FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- 4/6/09
Morgan Arts Council -- Berkeley Springs, WV
www.macicehouse.org
press contact only: Mary Hott -- 304-258-2300
GERSHWIN PLAYED IN BERKELEY SPRINGS
BERKELEY SPRINGS, WV ---- More than half a century after his death,
George Gershwin's music remains a popular jazz standard around the
world. On Saturday, April 18 at 7:30pm, the Morgan Arts Council
presents noted pianist and scholar, Bill Messenger, performing and
narrating Gershwin at the Ice House. Messenger is accompanied in
his concert by tenor, Alan Gephardt. Together, the pair convinces
the audience that an incredibly charming, witty and musically
brilliant George Gershwin is in the room with them.
Gershwin's music was known for its catchy yet beautiful melodies and
marvelously complex rhythms from the enormously successful "Swanee"
which he wrote when he was just 19 and the standard "I Got Rhythm,"
to the brilliant "Rhapsody in Blue." He wrote 16 musicals during
the 1920s and 30s, many for performers like Fred and Adele Astaire
Jeanette MacDonald,and Bob Hope. Gershwin introduced the concept
of "folk opera" with "Porgy and Bess," widely regarded as the most
important American opera of the twentieth century.
Gershwin was both a notable pianist and singer who had the ability
to manipulate forms of music into his own unique voice.
Bill Messenger takes on the first-person identity as George
Gershwin, and is captivating as both a pianist and a storyteller
with a dry humor that, while historically accurate, calls attention
to the absurd and paradoxical. Professor Bill Messenger studied
musical composition at The Peabody Institute of Music, holds two
Master Degrees from Johns Hopkins University and regularly lectures
on American music. His audiobooks series on jazz and Broadway
musicals are considered best in the field. His performance career
includes studio work on early rock'n'roll recordings. He has
accompanied many nationally known performers during his years in
the music business, including Lou Rawls and Cass Elliot, and he
worked as an opener for Bill Haley and the Comets. He was also a
pianist with the acrobatic band, The Rockin’ Maniacs. As a jazz
pianist, he has played in ragtime ensembles, swing bands, Dixieland
bands, and modern jazz groups, and in 1983 he was voted Baltimore’s
best piano player by Baltimore Magazine.
Tenor Alan Gephardt has appeared at venues throughout the eastern
seaboard and sings the songs as Gershwin intended them to be sung.
The Gershwin concert is another presentation of an American
Masterpiece as part of the Morgan Arts Council's and Morgan County
Library's "Back To Our Roots" celebration of music, dance, folklore
and visual arts. It is funded in part by the National Endowment
for the Arts, WV Commission on the Arts and local hotel/motel
taxes. For more information, check online atwww.macicehouse.org or
call 304-258-2300.
The Ice House is located on Independence and Mercer in downtown
Berkeley Springs.
TICKET PRICES: $10/ $5 MAC members.
For more information about the "Roots" activities, check online at www.macicehouse.org
or call 304-258-2300. The Ice House is located at the corner of
Independence and Mercer in downtown Berkeley Springs.
For a full schedule of Back To Our Roots activities, visit www.macicehouse.org or call 304-258-2300. The Ice House is located at Independence and Mercer in downtown Berkeley Springs.
Saturday, April 11 - 7:30pm. Gala opening New Harmonies exhibition @ the Ice House. Sponsored by: CNB, Kesecker Realty and War Memorial Hospital.
Wednesday, April 15 - 7pm Roots Music Film Series: I’m Not There - The Bob Dylan Story. Film @ the Ice House; discussion to follow @ Fairfax Coffee House, sponsor of the film series.
Saturday, April 18 - 7:30pm Concert and talk: pianist and narrator Bill Messenger and tenor Alan Gephardt present the music of George Gershwin as he would have played it. @ the Ice House.
Saturday and Sunday, April 25 & 26 - Gospel Music weekend with workshops and performances by Eric Byrd, the McDaniel College Choir and local choir members. Sunday, 3pm performance @ Berkeley Springs High School auditorium.
Sponsored by Morgan Sanitation.
Friday, May 1-- 7:30pm Gala opening Delectable Mountains Quilt Show and Sale @ the Ice House. Show hangs though June 7
Saturday, May 9 - 7:30pm & Sunday, May 10 - 3pm. Piecework - staged readings of locally written plays with quilting themes. @ the Ice House.
Wednesday, May 20 - 7pm. Roots Music Film Series: Walk the Line - Johnny Cash and June Carter.. Film @ the Ice House; discussion to follow @ Fairfax Coffee House, sponsor of the film series.
Friday, May 22 - Final day for New Harmonies exhibit. Sponsored by: CNB, Kesecker Realty and War Memorial Hospital.
Saturday, May 23 - 3pm. Lecture: Jazz History w/Dr. Chris Wilkinson, WVU @ the Ice House
