Macalester College
February 2016 ~ Events Calendar
Wed., Feb. 3
Inaugural Lecture of Karen Saxe as DeWitt Wallace Professor of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science
Professor Saxe’s talk is titled, “Mathematics and Social Justice.” Shejoined the Macalester faculty in 1991 and has served as chair of the Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science Department. Sheteaches calculus, real analysis and interdisciplinary courses on game theory and mathematics in politics. Saxe was awarded the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) North Central Section’s Distinguished Teaching Award and the Macalester College Excellence in Teaching Award. She is a vice president of the MAA (2014–2016) and editor of the MAA’s Anneli Lax New Mathematical Library. In Minnesota, Saxe has consulted with city governments and served as a resource on redistricting as well as on the Minnesota Citizens Redistricting Commission. On her most recent sabbatical, she worked in Washington, D.C., for Minnesota Senator Al Franken, serving as the 2013–2014 Science and Technology Policy Congressional Fellow and was sponsored by the American Mathematical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
+ John B. Davis Lecture Hall, Ruth Stricker Dayton Campus Center, 1600 Grand Ave., St. Paul, Minn., 4:45 p.m., FREE, 651-696-6287.
Sun., Feb. 7
The Frederic Chopin Society presents pianist Dénes Várjon
Hungarian pianist Dénes Várjon is a sought-after recitalist and soloist throughout Europe and a regular guest at its major summer festivals. A deeply committed chamber musician, he frequently partners with many of the best-known names in the classical world and also appears with his wife Izabella Simon in four-hand and two-piano recitals. His numerous recordings have earned widespread acclaim. Várjon teaches at the Franz Liszt University of Music in Budapest and has served as guest professor at Bard College in the U.S. The Hungarian government has awarded him the Franz Liszt and Sándor Veress Prizes, two of its highest honors. Program includes works by Haydn, Schumann, Janácek and Chopin.
+ Mairs Concert Hall, Music Building Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center,130 Macalester Street, St. Paul, Minn., 3 p.m., tickets call 612-822-0123 or chopinsocietymn.org
Sat., Feb. 13
African Music Ensemble Concert
A collaboration between the Music and Theatre and Dance Departments, directed by associate professor Harry Waters Jr. and Sowah Mensah, featuring The Ancient Gathering Tree, with music by African Music Ensemble director Sowah Mensah and choreography byTheatre and Dance instructor Patricia Brown.
+ Mairs Concert Hall, Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center, 130 Macalester Street, St. Paul, Minn., 8 p.m.; FREE, 651-696-6808.
Wed., Feb. 24
Macalester New Music Series: ICE Ensemble
Three soloists from the acclaimed International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) perform a program that draws from classic recent works and ICE composer commissions. From the wispy, transparent flute in Errobi 1 by Ramon Lazkano to the clock-like interplay of piano and percussion in Harrison Birtwistle’s The Axe Manual, ICE presents a wide-ranging evening of expressive extremes and diverse contemporary styles. Members of the Macalester College Orchestra join for a performance of The Well and the Gentle by the meditative master composer Pauline Oliveros. Generously sponsored by the Rivendell Foundation and the Macalester Provost’s Office.
+ Mairs Concert Hall, Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center, 130 Macalester Street, St. Paul, Minn.,7:30p.m. FREE 651-696-6808.
Fri., Feb. 26
Orchestra Concerto Concert
Featuring student soloists and the Macalester Orchestra under the direction of Mark Mandarano.
+ Mairs Concert Hall, Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center, 130 Macalester Street, St. Paul, Minn., 8 p.m. FREE 651-696-6808.
Mon., Feb. 29
Thirty-fifth Annual G. Theodore Mitau Endowed Lecture with Prof. Ian F. Haney López: “Trumpeting Racism: Race, Politics, and Economic Jeopardy for All”
Donald Trump has seized the lead among Republican presidential candidates by attacking Mexican immigrants. Is this a temporary triumph of demagoguery that will surely fade? In this lecture titled“Trumpeting Racism: Race, Politics, and Economic Jeopardy for All,”Ian Haney López shows that, for all his bombast, Trump is following the basic script of conservatives in the United States for the last fifty years: use racial and other status anxieties to scare voters into supporting politicians who ultimately enact policies that benefit their plutocratic funders. Ian Haney López holds an endowed chair as the John H. Boalt Professor of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, where he teaches in the areas of race and constitutional law; he is also a Senior Fellow at Demos. His most recent book is Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented Racism and Wrecked the Middle Class.
+ John B. Davis Lecture Hall, Ruth Stryker Dayton Campus Center,1600 Grand Ave., St. Paul, Minn., 4:45 p.m., FREE, 651-696-6290.
