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12 April 2023 | Story André Damons | Photo Stephen Collett
Prof Francis Petersen with Dr Maye Musk
Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State (UFS), and Dr Maye Musk, recipient of an honorary doctorate in Dietetics, after the graduation ceremony.

Programme: Honorary Doctorate Conferral Ceremony

Dr Maye Musk, one of this year’s recipients of an honorary doctorate from the University of the Free State (UFS), says being conferred this honorary degree is the best thing that could have happened to her. She was conferred an honorary doctorate in Dietetics on Wednesday (12 April) on the Bloemfontein Campus.

Dr Musk, who – in her acceptance remarks – gave the audience a brief overview of her life and how she ended up obtaining a master’s degree at the UFS, said that she had many happy memories of Bloemfontein and the university and that her experiences in the city also helped her when she moved to Canada and the USA.

Unexpected

“This was so unexpected. Thank you very much for this honour. My children are very proud of me. This is the best thing that has ever happened to me. It has been wonderful experiences in Bloemfontein and at Kovsies, everybody was great. Thank you,” said Dr Musk.

Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS, said honorary doctorates are bestowed upon individuals in recognition of their outstanding contribution to a particular field or society. It is based on generous and altruistic actions or lifetime accomplishments that benefit a community, nation, or humanity in general; Dr Musk meets these criteria and is a worthy recipient of a University of the Free State honorary doctorate.

Worthy recipient of a UFS honorary doctorate

In his congratulatory message to Dr Musk, Prof Petersen said that as an alumna of the UFS, Dr Musk is already a valued part of the university community.

“It is indeed a great honour for me to congratulate a very worthy recipient of a UFS honorary doctorate. A woman who has made her mark with grace and poise across the globe in the vital field of nutrition and dietetics, and whose passionate contribution to her profession will continue to reverberate wherever her popular publication is prescribed, studied, and its principles applied.”

“Dr Musk, today we participate in what you have achieved in the field of nutrition, healthy living, and wellness. May this gesture of recognition inspire you to keep on being successful and making an impact wherever you go. And may you always remember that you are part of our UFS community – and our family – here in the Free State.”

Prof Petersen said the UFS’ relationship with its alumni is one of university’s most cherished assets.  The university acknowledges the fact that the relationship between a university and its alumni is a very special, and in essence, a symbiotic one: your success is our success, and vice versa.

Passion for nutrition and empowerment

Dr Musk is an international best-selling author, dietitian, model, and public speaker. Her book, A woman makes a plan, is available in 100 countries and published in 30 languages. She has run her own nutrition business in eight cities and three countries for more than 45 years. Her company offered professional services in counselling, speaking, consulting, writing, and media work. In addition to her skills, Dr Musk’s leadership traits pivoted her into being the first Representative of the Consulting Dietitians of South Africa, President of the Consulting Dietitians of Canada, and Chair of the Nutrition Entrepreneurs, Academy of Dietetics and Nutrition.

Paving the way for many to follow in her footsteps, Dr Musk was the first dietitian to run a website, and the only dietitian to take the registration exams in three countries. Her passion for nutrition and empowerment has seen her speak at events around the world, including Melbourne, Stockholm, Kiev, Budapest, Cannes, Beirut, and most of the major cities in the USA, Canada, and South Africa. She also won the Outstanding Nutrition Entrepreneur Award in the USA.

Luncheon celebrating 40th anniversary of UFS Department of Nutrition and Dietetics

After the graduation ceremony, a luncheon took place to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the UFS Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, which was established in 1983. Dr Musk was the guest of honour at the event, which was attended by staff and students from the department, alumni, university friends of Dr Musk, and dietitians on the training platform in Bloemfontein.

 

 

News Archive

Alexander Ramm Cello Recital with Pieter Jacobs (piano)
2016-04-15

Description: Ramm Tags: Ramm

Alexander Ramm

“Ramm plays with enormous musical authority. Unlike many young instrumentalists, he is not intimidated by the reflective or the elegiac; nor is he nervous about the length of pauses, or the creation of inter-phrase silence. He has a phenomenal technique and he demonstrated it to full effect in this captivating performance.” (Cape Times)

Alexander Ramm belongs to the new generation of cellists recognised for his appealing artistic creativity and unprecedented technical skills. Alexander started his musical education at the age of seven at the Glier music school (Kaliningrad) with Svetlana Ivanova. Her extremely serious attitude to music studies and pedagogical talent revealed the rare musical capabilities of this young cellist.

After moving to Moscow at the age of ten, he was accepted to the class of Maria Zhuravleva at the Chopin Moscow College of Music Performance. From 2007, he continued his professional education at the Moscow Conservatory in the class of the renowned musician and the People’s Artist of the USSR, Natalia Shakhovskaya, an outstanding performer and pedagogue who taught most prominent Russian cellists. Since 2012, he has become a postgraduate student at the Hanns-Eisler Hochschule fur Musik under the guidance of the famous cellist, Frans Helmerson.

From the age of nine, when he made his debut as a soloist with the Kaliningrad Chamber Orchestra, Alexander brilliantly performs with solo programmes and as a soloist with leading orchestras in Russia and worldwide.

He is prizewinner at several international competitions:
1st prize: 4th Moscow Competition for young cellists (2003)
1st prize: 1st Cambridge International Boston Competition (Massachusetts, 2005)
Grand-Prix: Moscow Festival of Romantic Music (Moscow, 2006)
4th prize: 5th UNISA International String Competition (South Africa, 2010)
1st prize: 3rd Beijing International Music Competition (Beijing 2010)
1st prize: 1st All-Russia Music Competition (Russia, 2010)
Prizewinner: Janigro Cello Competition (Croatia, 2012)
Prizewinners: Swedish Duo Competition with duo partner Anna Odintsova (2012)
3rd prize: Paulo Cello Competition (2013) – becoming the first Russian prizewinner in the history of this prestigious contest
2nd prize: XV International Tchaikovsky Competition (2015)

Alexander participated in masterclass festivals at Courchevel Academy and Holland Music Sessions, where he took lessons from the famous musicians such as F. Muller, R. Latzko, M. Kliegel and U. Wiesel. In 2011, he took part in the well-known Verbier festival, where he studied with H. Hoffmann, F. Helmerson, M. Suzuki, L. Power and F. Radosh. At the end of the festival, he was awarded the Neva Foundation top-level prize for gifted students.

Alexander cooperates with such outstanding conductors as V. Gergiev, V. Spivakov, A. Levin, K. Orbelyan, V. Polyansky, S. Kochanovsky, M. Fedotov, A. Slutsky, A. Sladkovsky.

He will be accompanied by Pieter Jacobs, a graduate of the University of Pretoria, who then furthered his studies at Yale in the United States, where he pursued his performing career with considerable success as a soloist and chamber musician in Boston, Cambridge and New Haven before returning to South Africa to perform and teach at the University of Pretoria. Pieter is regarded as one of SA’s foremost pianists and chamber musicians.

Programme:

Grieg: Cello Sonata, Op. 36 in A minor (1883)
Barber: Cello Sonata, Op. 6 in C minor (1932)
Prokofiev: Cello Sonata, Op. 119 (1949)
Piazzolla: Le Grand Tango for cello and piano

Date: 22 April 2016
Time: 19:30
Venue: Odeion
Costs: R130 (adults), R90 (pensioners), R70 (UFS staff members), R50 (students and learners), R50 (group booking of 10+). Tickets available at Computicket.

More information: Ninette Pretorius +27(0)51 401 2504.

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