Producer/Host Kimberly Powell   

On February 5th Performance Oklahoma is excited to offer  “Present Beauty” featuring ETHEL.  Acclaimed as America's premier postclassical string quartet, ETHEL invigorates contemporary concert music with refreshing exuberance, fierce intensity, imaginative programming and exceptional artistry. Formed in 1998, New York's ebullient ETHEL performs adventurous music of the past four decades, with emphasis on works composed since 1995.  We’ll hear their concert presented on OCU's Distinguished Artist Series on Sunday, January 15th.  "Present Beauty" features the quartet’s arrangement of a suite from the filmscore “The Hours” by Philip Glass, To Whom It May Concern:  Thank you by Mark Stewart, Huang Ruo's The Flag Project, Wed by David Lang, Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector byTerry Riley and Julia Wolfe's Early That Summer. 

Listeners will enjoy commentary from ETHEL's cellist Dorothy Lawson and violist Ralph Farris about the ensemble's history and name, the program, "Present Beauty,"  2012 projects and their most recent CD OSHTALI, an exciting collaboration with contemporary classical music students of the Chickasaw Summer Arts Academy in Ada Oklahoma and Thunderbird Records.  Don't miss this very special program featuring ETHEL on Sunday, February 5th at 5:00pm CST. 

On February 12th Performance Oklahoma will offer the third concert of the season presented by  Brightmusic Society of Oklahoma and given on Monday, January 16th at St. Edwards Chapel at Casady School and Tuesday, January 17^th at St. Paul’s Cathedral in downtown Oklahoma City.  Entitled “Café Music” the program opens with the Piano Trio Op 70, No. 1 by Ludwig van Beethoven (Ghost,) and one of his middle period masterpieces.  We'll also hear the Trio for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano by the 20th century French composer Jean Françaix, the Five Fantasy Pieces "Schilflieder" (Reed Songs) by 19th century German Romantic August Klughardt inspired by a poem by Nicolaus von Lenau and Café Music by the American composer and pianist Paul Schoenfield.

Coming up in the weeks ahead Performance Oklahoma will offer the broadcast of the Norman Philharmonic's premier concert given on Sunday January 15th at the Nancy O'Brien Center Performing Arts Center in Norman.  Music Director Richard Zielinski led the newly formed ensemble in Mozart's Overture to Le Nozze di Figaro, Selections from Meditations on Ecclesiastes by Norman Dello Joio, Haydn's Trumpet Concerto featuring trumpeter Karl Siever, Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue in the 1924 Jazz Band version with guest pianist Richard Dowling and the world premier of the new Norman Anthem and the Symphony:  FORWARD dedicated to the City of Norman, Oklahoma by Libby Larsen. 

Also on Performance Oklahoma's early Spring broadcast schedule:  Los Romeros!  A veritable institution in the world of classical music, the Quartet has dazzled countless audiences and won the raves of reviewers worldwide. Celedonio Romero, founder and creator of The Romeros guitar dynasty, died on May 8, 1996 in San Diego, California. As the family says, "the spirit of the quartet is him; all our concerts now will be to pay homage to him"; his sons and grandsons continue Celedonio's legacy.  Los Romeros whose members are now Celin, Pepe, Celinoand Lito appeared at Armstrong Auditorium on Thursday, November 3rd in a concert celebrating the rich tradition of music for the instrument and includes works by Michael Praetorius, Tomás Bretón, Manuel de Falla, Lorenzo Palomo, Federico Moreno Torroba, Isaac Albéniz,  José Muñoz Molleda and Pepe and Celedonio Romero. 

___________________________________    

Performance Oklahoma is KCSC’s weekly radio broadcast showcasing concerts and recitals presented across the state of Oklahoma. Airing each Sunday from 5:00-7:00pm CST, the program features the Oklahoma City Philharmonic's Classics Series concerts and performances from Chamber Music in Oklahoma, Brightmusic Society of Oklahoma, OK Mozart International Festival, Armstrong Auditorium, Rose State Live!, OCU's Distinguished Artist Series, OCCC's Cultural Arts Series, OU's Norton Visiting Artist Series, UCO's Faculty Artist Concert Series, the Canterbury Choral Society and others. The broadcasts are edited, produced and hosted by KCSC’s Director of Production & Syndication, Kimberly Powell. 

Kimberly has met and interviewed a number of the world's leading musical artists for the program including Steven Isserlis, Stephen Hough, Marc-André Hamelin, André Watts, James Ehnes, Jon Kimura Parker, The King's Singers, Midori, Peter Wiley, Phillip Ying, Vladimir Feltsman, The Eroica Trio, Paul Neubauer and colleagues from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, members of Chanticleer and a number of exciting young international artists including Stefan Jackiw, Sarah Coburn, Shai Wosner, Julie Albers, Orion Weiss, Susanna Phillips, Alexander Sitkovetsky and the co-gold medalists of the 2009 Van Cliburn International Competition Haochen Zhang and Nobuyuki Tsujii.

In August of 2009, Kimberly and Performance Oklahoma were profiled in the Sunday edition of the Daily Oklahoman by Fine Arts Editor, Rick Rogers and in April of 2010 a feature article by Terry Clark appeared in Oklahoma's Journal Record. Her program showcasing the American Organ Institute's Gala Weekend Celebration in September 2009 was nominated for a Governor's Award. The 2010 and 2011 OK Mozart International Festival chamber music broadcast series were presented by KXMS Fine Arts Radio International in Joplin, Missouri and by KWTU Classical in Tulsa, Oklahoma.    In 2011, Performance Oklahoma was awarded a grant from the Kirkpatrick Foundation and sponsorship from locally owned Homeland Grocery Stores, Hudiburg Subaru of Oklahoma and Armstrong Auditorium. 

Performance Oklahoma Sponsors