Two more chances for OH FREEDOM!

I may be bias, but the OH FREEDOM! performance at the Frazier International History Museum was truly inspiring last week. Our artists, Courtney Cleveland and Eric McKeever have really brought themselves into the work and made it their own.

There are two more opportunities to see this beautiful tribute to African American history. The Fund for the Arts is sponsoring two more happy hours at the Frazier Thursday, February 3 & 10 from 5 - 7pm.

Here is a clip from last week to whet your appetite. Courtney and Eric perform pieces from Porgy & Bess. (Eric just finished a national tour as Jake in Porgy & Bess for the PAB Theater Inc. and has performed the role for Dayton Opera and covered it with Virginia Opera.)

The singers will continue to perform the entire OH FREEDOM! program for schools through the middle of February.

Fund for the Arts Happy Hours

In the arts, we love a party.  We think sharing some music with a glass of wine is one of the best things in life.  The Fund for the Arts will be hosting such events at the Frazier International History Museum every Thursday starting tomorrow through February 10.

This is the second year the Fund has sponsored these Happy Hours to honor Black History Month. 
Kentucky Opera Studio Artists will perform excerpts from the school tour, OH FREEDOM!
Here is a short video that the Frazier posted from last year's event featuring last year's artists, Phillip Morgan and Erica Cochran.



We hope you will make it to the Fraizer for one of these festive Thursday celebrations!

Rave Reviews of Oh Freedom!

Don't miss the last public opportunity to see the OH FREEDOM concert live,  tonight (Thursday 2/11/10) the Frazier History Museum (9th & Main).  Come at 5pm and share a refreshment and experience a concert that has been met with outstanding success at 5:30pm.  The event is free and open to the public thanks to the generosity of The Fund for the Arts. 

Metro TV (insight channel 25) will air the concert in its entirety on Sunday March 7 at 9pm.  Classical 90.5 FM WUOL has the 2/10/10 concert from their performance studio available online now.  

The Studio Artists Program is sponsored by GE Appliances. 

School performances sponsored by Yum Brands and PNC Bank.

Phillip Morgan and Erica Cochran Zimmer perform "A Chorus of Hope" at the Celebrate Your Dream Concert 1/17/10.  Photo by Frankie Steele.

What the schools are saying: 

From Kristine Larson at Whitney Young Elementary:

I (and the kids) were enthralled! It was so wonderfully written, and an amazing retrospective of our American history all inside 45 minutes!
I didn't know how the Gullah culture had influenced Porgy and Bess- I knew about the fabulous talent of Paul Robeson so was intrigued to hear him mentioned;  all the details in the performance were so relevant to fifth grade topics, as well as what any informed American should know.
The performers were so talented and engaging, I loved how they answered the kids' questions so deftly and were able to do what we call "code switching" to meet the kids at their level of cognition (a talent not every adult has).  I have had lots of feedback from the kids, they loved the instruments that were featured and one child told me he loved the "call and response" (from Swing Low,,,,,)  Hats off to Kentucky Opera and its energetic and talented performers!  Fabulous! We are in your debt at Whitney Young.  Thanks for fitting us into your schedule!  As a long time season ticket holder to KY OPERA, I say "BRAVO!"

From Tammi Metcalf at Fort Knox military base:

I want you to know they were wonderful! I enjoyed it and so did the soldiers!

From Susan Johnston at Holy Spirit School:

Just to touch base and let you know how much I enjoyed the O Freedom performance. It went right along with what I am teaching and the performers were excellent. Thank you so much for this opportunity!!

From Julie Stith at Layne Elementary:

The performance was wonderful! I have heard many positive things from teachers and students about Oh Freedom!

From Gaylinn Mix-Foley at Ten Broeck Dupont:

40 students attended our performance here at The Brook Dupont.  The performance was incredible!  Definitely the best program we have seen this year by far!  The students were mesmerized, which, for the kids here at the hospital, is a small miracle!  Thank you so very much! 

From Tim King, Director of Performing Arts at JCPS commenting on Lincoln Elementary performance:

Your artists this morning did a fine job of presenting “Oh, Freedom!”  The artists were collegial and engaged our students from the outset.  The material was relevant and timely with Black History Month upon us.   The principal and teachers all commented on what a wonderful program it was.  Well, congratulations!  You have a winner on your hands.

From Mary Lasley at Hancock County Schools (middle and high school performances):

“Oh Freedom” performed here this morning and I have heard nothing but good things.  Please let the performers know that they did a beautiful job and we really appreciate all that you did in bringing this performance to our school.

From Eleanor Hawkins at Engelhard Elementary:

Students had a marvelous time today with the KY Opera Program!   They were making LOTS of connections to music, culture, social studies and reading.  Thank you!

From Paula Little, Supervisor of Instruction for the Clinton County School District:

I heard the performance went very well.  The G/T teacher said that many of the students were amazed.  Thanks again for working with us to set up this performance and the dress rehearsal this year.  They were both outstanding!

Post your own review by leaving a comment here.  

A CHORUS OF HOPE

Jazz Musician and composer Harry Pickens works with Kentucky Opera
Winter Studio Artists Phillip Morgan and Erica Cochran on his piece for the Oh
Freedom tour, "A Chorus Of Hope" which will premiere at the Celebrate your Dream
concert on Sunday.

Sometimes my job allows me to witness wonderful events - moments that deserve to be shared with the world as they are poignenet and important. Monday was one such moment.

The first rehearsal of the final work in the Oh Freedom tour was Monday morning. Local jazz hero and composer Harry Pickens worked with Kentucky Opera Winter Studio Artists, Erica Cochran and Phillip Morgan on the piece he created. "A Chorus of Hope" is inspired by the speaches of Barak Obama.


To watch Pickens infuse his passion for this work and the history that made this moment possible was inspiring.


On Sunday, January 17 at 4:30pm, "A Chorus of Hope" will make it's world premiere at St. Stephen Church (1006 South 15th Street) in the collaborative concert, Celebrate your Dream. The free performance will include performances by River City Drum Corps, Arts Reach musicians and dancers, the Louisville Central Community Center choir, Voices of Kentuckiana, members of the Louisville Youth Orchestra and Walden Theatre and Mayor Jerry Abramson will presnent the Freedom Award to retired Courier-Journal editor, Marvin Aubespin.

Oh Freedom! is an exploration of the African American experience through song starting with African folk songs, and ending with "A Chorus of Hope". Studio Artists will tour schools througout the Commonwealth in January and February.

The public is welcome to come to the Frazier International History Museum for the Fund For the Arts' happy hour on Thursday January 21 at 5pm where the full one-hour Oh Freedom! concert will be performed. (RSVP here).

Introducing Sébastien Guèze

Monday evening, Gill Holland hosted Kentucky Opera's Patrons' Circle party at the Green Building.

One of the highlights of the evening was the introduction of Sébastien Guèze who will make his U.S. premiere when he sings the role of Alfredo in Kentucky Opera's upcoming production of La Traviata. He charmed the crowd with his amazing voice and dashing good looks.

Here is a sample, as he sings "De' miei bollenti spiriti."

There are still select seats available for the Friday, September 25 Grand Gala opening of La Traviata but they are going fast. Call the Opera (our online forms are not working at the moment) 502-584-4500.


In attendance were arts leaders from the entire city including Robert Birman, CEO of the Louisville Orchestra; Jennifer Bielstein from Actors Theatre; Dwight Hutton and Bruce Simpson from the Louisville Ballet and Barbara Sexton Smith from the Fund for the Arts to name a few. We were also pleased with a number of season sponsors who were able to join us such as Edward O'Brien from Atlas Brown and Jim Allen from Hilliard Lyons. Kentucky Opera board member, Matt Hammel from Brown-Forman was able to stop in for a little bit as well.



It was a lovely evening, and there were more performances captured on video that I will post eventually. We must share this amazing talent!

Did you hear??

Already we are getting excited about the Brown-Forman 2009 Fall Season. Traviata is going to be spectacular with soprano Elizabeth Futral as Violetta. Some may remember Elizabeth from the first season of the Metropolitan Opera HD productions, the world premier of Tan Dun's The First Emperor starring along side of Placido Domingo. Her parents were in the audience at Tinsel Town that day, and were so proud.

Another exciting element of this season is the

risk free subscription

offer from the Fund for the Arts. If you buy a subscription and see Traviata and do not enjoy the experience, Allan Cowen will refund the entire price of your subscription. What have you got to lose?

Lyric Opera of Chicago's La Traviata photo by Dan Rest

The Wagnerian on Bomhard

During these tough financial times, every single arts organization in our city is making necessary and important decisions to keep its fiscal responsibilities intact without compromising its artistic integrity. Many patrons of the arts have already been heavily involved in making sure that this great city will continue to provide great art. Louisville is known in many surrounding states for its offerings and thus has become a destination for art lovers region-wide. As our respected critic, Andrew Adler, pointed out in his well constructed article in The Courier-Journal on Sunday, April 19 every organization is making strategic moves to consolidate, regroup and rise through the occasion.

As expected, the Fund for the Arts is a vital part of this process. They are always an integral piece in the development and the continuation of the arts that pulsate in our city. As a supporter of the arts I am delighted with their existence. As proclaimed on their web page their mission is to increase revenues for the arts and to enable our community to become the preeminent regional arts center in the United States. The Fund continues to provide financing, facilities and administrative support for twenty-nine area arts groups and programs. This week the 60th Anniversary edition of Bravo came out. The Fund for the Arts magazine has an article listing the 60 persons who have defined the arts in Louisville. Robert S. Whitney, Louisville Orchestra's first Music Director, is at the top of the list which is wonderful. The publication elaborates on the great support the arts in Louisville have appreciated for decades.

As an Opera lover I am always fighting with passion and enthusiasm to provide as much support as I can for this incredible art form, which combines theater, vocal and orchestral music, dance and visual art. That being said, an addition to the Fund for the Arts’ otherwise thorough and diverse list, I would add Moritz Von Bomhard, Kentucky Opera’s founder. For those of you that have forgotten who this great man was, here is a very quick history lesson.

Moritz von Bomhard (1908-1996) was born in Germany. Bomhard received a law degree from the University of Leipzig and a music degree from the Leipzig Conservatory of Music. He moved to the United States in 1935, continued his studies at Juilliard and became a music instructor at Princeton University, where he also directed its orchestra and glee clubs. He eventually settled in Louisville where he founded Kentucky Opera and taught at the University of Louisville. He is well known for his transcriptions, especially to melodies by Strauss. So there you have it…a great man, a great instructor, a great patron of the arts. He is the embodiment of someone who has given to this artistic community not only a respected Opera organization but an enormous legacy throughout these past decades. Moritz Von Bomhard should be recognized in every occasion as not only someone who brought Opera to this city but as someone who has touched many generations of Louisville residents with his artistic integrity and vision. Viva Voce! Viva Kentucky Opera! Viva Moritz von Bomhard.

posted by: Christos "The Wagnerian" Dimitriadis