Press Releases |
| HIXSON-LIED COLLEGE OF FINE AND PERFORMING ARTS
ALUMNI AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED Lincoln, Neb.-The University of Nebraska Lincoln Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts Alumni Board have selected the recipients of the College's alumni awards. The award recipients will be honored at the College's Honors Day Dinner on Saturday, April 22 at 5pm in the Johnny Carson Theater. The dinner is an invitation-only event. The awards presented include the Alumni Achievement Awards, which recognize alumni in Art, Music and Theatre who have demonstrated outstanding achievement and overall professional excellence; and the Award of Merit, which honors those who have made contributions to the College but who are not necessarily alumni of the college. The Alumni Achievement Award winners will be participating in classes on April 21. Other events that weekend will include the University Theatre's Fires in the Mirror at Studio Theatre at 7:30pm April 19-22 in the Studio Theatre (tickets available at the Lied Center Box Office); Liebesliederwaltzer featuring the School of Music's Vocal Chamber Ensemble at 5pm on Friday, April 21 in Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery (Free); the University Singers, Varsity Men's Chorus, University Chorale, Concert Choir and Collegiate Chorus performing Belshazar's Feast with the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra at 7:30pm on Saturday, April 22 (tickets available at the Lied Center Box Office); and MFA Thesis Exhibitions in the Eisentrager-Howard Gallery in Richards Hall.  Alumni Achievement Award in Art John Nygren Walnut Cove, N.C. B.F.A. 1965 Nygren is a senior member of the North Carolina glass art community and a renowned American master. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1965, where he received the Vreeland Award. His interest in glass was peaked by his professor and printmaker Jean Richards. Nygren continued his studies at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1967, where he received his Master of Fine Arts. He attended a three-week glassblowing course at the Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina, which changed his life. He gained the basic skills and confidence he needed to dedicate his creative energy to glass art. The central theme reflected in his glass art has always been a deep-felt reverence towards Mother Earth. His love of nature is expressed in the artistic excellence of his work. His work has been shown in more than 350 exhibitions throughout the country. His collections include The Corning Museum of Glass, The Smithsonian Institution, The Mint Museum, the Asheville Art Museum, the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery and Sculpture Garden, and the R.J. Reynolds Collection. He was named the Winston-Salem (N.C.) Artist of the Year in 2000.  Frank Tirro North Haven, Ct. B.M.E. 1960 Frank Tirro is professor of music and former dean of the Yale University School of Music. A specialist in both the history of jazz and music of the Renaissance, he is the author of Jazz: A History, Living With Jazz, Renaissance Musical Sources . . . In Bologna, and co-author of The Humanities: Cultural Roots And Continuities, and editor of Medieval And Renaissance Studies. Before coming to Yale, Tirro served as Chairman of the Department of Music at Duke University. In addition to many scholarly articles and reviews, he also wrote, for young students, the entry on "Jazz" for The World Book Encyclopedia and many of the individual biographical entries for jazz musicians. He has served as an associate editor for the new American National Biography, sponsored jointly by Oxford University Press and the American Council of Learned Societies. Tirro received his Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, his master's degree from Northwestern University, and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He was a Fellow of Villa I Tatti, the Harvard University Center for Italian Renaissance Studies in Florence, Italy, and he has also served as Director of the Southeastern Institute of Medieval and Renaissance Studies. He lectures on jazz and Renaissance subjects, and his professional responsibilities have taken him across the United States, to Europe, China, and South America.  Bob Askey Longmont, Colo. B.A. Speech 1951 Askey, a Lincoln native, graduated from UNL in 1951 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech. His classmates included both Johnny Carson and Dick Cavett, all of whom were interested in radio. After Carson graduated and took a job at WOW in Omaha, Askey replaced him at KFOR and also had jobs at KOLN Radio and two advertising agencies. In 1966, he took a job at a Longmont, Colorado, radio station and his outstanding voice garnered him work in the Denver radio and TV market. Askey has always had a strong commitment to the community and began serving on the Longmont City Council. He was elected Mayor in 1979 and was instrumental in establishing the Economic Development Association and was founder of the Longmont Community Foundation. During this time in 1975, Talking Book Publishers in Denver were recording books for the blind. As Askey's work was well-known in the Denver market, serendipity would determine his most important contribution, as he started what would become a 30-year commitment to read books for the blind. He has narrated more than 900 books on tape, from the Bible to Dr. Seuss' 'The Cat in the Hat.' The American Federation for the Blind honored him with the Alexander Scourby Narrator of the Year Award in 1986 and again in 2002. He retired at the end of 2004. In 2005, Askey received the Didymus (the Blind Seer of Alexandria) Award for excellence, diligence and perseverance in narrating talking books over a span of 30 years.  Ann Rawley Lincoln, Neb. A graduate of Smith College, Rawley majored in theatre. When she moved to Lincoln, that love of and commitment to theater grew as she served on the Lincoln Community Playhouse Board and the Lincoln City Ballet. Rawley has also given tirelessly of her time and talent to the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film. She has served on the Board of Directors of the Friends of the Rep and has chaired the Events Committee for most of her tenure. Under her leadership, the special events have continued to be successful and profitable. She has also been actively involved in ticket sales for the Nebraska Repertory Theatre, giving endless hours to promote the annual summer seasons. Rawley was elected to the Repertory Theatre Hall of Fame in 2001 in recognition of her contributions. Her love of the arts is not limited to theatre. Not only does she have an extensive personal art collection, but she has also established a successful framing business. She is a regular at all of the campus art exhibitions and also an enthusiastic audience member at UNL Opera and other School of Music performances. In addition, Ann and Jim Rawley also created the Ann Keyser Rawley Scholarship for students enrolled in the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film. She has attended numerous plays to see her scholarship recipients showcase their talents and has taken a personal interest in their progress. |
