Preview of ALO’s Lucia di Lammermoor — an interview with the stars
This Saturday, KMFA will be broadcasting the ALO production of Lucia di Lammermoor LIVE from the Long Center!
Maestro Richard Buckley, Dianne Donovan, Lyubov Petrova, and Doug Scholz-Carlson
On this week’s Classical Austin, host Dianne Donovan had the great pleasure of interviewing some of the artists and artistic leaders who are so instrumental in creating this glorious operatic presentation. She chatted with the star, soprano Lyubov Petrova, as well as the conductor, Maestro Richard Buckley, and Stage Director, Doug Scholz Carlson.
If you missed this episode of Classical Austin, you can hear the interview portion again here.
~posted by Alison @ KMFA :-)
A Surprise Birthday Gift from the Consulate General of Mexico
Ludwig Barragan presents the CD collection to KMFA President/General Manager, Joan Kobayashi
KMFA received a surprise birthday gift from the Consulate General of Mexico today!
Ludwig Barragan visited the KMFA Studios on behalf of Consul General Rosalba Ojeda, and he arrived bearing gifts! It was a collection of CDs featuring Mexican classical composers, contemporary and past, created by the Mexico National Foundation for the Arts in partnership with the Miguel Aleman Foundation.
Mr. Barragan’s timing was great: Maestro Peter Bay of the Austin Symphony was here as well (he was on the air for our Birthday Pledge Drive). Maestro Bay knows the Consul General well, as she is a great fan of the Austin Symphony.
Dianne Donovan, Ludwig Barragan, and Maestro Peter Bay
We are pretty excited about the CD collection, and can’t wait to really sit down and enjoy it after the Pledge Drive is over… it will be a wonderful addition to the KMFA CD library!
~posted by Alison @ KMFA 
Just for fun: play Google’s online guitar
When the legendary guitarist Les Paul’s birthday rolled around, Google posted an interactive “Google Doodle” in his honor: an online, playable guitar! Although the birthday is long passed, here’s a persisting archival link to it: http://www.google.com/logos/2011/lespaul.html
Not only did it allow you to strum the strings with your mouse cursor, it could record what you played and play it back for you. Lots of folks took it to the next level and posted videos of their music-making on YouTube. Here’s one of my favorites (Beethoven’s Symphony no. 9):
Enjoy!
~posted by Alison @ KMFA
“All I want for Christmas is a sackbut.” ~ Sara Hessel, KMFA Music Director
Actually, I don’t really want a sackbut for Christmas. My ears are already ringing with the three amazing early music Christmas concerts that I’ve enjoyed in the past week!
It all started with “Yule, Brittania!” presented by Texas Early Music Project. We enjoyed carols, chant and traditional music from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, spanning the 13th-19th centuries. TEMP’s vocalists were in excellent form, and did full justice to the lovely arrangements by artistic director Daniel Johnson. While they gave us lots of ‘new’ pieces, somehow it’s par for the course at Christmas to enjoy the old familiar favorites the best, like “Ye sons of men, with me rejoice,” and the heart-melting Scottish lullaby “Balooloo, my lammie,” with alto Stephanie Prewitt singing it like only she can.
I couldn’t believe my luck when I heard that the UK-based Dufay Collective would be performing in Houston! I’ve been a fan of their spirited performances for years, and have played their excellent recordings on Ancient Voices many times. Their program of 16th- and 17th-century English music was sheer joy to listen to. Vocalist Vivien Ellis seemed to have stepped right out of one of Henry VIII’s Christmas revels with her clarion tone, excellent diction and storyteller’s sense. Especially memorable was an anonymous ballad called “To drive the cold winter away,” and the very moving “Thys endere nyghyt,” gorgeously arranged by director William Lyons. It was fascinating to watch the players switch effortlessly from one instrument to another: Mr. Lyons played flute, recorder, curtal (an ancestor of the bassoon) and bagpipes!
Rounding out this incredible week of music was the most dynamic performance of Handel’s Messiah I’ve ever heard, given by Austin’s own Ensemble VIII, along with Mercury Baroque (Houston), and directed by Dr. James Morrow. Dr. Morrow’s historically informed performance gave this hoary yet beloved masterpiece a much-needed dust off. The pared-down vocal and instrumental forces made for an extremely transparent texture that allowed the listener to hear nuances usually lost in large-scale productions. Quick tempi were used to great effect, but even the fastest passages were executed with precision. But this was no purely technical performance! The whole emotional spectrum of this masterwork was there for the hearing: the exuberant delight of “For unto us a Child is born,” the mystical “Behold the Lamb of God,” the pathos of “He was despised,” and the majesty of the Hallelujah Chorus and “Worthy is the Lamb.” It was an unforgettable experience, and one that I hope to have the pleasure of repeating next year!
Sara Hessel is KMFA’s Music Director, as well as producer and host of Ancient Voices. Tune in on Sundays, 9am and 4pm, to enjoy Ancient Voices, right here on KMFA, 89.5.
Even rock stars tune in to KMFA!
~posted by Sarah Addison, KMFA Production and Membership Associate
Guess who dropped by the KMFA studios yesterday? Austin’s own slice of English Rock n’ Roll, Ian McLagan. He’s a resident of Central Texas and a supporter of KMFA, and we invited him to the KMFA studios for a friendly tour.
Ian’s well known for being the keyboard player for two of my favorite English groups, Small Faces and The Faces, as well as his most recent group, The Bump Band. Everyone at the station was thrilled to meet him, and when he arrived yesterday he couldn’t have been nicer. He even gave us copies of his new album Never Say Never, which has taken up permanent residence in my car’s stereo. He and KMFA announcer Carmel O’Donovan sat down in Studio 2000 to have a chat and record a testimonial about why he enjoys KMFA. See, even rock stars are tuned in to KMFA! Stay tuned, the finished spot will be on the air and online soon…
Austin Symphonic Band presents “Remembrance and Hope”
~posted by David Crews, KMFA announcer
Last weekend, the Austin Symphonic Band presented a concert on December 2nd. The theme was “Remembrance and Hope,” to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and then promising look forward to the holiday season. We enjoyed music from the 1940s, with exciting pieces like Victory at Sea, as well as lighter offerings such as In the Miller Mood, and some holiday favorites as well.
I was the narrator for one piece titled “Duty, Honor, Country,” based on a speech by General Douglas MacArthur. I was very pleased to be able to perform this role, especially since my father is a medaled combat veteran of WWII.
The piece I narrated was very well received and it was an altogether enjoyable experience. Here’s a photo from the event, and you might want to look now – I only wear a suit a few times a decade! Thanks to all the members of ASB for their good work and for the invitation.
KMFA’s first Gamba-cast: listen to La Follia’s “An Angel-ic Concert”
KMFA broadcast a special presentation of An Angel-ic Concert with La Follia Austin Baroque and internationally celebrated countertenor Ryland Angel! KMFA recorded this performance live at St. Louis Catholic Chapel on Nov. 5th. Listeners immersed themselves in the rich voice of one of the finest countertenors working today, as he presented sumptuous Marian hymns from Italy and the Austrian Court, backed by the musicians of La Follia, directed by Keith Womer. Original KMFA broadcast time was Sunday, November 27th at 2:30pm.
If you missed the original broadcast, you can listen to it again, just by visiting the KMFA website:
www.kmfa.org/SH-Angelic-Concert.htm
Enjoy!
The Austin Polish Film Festival – A Cultural Revelation
Who are you; what would you like; what do you think is important?
~posted by Hannah Schaeffer, KMFA administrative assistant
I am as new to KMFA as I am to Austin. I have only lived in the outskirts for the past few years, so I am just now able to truly explore and discover this diverse and wonderful city. Naturally, I was excited to be sent to the Austin Polish Film Festival for my first blogging assignment. I did not know about the Austin Polish Society before the festival, so this event was the perfect opportunity for learning more about their community and Austin as a whole.
The festival spanned over the course of 5 days, and I attended the final day of the festival on Saturday, November 12th at the Marchesa Hall and Theatre. I enjoyed five short films and one full-length feature, including a live interview with one of the headline actors from the final film. I was moved by a beautiful, yet tragic animation about the man who invented moving pictures in color, and entranced by a modern story of love and intrigue in the age of computer/reality simulation.
My favorite feature was a quick documentary from the year 1980 called “Talking Heads” in which Polish citizens were asked three questions: “Who are you, what would you like, and what is important to you?” The film began with charming and hopeful responses from young Polish children. As the interviewees slowly grew older, their hopes, dreams and identities grew more diverse. Words like “choice, work and freedom” transitioned into “democracy, health, suffering and humanity” as a montage of older professionals from academics to miners discussed their hopes for the future on the black-and-white screen. Finally, a 100 year-old woman playfully confessed that she just “wants to live longer.” I was delighted to have learned so much about a foreign society in such a small amount of time.
Needless to say, I was grateful to have experienced this cultural and artistic celebration. The APS has so much to offer Austin, so I hope to see more from them in the near future.
~Hannah Schaeffer
McCallum’s music in the park
Last weekend I enjoyed the great pleasure of attending the McCallum Orchestra’s event, Music in the Park. Held in the Mueller neighborhood’s Lake Park Amphitheater, the Orchestra played musical arrangements from favorite movies.
The student musicians all wore blinking lights while they performed on the night-time stage, and scenes from each film score that they played would appear on the movie screen behind them. And at the end, how could I miss the 1980′s classic “Back to the Future” that was shown following the concert?
This was a free, family friendly event, encouraging donations to assist with orchestra expenses. It was the second of a series. I definitely recommend attending their next performance!
Here’s a short video clip featuring an orchestral version from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack:
Halloween at the Symphony!
~posted by Holly Algreen, KMFA’s Director of Individual Giving
On Sunday, October 23rd, I had the opportunity to attend the Austin Symphony Orchestra’s Halloween Children’s Concert at the Long Center. With a 4-year-old, a 3-year-old and a 2-year-old in tow, we made our way to the Long Center on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. We had Snow White, Pinkalicious and Yoda with us, and once we arrived we saw lots of princesses, Tinker Bells, ninjas, and ghosts in attendance.
The concert started out with Marco Perella as the Master of Ceremonies (dressed in a clown costume of course) by greeting everyone and explaining each section of the orchestra with guest conductor Irwin Wagner. As he announced each section they would play something familiar. The kids seem to love hearing the wind section, but the percussion section received the greatest applause. Then we heard The Smurfs March and enjoyed life-sized Smurfs dancing on stage! As the show went on we heard the ET theme-song and were amazed by skeletons and spiders coming down from the ceiling. All the kids screamed and laughed in surprise. Before the main event, “Peter and the Wolf,” we enjoyed a sing along of “My Pumpkin Lives Right Here in Austin,” which all three kids have been singing for days since. It’s now become a theme song in our home. And then we enjoyed a narrative, with music and pictures on the big screen of Peter and the Wolf.
The Concert was a wonderful introduction for kids to the symphony. They loved all the costumes, the spooky decorations throughout the Long Center and of course the music. It was a wonderful way to celebrate Halloween with music and fun for kids! I highly recommend this annual treat for any family with kids!
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