Faculty Artist Series Features Clarinetist Mark Gallagher and Pianist Jay DeWire in Free Recital at Frostburg State University

Faculty Artist Series Features Clarinetist Mark Gallagher and Pianist Jay DeWire in Free Recital at Frostburg State University

Nov 9, 2026 11:00 AM

Frostburg State University's Department of Music, Theatre and Dance presents the next installment of its Faculty Artist Series with a recital by clarinetist Mark Gallagher and pianist Jay DeWire on Monday, Nov. 30, at 7:30 p.m. in the Pealer Recital Hall of FSU's Woodward D. Pealer Performing Arts Center.

The performance is free and open to the public. It will also be livestreamed; viewers can access the stream via the link at www.frostburg.edu. Audiences are invited to enjoy this evening of chamber and solo clarinet music in the Pealer Recital Hall or online.

The program showcases a range of repertoire for clarinet, from Baroque transcriptions to 20th-century works, including both accompanied and unaccompanied selections.

The evening opens with Paul Hindemith's "Sonata for Clarinet and Piano" (1939). Hindemith (1895-1963) composed the work in just eight days in September 1939 while in Bluche, Switzerland. The sonata exemplifies his characteristic tonal harmony, rejection of atonality and serialism, and expressive counterpoint between the clarinet and piano.

Gallagher will then perform Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber's "Passacaglia in G Minor" (arranged by Gallagher for solo clarinet). Originally the final, standalone movement from Biber's (1644-1704) Rosary Sonatas (also known as the Mystery Sonatas) of 1676 and sometimes called "The Guardian Angel," the piece was written for unaccompanied solo violin. It is built on a simple, repeating four-note descending ground bass (B♭-A-G-F♯) that loops throughout, echoing a traditional hymn to the Guardian Angel. It stands as one of the earliest independent solo violin works of its kind.

Next is Willson Osborne's "Rhapsody for Solo Clarinet". Written in 1952 by the American composer (a student of Hindemith at Yale University) and originally conceived as a Study for Bassoon, the work was designed so it could also be performed on the clarinet. The clarinet version has become a staple of the unaccompanied woodwind repertoire. The piece employs an abstract style that incorporates short song-like fragments developed through variation techniques.

The recital concludes with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Sonata No. 24 in F Major for Clarinet and Piano, K. 376" (arranged by Gallagher). Composed in Vienna in 1781 for violin and piano, this sonata belongs to a set of six works (K. 296 and K. 377-380) dedicated to Mozart's pupil Josepha Barbara Auernhammer.

Gallagher holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has performed with ensembles including the United States Navy Band, Milwaukee Symphony, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, and New York City Ballet Orchestra, and made his New York recital debut at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall. A winner of the Artist International Competition, he is an active chamber musician and co-founder of I Venti Semplice who has performed across the United States, Europe, and China. Gallagher teaches clarinet and music theory at Frostburg State University.

DeWire has performed across the United States as a soloist, collaborator and member of the West Shore Trio, including solo appearances with the Prince George's Philharmonic and performances of Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time. He holds degrees from the University of Virginia, New England Conservatory and the University of Maryland, and teaches piano and music history at Frostburg State University.