Summary: RadioRotary interviews Kayo Iwama, Associate Director of the Graduate Vocal Arts Program at Bard College, about music education at the college and the performances open to the public. Bard has an unusual undergraduate degree program in music because each student must also obtain a degree in another subject, such as mathematics or political science. The Graduate Vocal Arts Program owes its existence to the renowned soprano Dawn Upshaw, who developed and directs it. Performances by students, faculty, and guest artists occur throughout the year at Bard, some of them free and many at the famed Fisher Center designed by Frank Gehry. Every two years, the Vocal Arts Program mounts an opera for the public, complete with a full orchestra accompaniment. Bard actually hosts three orchestras, including the American Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leon Botstein.
