Down On The Corner

By Paul Moffett

• Derby will be over – or nearly so – by the time you read this, let me remind you and fellow Louisvillians that we really fortunate to have a civic holiday of such standing that it gets a lot of people off work for an extra couple of days, never mind allowing us the freedom to betting, drink and party in general. It's really only matched by Mardi Gras, at least in the U.S. Bon ton roulette!

• We've added a new blogger to the LMN online family – Alexander "Sandy" Campbell with the TerraBeat blog. Sandy has a quite deep knowledge about world music of all regions and is quite opinionated, too. That's all well and good for a blogger and for readers as well. Log onto Louisvillemusicnews.net and look in the left-hand column for the TerraBeat button and go have a read.

• The push is on about the new film "Music Makes a City," which is the story of the Louisville Orchestra. According to the Louisville Orchestra, tells a story of civic aspiration and cultural ingenuity, as result of which Louisville became the unlikely capital of of new music in the Fifties. The film, co-directed by Owsley Brown III and Jerome Hiler, will have its world premiere on May 20 in Louisville

• The Kentucky Opera has announced the addition of Joseph Mechavich to the staff as Music Director and Principal Conductor. His role will include programming, artist selection and when appropriate, take the podium with the Louisville Orchestra.

• SPIN magazine rated ear X-tacy as the sixth-best record store in the U.S in a recent issue. At least as long as it's open.

• The push is on about the new film "Music Makes a City," which is the story of the Louisville Orchestra. According to the Louisville Orchestra, it tells a story of civic aspiration and cultural ingenuity, as result of which Louisville became the unlikely capital of of new music in the Fifties. The trailer is about 4 minutes long. It's online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOPmQzK-j_Y

• The situation around Wax Fang reminds me of standing on a train station platform as the train begins to move out – cars go by, faster and faster, there's lots of noise and a sense of departure for bigger places. Of course, I grew up in a small town in Texas and the trains were usually headed for Dallas; Wax Fang, on the other hand, is headed for much larger places – London, to be exact. Better go see the band before their ticket prices reach MMJ levels.

• The Kentucky Center has announced that Russia's Moscow State Symphony Orchestra will perform on November 13, with Britain's Royal Philharmonic following on January 12, 2012. It's a big deal, in case you didn't know.

• The Louisville Youth Choir, artists in residence at Sacred Heart School for the Arts, is offering two summer day camps for singers in rising grades 4 through 12 from July 26-30.

The Bella Voce Camp is for serious solo singers who will be entering grades 9 through 12 in the fall. The camp curriculum will include the study of vocal literature, vocal pedagogy, diction and theory. Students will receive two private voice lessons with principal teacher, Terri E. Foster, and students will have two master class opportunities with guest faculty. A singer information sheet must be submitted by July 15. A singer assessment may be required. For more information, call 896-5859. Registration forms and additional information can be found at www.louyouthchoir.org.

CODAS

McDonald, rickey, 52, passed away April 4, 2010. He was a musician.

Montgomery, Mary Lee, 84, died on April 5, 2010. A violinist, she was concert mistress of the Louisville Orchestra during the 40's. She was also classically trained in voice and entertained the World War II soldiers from Fort Knox at the U.S.O. Club at 4th and Broadway. Later she sang in the Houston Opera and traveling productions of Broadway Shows such as "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum" and "The Unsinkable Molly Brown".

Murphy, James r. III, 62, of Louisville, passed away Monday April 5, 2010. He was a life-long musician and founding member of The Variety Pak.