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Anniston Star, Shawn Ryan, Star Entertainment Editor, 06-14-2007 |
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| Music at McClellan ends year with familiar pieces | ||
| In its final show of the Music at McClellan season, the Alabama Symphony Orchestra will play several noted classical pieces Saturday night, each containing music that may be familiar. Following is a list of the pieces and some history — both social and musical — about them: Aaron Copland. “An Outdoor Overture.” In the late 1930s, Alexander Richter, director of music for the High School of Music and Art in New |
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York, created a program titled “American Music for American Youth.” He wanted composers write new music for teenage musicians. American composer Aaron Copland joined the program and wrote “An Outdoor Overture” for it. Featuring an extended trumpet solo in the beginning, the overture proceeds into a march, segues into a flowing string-based melody then into a second march and, at the end, all three themes are combined. To read the full Anniston Star article of June 14, 2007>> |
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Anniston Star, Shawn Ryan, Star Entertainment Editor, 06-07-2007 |
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| A Belle and a Tenor: Broadway comes to Music at McClellan | ||
For vocalists, singing outdoors can be a wondrous blend of beautiful weather, festive crowds, lovely music — and bugs in the mouth. “Oh yeah, I've had that happen,” says New York-based tenor Sal Viviano. “The lights attract them,” LA-based vocalist Susan Egan says with a perky laugh, “so you've sort of got to keep one eye on the conductor and one eye on the bugs.” |
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| Egan and Viviano will be dodging whatever bugs may flit into view Saturday night when they perform the “Bravo Broadway” concert as part of this week's Music at McClellan series. But the pair, who've performed together many times in the past, say the joys of singing outdoors far outweigh the danger of chomping down on crunchy critters. To read the full Anniston Star article of June 07, 2007>> |
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| City of Anniston lends a hand | ||
The worst drought in 50 years has affected life in Alabama in both large and small ways. McClellan's Longleaf Park, usually green and thick during Music at McClellan concerts, is dry and crunchy. The City of Anniston stepped up to give Mother Nature a little help before Saturday's concert by spraying the lawn in an effort to keep the dust down for concert series patrons; a thoughtful act that was most appreciated by allergy sufferers and those with respiratory problems. |
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| Anniston Star, Shawn Ryan, Star Entertainment Editor, 05-31-2007 |
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| Star Wars Smiles: Making
Kids Happy |
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Wearing the costume of a snowtrooper from The Empire Strikes Back,
the second Star Wars film, Hatmaker joined a group of similarly
minded (and dressed) folks to attend the Birmingham Barons baseball
game Monday night. It was the first time that Hatmaker had ventured
into public as a member of the Alabama garrison of the 501st Legion,
an international band of Star Wars fans who, among other things,
design and wear costumes from the movies. |
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When the Alabama Legion members — whose costumes included a snowtrooper, Darth Vader, a Jawa and Bossk the bounty hunter — arrived at the Barons game, the response was universal and immediate, Hatmaker says. “There were probably kids that weren't four years old coming up to me,” says Hatmaker, 38, who lives in Attalla and works for Honda. “They were giving me high fives; some wanted to shake your hand. I had a couple hug me.” Hatmaker and several other members of the Legion will be attending Saturday's Music at McClellan performance. The concert is titled “The Orchestra Strikes Back” and is a celebration of the music of Star Wars. The first film, 1977's Star Wars, celebrated its 30th anniversary last week. To read the full Anniston Star article of May 31, 2007>> |
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| Comments from Masestro Justin Brown | ||
| The Alabama
Symphony Orchestra is very excited about partnering with the
Joint Powers Authority to present a great lineup of programs for
the 2007 Music at McClellan Concert Series in Longleaf Park. There
is clearly great potential here for McClellan to become a breeding
ground and sanctuary for the arts. Not just Fort McClellan, with
its rich history, but also the beauty of all that is offered in
the surrounding Mountain Longleaf National Wildlife Refuge and in
Alabama’s first extended rails-to-trails project, the Chief
Ladiga Trail. Already there are exciting plans underway, including
an 18-acre master-planned community. The ASO is also looking forward
to, with great anticipation, the completion of the renovations on
the historically significant Montheith Amphitheatre. We are proud
to play such a prominent role in supporting the growth at McClellan. |
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We aspire not only to provide great performances but also, in cooperation with the wonderful volunteers of McClellan and the Joint Powers Authority, to serve as inspiration to the community to improve the quality of life for the citizens of the city of Anniston, the people of Calhoun County, and the entire state of Alabama. That is the goal of the Alabama Symphony, and that is why ultimately we are so pleased to be a part of this exciting development. While the ASO is based in Birmingham, our purpose is “to change lives through music”, and that’s the same wherever we play. The strength of our mission lies in the ASO’s interactive approach to community outreach. Our concert series at McClellan provides us with an important hub to provide access to symphonic music to the people of Anniston and all of its surrounding areas. I am particularly proud of our musicians who consistently perform at a level of extraordinary skill, talent and dedication. The quality of our performances is beginning to be noticed in the national press and by the musical world far afield. In time, we believe this will help propel the State of Alabama to a larger world stage and provide the people of this great state the opportunity to enjoy a quality of entertainment that is rivaled by few orchestras. We are honored to be a part of the Music at McClellan series, and look forward to many years of performances yet to come. |
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Anniston Star, Shawn Ryan, Star Entertainment Editor, 05-24-2007 Music at McClellan returns for its fourth
year The ongoing drought may be choking the life out of most growing things, but it may be a boon for Saturday's Music at McClellan. “I just got an e-mail that says for Saturday there's no rain in sight. One person's crisis is another's opportunity, I guess,” says Pete Conroy, chairman of the Music at McClellan committee. Good weather is a must for the four-concert Music at McClellan series, now in its fourth year. The show, anchored by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, is held outdoors and, really, who wants to sit out in the rain? (That includes symphony musicians. Even though the stage is covered, their instruments react badly to dampness and humidity.) To read the full Anniston Star article of May 24, 2007>> |
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Music at McClellan Welcomes Westinghouse as Sponsor
On
March 15th Sheila Gilbert, Jimmy Creed, Donna Jackson and Steve Braid
from Westinghouse of Anniston presented Music at McClellan with a check
for $5,000 in support of the 2007 concert season.
With sponsorship from Westinghouse and others, Music at McClellan is embarking upon its fourth season, bringing together the distinguished artists of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra and the historically energetic volunteer community of Anniston and Calhoun County. Events are held outside in the beautiful Longleaf Park, surrounded by forest and mountain views. The concert season will kick off on Memorial Day weekend and continue through the first three weekends of June.
The Joint Powers Authority, along with the dedication of volunteers of the Music at McClellan committee and the generosity of sponsors, is instrumental in bringing the arts to the former Fort McClellan. Music at McClellan is at the core of an ambitious vision for the development of McClellan. Community leadership views the arts as an integral part of the overall development plan for 20,000 acres which will eventually incorporate existing and new housing communities, a research park, commercial businesses, and white-collar industry. More over, Music at McClellan, as an established institution, will project the identity of McClellan as an arts mecca in Northeast Alabama, filling a vacuum in performance opportunity for both audiences and artists. Sponsorships by Westinghouse and others, affirms the support of the arts at McClellan.
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at McClellan news page for current stories.
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