Barbara Conrad, Mezzo Soprano,
Performing for the Upshur County Arts Council
Barbara Conrad performs American spirituals at private concert, UT Austin, November 4, 2005. Photo by Marsha Miller, UT Office of Public Affairs, copyright Marsha Miller.
The Center for American History at The University of Texas at Austin, in partnership with the Upshur County Arts Council, will present renowned mezzo-soprano Barbara Conrad in concert, Sunday, June 10, at 2:00 p.m. at the Gilmer Civic Center on Highway 271 N in Gilmer, Texas.
Conrad, accompanied by pianist Patsy Sage, will perform arias and classical pieces during the first half of the concert. She will be joined in the second half of the performance by a Community Chorus that will perform several spirituals with Conrad.
On Sunday, June 17, at 5:00 p.m., Conrad will perform the Brahms’ Alto Rhapsody with a men’s chorus at the First United Methodist Church in Gilmer.
Conrad’s stay in Gilmer will also include two open-to-the-public master classes on the American Spiritual at First United Methodist Church. The classes will be held on Wednesday afternoon, June 13, and Thursday evening, June 14, and will examine the history and impact of the spiritual on American culture.
Conrad’s master classes offer participants the opportunity to experience for themselves the power of the spiritual through song. Her teaching draws from her close relationships with the world’s premier arrangers, such as Hall Johnson, as well as a performance repertoire that includes the Vienna State Opera, the Metropolitan Opera Company, and the New York City Opera.
The Center for American History at The University of Texas in Austin has established the Endowment for the Study of American Spirituals and an initiative to preserve the heritage of the American spiritual. As part of this initiative, the Center for American History will film Conrad’s concerts and master classes in Gilmer.
Conrad, who is a Distinguished Alumna of the University, serves as artistic adviser and ambassador for the Center’s American Spirituals Initiative.
Tickets for the Sunday, June 10, concert are $10 for adults and seniors and $5 for students with proper ID. There is no charge for the Master Classes or for the Brahms concert.
Individuals interested in singing with the community chorus may contact Annette Breazeale at (903) 843-3873, (903) 790-1131, or at UCAC433@aol.com.
