Category Archives: Music

FountainFest at the Arkansas Arts Center

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The Arkansas Arts Center’s Contemporaries auxiliary group is calling on all Arkansans to find their inner artist and share what most inspires them in preparation for this year’s Fountain Fest. This year’s fundraiser will be held today, Thursday, October 22, from 5:30-8:00 p.m. around the Carrie Remmel Dickinson Fountain at the Arkansas Arts Center.

“Over the past two years, Fountain Fest has expanded both in attendance and impact, and it is thrilling to see this group of young art enthusiasts grow with it,” said Kelly Imhoff, AAC Contemporaries president. “Ticket sales support the Arkansas Arts Center Contemporaries’ efforts to expand the AAC Collection by funding the purchase of a work of art from the Collectors Show & Sale in November, and donating it to the Arkansas Arts Center’s permanent collection.”

There are several additions to this year’s Fountain Fest including a sculpture competition and purse raffle. There has also been a design competition for a temporary installation in the fountain.  Tod Switch, Eric Spann, Brian Felland, Mike Brown, John Steward and Hunter Brown are the finalists. The winner will receive $1,000 courtesy of the Markham Group and his/her work will not be revealed until the night of Fountain Fest.

Also new this year is a raffle for a Louis Vuitton purse valued at over $1200. Raffle tickets may be purchased in advance or at the event for $10. The winner does not have to be present to win.

The 3rd Annual Fountain Fest will also feature music by DJ Mike Poe, food from David’s Burgers, desserts from Cupcakes on Kavanaugh, drinks provided by Lost 40 and Stone’s Throw Brewing and live printmaking demonstrations by Neal and Tammy Harrington.

Tickets for the event are $40 and can be purchased in advance at ArkansasArtsCenter.org/fountain-fest or at the event. Sponsors of the 3rd Annual Fountain Fest include: CenterPoint Energy, the Markham Group, Stone Ward and Donna and Mack McLarty.

For more information visit ArkansasArtsCenter.org/fountain-fest.

Local Live tonight at South on Main features Opera in the Rock

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OperaInTheRock_logo-singleskylineTonight at 7:30 PM, join the Oxford American magazine for this week’s Local Live concert at South on Main.  This week, the series features a return of Opera in the Rock!

As always, Local Live is free and open to the public. To guarantee a table/seat for this popular series, call ahead at (501) 244-9660.

Join Opera in The Rock at South on Main for mid-week of “October Opera Days” with five great Opera In The Rock  artists.  In a program titled “Opera in a Bar” arranged by OITR Artistic Director, Arlene Biebesheimer, these artists will sing opera standards with some musical theater thrown in to keep you entertained. The OITR ensemble for Local Live includes Stephanie Smittle, LaSheena Gordon, Claire Wilkinson, Chase Burns, Micheal Lowe with Kristin Harwell at the piano.

Still on the Hill in concert at Historic Arkansas Museum

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HAMstillonthehillHistoric Arkansas Museum will host award-winning story-telling songwriters, Kelly Mulhollan and Donna Henschell Stjerna of Still on the Hill for a concert in the museum theater!  The concert is from 6pm to 7pm, doors open at 5:30pm.  It is free for museum members; $5 for non-members as space allows.

Kelly and Donna of Still on the Hill embellish their songs with a host of unique instruments—many of which were hand-made by old-timers and have amazing stories behind them.

Still on the Hill has been described as “Ambassadors of the Ozarks” for the work they do to preserve a rich culture that is quickly disappearing. They have produced several full-length albums, many of which will be available in the Museum Store. Their most recent album,Once A River (2014), is the culmination of a year spent researching stories about the people and places along the Beaver Lake watershed.

Historic Arkansas Museum is an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.

Creative Class of 2015: Geoffrey Robson

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geoffreyrobsonGeoffrey Robson has been the Associate Conductor of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra since 2008, and the Music Director of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra Youth Ensembles since 2012.  In the latter capacity, he has collaborated with the Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre and Ballet Arkansas’ Preparatory Program.

He also performs as a violinist, frequently appearing in the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s popular River Rhapsodies chamber series, performing with principal members of the ASO. He has also performed with The Wildflowers and other music acts in Central Arkansas.  As a conductor, works with guest artists such as Midori, the Beach Boys, Vadym Kholodenko, Rachel Barton Pine, Lawrence Hamilton, Timothy Jones, Henrietta Davis, Christiane Noll, and Calvin Lee. In addition, Robson writes and produces “At the Symphony, a concert preview radio series on KLRE Classical 90.5.

He completed his M.M. at Yale University in 2004, studying violin performance with Erick Friedman. In Connecticut, he served as co-concertmaster of the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, and assistant concertmaster of the Waterbury Symphony. Robson also worked as a public schoolteacher in New Haven, CT, and has taught violin, piano, viola, and music theory extensively as a private instructor.

Robson studied orchestral conducting at the Mannes College of Music in New York City under the tutelage of David Hayes. He has twice attended the London Conducting Workshop, an annual course at the Royal College of Music in London, and the International Conducting Festival and Workshop in Zlin, Czech Republic. Robson graduated from the honors college at Michigan State University in 2002, where he studied violin performance with Dmitri Berlinsky and I-fu Wang, and conducting with Leon Gregorian.

Nominate an Arkansas Living Treasure for Arts Council recognition

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AACDAH Living TreasWhat do a potter, a wood sculptor, a basket maker, an egg artist, a stained glass artist, a fiddle maker, a log cabin maker, a handmade wooden plane maker, a chair maker, a quilt maker, and a bladesmith have in common?

They are all past recipients of our Arkansas Living Treasure award.

The Arkansas Arts Council is currently searching for a new artist to take his or her reign as the 2016 Arkansas Living Treasure. They are seeking an Arkansas artist who excels in the creation of a traditional craft and who actively preserves and advances his or her craft through community outreach and educating others.

Nominations are due Friday, November 6. ‪#‎AuthenticArkansas‬‪#‎SupportCraftArt‬ ‪#‎ArkansasArts‬
http://www.arkansasarts.org/…/Arkansas-Living-Treasure…/home

Now in its 14th year, the Arkansas Living Treasure program annually recognizes an Arkansas artist who excels in the creation of a traditional craft and who actively preserves and advances his or her craft through community outreach and educating others.

An independent panel of practicing craft artists and professionals in the fields of craft and folk art selects the recipient based on the following criteria: quality of work, community outreach and total contribution to the field of traditional crafts. The awardee is honored at a ceremony in May during Arkansas Heritage Month.

In 2013, the Arkansas Arts Council and Historic Arkansas Museum collaborated to produce a series of short films that celebrate the lives and work of each Arkansas Living Treasure recipient. Click HERE to view the documentaries featured in the Arkansas Living Treasure Film Project.

Dvorak Symphony No. 8 featured at this weekend’s ASO concerts

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aso parnasThe Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Philip Mann, Music Director and Conductor, presents the second concert of the Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks Series: Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8, 7:30 PM Saturday, October 17 and 3:00 PM Sunday, October 18, 2015. Under the baton of guest conductor Imre Palló, the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra will perform Kodály’s Dances of Galánta  , Haydn’s Concerto for Cello in C Major – featuring up-and-comer Cicely Parnas – and Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8 in G Minor. The Masterworks Series is sponsored by the Stella Boyle Smith Trust.

Concert Conversations – All concert ticket holders are invited to a pre-concert lecture an hour before each Masterworks concert. These talks feature insights from the Maestro and guest artists, and feature musical examples to enrich the concert experience.

Tickets are $19, $35, $49, and $58; active duty military and student tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.ArkansasSymphony.org; at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center box office beginning 90 minutes prior to a concert; or by phone at 501-666-1761, ext. 100. All Arkansas students grades K-12 are admitted to Sunday’s matinee free of charge with the purchase of an adult ticket using the Entergy Kids’ Ticket, downloadable at the ASO website.

 Artists

Imre Palló, conductor

Cicely Parnas, cello

Program

Kodály                  Dances of Galánta

Haydn                   Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major

Dvořák                  Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88

Program Notes:

Guest conductor Imre Palló brings a personal connection to this program: composer Zoltan Kodály was his godfather was involved in his early music education. As a mentor of ASO Music Director Philip Mann, Palló continues a long musical tradition of generational knowledge. Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8 appears on this program at the personal request of Maestro Palló, and is built on the folk-flavored Romantic compositional foundations established by Smetana. Of particular interest is the theme and variations of the finale, a musical form not often found in symphonic finales – though notably featured in the matching section of Beethoven’s ‘Eroica.’

 

About Arkansas Symphony Orchestra

The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra celebrates its 50th season in 2015-2016, under the leadership of Music Director Philip Mann. ASO is the resident orchestra of Robinson Center Music Hall, and performs more than sixty concerts each year for more than 165,000 people through its Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks Series, ACXIOM Pops LIVE! Series, River Rhapsodies Chamber Music Series, and numerous concerts performed around the state of Arkansas, in addition to serving central Arkansas through numerous community outreach programs and bringing live symphonic music education to over 26,000 school children and over 200 schools.

Creative Class of 2015: Erin Martinez

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erin54Moving with ease from a portraying a frustrated actress to an earthy Italian strumpet, Erin Martinez has had a memorable 2015 on Little Rock stages. Along the way, this singer/musician, actor, and music teacher has performed cabaret at various Little Rock night spots as well.

​During her childhood she spent many hours singing, composing, or teaching herself to play various instruments. She has been actively involved in performing in orchestra, band, jazz band, and theatre arts well into her adulthood.

In addition to appearing earlier this year in The Studio Theatre productions of The Last 5 Years and Nine, ​Erin has acted in theatrical productions (sometimes even in shows without numbers in the title) with several Central Arkansas companies such as The Weekend Theater, The Royal Players, The Community Theater of Little Rock. She made her NYC debut in November 2013 at 54 Below with Broadway composer Jason Robert Brown.

​Erin received a Bachelor of Music Performance, Bachelor of Music Education, and a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish from The University of Central Arkansas. She enjoys a career teaching elementary music to children ages 4-12 and is very passionate about the importance of fine arts education.