Category Archives: Music

Creative Class of 2015: John Willis

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JQW 2015John Willis is a throwback to the era of singer-songwriters who did not focus on genre, but instead letting the mood and theme of quality songs lead them to the appropriate style.

His new single “Enough” is available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/johnwillis2

After the success of his solo EP “King of the Cocktail Party” he and Late Romantics, his relatively new band have a new EP, “Bad Boyfriend.”  Willis spent his early musical years as a classically trained pianist playing private parties and backing several successful performing artists around Little Rock, including Cody Belew and Bonnie Montgomery.

With his release, King of the Cocktail Party EP, Willis stepped into his own light as a front man with an intoxicating blend of piano-based pop, jazz, and parlor music that has elicited comparisons to Harry Nilsson, Leon Russell, Rufus Wainwright, and Feist.  As a composer and performer, he has been featured on AETN and the UALR Songwriter Showcase.

Raised on a steady diet of old-time gospel sung in his father’s church, Motown and early ’70s singer/songwriters beloved by his mother, and Chopin, Debussy, and Gershwin tapes given to him by an elderly mentor, Willis has grown up to create a sophisticated musical style that is both instantly familiar and at the same time fresh.

Willis is actively promoting his new release locally and planning a tour in the coming months with his band. Though he still delights cocktail party audiences as one of Little Rock’s favorite piano guys, he is enjoying the success and sharing his stylish mix of piano grooves and heartfelt ballads with lush, vocal harmonies liberally dosed throughout. These well-crafted songs are as much a nod to the past as they are a well-placed note hovering on the musical horizon.

Dracula Unearthed at Wildwood Park

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Dracula unearthedThursday, Friday and Saturday at Wildwood Park for the Arts, Arkansas Festival Ballet and Praeclara collaborate to tell a new Dracula story in song, dance, and dramatic narrative! Dracula’s servants help him rise from the grave, expecting him to resume his evil works — but instead, he becomes entangled in the life of his daughter, Wilhelmina, who does not realize what her father is. But how long can the count deny his own nature? And what will happen when Wilhelmina comes to truly know her father … and realizes what she herself may be?

This show is appropriate for adults and teens. Its story is told through the interaction of choreography and dramatic masterworks by Bach, Mozart, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Bartok, and more. Coffins, fog, and strobe lights will occasionally be used to set the mood on stage.

The Wildwood gates open at 6:30 p.m. for guests to enjoy a bit of life in the village of Bran before Dracula’s castle (thetheatre) opens for seating at 7:45. Enjoy the “Dead Ringers” handbell concert — take your picture with Dracula and his coffin — sample garlic-based hors d’oeuvres and bat-themed sweets!

Performances begin at 8pm.  Tickets are available at the Wildwood website.

Creative Class of 2015: Frank Thurmond

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thurmond_frankFrank Thurmond is a writer-musician-actor-filmmaker-teacher. He is, in short, a multi-hyphenate!

Thurmond was born in Paragould and grew up in Crossett and Little Rock, where he attended Hall High School.  He studied English and music as a Donaghey Scholar at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and pursued graduate degrees at Southern Methodist University and Oxford University. Thurmond is a Visiting Assistant Professor of English at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and has been a visiting writer in residence at Lyon College in Batesville.

 
Most recently, he released Ring of Five: A Novella and Four Stories.  Thurmond’s first book was a memoir entitled Before I Sleep: A Memoir of Travel and Reconciliation, which recounts his adult experience of meeting his previously unknown birth father.  He is a member of the bands ODYSSEY and JET420 and can often be found playing at local stages.
The film The Dealer’s Tale, which he wrote and produced (and is directed by Justin Nickels) will screen as an Official Selection at the Indie Memphis film festival on Friday, November 6th.  When it screened at the El Dorado Film Festival, Thurmond was awarded the Best Screenplay Award at the El Dorado Film Festival.
           
He has been featured at both the Arkansas Literary Festival and the Little Rock Film Festival.  Previously, Thurmond’s writing has appeared in various publications, including the International Herald Tribune; The Best of Tales from the South, Volume 6; Toad Suck Review; and in William Safire’s language book, No Uncertain Terms.

Tonight’s Local Live at South on Main showcases Sounds So Good

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llsom ssgTonight at 7:30 PM, the weekly Oxford American Local Live concert series features Sounds So Good!

Local Live showcases the best of local and regional music talent and is always free and open to the public. Call ahead to South on Main to make your reservations and ensure a table: (501) 244-9660.

 

Pianist Curtis JJ Adams began playing in the metro Little Rock area in 1966 with his Latin / Eastern style jazz group, the Jamaica Jive Trio, whose style was heavily influenced by the Rochester, New York jazz scene of that era. Adams started the jazz group Sounds So Good in 2013, and with its east coast flavor, yet decidedly down-home feel, SSG is quickly becoming a local favorite.

The group is rounded out by saxophonist Timothy Woods, a 2011 graduate of the University of Arkansas at Monticello who was awarded the Outstanding Soloist award at the Elmhurst Jazz Festival in Elmhurst, IL in both Big Band and combo divisions, and vocalist Tamisha “Sonnie” Cheatham, who has performed in opera and musical theatre productions and the jazz ensemble at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

250 year old Gagliano violin celebrated at tonight’s ASO River Rhapsodies

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drew asoThe Arkansas Symphony Orchestra will showcase Concertmaster Andrew Irvin’s 250 year old Gagliano violin on October 27 as part of the ASO’s 2015-2016 River Rhapsodies Chamber Music series at 7 PM. The program features Mr. Irvin and his exceptional violin in various ensemble settings in the beautiful Great Hall of the Clinton Presidential Center, performing music spanning the quarter-century life of the instrument.

The program includes:

  • Mozart – Sonata for Violin and Piano
  • Shostakovich – String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 122

A cash bar is open at 6 PM and at intermission, and patrons are invited to carry their drinks into the hall. The media sponsor for the River Rhapsodies Chamber Series is KUAR/KLRE.

General admission tickets are $23; active duty military and student tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.ArkansasSymphony.org, at the Clinton Presidential Center box office beginning 60 minutes prior to the concert, or by phone at 501-666-1761, ext. 100

“Great instruments require skilled musician hands to come alive — yet in these hands, they become personified beings that dwell in a realm unshackled from the bonds of time — and in so doing, connect musicians across centuries through the uniquely profound relationship that musicians have with their instruments.  Mr. Irvin’s violin is a direct connection to musical history.  Its previous masters’ preferences are infused in is tone, their gaffes inscribed upon its body, and its surface is a story of centuries of perspiration and effort in service to art. Musicians are merely the caretakers, or curators, of these instruments for a short human lifespan, and this program is a celebration of not only an instrument’s anniversary, but of all the musicians since 1765 who have made it possible.” – Philip Mann, music director

About the violin

The violin was made by Nicolo Gagliano in approximately 1765 (Gagliano marked his violins by decade only, so the exact date is unknown) in Naples, Italy. Headed by Alessandro Gagliano, the Neapolitan school of violin makers is considered to be among the pinnacles of high quality musical artisanship. Alessandro’s son, Nicolo, is possibly the greatest of the Gagliano luthiers. His legacy began with his four sons employed in his workshop and lasted well into the 20th Century, ending when the firm of Vincenzo Gagliano and Sons closed in 1925.

Before 1820 violins had shorter necks set up for gut strings, which have lower tension than modern steel strings. Composers like Beethoven demanded higher pitches and more sound, which drove changes to violin constructions. Violins were refitted with a longer neck for an increased range and the body was reinforced to handle the increased tension of more resonant steel strings.

Michael Purcell of Philadelphia maintains the violin, and Mr. Irvin returns to his shop twice a year for maintenance.

Creative Class of 2015: Stephanie S. Streett

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StreettStephanie S. Streett is the executive director of the Clinton Foundation. In this role she oversees the day-to-day operations of the Clinton Presidential Center, including the development and implementation of its educational programs, special events, exhibits, and services as well as staff management. She establishes and cultivates strategic partnerships and cooperative arrangements with state and local governments, the non-profit and private sector, community groups and other organizations. Stephanie also serves as the corporate secretary for the Clinton Foundation Board of Directors.

Stephanie has used her position to broaden culture in Little Rock through the wide variety of exhibits which the Clinton Center has hosted. A wide variety of styles of visual arts, design, contemporary craft, sports, science and history have been showcased in exhibits at the Clinton Center.  She also was instrumental in planning the special events in conjunction with the Clinton Center 10th Anniversary in 2014.  In addition, she has been active in promoting partnerships with the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Together with Kaki Hockersmith, she has facilitated several seminars which have brought key Kennedy Center leaders to Little Rock.

She is the president of the University of Arkansas Alumni Association National Board of Directors and is co-chair of the Board of Directors for City Year Little Rock. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Downtown Partnership of Little Rock and is a member of the International Women’s Forum Arkansas.

This afternoon at Wildwood Park, the Vienna Boys Choir

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The world renowned Vienna Boys Choir comes to Wildwood for an unforgettable afternoon of music and culture.

On Sunday, October 25th, the newly refurbished Lucy Lockett Cabe Festival Theatre will reopen with the angelic voices of the Vienna Boys Choir. This group of 25 boys tour around the world with a repertoire that spans the classics of Mozart and Schubert to contemporary hits.

Reserved seats are $35 and VIP seats are $75.
VIP Reception begins at 2 pm
Performance at 3 pm

The Vienna Boys Choir was originally founded in the 15th century to perform in the royal court of the Austrian Empire. Today there are around 100 choristers between the ages of ten and fourteen, divided into four touring choirs. The four choirs give around 300 concerts and performances each year in front of almost half a million people. Each group spends nine to eleven weeks of the school year on tour. They visit virtually all European countries, and they are frequent guests in Asia, Australia and the Americas.