Joseph Gascho is a cardiologist, Professor of Humanities and Medicine, at the Penn State Milton S Hershey College of Medicine. He is a photographer and poet. He has several permanent photography displays on exhibit at Penn State Hershey Medical Center and his photography and poetry have been published in numerous venues. Dr. Gascho is a Karuko (number game) addict; visiting London is a passion.

Each year at 草莓社区, dozens of expert scientists visit campus to share their insights. Some focus on their cutting-edge research and work in the field, and some share perspectives on social reform and sustainability in the context of science. See more at:

Highlights include musical performances, sporting events to spectate or participate in, departmental breakfasts and intellectual events, and the traditional community seasonal dinner on Saturday night followed by a Sunday worship service. Reunions for classes in the years ending 鈥�0鈥� and 鈥�5鈥� will also take place.

The dedication of East will be at 10 a.m. with tours offered at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

is encouraged by midnight, Oct. 6. Some events require purchase of a ticket. Visit the

Concerts and lectures

Cardiologist Joseph Gascho 鈥�68 will followed by student musical ensemble Emulate on Friday night. He鈥檒l also present a Suter Science Seminar on Saturday morning.

Saturday morning also includes several breakfasts and lectures, hosted by (Bible and religion),, , departments, and the .

The Reunion Vocal Band, a traditional favorite, performs at 7 p.m. in Lehman Auditorium.

Class Reunions: Years ending in 鈥�0鈥� and 鈥�5鈥�

The opening reunion program in Lehman Auditorium is Saturday from 11-11:30 a.m. at Lehman Auditorium after which classes with gather for photos, reunions, and lunch. View the photo gallery of past reunions.

The Jubilee Alumni reception, during which the class of 1965 will be inducted, is Saturday afternoon at Martin Chapel.

Athletics events

The annual Paul R. Yoder, Sr. Golf Classic, named in honor of the late Paul R. Yoder Sr., a longtime Mennonite pastor and avid EMU sports fan, will be Friday at Heritage Oaks Golf Course in Harrisonburg.

New this year, the 2-mile Canvas Campus Run starts at 2 p.m. at the fountain. Pre-register for a t-shirt. Enjoy music on the front lawn and snacks and water after the first mile.

The induction will take place in the morning. Wendy Driver Rhodes 鈥�05 qualified for the NCAA national meet four times as a triple jumper, and also won four ODAC titles.聽 She broke six records at Eastern Mennonite, and also set the ODAC record in the outdoor triple jump at the 2005 ODAC Championships.聽A decade later, her mark of 37鈥� 7.75鈥� still stands as the ODAC Championship record.

The 1998 men鈥檚 soccer team, one of just four teams inducted into the hall, will be honored.聽 That year the team won their second ODAC Championship in three years, but also earned the program鈥檚 first NCAA National Tournament bid.聽 The Royals beat Emory College to advance to the Sweet 16 of the tourney, before losing to regional host Greensboro College.

Three games will be played on the Turf Field Saturday: field hockey vs. Washington and Lee, 1 p.m.; men鈥檚 soccer vs. Randolph, 4 p.m.; and women鈥檚 soccer vs. Washington and Lee, 7 p.m.

Worship services

Two services bookend the weekend. A Homecoming chapel assembly will be at 10 a.m. in Lehman Auditorium. 鈥�05, Outstanding Young Alum recipient, will be the guest speaker.

A Sunday worship service, also at Lehman Auditorium at 10 a.m., will offer celebration in song and scripture. Histand, as well as Alumnus of the Year 鈥�68, and Lifetime of Distinguished Service recipient 鈥�54, will be recognized and will participate in this service.

Joseph Gascho notices these patterns in his work as a cardiologist at Penn State University鈥檚 Milton S. Hershey (Pa.) Medical Center. He also notices them in his , weaving the two fields together seamlessly.

鈥淭here is a medical term called diastole,鈥� Gascho said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the phase of a heart cycle when the heart relaxes and blood is coming in. It鈥檚 a metaphor for me of what we take in, and it鈥檚 really important what we take in, because that then determines what goes out.鈥�

Two of Gascho鈥檚 primary outlets include poetry and photography, including a photo collection he titled 鈥淒iastole.鈥� Other works include the photo series 鈥淔lowers,鈥� 鈥淟eaves,鈥� and 鈥淪ky,鈥� as well as a collection of echocardiogram-inspired poetry titled 鈥淓cho Poems鈥� and a 2014 .

Gascho will share from his work at two events during 草莓社区鈥檚 Oct. 9-10. The first will be a gallery showing and poetry recital at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, followed by musical guests in the University Commons鈥� Common Grounds coffeehouse. The second will be a more medically oriented presentation at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 10, in Science Center 106.

‘Ears and eyes open’

In both presentations, Gascho will share how he tries to open people to new perspectives.

鈥淭o me, seeing is a really, really big thing,鈥� Gascho says. 鈥淥ne of my favorite biblical passages is the Emmaus Road story, where the disciples鈥� eyes are opened with the breaking of bread. As a physician, I try to have my ears and my eyes open not just for physical signs or for abnormal sounds from the stethoscope but also trying to take in something about the patient, what makes the patient tick.

鈥淪o what I hope for in my art is that people would see things in different ways鈥攖o see a patient differently or understand something about themselves, about medicine, healing, et cetera, in a different way. When we see things in a different way, it鈥檚 kind of an 鈥榓-ha鈥� moment, an epiphany, and we can do things differently. We tend to make the most changes when we have those moments. That鈥檚 what I hope a photograph or a poem can be.鈥�

One of Gascho鈥檚 projects鈥攐n permanent display at Hershey鈥攊s titled 鈥淧atient Portraits,鈥� a series of 50 patient photographs that contain abbreviated, cryptic notes about the patients鈥� medical conditions but also show their humanity. Most of them are long-time patients, and Gascho says they have been glad to assist.

鈥淣inety-five percent are delighted to have their pictures taken,鈥� he says. 鈥淢y point is to show they are more than just patients; they鈥檙e people, as well.鈥�

Promoting a holistic approach to medicine

Gascho says that ethos is embedded in the work of Hershey Medical Center. While he is a professor of medicine and teaches about cardiology, he also teaches in the humanities and tries to introduce students to other aspects of medicine鈥攖he 鈥渘on-scientific but important side.鈥� He says that balance is a 鈥渞eal strength鈥� of Hershey, which was one of the first schools to advance that holistic approach.

Eastern Mennonite also provided some of the foundation for Gascho鈥檚 work. He graduated from Eastern Mennonite High School (EMHS) and later spent his senior year of college in Harrisonburg following two years as a conscientious objector at Lankenau Hospital just outside of Philadelphia, where he took classes while serving as a medical research 鈥済uinea pig.鈥�

He mentions chemistry professor emeritus Glenn Kauffman as a particular influence, someone who knew and taught science well but also built his own harpsichord and appreciated music and art. Gascho鈥檚 parents, Alvin and Irene, also worked at EMU. His father, a former pastor, became a maintenance worker so his son could attend EMHS.

Gascho says he will likely share poems about his father during the Homecoming Weekend visit, along with medicine-themed poems, some of his 鈥淓cho Poems,鈥� and more鈥攅xpect 鈥渁 variety of things,鈥� he says.

Of various reasons musicians give for returning each year to the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival on the 草莓社区 campus, one seems to tug hardest at the heartstrings – a sense of “community.”

Some are drawn because they “thoroughly enjoy the creativity of the programs” assembled by the festival’s artistic director and conductor, Kenneth Nafziger. Dr. Nafziger, professor of music at EMU, is considered a foremost authority on the music of prolific German composer Johann Sebastian Bach. Others cite the “family feel” that flows through the week’s activities.

Philip Stoltzfus has attended every Bach Festival since its inception in 1992 and has played violin in the orchestra for 10 of those 12 years.

Stoltzfus, an assistant professor of religion at St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn., said, “This event fosters a sense of community among participants – it makes you want to come back. The material is fresh and challenges both the players and audiences.

“With only a few days to rehearse, the music isn’t beaten to death,” he said. “The intense practices help us develop a certain higher level of musicality, and I enjoy hearing Bach juxtaposed with other composers’ musical styles.”

Stoltzfus especially enjoyed playing in Dvorak’s ‘Symphony No. 8,’ which he said “showcases the strings and brass – it’s what orchestra playing is all about.”

(L. to r.): Paul Whelan, bass; Kenneth Gayle, tenor; Carrie Stevens, mezzo soprano; and Madeline Bender, soprano, were featured soloists for Mozart’s “Requiem in D Minor” performed June 18 at the 12th annual Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival.
Photo by Jim Bishop

This year’s program went “Bach to Basics,” with the timeless, majestic works of the prolific German composer (1685-1750) featured prominently throughout the June 13-20 program.

Nafziger acknowledged that while there are numerous programs worldwide that recognize Bach’s musical genius, the festival each year at EMU is but “another way to show appropriate homage to a composer whose music has become fundamental to the entire world.”

The festival opened June 13 with Bach’s “Concerto for Two Pianos in C Major and Strings,” with Carolyn and Stephen W. Sachs as pianists. The program included Antonin Dvorak’s “Serenade in E Major for String Orchestra,” preludes from Bach’s “The Well-Tempered Clavier” and a musical variation on Bach featuring pianist Jeremy Wall, best known as one of the creators of the 1980’s jazz-fusion group, Spyro Gyra.

Two EMU graduates returned to their alma mater to share their artistic gifts as featured soloists at the festival.

Madeline Bender, a 1993 alumna, was soprano soloist for Mozart’s magnificent “Requiem in D Minor,” performed June 18 with the festival choir and orchestra. She also sang Bach’s “Cantata No. 51” as part of a second festival concert and selections by Cole Porter and George Gershwin during a noon program.

Ms. Bender, who went on to graduate from Manhattan School of Music, is a full-time, free-lance musician who performs primarily operatic roles around the world.

“It was a wonderful, almost surreal feeling to come back to EMU, to be surrounded by family and friends while doing this Bach Festival,” she said. “It was also interesting to see it [the festival] through the eyes of my friend Paul (Whelan),” who was bass soloist in Mozart’s “Requiem.”

Bender, who plans to go to Luxembourg for a performance before taking a summer break, hopes to “keep going the direction I’m going” with her music, which may include some additional training to hone her craft.

Joseph Gascho, a 1995 EMU graduate, joined with colleague Elena Tsai to perform works on harpsichord by Bach, Handel and Scarlatti with the festival orchestra.

Gascho went on to earn a degree from the Peabody Conservatory and is currently pursuing a doctorate at the University of Maryland, where he also teaches basso continuo.

He “happened” to encounter Ken Nafziger en route to a music performance in North Carolina, and Nafziger later invited him to take part in this year’s Bach program.

Gascho, like Bender, said he was “excited” to play in the festival and to reunite with friends on campus.

Noon concerts Monday through Saturday, a popular aspect of the weeklong program, moved this year to the sanctuary of Asbury United Methodist Church in downtown Harrisonburg.

The daily programs of shorter pieces offered by various festival musicians “filled the church sanctuary, some days to overflowing,” according to Beth K. Aracena, acting head of EMU’s music department and festival coordinator. “It was certainly one indicator of enthusiastic response to this year’s program,” she said.

“Attendance greatly increased overall this year,” Dr. Aracena noted, “especially for the June 18 concert which featured the Mozart ‘Requiem.'”

A third festival concert June 19 featured Bach’s “Concerto in C Minor for Two Harpsichords and Strings,” featuring Joe Gascho and Elena Tsai; Bach’s “Concerto in A minor for Violin and Strings” with Joan Griffing of EMU’s music department as soloist; and Anton Dvorak’s soaring, joyful “Symphony No. 8 in G Major.” At the close of that performance, the orchestra received a sustained, standing ovation.

Again this year, a festival high point for many attendees was the Leipzig service, Sunday morning, June 20, a recreation of an 18th century worship service at St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Leipzig, Germany, where Bach was cantor and composed a cantata for each week

The Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival is going Bach to basics, with the timeless music of the prolific German composer at the center of the programming.

This year’s festival, June 13-20, will celebrate its twelfth season at EMU. Reviewers have called the annual event “the jewel in Harrisonburg’s crown.”

According to artistic director and conductor Kenneth J. Nafziger, Johann Sebastian Bach has festivals all around the world named in his honor. So why hold one every summer in Harrisonburg?

“I suspect that there are so many Bach festivals because he is recognized as fundamental to the entire world of music since his death in 1750. Doing a festival is one way of paying appropriate homage to his genius,” Dr. Nafziger said.

“Bach, unlike a lot of other famous-name composers, has touched the music of many cultures and many styles. One of my favorite Bach concerto performances was by a bluegrass band. Jazz has been crossing over into Bach for a good while now. There is African Bach, there is Japanese Bach, there is Brazilian Bach – it’s universal.

“For me personally, the music of Bach is the most complete musical expression I know,” Nafziger stated. “All music touches various parts of us – intellect, emotion, spirit, beauty. His works are as complete as anything ever is in the world of music.”

Many music lovers agree with Nafziger. The festival audiences have included people from up and down the East coast and as far away as Oregon. Some have been life-long fans of classical music. Others have never before attended a concert. There are a variety of ages and cultural backgrounds and all feel welcome.

Kenneth J. Nafziger directs the Bach Festival orchestra.

William and Frances Berry drive from Connecticut to EMU each year for the festival. While there are music festivals closer to their home, they feel like the one at EMU offers “something different” that brings them back year after year.

“We are presented with masterful, loving performances of great music made more meaningful because we have come to know and admire the musicians,” the couple said. “There is no fourth wall between audience and performer. We go to the rehearsals. We chat with players and singers. We have followed careers of young musicians as they have returned time and again. We almost feel that we are part of this place.

“We know that Bach was essentially a church musician. We also know that he was a devoted Christian churchman. Nafziger’s interpretations of Bach’s cantatas, motets, masses, passions, etc. have been memorable. We have felt the Eternal Presence in this great body of sacred music each year. This music is our accompaniment on the journey of faith,” the Berrys stated.

The Berrys aren’t the only ones who “come home” to EMU for the festival. This year, EMU alumni Madeline Bender, soprano, and Joseph Gascho, harpsichordist, are two of the featured soloists. Once students devoted to hours of practicing in the music department, they return to campus as accomplished professionals to share their gifts with the community.

Madeline Bender

Ms. Bender earned a degree from the Manhattan School of Music Opera Theater. She is a winner of the 1995 Amadeus Fund Grant, the Judith Raskin Memorial Award from the Santa Fe Opera Apprenticeship program, and was a 1996 finalist in the George London Competition, and the 1996 recipient of Manhattan School of Music’s Richard F. Gold Career Award Grant and master of music degree. After an apprenticeship with the Santa Fe Opera, Bender’s career has taken her all over the world to perform major operatic roles.

Joseph Gascho

Gascho’s recent accomplishments include first prize in the Jurow International Harpsichord Competition and a grant award for solo performance by the Maryland State Arts Council. He earned his masters degree from the Peabody Conservatory and is currently pursuing his doctorate at the University of Maryland. He will be performing Bach’s “Concerto for Two Harpsichords in C Minor” with colleague Elena Tsai.

The Bach festival orchestra is made up of professional players from throughout Virginia and around the country who return year after year.

The choir is made up of singers primarily from the local area. Others come from many places in the eastern half of the United States because they enjoy singing, and because the choral experience is a strong one.

Highlights of this year’s festival will include:

* Jeremy Wall, founding member of the jazz fusion group “Spyro Gyra,” who will perform his Worldbeat Bach arrangement in the opening concert on Sunday, June 13.

* Mozart’s “Requiem” will be performed during Festival Concert I on Friday, June 18 with orchestra, choir, Madeline Bender, soprano; Carrie Stevens, alto; Kenneth Gayle, tenor; and Paul Whelan, bass.

* Saturday’s Festival Concert II features two Bach concertos and Dvorak’s “Symphony No. 8 in G Major.”

* The Leipzig Service on Sunday, June 20, is an annual favorite to conclude the week of music. The service, modeled after the ones at St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Bach’s time, will include a Bach cantata (with chorus, orchestra and soloists), hymns, organist Marvin Mills, and a homily given by Christian Early, assistant professor of philosophy and theology at EMU.

* Noon concerts presented throughout the week at Asbury United Methodist Church, downtown Harrisonburg, offer a chance for everyone to sample chamber music presented by the festival musicians.

More information on the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival is available at www.emu.edu/bach. Advance tickets for the concerts are available from the EMU box office, 540-432-4582.