Marisela Sager Named Music Alumnus of the Year
Award-winning alumna is assistant principal flutist with the Cleveland Orchestra
Marisela Sager, a 1999 graduate of the School of Music and Dance, has been named Music Alumnus of the Year for 2009.
Sager's award became official on Sunday, May 17, at the school's annual Honors Convocation beginning at 3 p.m. in Smith Recital Hall. The convocation was an occasion to recognize outstanding undergraduate and graduate students, notable community arts advocates, donors and friends.
Sager is assistant principal flutist with the Cleveland Orchestra. Previously, she held the same position with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and also served as rotating principal flutist with the New World Symphony in Miami Beach.
Faculty of the School of Music and Dance chose to honor Sager as an alumnus "whose accomplishments reflect individual distinction in the profession and a record of service and/or leadership in the arts.”
Active as a soloist and chamber musician, her career includes many noted performances with artists such as flutist Paula Robison, violinist Cho-Liang Lin, renowned pipa player Wu-Man, and Academy Award winning composer, Tan Dun. Sager has appeared as soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra, the New Mexico Symphony, the New World Symphony, and the San Diego State Symphony Orchestra.She graduated magna cum laude with distinction in the Major.
She was also featured in repeated performances with Summerfest La Jolla in California where she performed in a broadcast on National Public Radio’s "Performance Today." Additionally, she is a member of the wind quintet CO5 made up of members of the Cleveland Orchestra. Recently they were invited by the US Embassy in Serbia to play and teach in Belgrade.
Other honorees recognized included: Russ Sperling, director of Visual and Performing Arts for the Sweetwater Union High School District and site director for the California Music Project operating out of SDSU. Sperling is also an alum of SDSU, having received his master's of music in performance (’03) in with an emphasis in conducting.
Additionally, the dance honoree is Kathryn Irey, lecturer in dance, who provides the San Diego Unified School District with professional development for its dance specialists.
