Blue Ridge Orchestra Performs May 5 for the Fun (and Love) of It

They say what goes around comes around so it’s fitting that the Blue Ridge Orchestra ends its first season under the direction of Dr. Milton Crotts the way it began, with a rousing pops concert at the White Horse in Black Mountain Saturday, May 5 at 7:30pm.

This pops concert will feature Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with UNCA jazz pianist Dr. William Bares, selections from the Phantom of the Opera, the musical Chicago, Broadway tunes, a Salute to the Big Apple and a selection from Mexico in honor of "Cinco de Mayo".  Tickets are $15 adults; $5 student and are available at the door or at whitehorseblackmountain.com

Dr. William Bares brings to Gershwin’s classic the background and instincts of a jazz musician.  An Assistant Professor at UNCA, Dr. Bares holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Amherst College, a Masters degree in Jazz Performance from the University of Miami, and a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology from Harvard University, where he studied with Ingrid Monson, the Quincy Jones Professor of African American Music. Bares spent ten years performing and researching jazz in Europe, and his book Eternal Triangle: American Jazz in European Postmodern is forthcoming with Oxford University Press. Other research interests include jazz and race, and music and environmental issues. Before coming to UNC Asheville, Bares taught at several Boston-based schools, including Harvard University, Brown University, Suffolk University, the New England Conservatory and Berklee College of Music. Bares also has a degree in political science and worked in Washington D.C. for the DNC and for representative Jane Harman (D-CA).  Among his courses at UNCA are Jazz Band, Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Theory and Improvisation, and African American Music: Slavery to Swing.

Tickets:

$15 adults; $5 students.  Available at whitehorseblackmountain [at] gmail [dot] com .