LSU School of Music to host annual Concert Spectacular Feb. 10 in Union Theater
It’s finally back.
In the LSU Student Union Theater, that is.
The LSU School of Music will stage its Concert Spectacular there for the first time in, well, how many years?
It almost seems too many to count.
The show was scheduled to return to the Union’s stage in 2011 after a two-year renovation project, but inclement winter weather canceled the show.
“Everyone was anticipating a big freeze that day,” Brian Shaw said. “LSU canceled classes, and events were canceled.”
But the freeze never developed.
“By that evening, it was too late to do anything,” Shaw said.
So, Concert Spectacular didn’t happen. Oh, rehearsals had taken place with groups, ensembles and soloists taking the stage at their appointed times, and everything was ready to flow.
Maybe you could have called it a dress rehearsal for Shaw. He was the coordinator of last year’s concert, as well as this year’s. He’s also a professor of trumpet and jazz studies in the LSU School of Music.
“Last year was my first time to put the show together,” Shaw said. “And even though it never made it to the stage, it was ready to go. So, this is my second year in organizing the show.”
He’s joined by stage director Rachel Harris in this endeavor.
“And she’s been fantastic,” Shaw said.
Concert Spectacular is a favorite among LSU School of Music audiences. The concert is an hour-long, nonstop stream of music featuring performances by every ensemble group that the school offers from classical to jazz, chamber groups to vocal performances. The event will take place at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10. There also will be a pre-concert fanfare at 7:15 p.m. in the Union Theater lobby.
The First Baptist Church of Baton Rouge hosted the concert during the Union Theater’s renovation.
“It was a great venue, and the church was very gracious,” Shaw said. “We appreciate the opportunity to use their space.”
But the Union Theater’s renovations will enhance the concert’s flow.
“We’ll use every part of the theater,” Shaw said. “There are added parts to the theater’s wings on stage right and left, and we’ll be using them. We’ll also be using the theater’s parterre along the sides in the balcony area, and we’ll be using the orchestra pit. We’ll use every space available, and the audience will have to turn here and listen, then turn there to listen.”
And the number one rule of this program? No applause until the end. Besides, there’s going to be no time for applause between acts.
“The end of one act will run right into the beginning of another,” Shaw said.
Performances will feature both students and faculty, including Willis Delony, interim director of the LSU School of Music, and selections by LSU’s Symphony Orchestra, A Cappella Choir, Schola Cantorum, Music Theatre Workshop, Jazz Ensemble, Hamiruge Percussion Ensemble, Louisiana Laptop Orchestra and the LSU Trombone Choir.
There also will be solo and chamber music numbers.
Nearly every genre of music taught at LSU will be represented at the concert: classical and jazz, tuba bands and harp solos, rousing musical theater numbers and string and piano duets.
Among the LSU School of Music faculty who will perform are Lorraine Sims, Kimberly Houser, Dennis Jesse, Robert Grayson, Lin He, Jan Grimes, Katherine Kemler and Dennis Parker.
The program also includes works by Dinos Constantinides, an LSU Boyd professor of composition.
Proceeds from the concert will support the LSU College of Music & Dramatic Arts’ scholarship fund drive, which aims to replace music scholarships being lost to recent budget cuts.
“So far, the weather reports look good this year,” Shaw said. “We don’t foresee anything keeping the concert from happening.”
It’s definitely back.