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MC’s Bill Swann presents virtual faculty recital

April 23, 2021

Photo of Dr. Bill Swann

Dr. Bill Swann, Maryville College professor of music, is presenting a virtual faculty recital during the spring 2021 semester. The recital, titled “Silver Linings,” premiered April 23 and is available to view on on YouTube.

Two guest musicians accompanied Swann (piano, electric piano and synthesizer) for the virtual recital: Harry Smith (guitar) and Will Yager ’08 (contrabass). The program for the recital includes several of Swann’s original compositions, including “In the Company of Cygnets,” “Waltz for Mom,” “Finest (For Donald Brown)” and “When Love Is Real.” “Scarlett,” “Sigmund” and “Vaughn” were composed specifically by Swann for this recital. “Londonderry Air” and Scarborough Fair,” arranged by Swann, also are on the program.

“Because COVID-19 made it impossible to get musicians together on campus for a recital, I had to rethink my entire program,” Swann said. “I called upon two friends who live in distant cities to assist me. So, the ‘silver lining’ was that what seemed like a limitation at first turned out to allow me to work with friends I might not have been able to play with otherwise.”

Swann, a pianist and composer, has taught at Maryville College since 2000. He has been the pianist for the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra since 1999. Through the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra, he has worked with many notable jazz musicians, including Sherman Irby, Regina Carter, Daphnis Prieto and Bill Frisell.

Smith is a producer, guitarist, engineer, arranger and songwriter in Nashville. He has toured as guitarist with Martina McBride, Clay Walker and Angeleena Presley, among others, and he owns and runs a successful recording studio.

Yager earned a bachelor of arts degree in music from Maryville College. He also has a master of music in bass performance from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, and he recently completed a doctor of musical arts degree from the University of Iowa. He performs regularly in several new-music ensembles, including the Ligament Duo.

Maryville College is a nationally-ranked institution of higher learning and one of America’s oldest colleges. For more than 200 years we’ve educated students to be giving citizens and gifted leaders, to study everything, so that they are prepared for anything — to address any problem, engage with any audience and launch successful careers right away. Located in Maryville, Tennessee, between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the city of Knoxville, Maryville College offers nearly 1,200  students from around the world both the beauty of a rural setting and the advantages of an urban center, as well as more than 60 majors, seven pre-professional programs and career preparation from their first day on campus to their last. Today, our 10,000 alumni are living life strong of mind and brave of heart and are prepared, in the words of our Presbyterian founder, to “do good on the largest possible scale.”