On Saturday, March 28, 2026, Troy University’s John M. Long School of Music hosted its 19th annual Clarinet Day.
Led by TROY’s Professor of Clarinet, Dr. Timothy Phillips, the event brought together students and a wide range of guest artists, including Cecilia Kang, who serves as the Associate Professor of Music in Clarinet at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and soloist and chamber musician, Eric Mandat, for a day of performances and educational sessions.
The festival began with a recital featuring Phillips alongside Dr. Michael Thrasher, Dean of the College of Arts & Humanities at Troy University; Michael Rowlett, Associate Professor of Clarinet and Music Literature at The University of Mississippi; J. David Harris, Associate Professor Emeritus of Clarinet at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Joshua Choi, a Clarinetist for the San Franscisco Opera; and Seungho Choi, a Clarinetist and music educator who is based in the Tri-State area. Their program included music by Pleyel, Singer, Poulenc, Widor, and Gershwin/Mangani, with TROY pianists Benjamin Crook and Yuecheng Luproviding accompaniment.
Rowlett later presented a lecture on chamber music performance, joined by five of his students from the University of Mississippi. Mandat followed with a recital of his own compositions, including selections from Chiral Symmetries (2013) for solo clarinet and Shrouded Angels (2026) for clarinet and interactive technologies, and also led a master class.
Kang, accompanied by Crook and Lu, performed works by Gerald Finzi, Georg Philipp Telemann, Sang Jin Kim, and Myroslav Skoryk. She also contributed to the day’s instruction by teaching a master class.
The event concluded with a showcase featuring the guest artists and clarinet ensembles. Phillips conducted the Troy University Clarinet Choir in the first movement of Finding the Words by Michael Markowski. A quartet consisting of Joshua Choi, J. David Harris, Seungho Choi, and Michael Rowlett performed Mendelssohn’s Romance, Op. 67, No. 2 (arranged by Nicholas Baldeyrou). Mandat performed Hommage à Carl Maria von Weber by Kovács, and Kang presented Andromeda by Mark Mellits.
The combined clarinet choir closed the program with Pachelbel’s Canon, Westward Engine by Emily Stuart, Irish Suite by Elliot del Borgo, and The Washington Post march by John Philip Sousa, under the direction of TROY’s Assistant Director of Bands, Dr. Jerianne Larson.
Phillips and his team extend their sincere appreciation to this year’s sponsors, including Troy University students and staff, Vandoren Paris, BG France, Playground Music, Buffet Crampon, and D’Addario. They invite everyone to join them again for next year’s event, scheduled for late March 2027.
