Tag Archives: Stella Boyle Smith Trust

World Premiere and Mahler at ASO This Weekend

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ASO_revThe Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Philip Mann, Music Director and Conductor, presents the sixth and final concert in its 2013-2014 Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks Series: Mahler’s Fifth Symphony on April 12th at 8 p.m. and April 13th at 3 p.m. in the Robinson Center Music Hall. The Masterworks Series is sponsored by the Stella Boyle Smith Foundation.

Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 is joined on the program by a world premiere commissioned by the musicians of the ASO and written by ASO Composer of the Year, Christopher Theofanidis.

This will be the final ASO Masterworks concert in Robinson Center Music Hall before the renovations.  It is fitting that the concert features a work commissioned by the ASO musicians. It is a testament to the musicians and their supporters for the 40 years that the ASO has called Robinson home.

Adult tickets are $53, $47, $30, and $14; student tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at http://www.ArkansasSymphony.org or by phone at (501) 666-1761. All children are free on Sunday with the Entergy Kids Ticket, downloadable at http://www.ArkansasSymphony.org/freekids

ARTISTS
Christopher Theofanidis, composer

PROGRAM
THEOFANIDIS The Wind and Petit Jean
WORLD PREMIERE

INTERMISSION

MAHLER Symphony No. 5 in C# minor
PART I
1. Trauermarsch
2. Stürmisch bewegt
PART II
3. Scherzo: Kräftig, nicht zu schnell
PART III
4. Adagietto
5. Rondo-Finale

Gustav Mahler Adagietto from the Fifth Symphony could be his most famous work, and was often performed alone before his symphonies saw widespread performance as whole works. Adagietto was written as a love song for his beloved Alma. As with many of Mahler’s symphonies, the orchestra is greatly expanded for No. 5: in addition to a full complement of strings, the work calls for 4 trumpets, 6 horns, four flutes (which at one point all double on piccolo together), along with large double-reed, clarinet, and percussion contingents.

The ASO has a great collaborative relationship between the musicians, music director, Board of Directors, and administrative staff, which is illustrated by the very existence of The Wind and Petit Jean. When the Board of Directors made a personal gift (above and beyond their requirements as Board members) to the musicians of the ASO in recognition of their sacrifice during hard financial times, the musicians elected to use the money to commission a new piece of music and dedicate it to the ASO Board of Directors. Christopher Theofanidis was chosen by the musicians to compose the commission, and he worked with the orchestra on his Rainbow Body in October of 2013 during his residency as 2013-2014 ASO Composer of the Year.

Arkansas Symphony Orchestra
The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra celebrates its 48th season in 2013-2014 under the leadership of Music Director Philip Mann. ASO is the resident orchestra of Robinson Center Music Hall, and performs more than thirty concerts each year for more than 42,000 people through its Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks Series, ACXIOM Pops LIVE! Series and Parker Lexus River Rhapsodies Chamber Series, in addition to serving central Arkansas through numerous community outreach programs and bringing live symphonic music education to over 24,000 school children and over 200 schools.

The Art of Carroll Cloar at the Ark Arts Center

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Carroll Cloar, The Smiling Moon Cafe, 1965, casein tempera on Masonite, 25 in. x 36 in., Private Collection, ©Estate of Carroll Cloar

Carroll Cloar, The Smiling Moon Cafe, 1965, casein tempera on Masonite, 25 in. x 36 in., Private Collection, ©Estate of Carroll Cloar

The Crossroads of Memory: Carroll Cloar and the American South exhibit opens tomorrow and runs through June 1.  There is a member reception tonight.

The paintings of Carroll Cloar (1913-1993), rank among the most haunting and beautiful evocations ever made of the American South. Drawing upon family stories, photographs of ancestors, rural scenery, small town life, and memories of his childhood on an Arkansas farm, Cloar captured the quiet richness of a simpler world.

Marking the centenary of the artist’s birth, The Crossroads of Memory: Carroll Cloar and the American South will include approximately seventy paintings, ranging from early Realist masterpieces to the poignant pictures of his later career.

An exhibition organized by the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art and the Arkansas Arts Center curated by Stanton Thomas, Curator of European and Decorative Art at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, the exhibition will feature works from major public collections as well as rarely seen pictures still in private hands.

Presented in Arkansas by: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette; Lisenne Rockefeller; Stella Boyle Smith Trust.

Sponsored in Arkansas by: Anonymous; Bailey Foundation; Sandra and Bob Connor; Terri and Chuck Erwin; Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP; Eileen and Ricardo Sotomora; John Tyson & Tyson Foods, Inc.; Arkansas Farm Bureau/Agriculture Council of Arkansas; Capital Hotel; Cindy and Greg Feltus; Munro Foundation; J.D. Simpson; Don Tilton; Gus and Ellis Walton.

The Thursday night lecture is sold out. You will have another chance to hear from the lecturer, Stanton Thomas, Ph.D., on Friday at noon during Feed Your Mind Friday in the galleries.

Lecture on artist Carroll Cloar tonight at Arkansas Arts Center

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https://i0.wp.com/arkarts.com/image/Moonstricken-Girls-copy.jpg

Moonstricken Girls, 1968, Arkansas Arts Center Foundation Collection: Purchase, Seth Ward Acquisition Fund. ©Estate of Carroll Cloar

In anticipation of the exhibition, The Crossroads of Memory: Carroll Cloar and the American South, the Arkansas Arts Center is offering a special panel discussion with three scholars on the work of Carroll Cloar.It will take place tonight at 6pm in the Arkansas Arts Center Lecture Hall. A reception starting at 5:30 will precede it.

The panel will be moderated by Stanton Thomas, Ph.D., organizing curator and catalogue author, The Crossroads of Memory: Carroll Cloar and the American South. Panelists: Richard Gruber, Ph.D., Director Emeritus, Ogden Museum of Southern Art, University of New Orleans; David Lusk, representative of the Estate of Carroll Cloar, David Lusk Gallery, Memphis & Nashville; and Patty Bladon, Director of Development, University of Memphis College of Communication and Fine Arts.

The event is free for members, $10 for non-members. Tickets are required to attend. Space is limited.

The exhibit, which will run February 28 through June 1, is presented in Arkansas by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette; Lisenne Rockefeller and the Stella Boyle Smith Trust.

Among those who are sponsoring it in Arkansas are the Bailey Foundation; Sandra & Bob Connor; Terri & Chuck Erwin; Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP; Eileen & Ricardo Sotomora; John Tyson & Tyson Foods, Inc.; Arkansas Farm Bureau/Agriculture Council of Arkansas; the Capital Hotel; Cindy & Greg Feltus; the Munro Foundation; J.D. Simpson; Don Tilton; and Gus & Ellis Walton.

 

ASO Inaugural INC Tonight featuring Justin Bischof

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Bischof

The Stella Boyle Smith Intimate Neighborhood Concert Series is a new concert series by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, featuring fantastic music in gorgeous, acoustically unique venues around Little Rock.

The three concerts—each about an hour long—offer a special, intimate performance and the opportunity to get up-close and personal with musicians in chamber orchestra ensembles performing pieces in perfect settings. In addition to hearing these beautiful works, you are invited to mingle with the musicians after the concerts.

Organ virtuoso Justin Bischof joins Philip Mann and the ASO at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church on Thursday January 17 at 7pm.

ROSSINI: Barber of Seville: Overture
POULENC: Concerto for Organ
BISCHOF: Improvisation
IVES: The Unanswered Question
MOZART: Symphony No. 35 in D, “Haffner”

Tickets may be purchased on the ASO website or at the door.  But seating is limited.

Sculpture Vulture: Baptist Health Healing Garden

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On the grounds of Baptist Health, there is a Healing Garden which features a sculpture by Kevin Kresse.  It depicts a person reaching down to help out another person.  Kresse’s abstract style allows the viewer to determine whether they think it is Jesus Christ helping a fallen man, or just a “Good Samaritan” aiding someone in distress.

The garden, which was designed by P. Allen Smith, also includes a cross on one end and a fountain on the other end.  Cathy Mayton, who was longtime executive vice president of Baptist Health envisioned the Healing Garden, which was supported by Russell Harrington, ceo and president of Baptist Health.  The project was made possible by donations from the Estate of Mary Ann Boyd, Mr. and Mrs. Bob Shell, the Stella Boyle Smith Trust, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Winstead, Gertrude Butler, Mr. and Mrs. R.J. Wills and hospital auxiliaries.

Though many people walk past the Healing Garden without noticing it as they are going in or exiting the hospital, it provides a refuge for countless visitors as well as employees.

A few years ago, I was out there and saw a grandfather and his toddler grandson in the garden.  I have no idea whether they were at the hospital for a joyous reason or a sad reason. But whatever the reason, as they were playing in the garden, they were enjoying themselves and having a time alone – just the two of them – in the midst of the hustle and bustle of life.

This space exemplifies the purpose of public art.  It allows people to have their own unique experience which meets the current need of their life. It allows for interaction, quiet reflection, and personal experiences.

Every time I am there I see a variety of ages, races, and backgrounds sharing the space in a meaningful way.  It is through public art, and the arts in general, that we can come together as a society.   Art allows us to be both an individual and part of a greater being at the same time.

Deadline Approaching for Arkansas Arts Summit Registration

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The Arkansas Arts Council is pleased to be a sponsor of the 2012 Arkansas Arts Summit April 17-18 at the William J. Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock. This intensive, two-day event will provide practical training for board members and arts administrators to help build and maintain art organizations and programs.

The conference will also offer performances, social events and networking opportunities. Registration is $95 and deadline to register is April 1. Click here to download a registration form, which includes a conference agenda and hotel information.

The Summit is presented by the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the Kennedy Center.

Led by Kennedy Center President Michael M. Kaiser, the conference will equip participants to:

    • Recruit and manage board members
    • Achieve fundraising success
    • Create institutional image with impact
    • Improve strategic financial planning
    • Develop and support effective marketing campaigns

Sponsors include the Arkansas Arts Council, the William J. Clinton Foundation, Donna and Mack McLarty, Kaki Hockersmith, Mid-America Arts Alliance, the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute, the Windgate Foundation, Stella Boyle Smith Trust, the City of Little Rock and the City of North Little Rock.

Arkansas Symphony Orchestra – Beethoven, Schoenberg, Takei

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Actor and activist George Takei joins the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra this weekend in concerts at Robinson Center Music Hall to narrate Schoenberg’s A Survivor from Warsaw at a concert featuring a message of hope and unity with Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony also known as Ode to Joy.

The ASO MasterWorks concerts are tonight at 8pm and tomorrow at 3pm.

Takei’s appearance is sponsored by the Stella Boyle Smith Trust and he will take the stage as narrator during Schoenberg’s A Survivor from Warsaw. The narration that accompanies this piece depicts the story of a concentration camp survivor from the Warsaw ghetto during World War II. Takei, a Japanese American who as a child was interned at an internment camp in Rohwer, Arkansas during World War II, is a supporter of human right issues and community activist.  Takei is chairman emeritus and a trustee of the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles and was appointed to the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission by former President Clinton.
Just after Schoenberg’s moving piece, Maestro Philip Mann and the ASO musicians will be joined by over 400 voices from the state of Arkansas for Beethoven’s prayer for hope and peace,Symphony No. 9, Ode to Joy. “This is perhaps the most recognizable work in the history of classical music, and for good reason,” said Mann. “Its message of triumph and victory through a shared brotherhood between peoples is an enduring, timeless, and transcendent declaration. Seen as a watershed movement in music history, the work has gained such significance and is now synonymous with important moments in world history—like its performance marking the re-unification of Germany and the fall of the Berlin Wall.”

Featuring:

George Takei, narrator
Schoenberg Chorus
River City Men’s Chorus
Beethoven Chorus
Arkansas State University
Harding University
Hendrix College
Lyon College
Ouachita Baptist University
Philander Smith College
Southern Arkansas University at Magnolia
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
University of Arkansas at Monticello
Members of River City Men’s Chorus
Philip Mann, conductor
Arkansas Symphony Orchestra