Friday, November 16, 2007

Circle of Light: a multicultural holiday performance

Celebrate this holiday season with an astonishing multi-ethnic and multi-talented cast of performers in a family program celebrating many of our winter holidays. CIRCLE OF LIGHT will enlighten, entertain, and delight you and yours with stories, song, dance, and more. In a time of great tension and unrest, this is our offering toward healing. Featured are Christmas around the Americas (including Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, and regions of the United States); the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah; the African-American celebration of Kwanzaa; the Hindu celebration of Diwali; and the Islamic observance of Ramadan. All of these holidays, sacred and secular, are fascinating and profoundly moving human rituals. CIRCLE OF LIGHT links these traditions through themes of light, hope, faith, joy, love, family and giving, while honoring the differences each traditions offers. Languages heard throughout the performance include English, Spanish, Hebrew, Portuguese, Yiddish and more. Please join us for a memorable holiday event.

Austin Lyric Opera • 901 Barton Springs Rd •
Saturday, December 15 •
Two Performances: 2 & 8 pm

Tickets: $18 general admission; $12 children and seniors

For tickets or other inquiries please contact CreOp at 512.448.3485 or creop@texas.net.

For online ticket purchase or directions visit www.creop.org

Free parking is available in the parking garage at 811 Barton Springs Road with access off of Bouldin Road.

Artists Include: Tina Marsh, Oliver Rajamani, Susanna Sharpe, Michael Stevens, Alex Coke, Sabrina Cummings, Christian Fernandez, Carla Nadé Nickerson, Bill Averbach, Anuradha Naimpally, Tonico Vanalli, Coutinho, Russell Scanlon, Anna Maria Garcia, Kim Longacre, Alseny Sylla, Mohammed Firoozi, Chandra Washington, Raul Vallejo

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Alex Coke's Iraqnophobia, a suite for creative jazz ensemble

What: The Creative Opportunity Orchestra and the Church of the Friendly Ghost present Alex Coke’s jazz orchestra suite Iraqnophobia, followed by Brian Allen & Hernan Hecht.

When: September 11, 2007 (see event listings for times)
Where: Salvage Vanguard Theater (2803 Manor Road)
Time: 8:00 pm
Tickets: $10 General Admission (includes both performances)

FOR TICKET INFO & OTHER INQUIRIES: Contact the Church of the Friendly Ghost at 786 2015 or email halfmanhalfpie@hotmail.com.


Event Description
To commemorate this September 11, Alex Coke will lead the Creative Opportunity Orchestra in a performance of his jazz orchestra suite Iraqnophobia. Originally recorded and released on the VoxLox label in 2005, Iraqnophobia “(is a) deep meditation on human rights, peace, and social justice. For all (its) sensuous aesthetic, this composition is also a critical work of musical citizenship. Like Alan Pogue’s stunning photographs (included in the CD package), it directly confronts the brutal circumstances of life in war zones. (It) causes us to ask about the pain and misery of these places, and in doing so advocate(s) for compassion and human dignity.” – Steven Feld, MacArthur Fellow, Professor of Anthropology and Music, University of New Mexico

Please join the Creative Opportunity Orchestra and the Church of the Friendly Ghost for this special presentation on September 11th, at the Salvage Vanguard Theater in East Austin.

“Tina Marsh and CO2 have many years commissioned and performed works of musical conscience. As Austin’s premier aggregation of progressive musical spirits, their agenda has been as much social as musical, asking us to remember that music is not just a passive pleasure but also an active form of soul searching.” – Steven Feld, Professor of Anthropology and Music, University of New Mexico

Feld, President of VoxLox, explains that the small label’s “documentary sound art advocates for human rights and acoustic ecology. Our human rights recordings present exile, refugee, disaporic, and indigenous voices muted or censored by mainstream media.”

Bill Shoemaker wrote: “Songs are effective vehicles for the delivery of outrage, and the history of protest music is only slightly shorter than the history of music itself. Musical expression of political protest reached its greatest concentration in the 20th century … as I listened to Coke’s music, the messages about domestic ills (prisons and social justice) and foreign-policy mistakes (the Iraq war) receded. They were not lost but were superseded by accomplished writing, improvising and ensemble playing. The pieces incorporate elements of Southern blues, modern mainstream jazz, avant garde classical music, free jazz and middle-Eastern songs. Iraqnophobia makes a solid case that jazz remains a vital American medium for the advocacy of peace and social justice.” – Bill Shoemaker

FEATURING: Tina Marsh, Alex Coke, John Mills, Brian Allen, Ron Westray, Chris Maresh, Steve Schwelling, Rich Harney., Ephraim Owens, Pat Murray, with Steve Vague, and Oliver Rajamani.


CO2 will be followed by trombonist Brian Allen and drummer Hernan Hecht as part of their US Duo Tour.

The Brian Allen and Hernan Hecht Duo creates anthems for last place soccer teams, jams for alien big band dances, and songs for calculus teachers. Augmenting their respective primary instruments of trombone and drums, Brian and Hernan employ all manner of electronics: 8 bit video game sounds, samplers, melodica and various other toys and noisemakers. Tonight's Austin performance kicks off their southwestern U.S. tour, formally releasing their debut CD "Huiepi" into the wilderness.

This is the first U.S. duo performance of native Texas Allen and Argentinean-born, Mexico City-based Hecht. Their playing has been focused in Mexico, beginning in the Yucatan this past January with additional tours in the greater Mexico City area, made possible by Brian's Meet the Composer Global Connections Grant. Brian has been heard with Anthony Braxton, Mark Dresser and Roswell Rudd, his trio with Tony Malaby and Tom Rainey, the duo Brainkiller, and as a composer for chamber, jazz and wind ensembles. Hernan also travels wide circles, working in a trio with Bill Carrothers, gigging with Dave Fiuczynsky and Scott Henderson, touring his Gru-B Project and XPression Quartet, scoring music for documentaries, and playing drums in pop singer Ely Guerra's band. For more info, see www.braintone.com and www.hernanhecht.com.

Friday, June 15, 2007

Fri. June 15, Jazz at Laguna Gloria Ampitheatre

The Creative Opportunity Orchestra celebrates the release of their latest CD, Migration (their first official recording in almost a decade!), with a performance at the beautiful Laguna Gloria. ($15 General Admission; $12 Students, Seniors, Artists; $8 Children 12 and under)

For more details, visit:
http://creop.org/

Monday, June 11, 2007

Free tickets to Creative Opportunity Orchestra at Laguna Gloria!

First person to read this and send an email to creop@texas.net with "I want the tickets!" in the subject line will win 2 tickets to the Friday, June 15 performance by the Creative Opportunity Orchestra! Details of the concert are below.

FRIDAY, JUNE 15, 7:30pm - LAGUNA GLORIA AMPHITHEATRE(3809 W. 35th St.):
- The Creative Opportunity Orchestra celebrates the release of their latest CD, Migration (their first official recording in almost a decade!), with a performance at the beautiful Laguna Gloria. ($15 General Admission; $12 Students, Seniors, Artists; $8 Children 12 and under)

To learn more about us, click here: www.creop.org

Plan to attend the 6th Annual NEW JAZZ Series

Join the Creative Opportunity Orchestra as we present the 6th Annual NEW JAZZ Series, 3 days of great jazz music from the Creative Opportunity Orchestra, jazz legends Kidd Jordan and Alvin Fielder, New York pianist Bob Rodriguez, and more. The Orchestra will release their first new recording, Migration, in almost a decade!

SCHEDULE:

THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 7:30 pm - The historic VICTORY GRILL(1104 E. 11th St.):
- Legendary jazz musicians Kidd Jordan (saxophone) and Alvin Fielder (drums) perform. Preceeded by a performance by Tina Marsh and Alex Coke. ($15 General Admission; $12 Students, Seniors, Artists; $8 Children 12 and under)

FRIDAY, JUNE 15, 7:30pm - LAGUNA GLORIA AMPHITHEATRE(3809 W. 35th St.):
- The Creative Opportunity Orchestra celebrates the release of their latest CD, Migration (their first official recording in almost a decade!), with a performance at the beautiful Laguna Gloria. ($15 General Admission; $12 Students, Seniors, Artists; $8 Children 12 and under)

SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 4pm - STEINWAY PIANO GALLERY(12980 N. Highway 183):
- Solo piano performance by New York pianist Bob Rodriguez. (Pay What You Wish!)

To learn more about us, click here: www.creop.org