Top: Mark S. Doss, Phoenix Park-Kim
Bottom: Dr. Joo Poong Kim, Anita Johnson
A national and local multi-ethnic lineup of classical and opera artists
will perform at 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 18 to celebrate the 50th anniversary
of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech at the 1963 March
on Washington.
The Symphony of Brotherhood Concert will be held at at Zipper Hall at
The Colburn School, 200 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, 90012. Hosts for the
concert will be Classical KUSC announcer Dennis Bartel and USC Thornton
School of Music doctoral candidate Zanaida Robles, who also directs the
USC Thornton University Chorus.
The concert will highlight King's little known appreciation of
classical music and opera, as well as the historic footprint of the
civil rights leader in Los Angeles. It will include the world premiere
of a poem to honor King that was written and set to music by South
Korean educator and composer Joo Poong Kim. Kim said he searched for an
existing Korean poem that would be appropriate to honor the civil rights
leader before deciding to write his own. Pianist Phoenix Park-Kim and
soprano Jumi Kim will perform the piece.
The title of the concert comes from this line in King's iconic speech,
when he said: "With this faith, we will be able to transform the
jangling discords of our nation into a symphony of brotherhood."
GRAMMY Award winning bass/baritone Mark S. Doss, cellist Kristen
Yeon-Ji Kun and sopranos Juliana Gondek and Anita Johnson will be among
the celebrated performers.
The concert will include arias from several operas, including one that
was sung in 1959 by Coretta Scott King; spirituals; instrumental music
for piano, flute, violin and cello; poems by Langston Hughes, Kim So Wol
and others set to music -- all chosen to illustrate some facet of
King's life.
Several performers have links to the USC Thornton School of Music.
Juliana Gondek received her bachelor's and master's in vocal performance
at USC, and worked as a professional violinist before going on to a
vocal career that includes performances with more than 120 top symphony
orchestras and opera companies throughout North America, Europe and
Asia. She is a leading interpreter of baroque, Mozart, bel canto and
contemporary repertoire and has made more than 20 commercial recordings,
as well as having starring roles at the Metropolitan Opera, San
Francisco Opera, New York City Opera, Scottish Opera, Netherlands Opera,
Zurich Opera and many other companies.
Anita Johnson, who has more than 20 years experiences as a performing
artist and music educator, received her bachelor's degree in voice
performance from USC and a master's degree from the University of
Michigan. She is a graduate of the Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young
Artist Development Program, and has performed in productions at the Met,
New York City Opera and at the White House in the ceremony honoring
Stevie Wonder with the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize.
Bass-baritone Cedric Berry received both his bachelor's and master's
degrees from USC Thornton, after first studying at Interlochen Arts
Academy. A resident artist with the Los Angeles Opera, he has sung in The Barber of Seville, La Boheme, Samson et Dalila, Faust, La Rondine and Billy Budd.
He has been the recipient of several vocal awards, including first
place in the Metropolitan Opera Western Regional Competition.
Pianist Polli Chambers-Salazar received a doctorate in piano
performance from USC Thornton, and has taught at USC Thornton, Pasadena
City College, the College of the Canyons and El Camino College. She has
performed across the United States and Canada, and received awards in
many competitions, including the Simon-Fiset Competititon, the New
Orleans International Piano Competition and the Seattle Young Artists
Festival.
Annelle Gregory, who won the gold medal at the 2012 NAACP ACT-SO
competittion and was a laureate of the 2013 national Sphinx Competition,
will be attending USC Thornton in the fall to study violin with Glenn
Dicterow, former concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic.
Concert co-host Dennis Bartel is Classical KUSC's morning announcer who
can be heard from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. weekdays, and from 1 to 6 p.m.
Sunday. A broadcaster with 30 years of experience, he served as an opera
host earlier in his career in Washington, D.C. Co-host Zanaida Robles
is pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in choral music at USC Thornton.
She also is the artistic director of the San Gabriel Valley Choral
Company and director of Discovery Camerata, an organization for emerging
vocalists and composers.
Sponsors of the concert include The Colburn Foundation, Classical KUSC,
the Los Angeles Athletic Club and Long Beach Mercedes-Benz.
Tickets can be purchased at http://symphonyofbrotherhood.brownpapertickets.com or by calling 562/436-4352.
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