Tag Archives: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra

The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra welcomes Tony and Grammy winner Heather Headley in one night only concert in October

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The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra presents An Evening with Heather Headley, a special concert featuring vocalist Heather Headley 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 5, 2019. The concert will feature Ms. Headley performing selections from Tony-winning musicals The Lion King and EAida, and other songs from Broadway’s most popular musicals, under the baton of conductor Ron Colvard.

Heather Headley was born and spent most of her childhood in Trinidad. In the 90’s, her family moved to the United States where her love for the arts flourished and grew into an incredible and multi-faceted career.

Headley is known for her GRAMMY Award for Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album, winning the prestigious Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her title role in Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida, and originating the role of Nala in Time Rice’s hit Tony-winning musical, The Lion King. Her stage and music career also includes GRAMMY Award nominations for Best New Artist and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, starring as Shug Avery in the Tony Award-winning The Color Purple, and for winning the coveted Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical. M

This special concert is only available to Arkansas Symphony Orchestra subscribers until single ticket sales are opened to the general public in August. Subscriptions are available by calling the ASO Box Office at 501-666-1761, ext. 1 or by visiting www.ArkansasSymphony.org/subscribe.

Mahler and Michael Fine mark Maestro Mann’s final MasterWorks for Arkansas Symphony Orchestra

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Photo by Tatiana Roitman Mann

The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Philip Mann, Music Director and Conductor, present the sixth and final concert of the 2018-2019 Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks season, Mahler: Symphony No. 5, on Saturday, April 13th and Sunday, April 14th at the Robinson Center.

Maestro Philip Mann, who has been named ASO’s Music Director Laureate, is celebrated in his hand-picked program for the occasion. The concert opens with a world premiere performance of GRAMMY-winning classical producer Michael Fine’s Concerto for Oboe Section. Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, which features a greatly expanded orchestra and is known for its emotional and timbral scope, closes the concert.

All concert ticket holders are also invited to Concert Conversations, a pre-concert talk one hour before each Masterworks concert in the Upper Tier Lobby of the Robinson Center. These talks feature insights from the Maestro and guest artists, and feature musical examples to enrich the concert experience.

Tickets are $16, $36, $57, and $68; active duty military and student tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.ArkansasSymphony.org; at the Robinson Center street-level 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 https://www.arkansassymphony.org/freekids.

 

Artists

Philip Mann, conductor

 

Program

FINE, Michael      Concerto for Oboe Section (WORLD PREMIERE)

Intermission

MAHLER              Symphony No. 5

Music from Steinmetz, Debussy, and Poulenc Presented by Arkansas Symphony Musicians at Clinton Center

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The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Philip Mann, Music Director and Conductor, presents the fifth concert of the 2018-2019 River Rhapsodies Chamber Music season with Debussy & Poulenc, Tuesday, Apr. 16th at 7:00 p.m. at the Clinton Presidential Center.

ASO musicians present Debussy’s Violin Sonata, Poulenc’s Sextet for Piano and Winds, and music from Steinmetz.

River Rhapsodies Chamber Music Concerts are held in the intimate setting of the Clinton Presidential Center’s Great Hall. A cash bar is open before the concert and at intermission, and patrons are invited to carry drinks into the concert. The Media Sponsor for the River Rhapsodies Chamber Music Series is UA Little Rock Public Radio.

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 beginning 60 minutes prior to a concert; or by phone at 501-666-1761, ext. 1.

Artists
Diane McVinney, flute
Leanna Renfro, oboe
Kelly Johnson, clarinet
Susan Bell León, bassoon
David Renfro, horn
Geoffrey Robson, violin
John Krebs, piano
Tatiana Roitman Mann, piano

Program

STEINMETZ – What’s Going On (Consortium Commission)
McVinney, L. Renfro, Johnson, León, D. Renfro

DEBUSSY – Violin Sonata
Robson, Krebs

POULENC – Sextet for Piano and Winds
McVinney, L. Renfro, Johnson, León, D. Renfro, Mann

Beethoven, Blue Jeans, Beer & Brats this weekend with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra

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Image result for beethoven blue jeansThe Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Philip Mann, Music Director and Conductor, present the fifth concert of the 2018-2019 Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks season, Beethoven & Blue Jeans, on Saturday, April 13th and Sunday, April 14th at the Robinson Center.

The annual Beer & Brats Street Party features beer from Stone’s Throw Brewery, free brats cooked on-site, t-shirts from Hillcrest Waterbugs, live music from the Episcopal Collegiate School Steel Band, and a food drive in partnership with Arkansas Foodbank. The party, located on the 400 block of West Markham in front of the Robinson Center, begins at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday and 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, and is free for anyone with a ticket to Beethoven & Blue Jeans.

The League of American Orchestras and Feeding America are partners in a program called Orchestras Feeding America. As part of this program, Arkansas Symphony Orchestra and Arkansas Foodbank work together each year for a food drive at Beethoven & Blue Jeans and other concerts. Any patron who brings at least 12 food items to the Beer & Brats Street Party will be given a voucher good for two free tickets to any future symphony subscription concert.

The concerts feature a casually dressed orchestra performing music from Beethoven, Saint-Saëns, Ravel, Enesco, and Tchaikovsky. Violinist Gareth Johnson is featured performing Ravel’s Tzigane and Beethoven’s Romance No. 2.

All concert ticket holders are also invited to Concert Conversations, a pre-concert talk one hour before each Masterworks concert in the Upper Tier Lobby of the Robinson Center. These talks feature insights from the Maestro and guest artists, and feature musical examples to enrich the concert experience.

Tickets are $16, $36, $57, and $68; active duty military and student tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.ArkansasSymphony.org; at the Robinson Center street-level 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 https://www.arkansassymphony.org/freekids.

Program
SAINT-SAËNS                     Samson et Dalila: Bacchanale
RAVEL                                  Tzigane, rhapsodie de concert for Violin & Orchestra
BEETHOVEN                      Romance No. 2 in F Major, Op. 50

Intermission

TCHAIKOVSY                     Sleeping Beauty Suite, Op. 66a, TH 234
ENESCO                               Romanian Rhapsody in A Major, Op. 11, No. 1

This weekend’s ASO soloist, Gareth Johnson, will be at Mosaic Templars Cultural Center this evening

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Gareth Johnson, violinThis Thursday (APR 11) from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., Beethoven & Blue Jeans violin soloist Gareth Johnson will speak and give a short performance at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center on West Ninth Street in Downtown Little Rock.

This event is free-to-the-public and will include light refreshments.

Guests will have a chance to mix and mingle with Mr. Johnson and other attendees in the spaces of the MTCC Museum floor, as well as a Q&A with Mr. Johnson and representatives from the Museum.

The Mosaic Templars Cultural Center (MTCC) was founded as the Mosaic Templars of America Center for African American Culture and Business Enterprise under Act 1176 of 2001. MTCC was created as a museum of the Department of Arkansas Heritage and it honors the story of the Mosaic Templars of America and all of Arkansas’s African American history.

Violinist YouJin Jang in concert with pianist Renana Gutman tonight sponsored by the Chamber Music Society of Little Rock

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Image may contain: 1 person, on stage, playing a musical instrument, concert and nightDescribed as a “a performer without fear or technical limitation”, YooJin Jang’s performance, alongside brilliant pianist Renana Gutman is sure to delight audiences.  The duo will be in concert tonight (April 4) under the auspices of the Chamber Music Society of Little Rock.

The event will take place at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church.  Tickets are $25 for adults. Children and students of all ages, kindergarten through college, have free admission. Tickets are available for purchase at the event or online, www.ChamberMusicLR.com.

Complimentary hors d’oeuvres and wine will be served following the performance.

The program includes: J.S. Bach: Violin Sonata No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1016; John Corigliano: Sonata for Violin and Piano; and Robert Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D minor, Op. 121.

Applauded by The Strad for her “fiery virtuosity” and “consummate performances,” Ms. Jang is a winner of the 2017 Concert Artists Guild Competition, and is also First Prize winner of the 2016 Sendai International Music Competition in Japan. A native of Korea, YooJin has been performing with top Korean orchestras since age 9. Also a passionate chamber musician, YooJin is a co-founder of The Kallaci String Quartet in 2012, which made its international debut in Seoul.

Praised by the New York Times for her “passionate and insightful” playing, Renana Gutman has performed across four continents as an orchestral soloist, recitalist and collaborative artist. She played at venues like The Louvre Museum, Carnegie Recital Hall, People’s Symphony Concerts, Merkin Hall, St. Petersburg’s Philharmonia, Herbst Theatre, San Francisco, Menuhin Hall, United Kingdom, and Washington National Gallery and Freer Gallery. High in demand as a chamber musician, Renana toured with “Musicians from Marlboro,” and serves regularly as the collaborative pianist of Steans Institute at Ravinia Festival, where she performs chamber music and lieder extensively.

During their time in Little Rock, these musicians will work with local students, including the Arkansas Symphony Youth Orchestra, as part of the Chamber Music Society’s mission to foster arts in education.