St. John's Epiphany Concert Series
St. John’s Episcopal Church will open its Fourth Annual Epiphany Concert Series with a performance by pianists Beverly Hazelwood, William Mills, and Benjamin Woods on Sunday, January 11 at 6:00 p.m. in the parish hall. Additional concerts are scheduled for January 18 (The Sandlapper Singers), January 25 (Hartsville Chamber Ensemble), February 8 (Jacob Will, bass-baritone), February 15 (Columbia Baroque Soloists), and February 22 (La Catrina String Quartet). Click here for details.
There is no charge for the concerts, but donations are appreciated. The service of Evening Prayer precedes the concerts at 5:30 in the church. Light refreshments will be provided; a nursery will be available. St. John’s is located at 252 S. Dargan Street in Florence. Parking is available behind the church.
The title of the concert series reflects the current season of the Episcopal Church Year. “Epiphany Season” is the name given to that period of time between the end of the Christmas Season (January 6) and the beginning of Lent (Ash Wednesday on February 6). The Gospel stories of this season describe various events that manifest the divinity of Jesus, such as the coming of the Magi, the baptism of Jesus, the wedding at Cana, the calling of the disciples, and various miracles and teachings of Jesus. In a sense, these events are about coming to know Christ so that we might go about making him known to others. That is St. John's mission statement: To Know Christ and to Make Him Known.
The Artists
Beverly Hazelwood, William Mills, Benjamin Woods - January 11
Known throughout the Pee Dee and beyond for their exceptional musicianship, Hazelwood, Mills, and Woods’ performance will showcase and christen the new baby grand piano in St. John’s parish hall. William B. Mills is a graduate of Florida State University (Bachelor of Music) and the University of South Carolina (Master of Music). His post-graduate work includes study at Indiana University, Southern Methodist University, Stanford University, and Columbia College. He has appeared locally and regionally in solo organ recitals, organ concerti with orchestra, and chamber music programs. A well-known pianist, he has accompanied various choral groups, solo voice recitals, theater and opera performances, and he is a past winner in competitions sponsored by the National Association of Music Clubs. A Diaconal Minister in the United Methodist Church, Mills serves as Director of Music and Organist at Central United Methodist Church, a post he has maintained for forty years. Bill is also the founder and director of Masterworks Choir, a regional choir dedicated to the performance of major choral works. In the past twenty-five years, Masterworks Choir has sung over thirty major choral works, some of which were South Carolina premieres.
Beverly Hazelwood is a native of Spartanburg. She has served as organist at churches in Charleston, Baltimore, and Florence. Her current positions include Organist/Director of Music at the Methodist Manor of Florence and Assistant Organist at Central United Methodist Church. She is organist and rehearsal accompanist for The Masterworks Choir and has been an active accompanist for other performing organizations in the community, including the Florence Symphony Orchestra and the Florence Little Theater. Mrs. Hazelwood has established herself as a community leader, not only as an active participant in the arts; but also in a number of social programs whose ultimate aim, like the arts, is to improve the quality of life in Florence and surrounding communities. She is chairman of the Board of the McLeod Foundation, a member of the McLeod Community Board, the Downtown Development Board, and is a past president of Florence Center for the Arts.
Dr. Benjamin Woods has given numerous solo piano concerts across the country, including Coolidge Auditorium of the Library of Congress, and Carnegie Recital Hall in New York City where he made his début in 1985. He has performed as guest soloist with the Florence Symphony Orchestra in concertos of Brahms, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Dohnanyi, and Gershwin. He has performed the Beethoven Choral Fantasy with the Florence Masterworks Chorus and Orchestra, and he has performed Beethoven concertos nos. 3, 4, and 5 with conductor John Paul and members of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, Jackson, Mississippi. He was Conductor/Music Director of the Florence Symphony Orchestra from 1996 to 2002. A professor of music at Francis Marion University in Florence, he was recently selected as a Francis Marion University Board of Trustees Research Scholar, as well as the FMU J. Lorin Mason Distinguished Professor for 2006-2007. He continues his teaching and performing careers.
The Sandlapper Singers - January 18
This Columbia-based professional chamber choir presents American choral music in a uniquely engaging and entertaining style. The Singers embrace America's diverse cultural heritage by performing a wide variety of musical styles. To learn more about this choir, visit www.sandlappersingers.org.
The Hartsville Chamber Ensemble - January 25
Now in its third year, this six-voice ensemble maintains a full performance schedule throughout the region. Under the direction of Anna Anna White Hill, the Hartsville Chamber Ensemble is known for its excellent vocal blend and program variety, and has quickly made its mark in area cultural circles. Singers in the group are Dave Godshalk, Candy Holcombe, Vicki Norment, Sharman Poplava, Terry Poplava, and Holly Prescott. Accompanist is Kim Roberts.
Jacob Will, Bass-Baritone - February 8
An experienced concert artist, Jacob Will has appeared with symphony orchestras throughout the United States and Europe. He made his New York Philharmonic debut as soloist in the American Premiere of the Messa per Rossini, a performance televised live nationwide. He has been featured with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra in Mahler’s Waldmärchen, with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in Dvorak”s Stabat Mater and with the San Francisco Symphony in the St. Matthew Passion. Other credits of note include performances with the International Bach Festival of Schaffhausen, Switzerland, and with the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra. He has also recorded Cherubini’s Messe solennelle under Helmuth Rilling and Zemlinsky’s Kleider Machen Leute under Ralf Weikert.
Equally at home on stage, Mr. Will has sung frequently with the Zürich Opera, performing roles such as Giorgio in I Puritani, Mustafa in L'Italiana in Algeri, and Colline in La Boheme. He has also appeared with the New York City Opera as Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro, the Vancouver Opera as Oroveso in Norma, the Bavarian State Opera as Samuel in Un Ballo in Maschera, and the San Francisco Opera as Masetto in Don Giovanni.
A native of Hartsville, SC, Mr. Will attended Furman University, the University of South Carolina, and the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. He participated in the Merola and Adler Fellowship Programs of the San Francisco Opera and has been a prizewinner in various international singing competitions including the Munich Competition and the Queen Elizabeth Competition of Brussels. Mr. Will is a member of the voice faculty at the University of South Carolina.
Columbia Baroque Soloists - February 15
Columbia Baroque Soloists specializes in the performance of 17th and 18th century European Baroque vocal and instrumental chamber music at the highest level of artistic excellence. It is South Carolina’s only Baroque ensemble performing on period instruments using authentic temperament and pitch. The purpose of the Columbia Baroque Soloists is to educate, foster appreciation, and develop audience support for Baroque music in South Carolina. The ensemble, which is in residence at Shandon United Methodist Church in Columbia, encourages and supports the development of artists of Baroque music in the southeast US. To read more about the ensemble, visit www.columbiabaroquesoloists.org.
La Catrina Quartet - February 22
Founded in 2001, the La Catrina Quartet has a triple mission: to work closely with living composers in order to promote the performance of new music, to promote Mexican and Latin American art music, and to perform the masterworks of the string quartet repertoire. Its members have played as soloists with a variety of orchestras in Mexico and the United States and given recitals in Japan, England, the United States, and Mexico.
One of the quartet’s most important achievements is the publication by Arsis Press of Our Hands Were Tightly Clenched, a string quartet written for them by composer Zae Munn, which they premiered in Chicago’s College of Performing Arts, September 2003. They have recorded works by Mexican composer Germán Romero, under the Quindecim label, and collaborated with several other artists, including a recording of Mozart’s clarinet quintet with renowned Cuban clarinetist Alfredo Valdés-Brito.
They have received important awards and recognitions, such as Western Michigan University’s All University Research and Creative Scholar Award.
At Kent State University, the quartet invited them to perform Mendelssohn’s octet, to showcase the accomplishments of Kent State University’s string department.
The La Catrina Quartet performs regularly at San Miguel de Allende’s chamber music series, Pro Música. Last fall they were in residence for two weeks in Hickory, North Carolina, where they were featured in the Western Piedmont Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Classics series as part of a one-year search for the new Quartet-in-Residence of the WPS. La Catrina Quartet won the three-year appointment, which will commenced in the fall of 2007.
Some of the year’s activities have included their participation in the highly competitive Association of Performing Arts Presenters’ 2007 convention in New York City, which concluded with a showcase performance in Carnegie Hall. In the summer, they will conduct a two-week chamber music summer camp in Kent Sate University’s School of Music and a residency in San Miguel de Allende, where they will offer recitals and chamber music masterclasses. The La Catrina Quartet is Quartet-in-Residence of the Conservatorio de Las Rosas’ summer quartet program, and adjunct faculty at Lenoir-Rhyne College. For detailed concert information please visit, http://www.lacatrinaquartet.com.
