Don’t miss Ballet Austin’s season opener, Carmina Burana, a collaboration with the Conspirare Symphonic Choir, the Conspirare Youth Choir Kantorei, and the Austin Symphony Orchestra.
Friday and Saturday night with a Sunday matinee, Sept 24-26.
Michael & Susan Dell Hall at the Long Center.
Tickets and info at balletaustin.org
Ann’s first day in the office was yesterday, November 2nd.
We are delighted to have her here, and we look forward to sharing everything Conspirare.
Please join us in welcoming her.
After a nationwide search, Conspirare has selected Ann Hume Wilson as its next executive director. Wilson is currently associate director of the Blanton Museum of Art at The University of Texas at Austin, where she also served as interim director during 2008-09.
Ann Wilson said, “Much as I will miss being at the Blanton, I jumped at the chance to come to Conspirare, which brings such acclaim to Austin through its recordings, tours, and always-moving performances. I am thrilled to be returning to the performing arts after many years with museums, and look forward to building more recognition and support for the inspiring art of Craig Hella Johnson and his amazing company of voices.”
Conspirare Artistic Director Craig Hella Johnson said, “I am overjoyed to be welcoming Ann Hume Wilson as my colleague and partner in the work of leading Conspirare. Her extraordinary gifts and intelligence and her vast experience working with major arts institutions in the United States make her ideally suited to become Conspirare’s next executive director. I have come to know that she has a true love for the art form and I believe she will lead with a remarkable vision and a great deal of integrity. I am very excited about what lies ahead for all of us.”
Board Chair Fran Collmann added, “We welcome Ms. Wilson as our newly appointed executive director. Ann brings to us extensive experience in performing and visual arts management. Her broad and practical marketing and public relations skills will help us extend the mission and vision of Conspirare to the Austin community and beyond.”
Wilson’s job at the Blanton will conclude on October 23 and she will take the helm at Conspirare on November 2. Melissa J. Eddy, who has served as Conspirare’s interim managing director since July 1, will become its communications and grants manager.
A native of Washington D.C., Ann Hume Wilson brings over three decades of experience in arts administration to her new role as executive director of Conspirare. Since 2004, she has been associate director of the Blanton Museum of Art at The University of Texas at Austin, also serving as interim director during 2008-09. At the Blanton, she oversaw all administrative and operational aspects of the museum and led the institutional branding efforts and marketing campaign for the highly successful grand opening of the Blanton’s new building in 2006.
Wilson has served as director of marketing and communications for the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; manager of public relations and marketing for the High Museum of Art, Atlanta; director of marketing for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; director of public relations for Spoleto Festival U.S.A.; and assistant manager of the Opera Company of Boston. She has taken leadership roles in numerous cultural planning and tourism development initiatives in the cities where she has worked and is a frequent speaker on arts management, branding and strategic planning at national and regional arts conferences.
*3 Private Horseback Riding Lessons with Picnic Lunch at Bel Canto Farms (details)
*Vini Istante! Wine Cellar Starter Collection (details)
*Taos & Santa Fe Summer Get-Away for 2 (details)
*Breckenridge, Colorado, Winter Holiday for 8 (details)
*Catered Soirée for 10 in Your Home with Music by Craig Hella Johnson (details)
For more information about HIDDEN MUSIC IV, please click here.
Tickets are still available for purchase ($150, $300, or $500 per person) by calling our office at (512) 476-5775.
RESERVATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED THROUGH MONDAY, APRIL 27, 12 NOON.
Thank you!
CD signing and release party for Craig Hella Johnson’s first solo album, Thorns on the Rose, Thurs., March 12th, 5:00-6:30PM, at Waterloo Records, 6th and Lamar. Refreshments provided by Shiner.
Conspirare’s gifted Artistic Director and Conductor Craig Hella Johnson shares another side to his musical personality in his first ever solo CD as singer/pianist/songwriter and arranger, Thorns on the Rose. Conspirare fans around the country who know Johnson’s extraordinary gifts as conductor and creator of innovative and moving programs will be delighted by this additional aspect of his artistry. One noted collaborator recently said of Johnson: “When he sings, everything in the room just stops and time stands still. His singing speaks directly to the heart.” Thorns on the Rose is an exquisite and fascinating mix of songs– covers of Bob Dylan, Billy Jo Shaver and Eliza Gilkyson as well as four of Johnson’s originals, set to original lyrics and poems of Emily Dickinson and Tagore. The final track, a hauntingly beautiful rendition of “Killing Me Softly,” is a memorable culmination to this extraordinary debut album. In all Thorns on the Rose is a fascinating hybrid of pop, folk ballads and art songs. The arrangements are fresh and unique, the singing is magnificent and heartfelt. Thorns on the Rose is destined to become a cherished classic.
Visit Craig’s website to see more about this release.
January 31st at 7pm KLRU will air the September 2008 Austin City Limits taping of The Swell Season accompanied by twelve of Conspirare’s young choristers.
A new recording, a journey through the Renaissance, and a sparkling contemporary oratorio highlight Conspirare’s season under the direction of artistic director Craig Hella Johnson.
TICKETING INFO PAGE
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GROUP DISCOUNTS
Join Conspirare for an in-depth encounter with the African American spiritual. Among the most essential American music, spirituals are dramatic, powerful, and often profoundly beautiful. The spiritual is a foundational genre for so much modern American music, and Conspirare will demonstrate its full range of color and expression and how completely it speaks to the universal human condition.
In addition to the live performances, Conspirare will continue its successful partnership with distinguished label Harmonia Mundi by recording the spirituals program at Goshen College’s acoustically renowned Sauder Concert Hall for a CD scheduled for release in 2011.
Fri., Oct. 1, 2010, 8pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church
Sat., Oct. 2, 2010, 8pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church
Sun., Oct. 3, 2010, 3pm, Austin, St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church
ALSO in Georgetown at Klett Performing Arts Center, Thu., Sept. 30, 2010, 8pm (presented by the Georgetown Performing Arts Alliance; tickets through the Georgetown Symphony Society, 512-864-9591)
ALSO in Goshen, Indiana, at Goshen College Sauder Concert Hall, Tue., Oct. 5, 2010, 7:30pm (tickets through Goshen College, 574-535-7566)
Patrice Pike; photo Dennis Benton
Conspirare’s popular holiday concert features guest vocalist Patrice Pike, whose heartfelt performances in last year’s “Carillon” series brought cheering audiences to their feet. Craig Hella Johnson and the professional voices of Conspirare again weave diverse musical threads – sacred and secular, classical and pop, old and new – into one seamless whole. An Austin tradition, “Christmas at the Carillon” always sells out early.
Fri., Dec. 3, 2010, 7pm, San Antonio, Laurel Heights United Methodist Church
Sat., Dec. 4, 2010, 2:30pm and 8pm, Austin, The Carillon
Sun., Dec. 5, 2010, 2:30pm and 8pm, Austin, The Carillon
Mon., Dec. 6, 2010, 8pm, Austin, The Long Center. Carillon Gala at 6pm
Box Office
ALSO in Victoria at First United Methodist Church, Thu., Dec. 2, 2010, 7:30pm (tickets through the Victoria Bach Festival, 361-570-5788)
For the Dec. 6th Long Center performance, tickets are available from Conspirare through Sept. 30, 2010 as part of the Subscription Package only. Single tickets are only available through the Long Center.
A dramatic concert series over a single weekend explores the riches of Renaissance polyphony (“many voices”) and its enduring influences. The series comprises four distinct programs featuring works by Josquin, Lassus, Victoria, and Bach.
Robert Kyr; photo Stuart Mullenberg
Each concert will also feature a world premiere composition by series composer-in-residence Robert Kyr, written in response to the early masters. Mr. Kyr will also be presenting pre-concert talks for three of the performances (free to ticket holders). Concert-goers can choose individual programs or purchase a special package.
EARLY VOICES - Fri., Jan. 21, 2011, 8pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church (pre-concert talk by Robert Kyr at 7pm). Featuring the music of Josquin Des Prez (1450-1521)
DEFINING MASTERY – Sat., Jan. 22, 2011, 4pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church (pre-concert talk by Robert Kyr at 3pm). Focusing on the music of Orlandus Lassus (1532-1594)
A FLOWERING IN SPAIN – Sat., Jan. 22, 2011, 8pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church. Featuring Tomás Luis de Victoria’s (1548-1611) work for multiple choruses.
AND THEN CAME BACH – Sun., Jan. 23, 2011, 3pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church (pre-concert talk by Robert Kyr at 2pm). Works by J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
Roberto Sierra; photo Ellen Zaslaw
The season closes with a choral-orchestral spectacular, the Austin premiere of Puerto Rican composer Roberto Sierra’s Missa Latina ‘For Peace’. Acclaimed soprano Heidi Grant Murphy and baritone Nathaniel Webster, featured on the recording of this buoyant work, will appear with a performing force of nearly two hundred musicians from Conspirare, the Victoria Bach Festival, and the Texas State Chorale under the direction of Craig Hella Johnson.
Commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington, D.C., Missa Latina was hailed after its premiere as “the most significant symphonic premiere in [D.C.] since Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem.” Another reviewer said: “I can’t imagine anyone who starts listening to Missa Latina wanting to [stop] before it is over.” Missa Latina received a 2009 Grammy® nomination for Best Classical Contemporary Composition.
Box Office
ALSO in Victoria at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, Sat., Jun. 11, 2011, 7:30pm (tickets through the Victoria Bach Festival, 361-570-5788)
For the June 12th Long Center performance, tickets are available from Conspirare through Sept. 30, 2010 as part of the Subscription Package only. Single tickets are only available through the Long Center.
THE CARILLON GALA
Mingle with friends, gaze at sparkling city lights, and launch your holiday season with Conspirare! Enjoy a pre-concert reception, seated dinner, and post-concert dessert and champagne after-party with the artists. Admission to the after-party only is also available. For more information about the Gala, please call Conspirare at 512-476-5775.
Mon, Dec. 6, 2010, 6pm, Austin, Kodosky Donor Lounge, The Long Center
HIDDEN MUSIC VI
Conspirare’s annual spring fundraiser, featuring intimate performances by Craig Hella Johnson and friends, is eagerly awaited by Conspirare fans. Mark your calendar now for the sixth annual “Hidden Music,” and look for details in early 2011.
Tues., May 3, 2011, 6pm, Austin, University of Texas Alumni Center
Conspirare Youth Choirs
Conspirare’s youngest singers perform in two delightful concerts that showcase their joyful artistry. Both youth ensembles, Kantorei and Conspirare Children’s Choir, will appear in the holiday concert “Awaiting” and a spring series entitled “Voices of Joy.” The entire season will be dedicated to music from “across the pond” by composers and poets from England, Scotland, and Ireland.
AWAITING – Fri.-Sat., Dec. 10-11, 2010, 7:30pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church
VOICES OF JOY – Fri.-Sat., May 6-7, 2011, 7:30pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church
You too can sing with Conspirare! Conspirare brings back the Big Sing, the hugely popular event where the audience is the choir. Inaugurated last season to capacity crowds, the Big Sing offers the community an opportunity to lift their voices together. Conspirare’s artistic director Craig Hella Johnson leads each Big Sing in breathing exercises, vocal warm-ups, and simple songs. Admission is free and no reservation is required.
Thu., Nov. 11, 2010, 5:30pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church
Thu., Feb. 24, 2011, 5:30pm, Austin, St. Martin’s Lutheran Church
Ballet Austin; photo Amitava Sarkar
Enjoy Ballet Austin’s encore production, choreographed by Stephen Mills, of the ever-popular Carmina Burana by Carl Orff, a collaboration of the Conspirare Symphonic Choir, the Conspirare Youth Choirs, Ballet Austin, and the Austin Symphony Orchestra (tickets through the Ballet Austin Box Office at 512-476-2163 or www.balletaustin.org).
Fri., Sept. 24, 2010, 8pm, Austin, The Long Center
Sat., Sept. 25, 2010, 8pm, Austin, The Long Center
Sun., Sept. 26, 2010, 3pm, Austin, The Long Center
Conspirare gratefully acknowledges the generous support of
South Texas Money Management,
Season Sustaining Underwriter & Sponsor of the Carillon Gala
Media Sponsor
Twelve members of the Conspirare Youth Choirs will provide supporting vocals for The Swell Season, (Irish musician Glen Hansard and Czech singer and pianist Markéta Irglová) when they perform their Oscar®-winning song, “Falling Slowly,” from the 2007 film, Once, on Austin City Limits. Taping of the concert is set for September 28. National broadcast date has not yet been announced. For ticket information, contact KLRU.
AUSTIN, TEXAS (July 31, 2008) – Conspirare has announced the expansion of the single Conspirare Children’s Choir, founded in 2005, into two ensembles (Kantorei and Conspirare Children’s Choir) dedicated to the finest musical training for children ages 9 to 16. Both choirs will operate under the new umbrella name of Conspirare Youth Choirs (CYC) beginning with the 2008-09 season. Continue reading >
