Sigma Alpha Iota

sai-national.org • Spring 2023 27 NATIONAL ARTS ASSOCIATE a man or woman who is nationally recognized for distinguished contribution to the arts A. ERIC HEUKESHOVEN A. Eric Heukeshoven was initiated as a National Arts Associate by the Kappa Sigma Chapter at Saint Mary's University (SMU) of Minnesota in March. Professor and composer A. Eric Heukeshoven, a member of the SAI Composers Bureau, is a first generation American son of a German immigrant father and Scandinavian mother. Heukeshoven holds a B.A. in Music Composition and Theory from the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis and an M.S. in Music Technology from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. As Assistant Professor of Music at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota for over 35 years, Heukeshoven directs the Music Industry and Jazz Studies programs. His teaching duties include composition, arranging, low brass, organ, and jazz piano. He also serves as director of the SMU Brass Ensemble. In the fall of 2012 Heukeshoven's Centennial Suite was presented as part of a yearlong celebration of the 100th anniversary of Saint Mary's University. The three-movement work for concert band and choir was commissioned by the school and is a collaborative project with Saint Mary's colleague Dr. Patrick M. O'Shea. Recent commissions include Just Believe, Heukeshoven's eighth commissioned work for the La Crosse (Wisconsin) Chamber Chorale's "Words to Music" program (AP-10303) and The Chief, a collaboration with Winona (Minnesota) poet laureate James Armstrong for the Duisigh Ensemble. Preghiera Semplice for SATB choir (AP-10278) was commissioned by the Saint Mary's University Chamber Singers. The work, based on an Italian translation of The Prayer of St. Francis received its premiere performances in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican and also at the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi during the ensembles 2011 international tour. The composition was also selected as one of three winners of the first annual Choral Competition at Morningside College. Many of Heukeshoven's compositions are performed throughout the U.S. and in Europe and he is in demand as a jazz musician as well as a composer/arranger. He has played with a wide variety of musicians regionally, nationally, and internationally, including guitarist Charlie Byrd, multi-instrumentalist Marc Bernstein, trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis, and legendary saxophonist Dave Liebman. Heukeshoven has been featured twice as a soloist at the Great River Jazz Festival's "Pianorama" as well as worked as a pianist for the celebrated Guy Lombardo's Royal Canadians. For 15 years, he performed nationally with the Historic Winona Steam Calliope and still performs with renowned Minnesota Music Hall of Fame trumpeter Les Fields. Eric and his two sons also perform regularly as the H3O Jazz Trio. Every third weekend of the month Eric and his two sons perform in their Jazz band H3O at a local brewery, to raise money for a non-profit organization in the Winona community. He is also a member of the American Composers Forum, American Guild of Organists, ASCAP, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. DR. WILLIAM PLUMMER Dr. William Plummer was initiated as a National Arts Associate by the Iota Omicron Chapter at The University of Louisiana (UL) at Lafayette in February. Dr. Plummer is Associate Professor and Director of Choral Activities at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he conducts the UL Lafayette Chamber Singers, the Ragin' Cajun Soprano/Alto Choir, and the UL Lafayette Tenor/Bass Chorale. He also teaches advanced choral conducting, choral literature, and graduate level courses for the choral conducting degree. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Piano from Berea College, his Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Louisville, as well as his Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting from Louisiana State University. Some of Dr. Plummer's conducting teachers have included Dr. Kenneth Fulton, Dr. Kent Hatteberg, and Dr. Stephen Bolster. He also studied at the Kodály Institute in Kecskemét, Hungary with Péter Erdei. Before coming to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2012, Dr. Plummer was a graduate teaching assistant at Louisiana State University. He was an instructor at the University of Louisville and also at Bellarmine University. He taught courses from studio lessons in piano to music appreciation and music theory. At the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Dr. Plummer has grown the choral program from a mere 30 students to three renowned choirs. In the past few years, the UL Lafayette Chamber Singers choir has taken home many international awards and has won a choral grand prix. Dr. Plummer has also taught 20th-century music history and choral conducting in Salzburg, Austria. His commissions and world premieres include new works by internationally acclaimed composers from Sweden (Fredrik Sixten), Portugal (Carlos Garcia), Iceland (Snorri Sigfús Birgisson), England (Colin Old), and the US (Richard Burchard). The UL Chamber Singers rose to international acclaim, winning the International choir Festival Wales with the highest score of any choir and attaining the Gold Award in 2021. CARLA STICKLER Carla Stickler was initiated as a National Arts Associate by the Long Beach Alumnae Chapter in March. The Long Beach Alumnae Chapter was honored to initiate Carla Stickler as a National Arts Associate on March 11, 2023. She Distinguished Members

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