The Wild, Wild West
Just in time for the Houston rodeo season, the Pops will present its own take on the Wild, Wild West, February 24th and 25th, 2012. Artistic director and conductor Kris Chapman has created a program highlighting the fusion of cultures represented by the American west, contrasting William Grant Still's view of the American Scene with Anton Dvorak's New World Symphony. Houston soprano Melissa Givens will be featured in Still's From the Hearts of Women and the Pop's "back-benchers" will get the evening started with Aaron Copland's stirring Fanfare for the Common Man. So, y'all hurry on out to the Nathaniel Center for this special western treat.
The Kingwood Pop's special guest for the Wild, Wild
West will be acclaimed soprano Melissa
Givens. Hailed as a singer whose music making is
“consistently rewarding” and “a pleasure to hear,” Ms. Givens is an
extremely versatile artist, regularly performing repertoire from the
Baroque era through music of the 21st century. Recent appearances
include Mozart's C Minor Mass with the Victoria Bach Festival
and Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Berkshire Choral Festival,
both with conductor Craig Hella Johnson. Melissa's television
appearances with Johnson and the nationally acclaimed ensemble
Conspirare have generated equal praise.
A performance of Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder in a return
engagement with the Texas Ballet Theater and the Fort Worth Symphony
Orchestra prompted the Dallas Morning News to describe her
voice as "heavenly".
Other appearances include a beautifully received turn as soloist in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion for the Bach Society of Houston, Donna Anna for the Houston Ebony Opera Guild’s recent production of Don Giovanni, and the title role in the staged Ars Lyrica Houston production of Alessandro Scarlatti’s oratorio La Giuditta under the direction of American harpsichordist and musicologist Matthew Dirst. Ms. Givens remains in demand on concert series throughout the United States and Europe and is an Assistant Professor of Music at Houston Baptist University. A champion of collaborative musical endeavors, she performs with various chamber music groups as well as with Conspirare. Melissa appears on their recent Clarion Records release, Requiem, which was twice nominated for a Grammy. She can also be heard on her solo compact disc, Let the Rain Kiss You, available on her website: www.melissagivens.com.
There are a limited number of table seats at the next Kingwood Pops
concert available for $25 by calling the POPS line at 281-319-POPS
(281-319-7677). Preferred row tickets will be available for $10
about 3-4
weeks prior to each concert at Market Cleaners locations in Kingwood
(5734 W. Lake Houston Parkway),
Atascocita
(17211 W. Lake Houston Parkway #218),
and Walden
(18455 W. Lake Houston Parkway #220).
As always, a limited number of free general admission seats with restricted views of the stage are available every concert. These tickets are availble on a first-come-first-served basis at the performance, but be warned: they fill up fast!