Award Renamed for MaLinda Sapp, Recognizes Community Leaders for Education, Service
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., February 3, 2011 – For the 10th year in a row the Grand Rapids Symphony will present “Symphony with Soul,” a special collage concert celebrating the richness of African-American musical and cultural expression, in DeVos Performance Hall on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 8 p.m.
Music Director David Lockington will lead the Grammy-nominated Grand Rapids Symphony in this musical extravaganza, which will feature selections from classical, opera, gospel/spiritual, jazz, folk and blues. Highlights of the community collaboration will include 14-year-old violin phenomenon Randall Goosby, the 125-voice Grand Rapids Symphony Community Chorus, three new arrangements by Grand Rapids’ own Duane Shields Davis, and singer-songwriter and recording artist Lizz Wright, who will perform along with the Symphony and jazz pianist Kenny Banks.
The Grand Rapids Symphony will host its sixth annual “Celebration with Soul” event featuring a dinner and Legacy Award presentations prior to the concert. The award has recently been renamed in honor of the late Dr. MaLinda P. Sapp, a longtime community leader and educator and chair of “Celebration with Soul” since its inception.
The Legacy Award honors community leaders for their extraordinary accomplishments and commitment to the advancement of all people in West Michigan. This year’s recipients of the first Dr. MaLinda P. Sapp Legacy Award are Sonya Hughes, vice president for diversity initiatives and programs for the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
Tickets are available for the concert only or for the “Celebration with Soul” event package, which includes social hour, awards dinner, concert and post-concert reception.
“Symphony with Soul” Concert
“We intend that this fast-paced, spirited concert will help bridge cultural gaps as well as inspire a greater awareness of the influence of African-American music and culture,” Lockington said. “This is truly a community collaboration we know our audiences will fully embrace just as they have in the past.
“The unparalleled artistic abilities of Lizz Wright, together with rising star Randall Goosby and the talents of local chorus master Duane Shields Davis, will make for an unforgettable evening of celebration.”
The first half of the concert will showcase the Community Chorus and will feature selected works from classical, opera and gospel/spiritual, including a performance by Goosby of the first movement of Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3. Goosby was a finalist in the 2010 Sphinx Competition, presented by the Detroit-based Sphinx Organization, a national non-profit organization committed to building diversity in classical music through year-round programming in arts education, awareness and presentation.
Under the direction of Davis, the Grand Rapids Symphony Community Chorus will present a tribute to African-American opera star and Michigan native Shirley Verett, featuring selections from Bizet’s “Carmen,” Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas” and Verdi’s “Aida.” The Chorus will also perform Wright’s “Gospel Medley,” which she rearranged for this performance with the orchestra and chorus.
Three all-new arrangements of traditional gospel songs by Davis – including a tribute to African-American composer, songwriter and choral conductor Jester Hairston – will round out the first portion of the evening. Formerly director of vocal music at Grand Rapids Community College, Davis continues to serve as chorus master for Opera Grand Rapids, a position he has held since 1986. He is also an instructor of vocal jazz at Western Michigan University.
Wright will take the stage alongside the Grand Rapids Symphony for the concert’s second half, performing a selection of music that displays her genre-defying eclecticism that embraces jazz, R&B, gospel and folk. With four albums to her credit, Wright is widely regarded as one of the most promising and emerging voices of the decade. Wright will also be accompanied by Banks, who has performed with such jazz and blues greats as Earl Klugh, Wess Anderson, Rene Marie, Kevin Mahogany, Dorothy Norwood and Aretha Franklin, in addition to Wright.
“Celebration of Soul” Event
The sixth annual awards celebration will begin at 5 p.m. with a social hour in the Ambassador Ballroom of the Amway Grand Plaza, followed by a three-course gourmet meal. Randall Goosby will perform, along with several Grand Rapids Symphony Mosaic Scholars, gifted Hispanic and African-American middle and high school students who receive instruction and mentorship from Symphony musicians.
The Legacy Awards are annually presented to recognize community leaders for their commitment to diversity, education, inclusion, service and bridge building. The Symphony’s leadership team unanimously voted to change the name of the award to honor Dr. Sapp, who died in September.
“The Grand Rapids Symphony is honored to recognize the service, commitment and dedication that Dr. Sapp embodied as chair of this community event for the past five years,” said President and CEO Peter Kjome. “MaLinda was a great friend of our Symphony who worked tirelessly to ensure attending orchestral performances and participating in music education programs were open and accessible to all. The renaming of the Legacy Award to the Dr. MaLinda P. Sapp Legacy Award will help celebrate her extraordinary leadership at this annual event and award program.”
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of tickets for the concert and ”Celebration of Soul” will benefit the Mosaic Scholarship Program, part of the Symphony’s education programs which annually serve more than 77,000 people in West Michigan.
Tickets
“Celebration with Soul” event tickets, which include the social hour, dinner, award presentations, concert and post-concert reception, are $100 and must be ordered by Feb. 19. Tickets can be ordered by contacting Annamarie Buller at abuller@grsymphony.org or 616/454-9451, Ext. 149.
“Symphony with Soul” concert tickets start at $18 and are available at the Symphony office, weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 300 Ottawa NW, Suite 100, (located across from the Calder), or by calling 616/454-9451, Ext. 4. (Phone orders will be charged a $2 per ticket service fee, with a $12 maximum.) Tickets are available at the DeVos Place Box Office, weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., or on the day of the concert two hours prior to the performance. Tickets may also be purchased through Ticketmaster, 800/982-2787, online at www.grsymphony.org, or in person at Ticketmaster outlets: select D&W Fresh Market, Family Fare Stores and Walmart. Tickets purchased at these locations will include a Ticketmaster service fee. Student Passport tickets are available for this concert.
Sponsors
• Symphony with Soul Concert – Steelcase
• Celebration of Soul Event – Peter M. Wege Foundation
• Guest Artist Lizz Wright – The Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation
• Dr. MaLinda P. Sapp Legacy Award – Anonymous
• Corporate Legacy – Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
About the Grand Rapids Symphony
The Grammy-nominated Grand Rapids Symphony was officially organized in 1930 and is recognized as one of America’s leading regional orchestras. Led by Music Director David Lockington, eight concert series are presented, featuring a wide range of music and performance styles. More than 400 performances are presented each year, touching the lives of some 170,000. Nearly half of those who benefit are students, senior citizens and people with disabilities reached through extensive education and community service programs. The Symphony sponsors the Grand Rapids Symphony Chorus, Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra, Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Choruses, and also provides the orchestra for Opera Grand Rapids and the Grand Rapids Ballet Company. To learn more about the Grand Rapids Symphony, please visit www.grsymphony.org.
These concerts are made possible with support from the Michigan Council of Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.