University Carillonist

Jon Lehrer

Jon Lehrer began his carillon studies in 2000 at Yale University and graduated with great distinction from the Belgian Royal Carillon School in 2008. He is a laureate of five international competitions for carillon performance, most notably the 2008 Queen Fabiola International Carillon Competition where he was also awarded the SABAM prize for the best interpretation of Flemish carillon music. He is also the winner of the 2010 International Carillon competition of the Dutch Carillon Guild and the highest-ranked competitor in the 2011 International Alexius Julien Competition for Baroque music.

Jon is an active member of the Guild of Carillonneurs of North America and has been a frequent guest artist and advancement examination judge at the annual North American Carillon Congresses. He is on faculty at the North American Carillon School and has performed numerous concert tours both domestically and internationally, including as an official representative of Canada via the Canada Council for the Arts (Jon is a proud dual citizen). In addition to more traditional carillon performances, he has also spent a year performing the Cast in Bronze theatrical carillon show on a traveling carillon at Renaissance festivals across the US.
 

Assistant Carillonists

Laurie Harkema, assistant carillonist, has a B.A. in Music Education from Calvin University and an M.M. in Piano Performance from Michigan State University. She taught elementary school music in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and in the Okemos, Michigan Public Schools for over 20 years. Harkema has served as a church musician in California, New Mexico, and as Director of the Adult Choir and Organist/Pianist at River Terrace Church in East Lansing. She began studying the carillon in 2016 with Ray McLellan, a former University Carillonneur and is a member of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America. In 2019 Harkema studied with Matthieu Polak at the Netherlands Carillon School in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Currently, she studies with Jon Lehrer.

Sally Harwood, assistant carillonist, began her carillon study in 1996 as the first student of Margo Halsted at the newly refurbished Beaumont Tower Carillon and studied with Ray McLellan after his appointment by MSU in 1997. Harwood was admitted to full carillonneur membership in the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America in 2000 after successfully completing the required advancement recital. In 2008, Harwood retired from 21 years of service as an Associate General Counsel at Michigan State University. For the academic year 2010-2011 she studied at the Royal Carillon School ‘Jef Denyn’ in Mechelen, Belgium, earning her end diploma “with distinction.”
 

Past University Carillonists

Ray McLellan, carillonneur (1997–2021)
Ray McLellan was appointed in 1997 as the University Carillonneur at Michigan State University, where he taught and performed on the 49-bell Beaumont Tower Carillon. McLellan earned his BA degree at Florida Southern College in Lakeland, and his MM and DMA degrees from University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He also studied in Freiburg, Germany, and at the Netherlands Carillon School. In addition to his work at MSU, McLellan served as organist/music director at St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Monroe, and as organist/accompanist at Temple Beth Emeth in Ann Arbor. He performed carillon recitals in the USA, Canada, The Netherlands, France and Germany. McLellan was active in the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America and was also a member of the faculty of the North American Carillon School. For more on McLellan's distinguished career and a statement by the College of Music on his death in 2021, click here.

Margo Halsted, carillonneur (1996–1997)
Margo Halsted, a noted carillonist, is an active recitalist, teacher, speaker, jurist, musicologist, and consultant, who has performed concerts in all countries with an active carillon tradition. Several of her students have passed the examination to become full carillonneur members of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America. Particularly interested in historic carillon music, she has published articles and a book on eighteenth- and nineteenth-century carillon manuscripts from Belgium. She has been a featured recitalist or speaker for four World Carillon Federation meetings. In addition to degrees from Stanford University and the University of California, Riverside, Halsted holds a diploma from the Netherlands Carillon School.

William Vajda, carillonneur (1985–1987)
William Vajda served as the carillonneur for MSU from 1985-1987. Vajda earned a B.A. in Music Composition in 1984 from the University of Michigan, where he studied carillon performance with William De Turk. The MSU carillon was in need of repair and renovation, but Vajda played as much as he could, in light of the instrument’s various problems. He always managed to play at least the Fight Song before home football games and short recitals at other times. Vajda’s teaching duties were suspended because of the condition of the instrument. In his second year at MSU especially, much of Vajda’s time was spent reviewing proposals for carillon renovation work. He left his position when funding for improvements to the carillon didn’t materialize.

Wendell Westcott, carillonneur (1941–1987)
Wendell J. Westcott, an instructor of piano at the School of Music and an accomplished organist, was assigned to play the Beaumont Tower carillon in 1941 and served as its carillonneur for more than four decades.  He performed frequent recitals at Beaumont Tower and elsewhere in the United States and other countries, as well as playing on football Saturdays and for special events.  During a sabbatical year (1956-1957), Westcott attended the Carillon School in Mechelen, Belgium, and was the first in the Carillon School’s history to receive his diploma with the highest honors it bestowed. Westcott arranged music of all styles for playing on the carillon and composed original carillon music.  Westcott encouraged the enhancement of the MSC carillon and oversaw its development in stages, until by 1959 it had grown from a 23-bell basic instrument to a 48-bell concert carillon. Westcott was the organizer and director of the Spartan Bell Ringers, a handbell group featuring MSU students. For more on Westcott's distinguished career and a statement by the College of Music on his death in 2010, click here. 

Russell Daubert, carillonneur (1929–1941)
Russell (“Jake”) Daubert was an MSC swimming coach who, as an unpaid volunteer, was the first bell player at Beaumont Tower.  The MSC Board Secretary (then responsible for Beaumont Tower) asked Daubert to be responsible for playing, after Daubert informed him of having had carillon training at Bok Tower in Florida. With only ten bells and a standing bell-chime mechanism, however, he would have been limited to playing melodies with a few harmony notes.  Daubert was a strong advocate for the development of the chime into a carillon, and he soon succeeded in having three bells added (by pointing out that ten notes were not sufficient to play the College’s alma mater). By 1935 he had inspired further expansion to the 23 bells necessary to constitute a full carillon, along with a new two-octave carillon keyboard.  Daubert played regularly, for weekly recitals, for special occasions, and for athletic events, arranged music, and gave carillon lessons to selected MSC seniors.  In 1941 the Board Secretary transferred responsibility for the carillon, by then considered a musical instrument, to the School of Music, which turned to its own faculty to fulfill performance and teaching responsibilities.