Release Date: April 10, 2009
KSU Orchestra celebrates all-American music with world premiere
For media inquiries: Cheryl Anderson Brown, Director of Public Relations,
770-499-3417 or cbrown@kennesaw.edu
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KENNESAW, Ga.—On April 22, the KSU Orchestra will present its culminating concert of the year at 8 p.m. in the Dr. Bobbie Bailey & Family Performance Center. Michael Alexander, director of orchestras at Kennesaw State University, will conduct this diverse program of all-American music from the 20th and 21st centuries. He describes the concert as “featuring the orchestra in its fullest capacity with all instruments in addition to the concerto for a smaller chamber orchestra.”
The highlight of the evening is the world premiere of Louis Spratlan’s “Concerto for Saxophone,” featuring John Bluel on saxophone. Bluel, an internationally performing artist, is currently Associate Professor of Music at the University of West Georgia. Most recently, he earned a Fulbright Scholarship to be artist-in-residence and teacher for the fall semester at the National Chengchi University in Taipei; he will also teach at the Taipei National University. “KSU is extremely fortunate to have Bluel with us for this performance,” says Alexander.
The Orchestra will also perform “Four Dance Episodes” from Aaron Copland’s “Rodeo” and “Sinai Symphony" by Douglas Hooker. The latter performance will feature the KSU Dance Company who will perform on the first and fourth movements with choreography by Ivan Pulinkala, director of the dance program. Alexander says this concert is “a strong representation of how the KSU Orchestra collaborates with so many different organizations. We are really excited to perform new music and work with the KSU Dance Company.”
Outside of his duties at KSU, Alexander is the Music Director of the Cobb Symphony Orchestra and is active as a guest conductor. His credits include performances in Europe, Australia and throughout the United States. Alexander earned his DMA at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in orchestral conducting. After conducting and teaching several youth orchestras, Alexander remains dedicated to music education and has contributed articles to the “Teaching Music Through Performance” book series.
Tickets are $5 and can be obtained at the KSU box office by calling 770-423-6650 or online at www.kennesaw.edu/arts. More information about the KSU Orchestra and the KSU Dance Company is available at www.kennesaw.edu/arts.
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A member of the 35-unit University System of Georgia, Kennesaw State University is a comprehensive, residential institution with a growing student population of more than 21,000 from 142 countries. The third-largest university in Georgia, Kennesaw State offers more than 65 graduate and undergraduate degrees, including new doctorates in education and business.
The KSU College of the Arts is one of only four Georgia institutions to have achieved full national accreditation for all of its arts programs.