In Memory of…
A Musical Celebration of Chris Carducci and
Robert Samels
The college mourns the loss of Chris Carducci (’02) and Robert C. Samels (’02), who perished along with three other Indiana University music students on April 20 in a tragic plane crash in Indiana.
A memorial concert will be held on Sunday, August 27, to honor their memories and accomplishments.
Carducci graduated with a bachelor’s in music education in 2002. A student of Virginia Starr and Andreas Poulimenos, he was active in the opera program, appearing in numerous roles; won the undergraduate division of the Third Annual Dr. Marjorie Conrad Peatee Art Song Competition, and was a member of the Collegiate Chorale and University Men’s Chorus.
He continued his studies at Indiana University, where he studied with Timothy Noble in the master’s program. Carducci had recently appeared at Carnegie Hall, where he sang for The Marilyn Horne Foundation’s THE SONG CONTINUES…2005. Last year, he created the title role of Pontius Pilate in Pilatus, a new opera by Samels. He had worked with Toledo Opera as a resident artist, Carmel Bach Festival and Michigan Opera Works. Carducci was scheduled to be an apprentice with the Central City Opera this summer and also perform the title role in Mozart’s Don Giovanni at IU this coming year.
Samels entered BGSU as a freshman in 2000 with over 60 hours of college credit, and completed three degrees in two years with majors in composition, music history and voice. He appeared in many opera productions, performing as Falstaff in The Merry Wives of Windsor, Don Alfonso in Cosi fan tutti and Judge Turpin in the BGSU theatre production of Sweeney Todd. He was also a member of the New Music Ensemble and the Collegiate Chorale.
After graduating from BGSU, he entered the graduate vocal performance program at Indiana University and was currently a doctoral student in choral conducting.
As a composer, he wrote over 35 works. His piece Juggernaut was featured at the 23rd Annual New Music & Art Festival, as the composition division winner of the 2001/02 Competitions in Music Performance. As a conductor, he led instrumental and choral ensembles in a wide variety of repertoire, including many of his own compositions. In September 2005, he conducted the premiere of his opera Pilatus.
Samels had recently appeared as Mr. Gibbs in the world premiere of Our Town by Ned Rorem and major roles in the collegiate premieres of William Bolcom’s A View from the Bridge, as well as El Nino by John Adams. He frequently performed oratorio repertoire as well.
An announcer, as well as host and producer of Cantabile with public radio station WFIU, he taught as an associate instructor in the IU music theory department.
Samels would have performed three roles this summer at the Wolf Trap Opera Company, including Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro, Friar Laurence in Roméo et Juliette and Pluto in Telemann’s Orpheus.