The Performing Arts Students (PAS) is the junior club of LMM and also a member of MFMC. Interested students of music, dance and drama are encourgaged to join PAS.
Performing Arts Students
Performing Arts Students Club (PAS) Programs are held once per month, typically on the 2nd Sunday at 3pm at Okemos Community Church, 4734 Okemos Rd., in Okemos, Michigan
LMM and PAS are combining meeting days and times. Please check the days, times and locations. See programs schedule for the details.
PAS Member opportunities include:
- Performing at monthly meetings
- Giving input on next year’s program features
- Volunteering to help with meetings
- Competing to win PAS Awards
- Applying for Summer Camp or Summer Lessons Awar
Opportunities for PAS Members
We hope that PAS Members are inspired, encouraged, and enlightened through attending meetings and getting to know other musicians and artists their age.
LMM PAS MEETINGS
PAS Program Meetings begin with a talk/performance by a guest artist, followed by a student recital.
LMM PAS AWARDS
Students Members may apply for awards when they have been members in good standing.
LMM PAS MEMBERSHP
Members have many opportunities to use their skills and be heard as young artists.
2024 - 2025 Season
PAS DOCUMENTS
Please follow the link below for the current handbook and PAS Documents.
THANK YOU PAS SPONSOR
THANK YOU PAS SPONSOR
Alakavuklar Guitarist and PAS performers
Jenny Ribeiro with PAS performers
Claire Tang with PAS performers
Sunday, September 8
September 8, 2024 3:00pm Okemos Community Church Orientation and Shannon Sadler, pianist
Sunday, January 12
January 12, 2025 3:00pm Okemos Community Church Student Performers
Sunday, October 12
October 12, Saturday 9:30am Central United Methodist Church Organ Walk
Sunday, February 9
February 9, 2025 3:00pm Okemos Community Church Student Performers
Sunday, November 3
November 3, 2024 3:00pm Capital City Ringers
Sunday, March 9
March 9, 2025 3:00pm Eastminster Presbyterian Church Sunny Wilkinson
Wednesday, December 4
December 4 11am Eastminster Presbyterian Church Derek Polischuk and Morning Glory Singers
Sunday, April 13
April 13, 2025 3:00pm Honor’s Recital & Marilyn Kesler Suzuki Demonstration
2024 - 2025 Season
Sunday, September 8, 2024
September 8, 2024 3:00pm Okemos Community Church ~ Shannon Wettstein Sadler, pianist
Pianist Shannon Wettstein Sadler, invites audiences to hear connections between daring new music and historical masterworks. About why she makes music, “For me, it’s about taking risks—I I love taking audiences along with me into unknown territory.”
With over 400 premieres, Shannon has performed at Lincoln Center, at Boston’s Gardner Museum, at the Ft. Worth Modern Art Museum, and Qualcomm’s headquarters in San Diego. Steve Smith of the New York Times wrote that her performance at The Stone was “full of subtleties no recording could catch…a reminder of why we attend concerts.”
Recent performances include Hong Kong’s City Hall, the Monteverde Institute of Costa Rica, and the Latvian Academy of Music. Awards include those from the National Endowment for the Arts, American Composers Forum, and Chamber Music America.
Shannon’s teachers include Sequeira Costa at the University of Kansas, Stephen Drury at the New England Conservatory, and Aleck Karis at the University of California San Diego. Other significant teachers and coaches include Claude Frank and Ben Zander.
Shannon is currently an assistant professor of piano at Michigan State University and host of Dr. Avant-Garde, a podcast about moving the art of music forward in the 21st century.
Find information about Shannon’s recordings of works by Xenakis, Anthony Davis, Chopin, and others at www.shannonwettstein.com.
Lansing Pipe Organ Walk – Sunday, October 12, 2024
Organ Walk 3The “Walk” will take place from 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. and begins at the Central United Methodist Church, 214 N. Capitol Avenue, Lansing, MI 48933. We will also visit the Christ Community Church and St. Mary’s Cathedral. A FREE lunch will follow the “Walk at the Central United Methodist Church from 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m Lunch reservations are required by October 4, 2024. Please contact Joan Wierzba at organwalk24@gmail.com OR Mark Mitchell at mark@lansingcentralumc.net
Click HERE for the Lansing Pipe Organ Walk Flyer.
Capital City Ringers Handbell Ensemble – Sunday, November 3, 2024
Click here for a group photo to meet the ringers and directors. The Capital City Ringers would love to play for your event: wedding, concert, civic event, corporate function, workshops, special celebrations, etc. We generally book performances 1 year in advance, so contact us now!
The Capital City Ringers, Inc., an auditioned community handbell ensemble from Lansing, Michigan, was formed in 1984 to give an opportunity for advanced handbell ringers to grow, learn, and promote the art of handbell ringing by providing a high quality musical experience for diverse audiences. These advanced ringers come from the extended Lansing area. They volunteer their time and talents and are committed to community service projects and concert performances in the Lansing area and beyond.
Their fifteen to twenty concerts a year take them to many areas of Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and even as far as Disney World, Florida, in the summer of 1991. They also have been the featured group for the opening
concert of Handbell Musicians of America Area V Festival Conferences. The Capital City Ringers are known for their musical expression and dynamic interpretation of the music they play. Their goals are achieved through participating in festival conferences, workshops, tours, recordings, and other performance opportunities.
The Capital City Ringers have performed for a variety of local and civic events in the Greater Lansing Area and beyond, such as, Silver Bells in the City, East Lansing Winterbowl and Chili Cook-off, East Lansing Arts Festival, Festival of the Trees, Tuba Bach Chamber Music Festival, and have performed with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts, and the Mason Symphony Orchestra. CCR has also been featured on several concert series and programs, including Handbell Podcast and the Dr. Christmas radio show.
Community service performances at retirement centers in the Greater Lansing area have been made possible by grants from the Arts Council of Greater Lansing and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. CCR acknowledges these organizations for their support. The Capital City Ringers maintain membership in both of these organizations.
The group owns and performs on a full 7 octave set of Malmark English handbells, from C2 to C9, several duplicate bells, a 6-plus octave set of Malmark Choirchimes©, and a variety of auxiliary percussion instruments. CCR will often be accompanied by other instruments, such as drums, bass guitar, keyboard, clarinet, flute, tuba, euphonium, cello, or even a synthesizer.
Derek Polischuk – Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Derek Kealii Polischuk is professor of piano and director of piano pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music. He earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance with distinction from the University of Southern California. Polischuk’s 2013 solo piano recording Terra Incognita for the Blue Griffin label has received international critical
acclaim. Colin Clark of Fanfare Magazine wrote, “The Schubert receives an excellent performance from Polischuk. The playful F-Minor offers pure joy. Lawrence Consentino wrote, “Polischuk lets the music resound as if it were coming from inside your mind. Terra Incognita is a thought-provoking mix of sensual pleasure and deep reflection.
An enthusiastic supporter of the education of musicians at every age, ability and background, Polischuk has been a clinician at conferences around the world, including the Music Teachers National Association, the National Group Piano and Pedagogy Conference, the Multidisciplinary Research in Music Pedagogy Conference to name a few.
Currently, he is President of the Michigan Music Teachers Association. Polischuk is a founder and director of the “Celebrating the Spectrum” Piano Festival for advanced pianists on the Autism Spectrum. Polischuk’s book, Transformational Piano Teaching, is described by Dr. Alice M. Hammel of James Madison University as “a world of piano pedagogy where anyone and everyone is welcome and included in the art and joy of playing the piano” and Stewart Gordon of the University of Southern California describes it as “a landmark in the field of piano pedagogy”. The book is available from Oxford University Press. At Michigan State University, Polischuk has been the recipient of the Curricular Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Award, the MSU College of Music Excellence in Diversity Award, and the Teacher-Scholar Award, given in recognition of exceptional skills in teaching.
Sunny Wilkinson – Sunday, March 9, 2025
“Sunny Wilkinson is at the top of her game. She has spent a lot of time refining her craft in the trenches and now emerges as a master songstress able to get inside of a song and find its essential emotional core.” – Don Mizell, co-producer of Ray Charles, Genius Loves Company.
Sunny Wilkinson grew up singing in church and around the piano in four-part harmony with her family. She earned her degree in Choral Education from Arizona State University. During that time delved into diverse styles of music, singing operatic roles as well as the role of Winnifred in the musical comedy Once Upon a Mattress. She also played trombone, sang in the ASU jazz band, and played and sang in a jazz fusion band called Goldmine.
After college, Sunny went to Los Angeles, honing her professional chops as a jazz recording artist, session singer, performer, and teacher. For twelve years, Borrowed Time, an eclectic jazz vocal group with Sunny on alto, performed in LA clubs and jazz festivals.
In 1989, Sunny recorded her debut CD, Alegria, for Hibrite records of Japan. In 1992, Sunny recorded a live version of Round Midnight, with full orchestra, for Honda of Japan. This national television ad campaign was released as a single CD by Hibrite Records.
Wilkinson’s self-titled release for Positive Music Records (1993) highlighted her love of jazz, fusion and pop, and thrust her into a nonstop touring schedule of jazz festivals, concerts and club gigs.
In 1993, Sunny moved to Okemos, Michigan to be with her new husband, Dr. Ron Newman, who was head of the Jazz Studies Area at Michigan State University. Since that time, they have been in partnership, playing music, writing tunes, and producing CDs, not to mention raising their wonderful family.
Jazz critic Paula Edelstein says of her new release Into the Light:
“Acclaimed jazz vocalist and educator Sunny Wilkinson offers exceptional interpretations of music from various genres as well as several original compositions composed with her pianist/composer husband Ron Newman on her latest release on Sunchance Music titled Into the Light. Sunny’s multi-octave vocals are delivered with passion and perfection as she reflects on personal experiences that have become her songs. The set list of intimate ballads and up-tempo gems are offered with an emotional and thoughtful approach that her listeners are sure to enjoy.”
Okemos Suzuki Program – Sunday, April 13, 2025
The Suzuki Program in Okemos bases its teaching on the philosophy of Shinichi Suzuki that all children are talented. It believes that just like learning to speak, music training is built on imitation, ear training, small steps at a time, and much repetition. Parents are encouraged to be the home teachers by attending their child’s Suzuki lessons and working with their child at home. Children can start in the Okemos program at three years of age or older. Marilyn Kesler will present students for a demonstration of the Suzuki method.
The PT Strummers – Wednesday, May 7, 2025
East Lansing’s PT Strummers first came together in October 2023 as a handful of beginning ukulele students learning their first strums and songs. Over eleven years later, they are an ensemble of 30+ members, playing a wide variety of music from Marley to Miley. Their concerts are an entertaining mix of familiar favorites along with more contemporary offerings and the audience is always invited to sing along!
LMM PAS AWARDS
LMM PAS Awards Requirements & Eligibility. The competition may be canceled at the discretion of the Awards Chairperson if there are an insufficient number of entries.
Dues must be paid by January 21.
Students studying with Instructors who are not members of Lansing Matinee Musicale must pay a non-member instructor’s fee of $15.00.
Attend at least 3 meetings in current school year prior to the awards application deadline.
Prior first-place winners may not compete in the same awards category but remain eligible in other categories.
Attendance eligibility requires each student member to sign in and remain from 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. for credit at a Sunday meeting.
PAS Award recipients are required to perform at the April Honors Recital. If the student is unable to attend this event, the member must perform at the March meeting.
Must perform at a PAS meeting prior to the application date deadline.
A student may apply in only one category per academic year.
PAS AWARDS APPLICANTS
• Will be allowed 10-15 minutes of performance time, depending on the category
• May not repeat previous repertoire
• Must provide their own accompanist
• Must provide one original piece of music for the judges. Two additional originals or photocopies are required for the judges. This should be in a presentation folder or binder. Loose pages will not be accepted. The first measure of each system should be numbered.
• Applicants should perform in recital attire.
LMM SUMMER LESSON & SUMMER CAMP AWARDS
The intent of these awards is to aid in paying for summer music study, workshops, or camps. Applications are available on the Lansing Matinee Musicale Website (lansingmatineemusicale.org). The number of awards varies each year due to available funding. Please see Eligibility and Requirements below.
Paid annual membership by the dues deadlne
A written essay is a part of the application
Confirmed attendance with sign-in at 3 PAS meetings between September and March
These awards are available to members in alternate years
ONE performance at a PAS Meeting (NOT Honors Recital)
Students may receive this award a MAXIMUM of THREE (3) times
LMM PAS AWARDS AUDITIONS
ART SONG
ART SONG: minimum age, 14 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Maximum 15 minutes
Three selections – All memorized
- A foreign language art song
- 20th or 21st Century English language art song (American, British, or Canadian)
- Art song of choice (No opera arias other than those included in art song collections and those treated as art songs)
DANCE
DANCE: minimum age, 12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Maximum 12 minutes
- A demonstration of allegro and lyrical movement in ballet, tap, lyrical, modern, jazz, hip hop, or folk dance, or a combination of styles in a finished performance.
- A demonstration explaining the techniques appropriate to the dance styles being presented, using both terminology and physical demonstration.
BRASS
Brass: Grades 7-9 (1st place: $300; 2nd place: $200)
Grades 10-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Percussion: Grades 7-9 (1st place: $300; 2nd place: $200)
Grades 10-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place $300)
Wind: Grades 7-9 (1st place: $300; 2nd place: $200)
Grades 10-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Three selections – All memorized
- A foreign language art song
- 20th or 21st Century English language art song (American, British, or Canadian)
- Art song of choice (No opera arias other than those included in art song collections and those treated as art songs)
MUSICAL THEATER
MUSICAL THEATER minimum age 14 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Maximum 12 minutes. Three selections
All pieces should be memorized and performed in a polished presentation.
- An up-tempo song that includes movement or dance according to the character of the song (from a Musical)
- Song of contrasting style/ballad. (from a Musical)
- Lyric style or contemporary monologue under 3 minutes
ORGAN
ORGAN: Grades 9-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
All pieces performed on the organ.
- One chorale Prelude by J.S. Bach (from the Bach Orgelbüchlein) or one Praeludium and/or Fugue by Bach
- One movement from a sonata (any composer)
- One composition of the applicant’s choice
PIANO
PIANO: Grades 5 and 6 (1st Place: $200; 2nd place: $100)
Maximum 10 minutes
Two selections from two different periods (concertos not permitted) All selections memorized
Choose from two of the following categories:
- Baroque
- Classical: Sonata or Sonatina movement
- Romantic or Impressionistic or Contemporary
PIANO
PIANO: Grades 7-9 (1st place: $300; 2nd place: $200)
Grades 10-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Maximum 15 minutes
Three selections in three different styles (concertos not permitted)
All selections memorized
- Baroque
- Classical: Sonata or Sonatina movement
- Romantic or Impressionistic or Contemporary
STRINGS
STRINGS: Grades 5-6 (1st Place: $200; 2nd place: $100)
Maximum 10 minutes. Two selections – One piece should be memorized, and one piece needs to be accompanied.
- Baroque or Classical
- Romantic or Contemporary
STRINGS
STRINGS: Grades 7-9 (1st place $300; 2nd place: $200)
Grades 10-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place: $300)
Maximum 12-15 minutes; Two selections. One memorized and one piece must have accompaniment.
- Baroque or Classical
2. Romantic or Contemporary
Miscellaneous
Miscellaneous: as listed above for minimum age or by grade level beginning with grade 7. Grades 7-9 (1st place: $300; 2nd place: $200) Grades 10-12 (1st place: $400; 2nd place $300)
Maximum 15 minutes
If there is an insufficient number of entries in any of the above award categories to hold an audition, or if an instrument is not included in those categories, the entries may participate in the Miscellaneous Award. Two selections, one of which is memorized, following the other guidelines given in the respective categories.
- Theater, Dance, Voice
- Instrumental (includes instruments not covered above, for example…guitar or percussion)
PAS Membership
Congratulations on joining the Performing Arts Students Club! We are thrilled to have you as a member. Your talents and skills are important to the life of our group. As a member be sure to do the following to make the most of your membership:
- Pay dues by January 21, to participate in auditions for awards. Receipts for paid membership dues are available at the following meeting. Students must sign in and remain from 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. to receive credit.
- Attendance requirements and performance are qualifications for award eligibility.
- Like “the Facebook” page for PAS to stay connected, or simply check the page for meeting announcements, forms, and other information.
- Parents need to sign the LMM Media Release Waiver for pictures of student members to be posted on the PAS Facebook page.
- Members should be receiving monthly email reminders from our PAS administrator. Please contact Monique Griffin if you do not receive a reminder email for the meeting after the one that was first attended. *Contact information is on the first page of the handbook.
Join us!
We always welcome new members: musicians, teachers, students, and people who simply love and appreciate the arts. We offer monthly performances featuring a variety of musical styles as well as fellowship and fun. Your membership also helps support talented local musicians, music students and educators.