One year. 53 Sessions. Thanks for coming along for the ride! From poetry readings and ballet dance pieces to original songs and soul-gripping covers, we have highlighted so much talent within the Bucknell community. Thank you students, faculty, staff and alums! We hope the videos gave you a source of inspiration and hope throughout the pandemic. View the full YouTube playlist here. This week’s Session will be our last one and it’s a wonderful way to end the series. Please enjoy Lewisburg-based Juliana Brafa and her original piece, “Song for Egypt.” Juliana Brafa is a 2005 Bucknell alum whose passion […]

We’ve reached one year of Weis Center Sessions! We hope you have enjoyed the performances each week. Next week will be our last Session, as our staff begins to focus fully on our NEW SEASON OF IN-PERSON PERFORMANCES! Yay! This Session features Lewisburg-area jazz trio Nine Degrees of Syncopation and the piece, “For Sephora.” The ensemble includes: Joe DeCristopher on guitar, a 1970 Bucknell alum, Bill Flack on electric fretless bass, currently chair of the Psychology Department and Carl Kirby on guitar, professor in the Geology and Environmental Geosciences Department. The band name is a play on words, but for […]

Welcome to Weis Center Sessions #51! Today, we’re featuring two stellar Bucknell University students, Morgan Thomas ’23 on vocals and Adam Baranik ’23 on piano performing “Je Vole” (“I Fly”) in the style of Louane. Adam Baranik is a sophomore chemistry major and music minor. He participates in the Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, and Bison Band. Morgan Thomas is a sophomore double majoring in biochemistry and cellular biology &French & francophone studies. Morgan is an accomplished musician who has played the flute since 4th grade and has played in the Symphonic Band and Pep Band (Bison Band). She has also independently provided vocal […]

We are approaching the one-year mark for Weis Center Sessions! We hope the series has been a source of joy and inspiration. Today, we present two Bucknell students – vocalist Elena Roe ’24 and pianist Jaden Lee ’22 – as they perform the lovely Gershwin song, “Someone to Watch Over Me.” The piece was composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. Elena Roe ’24 plans to double major in International Relations and Russian Studies.  She is a Presidential Fellow, Secretary of her a-cappella group Beyond Unison, a Senator for the Class of 2024, and an opinions writer for […]

Happy Friday! This week’s Session features Qing Jiang (pianist) as she plays the third and final movement of composer Daniel Temkin’s piece, Dreamed Landscapes, called “Echoes of the Horizon.” Praised by the New York Times as a “fiery musician” whose playing is “vigorous and passionate,” Chinese-born pianist Qing Jiang has performed to acclaim across the United States and abroad, including Alice Tully Hall, Weill Hall, as well as the UK’s Snape Maltings Hall, and China’s Shenzhen Poly Theater. Jiang is currently Assistant Professor of Music at Bucknell University, and Piano Faculty at the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival in Maine. […]

Welcome to Weis Center Sessions #48! This week we’re featuring two Bucknell students – Adam Baranik ’23 on alto saxophone and Katherine Idleman ’22 on horns as they perform a jazzy tune called “Mario’s Accounting.” Adam Baranik is a sophomore chemistry major and music minor. He participates in the Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, and Bison Band. Adam says, “We came across this piece in December of 2020 through Instagram. It was written and recorded by a tenor player from New York, Augie Bello, who currently has over 80,000 followers on Instagram. Katherine found a trumpet transcription of the melody from a […]

Welcome to our 47th installment of Weis Center Sessions. We end National Poetry Month with a reading by Andrew Ciotola, program manager at the Stadler Center for Poetry & Literary Arts. Andrew is also the managing/book review editor for West Branch, Bucknell’s professional literary journal. Andrew has served on panels devoted to literary editing and arts administration for the Association for Writers & Writing Programs and the Community of Literary Magazines & Presses, and on grant panels for the Pennsylvania and New Jersey state arts agencies. He recently completed a three-year term as co-chair of the Bucknell Arts Council. Andrew […]

Welcome to our 46th installment of Weis Center Sessions. Since April is National Poetry Month, we will be featuring poetry readings for the next few weeks. Today, we highlight Bucknell first-year student Joselyn Busato ’24 and her original poem, “Thaw.” Joselyn plans to double major in creative writing and biology. She is an Arts Merit Scholar, a Presidential Fellow, a member of the Creative Writing Club and a participant in several theatre activities. She says, “This poem, entitled Thaw, is representative of the shift one experiences when going from a toxic relationship with a friend or partner to a healthy […]

Welcome to our 45th installment of Weis Center Sessions. Since April is National Poetry Month, we will be featuring poetry readings for the next few weeks. Today, we highlight Bucknell student J.A. Holm ’22 and his poem “City Streets.” In the coming weeks, we will highlight Joselyn Busato and Andy Ciotola. J.A. Holm is a Junior who recently switched majors from Psychology to Creative Writing to pursue a career writing poetry or working in related industries. Only in the last few years has he begun to take poetry seriously and has since been published in Toho Journal Vol. 2, No. 1. He […]

In this Snap talk, Professor Christina Xydias (Political Science) discusses how we might build inclusive political communities in the United States and beyond, including social capital and empathy. Enjoy!