group’s many innovative chamber music performances; starting many high school and middle school music programs; and studying and teaching Suzuki Flute. She will always be remembered for her work as Executive Director of the Manchester Community Music School, where she worked tirelessly to create access to music education for every student and to provide a steady job for many of New England’s musicians.
The musicians, who will dedicate this performance to Judy Teehan, will be Margaret Herlehy, oboe; Dan Weiser, piano; and Janet Polk, bassoon — a perfect blend of instruments creating dancing rhythms and playful harmonics on both well-loved classics and new-found inspirations.
Oboist Margaret Herlehy received her formal training at the University of Michigan and Sarah Lawrence College where she remained as Artist in Residence for five years. She continued to study and coach with world renowned musicians, composers and orchestras.
Her biography reveals that, while living in New York, she premiered several works for oboe at Carnegie Recital Hall, many of which were written for her. On relocating to New England in 1990, she joined the faculties of Phillips Exeter Academy and, later, of the University of New Hampshire.
Herlehy loves to incorporate improvisational techniques into her performances and teaching curriculum. She has given master classes and performance workshops at many colleges and music festivals throughout the United States.
Last but not least, Herlehy enjoys a very active performing career, mainly in the greater Boston area, but, as you can see, she also travels to Fripp Island to help us celebrate life.
Pianist Daniel Weiser has a Doctorate in Piano/Chamber Music from the Peabody Conservatory, where he won the Richard Franko Goldman prize for outstanding contribution to musical and educational life. He has performed on many great stages all over the world, including Israel, Thailand, Holland, France, Carnegie Hall, the National Gallery of Art in D.C., and in the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series in Chicago.
In 1996, as U.S. Artistic Ambassador Abroad, he performed in eleven Middle Eastern and Asian countries. Weiser was instrumental in founding AmiciMusic, Classicopia, and the Adirondack Ensemble, which won a Chamber Music America “award for inventive programming and outreach.”
Weiser has been a member of the music faculty of Dartmouth College and the prestigious St. Paul’s School in Concord, N.H. A native of Buffalo, N.Y., he currently lives in Baltimore, Md., with his wife, Dr. Kisha Weiser, and their teenage twins Rose and Sophie.
Janet Polk, who plays the largest woodwind instrument — the bassoon – earned her BA and MA in music education and history at the University of Massachusetts and the University of New Hampshire, respectively. She taught K-6 classroom music in the Montague, Mass., public school system for five years.
Currently, Polk teaches bassoon at both the University of New Hampshire and Dartmouth College. She is the principal bassoonist of the Portland (Maine) Symphony, Vermont Symphony, Opera North and PortOpera. She has also performed with other New England symphony orchestras, and, through the Partners of the Americas, traveled to Honduras.
As a member of the Block Ensemble, she has won prizes in the International Concert Artists Guild Competition and the John Knowles Paine Competition and performed at the prestigious Round Top Festival in Texas. Polk can be heard on the Sospiri Trio recording of Trios of the 20th and 21st Century on the SnowBird label.
The Encore Trio will perform on Sunday, Jan. 7, at 5 p.m. at the Fripp Community Centre, 205 Tarpon Boulevard. This life-celebrating concert is sponsored by Fripp Friends of Music and supported by the S.C. Arts Commission.
Attendees get a free pass at the Fripp gate. Tickets at the door ar $30 for adults and students are free, thanks to the Peg Gorham Memorial Fund. You are invited to join the musicians at a complimentary reception after the performance, catered deliciously by Harold’s Chef Services.
Questions? Email or text Vanessa Peñaherrera at vandy116@gmail.com or 704-807-0255.
Want To Go?
Who: Margaret Herlehy, Dan Weiser and Janet Polk
What: Musical Celebration of Life for Judy Teehan
When: 5 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 7
Where: Fripp Community Centre, 205 Tarpon Boulevard, Fripp Island
Tickets: $30 for adults; students are free.
