MIT Office of the Arts 
by Lynn Heinemann, Office of the Arts
(Tech Talk 6/4/1997)
Six students and one student-run extra-curricular activity won awards for their accomplishments in the arts at MIT at the Awards Convocation on Wednesday, May 14.
The Laya and Jerome B. Wiesner Awards, established by the Council for the Arts at MIT to recognize outstanding achievement in and contributions to the arts, went to Solomon Douglas, a senior earning a dual degree in music and mathematics; Tara Perry, a senior in architecture and Dance Troupe, a three-year-old extra-curricular, student-created and run organization.
Mr. Douglas, a jazz musician who plans to continue his work in music composition in graduate school, was recognized for his contributions to MIT as a composer, jazz pianist and arranger and co-founder of the Tech Jazz Singers. In recommending Mr. Douglas for the Wiesner Award, Professor Peter Child, chair of the Music Section, cited his "quiet determination, intelligence and musicianship" while Senior Lecturer Edward Cohen praised his "talent, originality and energy."
Ms. Perry, a member and officer of Dramashop since her freshman year, has also performed with Playwrights in Performance and Movements in Time, an African-American women¹s dance company. "She has an emotional availability and clarity," wrote Michael Ouellette, lecturer in Theater Arts, adding praise for her "luminosity on stage, her daring and her imagination."
Dance Troupe, whose membership of 20 has grown to more than 100, offers classes in ballet, modern, funk, tap and jazz and holds performances of student-choreographed works each term. "Dance Troupe consistently presents stellar performances, making MIT students into performing arts stars and bringsŠenergy, style, and creative fun to campus," wrote Kimberly Knowles review of their December 1996 concert for the Tech.
The Louis Sudler Prize in the Arts, established by arts patron Louis Sudler to reward a graduating senior who has demonstrated excellence in music, theater, painting, sculpture, design, architecture or film, was awarded to violinist Grant Ho, a senior in electrical engineering and computer science from Don Mills, Ontario, Canada. Professor Marcus Thompson recalled Mr. Ho's freshman audition for the Advanced Music Performance scholarship, calling him a "student whose artistic sensibility, passion and execution inspired open-mouthed admiration from ...teachers, fellow students and audiences."
The Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Prize in the Visual Arts is presented annually by the Student Art Association to three MIT students who demonstrate excellence in creating a body of work in the visual arts. The 1997 winners were Francisco J. Ortiz, a graduate student in urban studies and planning from Buenos Aires; Benjamin C. Matteo, a senior in mechanical engineering from Pleasantville, NY; and Xingheng Wang, a sophomore in EECS from Logan, UT.
Eight students who have made outstanding contributions to the cultural life of MIT were recognized at the annual Music and Theater Arts Ceremony held on Thursday, May 15.
Charles Armesto, a senior earning dual degrees in chemical engineering and theater from Oldsmar, FL won the Edward S. Darna Award presented to a graduating student who has demonstrated excellence in theater arts and made a substantial contribution to the health of theater life on the MIT campus. Mr. Armesto has served as Dramashop officer, director, actor and board member of The Theater Offensive, a Boston-based gay theater company. "His boundless energy, good will, talent, hard work and encouragement of the pariticpation of others has made Charles an absolutely invaluable player in Theater Arts," said Professor Janet Sonenberg, director of Theater Arts.
Manish Goyal, a graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science from Stone Mountain, GA won the Joseph D. Everingham Award recognizing a single creative accomplishment in theater arts by a graduating senior for his performance as Benedick in Dramashop's February 1997 production of Much Ado About Nothing. "His portrayal is fantastic, humorous and completely natural," wrote Teresa Huang in The Tech's review.
The Gregory Tucker Memorial Prize recognizes students for exceptional ability in composition, performance and/or music history studies. This year's winner, tenor/countertenor Gary Crichlow, a graduate student in aeronautics and astronautics from Miami, FL, has won acclaim for his Advanced Music Performance and Chamber Music Society concerts, his performance at the dedication of MIT's new Herz harpsichord and solo spots with the Brookline Chorus (see Art News) and at the joint MIT Concert Choir/MIT Symphony concert in May 1997.
Pianist Nicole U. Lee, a junior in biology and music from Aloha, OR; pianist Andrew Newberg, a senior in biology from Sudbury, MA; clarinetist Christopher Rohrs, a sophomore in electrical engineering and computer science and materials science and engineering from South Deerfield, MA and pianist Jason Wong, a sophomore in chemistry from Clifton, VA received Ragnar and Margaret Naess Awards in recognition of exceptional talent and commitment to private performance study.
The Philip Loew Memorial Award, given for the fourth time this year, honors a single creative achievement in music. This year's recipient was Kay Anne Chen a senior in electrical engineering from San Jose, CA who formed the MIT String Sinfonietta, an ensemble founded to give dedicated student musicians the opportunity to study and explore chamber orchestra repertoire. "Something very exciting and wonderful happened on Monday evening in Killian Hall," wrote The Tech's Thomas Chen, praising the Sinfonietta's inaugural concert in February.