Everything Nac

    When the Chamber Orchestra Kremlin presents its concert at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, “W.M. Turner Auditorium will be filled with splendid music performed by 16 of the most gifted Russian musicians,” said John W. Goodall, associate dean of the Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine Arts.

Chamber Orchestra Kremlin will present a 7:30 p.m. concert on Thursday, Oct. 20, in W.M. Turner Auditorium as part of the Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine Arts 2011-2012 University Series.

    “We are thrilled to present this internationally acclaimed ensemble as part of our 2011-2012 University Series, ‘Your Bridge to the Arts,’” Goodall continued.

    Of particular interest to East Texans is the program’s inclusion of the world premiere of “Denali,” the latest work by SFA Professor Stephen Lias.

    The piece was inspired by Lias’ recent one-week residency in the national park and preserve located between Anchorage and Fairbanks, Ala.

    “The events and emotions of my time in Denali are given sound and form in this celebratory piece as it moves through exuberance, grace, danger and grandeur,” Lias said.

    The concert will be the first time Lias will hear the piece performed live, and he is particularly excited about the Chamber Kremlin Orchestra giving “Denali” its debut. “They are highly gifted technical players and also very musical, so they bring beautiful emotion and virtuosity to everything they play.”

    The concert will open with Edward Elgar’s “Serenade in E minor for String Orchestra, Op. 20,” followed by “Chamber Symphony, Op. 110 bis” by Dmitri Shostakovich and J.S. Bach’s “Contrapunctus No. 1 from The Art of the Fugue.”

    The orchestra will close the concert with Antonin Dvorak’s “Serenade for Strings.”

    “It is an honor to have my piece included among such luminary composers,” Lias said.

    Founded in 1991 by music director Misha Rachlevsky, the Chamber Orchestra Kremlin has performed over 1400 concerts. Almost 600 of these have been in Moscow; the rest on tours in 24 countries of Europe, North and South America and the Far East.

    The group has recorded over 30 compact discs, a number of which have received international acclaim and awards. Of the 900 compositions in the orchestra’s repertoire, over 20 were written especially for the ensemble by composers from Russia, Europe and the United States.

    Prior to the Oct. 20 concert, Lias and Rachlevsky will give a 7 p.m. informative talk in Griffith Gallery, located across the hall from Turner Auditorium. The audience is invited back to the gallery for a post-performance reception to meet the artists and honor the event’s corporate sponsor Commercial Bank of Texas.

    Turner Auditorium and Griffith Gallery are located in the Griffith Fine Arts Building, 2222 Alumni Drive.

    Tickets range from $35 to $17.50, with discounts available for seniors, students and youth. For tickets or more information, please go to www.finearts.sfasu.edu or call (936) 468-6407 or (888) 240-ARTS.

    Racism, nativist extremism and the white supremacist fringe groups of the neo-Confederate movement are among the topics to be discussed from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom at StephenF.AustinStateUniversity. The event is a presentation of SFA’s Wisely Fellow Speaker Series.

    Dr. Heidi Beirich, director of research for the Southern Poverty Law Center, will present “American Extremism and the Growing Hate Movement.” Beirich earned a doctorate in political science from Purdue University.

    Dr. Dianne Dentice, 2011-2012 Wisely Fellow and a faculty member in SFA’s Department of Social and Cultural Analysis, said that early nativists were worried about the Irish, Italian and German immigrants “polluting” Anglo-Saxon culture.

    “Modern-day American nativists who participate in extremist movements are singularly focused on race – with white English speakers being superior to any other group in their collective mindset,” Dentice explained.

    Dentice said that while the civil rights movement and other policies have helped minority groups, there is still room for improvement in American culture.

    “In our society, skin color is a minor genetic trait that has major social implications, especially with regard to educational opportunities, access to decent housing and health care,” she said.

    The Wisely Fellow Speaker Series is sponsored by the School of Honors and the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis. For more information, call (936) 468-2241.

    The SFA Gardens at Stephen F. Austin State University will host the monthly Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, in the Agriculture Building, Room 110, at 1924 Wilson Drive. Texas Agrilife Extension horticulturist Jim Kamas will present “Overcoming Pierce’s Disease – a New Lease on Life for Growing Grapes on the Gulf Coast.”

    Jim Kamas is a Texas A&M assistant professor and extension agency fruit specialist stationed in Fredericksburg. In addition to responsibilities in fruit tree crops and general viticulture, he serves as outreach coordinator for the Texas Pierce’s Disease Research and Education Program. He collaborates on a number of projects but is especially interested in grape rootstock disease tolerance and in evaluating new selections for fruit quality and tolerance to Pierce’s Disease. He is co-author of the recently published “Texas Peach Handbook.”

    Jim lives near Blanco, Texas, and enjoys wadefishing Texas bays and collecting 78-RPM records and players.

    The Theresa and Les Reeves Garden Lecture Series is generally held the third Thursday of each month at the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture’s SFA Mast Arboretum. Refreshments are served by the SFA Gardens volunteers before the lecture with a rare plant raffle being held afterward. The lecture is free and open to the public. Donations to the Theresa and Les Reeves lecture series fund are always appreciated.

    For more information, contact Greg Grant at (936) 468-1863 or grantdamon@sfasu.edu.