Chris Dickey, assistant professor, music, received the LGBTQIA2S+ Faculty/Staff Distinguished Achievement Award of 2023 from the WSU President’s Commission on Gender Identity/Expression and Sexual Orientation (GIESO), in partnership with the Student Financial Services office.
Keri McCarthy, professor, music, received the WSU Sahlin Eminent Faculty Award for 2022.
Vanessa Cozza, associate professor, English, WSU Tri-Cities; and Sophia Tegart, associate professor, music, received the WSU President’s Distinguished Teaching Award for Career-Track Faculty for 2022.
Dahn Pham, associate professor, music, received the WSU Innovation and Entrepreneurship Award for 2022.
Danh Pham, associate professor, music, director of WSU Bands, and conductor of the WSU Symphony Orchestra, was elected to the American Bandmasters Association.
Greg Yasinitsky, emeritus professor, music, released two versions of his new holiday song, “It’s Santa!,” on Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube, Amazon, Deezer, and other platforms. One version features emeritus faculty Yasinitsky on saxophone, Horace Alexander Young as vocalist, and David Jarvis on drums, along with current music faculty A.J. Miller and Sarah Miller on trombones, and alumnus David Larsen on saxophone.
Yoon Wha “Yuna” Roh, assistant professor, career track, music, won Grand Prize in the London International Music Competition.
WSU Jazz Big Band, led by Greg Yasinitsky, Regents professor, music, won DownBeat magazine’s 2022 Graduate College Large Jazz Ensemble Award recognizing the quality of the band’s asynchronous virtual recordings included on the group’s latest CD, “Jazz During Lockdown.”
Gregory Yasinitsky, Regents professor, and Danh Pham, associate professor, music, premiered Yasinitsky’s composition “On the Air,” commissioned by Northwest Public Broadcasting to celebrate the broadcaster’s 100th anniversary and performed by the WSU Symphony Orchestra with Pham conducting. Yasinitsky also orchestrated themes from “On the Air” for solo piano and WSU faculty and student ensembles recorded them in the WSU Recording Studio.
In addition, the McCall (Idaho) SummerFest Orchestra commissioned Yasinitsky to compose a new work to celebrate the festival’s 10th anniversary; it is set to premiere in July.
Gregory Yasinitsky, Regents professor, music, participated in the premiere of his commissioned composition “Sioux Center Shuffle” in Sioux Center, Iowa. He wrote the work especially for the Sioux Center High School Jazz Band. While there, Yasinitsky presented clinics and performed in concert as a guest artist with the Sioux Center ensemble.
Yasinitsky also performed recently as a guest artist at the Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. The program included Yasinitsky’s compositions “Flatten That Curve” and “Best of Friends.”
Yasinitsky recently also served as guest artist and commissioned composer at the Peaks Jazz Festival in Highland, Utah. The program included Yasinitsky’s new composition “Original Ray.”
In addition, Yasinitsky signed an agreement with iJazz Publications to internationally release several of his compositions, including: “Best of Friends,” “Lone Stars,” “Conspiracy Theory,” and “Flatten That Curve.”