The third intallment in the 2019 Opera Lancaster Associates (OLA) Lemonade Concert Series will feature four young people who represent the reason behind the events. On Thursday, June 20, the winners of the 2019 OLA voice competition will be showcased in a concert at Highland Presbyterian Church, 500 E. Roseville Road, Lancaster. Students who triumphed in the competition include Gretchen Enterline of Lancaster, Rebekah Hill of Lancaster, Holly Butler of Leola, and Rebecca Gideon of Denver.
According to Michelle Klink, one of the organizers of the Lemonade Series, the competition, now in its 50th year, had granted scholarship money to about 160 students. To raise funds to continue that tradition, freewill offerings are received at the Lemonade Concert Series. Concerts will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursdays through Aug. 15. Concerts kicked off with Auscultation Brass on June 6. The Lancaster Marimba Ensemble is set to perform on June 13.
The last concert of the month on June 27 will feature John Darrenkamp and Friends in a show titled "The Best of Broadway." Darrenkamp has invited Kristin Sims, Amy Yovanovich, Kirsten C. Kunkle, Brenten Megee, Kevin Durkin, Christa Schimitsch, and Marisa Robinson to join him for an evening of both classic show tunes and more recent Broadway hits.
There will be no concert on July Fourth due to the Independence Day holiday.
On July 11, the Amy Banks Jazz Quartet will take part in the Lemonade Series for the first time. "(Banks) is a popular jazz artist from the area," said Klink. Banks, accompanied by Steve Rudolph on the piano, will perform jazz favorites from the Great American Songbook.
On July 18, Amy Yovanovich and Chris Seay will be featured. "Amy doesn't need an introduction," said Klink. "Whatever they do will be fabulous."
On July 25, Kay Kneisley, Lamar Dourte, Alice Lauver, and Noah Miranda will bring "The Music of Irving Berlin" to Highland. "We will perform 'Alexander's Ragtime Band,' and the first time it will just be Peggy Grabowski on piano and her husband, Don, on bass," explained Kneisley, who added that a holiday medley including "Easter Parade," "Happy Holiday," and "White Christmas" will be performed. "We will probably end with 'God Bless America,'" she noted.
On Aug. 1, Vocal Harmonix and Harmony Revolution, featuring members of the Red Rose Chorus, will perform premier a capella music with a variety of choruses and quartets. "They are the local a capella barbershop musicians," explained Klink, noting that the award-winning local chapter of the Sweet Adelines International will sing both well-known traditional tunes along with newer selections.
On Aug. 8, QuintEssentially Brass will bring its unique sound to the venue. "They're entertaining," said Klink. "They will march down the aisle with their trombones, and they're fun."
The final concert of the season, which will be held on Aug. 15, will feature the Opera Lancaster Chorus with guest soloists John Darrenkamp, Laura Heydt, and Orin Struck. The chorus will be led by Christopher Hoster, who will bring along members of the Reading-based group Opus One to enlarge the sound. Among the pieces Kneisley hopes the group will perform will be the "Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves," "Humming Chorus," and "The Anvil Chorus."
Funds raised by the concerts benefit OLA's annual vocal competition and other OLA projects. For more details, readers may visit http://www.operalancaster.com or search for "OperaLancaster" on Facebook.
Leave a Review