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To Whom It May Concern:
We are writing this in support of Ray Miller. We had the privilege of being students of Ray’s from 1982 to 1986 in both the Scarlet and Cream Singers and the Men’s Glee club at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.
One of the things that always stood out with Ray was his ability to engage the students in not just singing the music, but also understanding where the music was coming from. From Ray we learned that music not only came from a specific time and genre, but also from a specific point of view and mindset. Ray was excellent about inspiring us to sing each piece from that point of view and with the style and inflection that the writers envisioned when they first wrote the piece.
While Ray could be “true and pure” to the originals, he also gave us several opportunities to look at that same music through the eyes of different arrangers and composers. It was amazing how the same message was there but said in a different way and from an entirely different viewpoint.
Ray was also a good friend and mentor to many, many students. With the classes he taught he was available and engaged just as much outside the classroom as he was inside. We know that was a big part of his success in his long career.
Sincerely,
Barb Thornburg
Mark Thornburg
Go to the LAST BIT:
NCDA President Fred Ritter’s Ray Introduction Speech
c-d-miller@neb.rr.com
