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America Awakens
April 30, 2021 @ 7:00 pm – May 2, 2021 @ 6:00 pm
Please join Maestro Wes Kenney and the Fort Collins Symphony for this virtual on-demand concert of American composers and themes.
Spring is in the air, the light of awareness is dawning, change is within reach, growth is on the horizon, and pride lends a bounce to one’s step.
This streamed virtual concert features two of Aaron Copland’s compositions–the enduring American anthem, Appalachian Spring, and a coming-of-age story, The Tender Land Suite– and the gospel/jazz/blues-inspired Church Street Serenade by composer Adolphus Hailstork.
Pre-recorded at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center, this concert is available to stream at your leisure over the weekend of April 30-May 2.
Google Calendar Tickets are available for $25 per device (Smart TV, computers, iPads, etc.) at LCTix.com
Streaming April 30th – May 2nd
Click below to download the full Concert Program:
Guest Artists
Amy Maples, Soprano
Laurie – The Tender Land
Soprano Amy Maples is a Tennessee native who currently resides in Golden, CO. Performing with such companies as the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, Alabama Symphony Orchestra, Brevard Symphony Orchestra, Bangor Symphony, Orchestra Kentucky, Ohio Light Opera, and Piedmont Opera, Ms. Maples has made her mark as both a concert soloist and an opera performer. She has been a featured artist with Opera Theatre of the Rockies, Opera Colorado, Opera Fort Collins, the Colorado Springs Philharmonic, and the Colorado Chamber Orchestra.
Specialty roles include: Cunegonde (Candide), Adina (L’Elisir d’Amore), Gilda (Rigoletto), Linda (Linda di Chamounix), the title role in (Lakmé), Lucy (The Telephone), Thérèse (Les Mamelles de Tiresias), Mabel (The Pirates of Penzance), Dorinda (Orlando), Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), Tuptim (The King and I), Cosette (Les Miserables), and Christine (The Phantom of the Opera). Maples received a MM in Voice Performance from Florida State University and a BM in Voice Performance from Lee University.
Dr. John Carlo Pierce, Tenor
Martin – The Tender Land
American tenor Dr. John Carlo Pierce enjoys an international reputation for beautiful sound and incisive acting. He has held contracted positions with the opera theaters in cities of Cologne and Mainz, Germany. He appeared as a guest at the Spoleto Festival in Italy, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, the Aargau Festival in Switzerland, and in opera houses across Germany. Dr. Pierce’s repertoire features leading roles in operas by Mozart, Rossini, and Donizetti, and stretches from the Baroque to new works. He has appeared on European television and radio, and can be heard on the EMI recording of Zemlinsky’s Der Traumgörge, conducted by James Conlon. His solo recording, Songs of Wintter Watts, was recently released on Centaur Records. Pierce holds a Master of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Connecticut. He is currently Associate Professor of Voice at Colorado State University, where he teaches lyric diction, opera history, and applied voice.
Tickets are available for $25 per device (Smart TV, computers, iPads, etc.) at LCTix.com
Streaming April 30th – May 2nd
The America Awakens Concert
is dedicated in memory of
Leabelle R. Schwartz
The America Awakens concert is dedicated in memory of Leabelle ‘Lea’ R. Schwartz who passed away on January 13, 2021. Lea grew up on a farm in northeastern Kansas where she learned the value of hard work and an appreciation for living in harmony with the land. She was an excellent student, a stalwart protector of her three younger siblings, and a devoted daughter who was as equally adept at helping her mother can vegetables and helping her father herd cattle on horseback.
Lea was passionate about classical music. Throughout her life she performed in choruses, played piano, and picked up the cello after her high school orchestra leader recruited her for her excellent musical ear, strong hands (farm work), and tall stature.
After earning the first of two master’s degrees, she accepted a job to teach at CSU. There she met and later married Will Schwartz, professor of music and founder/conductor of the Fort Collins Symphony Orchestra. In 1963, Lea founded the Women’s Symphony Guild, now known as the Friends of the Symphony. The Schwartz’s partnership and work to create and support classical music in Fort Collins set the stage for what is today a top-notch regional orchestra and thriving cultural arts community.
In addition to her work with the Guild, Lea taught at Foothills Gateway and co-founded the Women’s Resource Center. After earning her MBA, she worked in marketing communications for NCR, AT&T and Symbios Logic. She later opened her own public relations firm, Point Public Relations, and continued working until the age of 80, capping a long and successful career. A devotion to those she loved, hard work, and making a positive impact were hallmarks of Lea’s life.
Donors: Kara Holstrom & Warren Diggles, Wes & Leslie Kenney, Mary & Paul Kopco, Roberta Mielke, Sharyn & Larry Salmen, Stephanie Stern & Daniel Curran, and Kathleen Warnecke
This concert is made possible thanks to:
The Lincoln Center Support League, Roberta Mielke, Dr. Peter Springberg,
and the FCS Season sponsors:
