By Mike Greife,
April 24, 2017
WARRENSBURG, MO - The University of Central Missouri Department of Music, in conjunction
with the Performing Arts Series, presents the annual UCM President’s Gala at 7:30
p.m. Tuesday, April 25, in Hendricks Hall.
The annual concert, traditionally hosted by UCM President Charles Ambrose and Mrs.
Kris Ambrose, wraps a successful performance season, bringing the many talents of
UCM’s Department of Music to the stage.
The Jazz Ensemble I, under the direction of David Aaberg, will open the program with
Sammy Nestico’s “The Blues Machine,” first written for the Count Basie orchestra,
featuring soloists Richard Tucker, Jr. on alto saxophone, Matthew Manning on trombone
and Andrew Hamilton on piano. The group also will perform “Michelangelo” by Argentinian
composer Astor Piazzolla, arranged by Fred Sturm, featuring soloists Ben Forshee on
trumpet and Grant Klinksick on guitar.
The New Technologies Ensemble, directed by Eric Honour, will perform on a variety
of digital controllers, using WiFi-networked synchronization, with a “choose-your-own-adventure”
musical score by Honour titled “Fluid Moving Fire.”
The Concert Choir, directed by Alan Zabriskie, will perform three spirituals “I’m
Gonna Sing ‘Til The Spirit Moves,” “This Little Light of Mine” and “Didn’t My Lord
Deliver Daniel” by composer and arranger Moses Hogan, followed by UCM Opera Theatre’s
rendition of Aaron Copeland’s “The Promise of Living” from “The Tender Land.”
Following intermission, the UCM Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of John Rutland,
will perform the overture from Franz Von Suppe’s operetta “Light Cavalry,” a story
of young love, military intrigue and a ballet company mockingly called the Light Cavalry.
Closing the concert will be the UCM Wind Ensemble performing a commissioned work by
John Frantzen, “Where Rivers Bend,” a journey through life and the seasons on the
winding, river under the direction of Scott Lubaroff.
Free tickets for the President’s Gala are available online at ucmpas.com, at the Central
Tickets Box Office in Administration Building 100B from 9 a.m. to noon weekdays, or
at the door one hour prior to the event.
