Concert Will Be Made Accessible to Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Patrons
The Johns Creek Symphony Orchestra will conclude its 2018-2019 season with An Evening of French Music on Saturday, March 16, 2019. A special pre-concert talk will begin at 6:15 p.m. and the concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. The concert will take place at the Johns Creek United Methodist Church, 11180 Medlock Bridge Road in Johns Creek. The performance will be conducted by JCSO Founder and Music Director J. Wayne Baughman and Dr. Nathan Frank, guest conductor. Soloists include JCSO Concertmaster Adelaide Federici, organist Jeremy Rush, and the Johns Creek Chorale, directed by Nathan Frank.
TICKETS for this public performance are $32 for adults; $27 for seniors; and $16 for students. Groups of 10 or more receive a 15% discount on tickets. For tickets, call (678) 748-5802 or visit www.johnscreeksymphony.org.
“This concert will feature some of the most beautiful music ever written by French composers,” said Music Director J. Wayne Baughman. “We are excited to highlight the musical artistry of the Johns Creek Chorale as well as the Johns Creek United Methodist Church’s mighty Aeolian-Skinner/Casavant Organ. This remarkable instrument is an artistic treasure of Johns Creek, lovingly restored and relocated to our city from the area of devastation near Ground Zero in New York City. In the hands of organist Jeremy Rush, this powerful instrument will provide an unforgettable sonic and aural experience.”
This performance will be made accessible to patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing through the addition of a sign language interpreter, written text translations, balloons to enhance vibrations, and a special pre-concert presentation (translated into ASL) given on stage beginning at 6:15 p.m. “Due to the very physical nature of this organ’s vibrations, we thought that this particular performance would be an excellent opportunity for us to reach out to people who are deaf or hard of hearing,” said JCSO Executive Director Linda Brill. “We wanted to create an environment where people of all hearing abilities can experience the beauty of classical music.”
The concert will open with Edouard Lalo’s Romance-Sérénade, which will feature JCSO Concertmaster Adelaide Federici on violin. The concert continues with Maurice Ravel’s Pavane for a Dead Princess. Right before intermission, the audience will hear Francis Poulenc’s Concerto for Organ, Timpani and Strings, featuring organist Jeremy Rush. The second half of the concert will feature the Johns Creek Chorale in Maurice Duruflé’s Requiem, Opus 9.
PRE-CONCERT PRESENTATION
The pre-concert presentation will be presented by consulting organist Randy Elkins, in partnership with Monte Nichols, beginning at 6:15 p.m. in the choir loft on stage. Mr. Elkins, who is originally from Roswell, Georgia, received both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in organ performance from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. While he is currently the director of music ministry at Virginia-Highlands Church, Mr. Elkins was formerly the organist at Johns Creek United Methodist Church, where he was intimately involved in this organ’s selection, renovation, and relocation to the Johns Creek United Methodist Church. Monte Nichols, who is also a member of the JCSO Board of Directors, has many years of experience with the evening’s repertoire, as a vocalist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s professional Robert Shaw Chamber Singers and in 27 years as Worship and Music Pastor at Peachtree Corners Baptist Church. The presentation will include an up-close look at the organ, a review of its history, a discussion of how the instrument works, a live demonstration of the capabilities of the instrument (with the opportunity to feel the vibrations of the wooden paneling on stage), and a pre-concert Q&A session with attendees as time allows. The pre-concert presentation is free for all ticketholders of any hearing ability.
PERFORMER BIOGRAPHIES
Dr. Nathan Frank earned his undergraduate degree in voice at The University of North Texas. Venturing south to study conducting at Southern Methodist University, Nathan served as the Senior Teaching Fellow and the Tenor Section Leader for the SMU Chorale and completed his Master of Music Degree. Returning home to the University of North Texas, Nathan began his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Conducting. While at UNT, Nathan served as the Teaching Fellow for the Women’s Chorus and the Tenor Section Leader for the UNT A Cappella Choir. Nathan completed his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Choral Conducting with a related field in voice studies in 2014. Before moving to the Atlanta, Nathan has had teaching positions at Southern Methodist University, University of North Texas, Southeastern Oklahoma State University, and Pacific Lutheran University in Seattle, Washington. Nathan was active in the musical community of Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. In Dallas, he was the Associate Conductor of Schola Cantorum of Ft. Worth. Most recently, he served as Director of Worship and Fine Arts at First United Methodist Church of Plano leading a music ministry of over 350 musicians. Dr. Frank is the Music Director of the Johns Creek Chorale.
The Johns Creek Chorale has been guided by the vision of its creator, Dr. Nathan Frank, and performed its inaugural concert November 8, 2015. A dream of many in the community of Johns Creek, this new choral ensemble satisfies the growing need for high-level choral musicianship. The chorale brings together approximately 70 men and women from diverse backgrounds to experience the joy of singing and to continue a life-long love for choral music. The chorale is on its way to becoming one of the premier choral groups in the greater Atlanta area.
Jeremy Rush is principal organist at Johns Creek United Methodist Church. Mr. Rush studied Sacred Music, Choral Conducting, and Organ at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, where he studied with John Walker and David Craighead. He is a career church musician and has served for over 25 years as organist, choirmaster, and/or hand bell director for congregations of 100 to 10,000 members in Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Georgia. Mr. Rush had his first church organist job at age 13. At age 17, he was selected as one of only five students auditioned nationwide to perform at the National Convention of the American Guild of Organists. In 1996, he was the winner of the American Guild of Organists Young Artists’ Competition in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Before joining the music staff of Johns Creek United Methodist Church in 2015, Mr. Rush served in various capacities at Northside United Methodist Church, Peachtree Presbyterian Church, and as Artistic Director of The Atlanta Concert Ringers.
JCSO Music Director and Conductor J. Wayne Baughman studied choral and orchestral conducting, earning undergraduate and graduate degrees in music education from the University of Alabama, as well as advanced studies in conducting at the University of Michigan.
Upon his arrival in Atlanta in 1974, Maestro Baughman immediately became involved with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Choruses, and for 25 years he was a frequent vocal soloist, chorus member, and rehearsal conductor under the guidance of the late Robert Shaw. Well known for his oratorio performances as bass soloist, he collaborated with Maestro Shaw on numerous performance projects, including the Mozart Requiem Mass, J.S. Bach’s St. John Passion, and Handel’s Messiah. In 1990, as bass soloist, Maestro Baughman shared the honor of a Grammy Award for the Telarc recording of Belshazzar’s Feast (Walton) and Chichester Psalms (Bernstein) with Robert Shaw and the ASO. Maestro Baughman has held conducting positions at the State University of New York at Cortland and Brevard Music Center. He also served as music director at Peachtree Christian Church in Atlanta for nine years, where his performances of major choral-orchestral works received critical acclaim. Maestro Baughman is recently retired from liturgical music.
Now in its twelfth season, the Johns Creek Symphony Orchestra is metro Atlanta’s only fully-professional, part-time symphonic orchestra, made up of professional musicians from all over the greater metro Atlanta area. The Johns Creek Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Founder and Music Director J. Wayne Baughman, provides musical enrichment for the community of Johns Creek through a three-concert series of performances, as well as additional educational programs and special events each year.
2018-2019 Season Sponsors:
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