NATCHITOCHES – The School of Creative and Performing Arts at Northwestern State University will host its annual Double Reed Day on Sunday, Jan. 26 from noon to 5:30 p.m. in Magale Recital Hall. The event is open to oboists and bassoonists of all ages.
The event will conclude with a recital by oboist Tessa Vinson at 4:30 p.m. She will be assisted on the recital by Doug Bakenhus on bassoon, Leah Forsyth on oboe and Michael Young on piano. The recital is free and open to the public.
Vinson, a gunnery sergeant in the United States Marines, has been a member of “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band since 2008. Upon graduating from Santa Monica High School in 2001, she attended the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she studied with Stuart Horne of the Los Angeles Opera. In 2005, she earned a bachelor’s degree in music from the Manhattan School of Music in New York. She continued her education at the Manhattan School of Music and earned a master’s degree in orchestral performance in 2007.
Prior to joining “The President’s Own,” she performed with the New York City Opera, The Aeros Quintet and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas. She also held a residency at the 92nd Street Y’s Music Unlocked Project and served as the associate oboe teacher for the Manhattan School of Music. Vinson performs with the Marine Band and Marine Chamber Orchestra at the White House, in the Washington, D.C., area, and across the country during the band’s annual concert tour.
The Marine Band is America’s oldest continuously active professional musical organization. Founded in 1798, the band has performed for every U.S. president since John Adams. Known as “The President’s Own” since the days of Thomas Jefferson, the Marine Band’s mission is to provide music for the President of the United States and the Commandant of the Marine Corps.
