Tag Archives: Kentucky Symphony Orchestra

The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra offers its 25th Summer Series of free, family-friendly concerts at the historic amphitheater in Covington’s Devou Park. A tradition since WPA structure was built in 1939, musicians and entertainers have brought communities together at the concert bowl for shared and memorable experiences. More than 325,000 residents from across the region have attended the KSO’s varied, thematic summer concerts since 1995.

This summer the KSO and its subsidiary groups continue to offer universally appealing and nostalgic programming to the region on the following Saturdays beginning at 7:30 p.m.

“Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”
(She Bop Live)
7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 13, 2019

The KSO’s studio orchestra celebrates 5 decades of popular female artists and girl bands — Patsy Cline, Whitney Houston, Adele, En Vogue, Taylor Swift, Patti LaBelle and many more. Whether you are a “Redneck Woman” or like to “Walk Like an Egyptian,” call your
gal pals and meet at the band shell to “Express Yourself,” and for a litte R-E-S-P-E-C-T! (Full playlist attached)

45s Without Words
(All about that tune)
7:30 p.m. Saturday, August 3, 2019

Back when writing a melody or catchy tune was celebrated, AM radio blasted the airwaves with instrumental hits into the 1990s. Then the age of electronica dawned and pop instrumental singles went the way of the floppy disk. The K-so Combo (together a small string section) authentically channel the jazz-fusion, blues, rock and funk songs without words of Santana, Booker T & the MGs, Edgar Winter, Herbie Hancock, Rush,
Herb Alpert… to mention but a few.

Russian Allusion
(Enchanted Slavic Classics)
7:30 p.m. Saturday, August 31, 2019

A sizeable portion of the world’s most frequently performed orchestral repertoire hails from Russia. The KSO surveyed the dossiers of several Russian composers to cherry-pick these popular classics: Khachaturian’s enchanting Masquerade Suite, Borodin’s rollicking Polovtsian Dances and Rimsky-Korsakov’s seductive Scheherazade.

“The KSO’s Summer Series in this beautiful, tree-lined park is really about the community coming together. Few events today allow families, neighbors and friends to simply come out and share a relaxed and unique cultural moment together. Continuing a truly memorable tradition is what the KSO provides in part with the support of local corporate sponsors Toyota, DBL Law, Fischer Homes, and Schneller & Knochelmann” commented KSO Music Director and Founder, James Cassidy.

Join the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. — July 13, August 3 & 31.

Concessions are available on-site. Bring blankets or lawn chairs. For more information and directions, visit the KSO at www.kyso.org or call (859) 431-6216. $5 (per person) suggested donation. The TANK Shuttle from Covington Catholic to the band shell runs from 6:00 -7:30 p.m. and after the concert for $1 each way. Free parking in the park (though limited).

Bourbon and the KSO — a match made in Newport

Linking savory Kentucky spirits with tasty nostalgic music has become an anticipated event at the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra’s 2nd Annual Bourbon Barrel Ball — 6:30 p.m. Saturday, April 27th. The KSO’s party with a purpose marks the orchestra’s 25th fundraiser, supporting its annual free education and park concerts. This year’s event will be the first held amidst the bourbon at the New Riff West Newport warehouses, tasting & bottling facilities (which formerly housed the Greenline bus & trolley system till 1972).

The evening opens with a cocktail hour, provided by The Party Source, including delicious New Riff bourbon tastings (including the KSO’s own select single barrel), a silent auction and optional tours of the rickhouses and bottling operations. A scrumptious 3-course, duo-entree dinner by McHales follows including wine and dessert. The KSO Big/Boogie Band offers the perfect bourbon/music mix — a Rat-Pack Redux (Frank, Dean and Sammy at the New Riff) — “Come Fly With Me,” “That’s Amore,” “The Candy Man” … and a Dazzling Divas (R&B Royalty) tribute set — Natalie Cole, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Patti LaBelle… (see full playlists attached). Dancing, music and conviviality continue till the last pour.

Live, silent and on-line auctions feature destinations, sports and entertainment tickets, dining options and much more. The evening’s big raffle drawing features the rarest of bourbons — O.F.C. (Old Fashioned Copper) 1985 from Buffalo Trace. Only 61 bottles were retrieved from this 34-year vintage barrel. $50 per chance / up to 500 sold. In addition the KSO’s tasty select single barrel bottles (112 proof) are for sale on-line, and at the event (limited inventory).

“The KSO has always thrown great parties, but this is a 4D clam-bake!” exclaimed KSO founder James Cassidy. “Smell the angels’ share, check out the players and ring a dings, listen and dance to the Rat Pack and Divas, and taste the bourbons and fancy foods.”

Proceeds from the event keep the music playing across the region. The KSO has performed free education concerts for 239 regional schools and 138,837 students over the past 24 years. Additionally free annual summer concerts in Covington’s Devou Park have brought nearly 388,000 area residents to the iconic concert bowl in 24 summers. The Bourbon Barrel Ball provides funding to keep these vibrant, educational, engaging & entertaining opportunities available for you and your neighbors.

Can’t attend? Support the KSO’s outreach programs by buying raffle tickets or bidding on auction items on-line. Beginning on April 16th, patrons may preview and bid on auction items on-line. Bidders have the opportunity to place absentee bids if they can not attend on April 27th. (raffle tickets available on-line; winner need not be present to win).

6:30 p.m., Saturday, April 27, 2019

Evening timeline:

• 6:30 Cocktails, Bourbon Tasting and Silent Auction
• 7:45 Dinner by McHales with wine and dessert
• 8:45 KSO — Rat Pack Redux
• 9:15 Live Auction & OFC Raffle Drawing
• 9:30 KSO — Dazzling Divas

To Attend:

• Cost: $125 per person (reservations close Tuesday, 4/23)
• Dress: Black Tie Optional

Call the KSO today and make your reservations (deadline— 4/23) for the KSO’s Bourbon Barrel Ball: (859) 431-6216 or visit kyso.org The full evening with reserved seating, cocktails, bourbon tasting, dinner, wine, dessert, dancing / live entertainment is $125 per person ($50 is tax-deductible).

On-Line Auction opens April 16 at kyso.org

Vintage Bourbon Raffle
1 of 61 Bottles in the world
$50 per ticket
(up to 500 to be sold)

Colonel E.H. Taylor Jr. christened the O.F.C. (Old Fashioned Copper) Distillery in 1870 using copper fermentation vats, column stills, and the first steam heating system, still used today. This very rare and collectible bourbon honors the O.F.C. Distillery, known today as Buffalo Trace. Each hand-cut crystal bottle is vintage dated according to the year in which the bourbon was distilled.

Drawing 9:30 p.m. April 27, 2019
at the New Riff Rickhouses
West Newport Campus
Winner need not be present
Exemption No. EO-0169

KSO Gala Partners: The Party Source, McHale’s Events and Catering & Newriff Distilling

2nd Annual
KSO Bourbon Barrel Ball
6:30 p.m. Saturday, April 27, 2019
New Riff Tasting Room, West Newport Campus

Rat Pack Redux
(Frank, Dean & Sammy at the New Riff)

Song – As recorded by
Come Fly With Me – Frank Sinatra
That’s Amore – Dean Martin
The Lady Is a Tramp – Sammy Davis, Jr.
The Way You Look Tonight – Sinatra
Luck Be A Lady – Sinatra, Martin, Davis
Something’s Gotta Give – Davis
Ain’t That a Kick in the Head – Martin
Love & Marriage – Sinatra
The Candy Man – Davis
That’s Life – Sinatra, Martin, Davis
Theme from New York, New York – Sinatra

Vocals: Dan Radank, Zack Steele, Ethan St. Germain

Dazzling Diva Dance Set
(Rhythm, Blues & Bourbon)

Song – As recorded by:
Free Your Mind – En Vogue
I Wanna Dance with Somebody – Whitney Houston
Lady Marmalade – Patti LaBelle
Killing me Softly with his Song – Roberta Flack
This Will Be (an Everlasting Love) – Natalie Cole
Slammin’ – Huey Lewis / TOP (instrumental)
Rock Steady – Aretha Franklin
We Are Family – Sister Sledge
It’s Raining Men – The Weather Girls
Save The Best For Last – Vanessa Williams
Last Dance – Donna Summer

Vocals: Heather Hale, Marci Hedges, Lesley Hitch, Chris Shenton & Michelle Wells

Facebook event |

The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra’s 2018-19 passport to musical adventure returns stateside sporting new and classic musical fashions. “American composers continue to add bold flavor and architecture to symphonic music via technology and vivid soundscapes, while offering new forms and fireworks for both soloists and the orchestra,” commented KSO Music Director James Cassidy.

Composer & DJ Mason Bates was recently named the most performed composer of his generation, and 2018 composer of the year by Musical America. Bates’ orchestral works are noted for their unique integration of electronic sounds. The KSO opens its program with his “Mothership,” a 10’ piece in which soloists temporarily dock into the orchestra, and feed into the energy of modern techno dance rhythms, driven by a laptop computer and monitors on stage. The work was premiered in 2011 by the Youtube Symphony Orchestra from Sydney, Australia to a world-wide, live internet audience of 2 million viewers. The work will receive its Tristate premiere with the KSO.

Ferde Grofé’s depiction of Grand Canyon was inspired by his jeep trip to the Canyon in 1916. Years later, after scoring Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue for full orchestra, Grofé returned to his musical sketches/recollections of his Grand Canyon trip and finished his five-movement work in 1931. This American warhorse sonically envisions the Canyon’s —“Sunrise,” “Painted Dessert,” burros “On the Trail,” “Sunset” and a “Cloudburst.” With curator Stephen Lias’ projected images and video, the KSO will celebrate the Grand Canyon’s National Park’s 100th anniversary, with a performance of Grofe’s celebrated work.

Violinist Sandy Cameron joins the KSO after intermission for Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto, with its two beautiful lyrical movements and quick athletic finale. Barber wrote the concerto in 1939 and revised it in 1948. Ms. Cameron has toured throughout the world and is noted for her work with former Oingo Boingo front man and award winning film score composer Danny Elfman. Beginning with Elfman’s Cirque du Soleil show “IRIS” and the 2017 world premiere of his violin concerto “Eleven Eleven” Ms. Cameron has appeared as featured soloist on PBS broadcasts from New York and Vienna of Elfman’s film music. Sandy will perform the extended czardas/cadenza from Elfman’s Suite from the film Edward Scissorhands with the KSO and NKU Women’s choir to close out the All-American evening.

Join the Music Director James Cassidy, violinist Sandy Cameron and The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra for a free-range, American music montage at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, February 16, 2019, at Greaves Concert Hall on the campus of NKU. Reserved seating tickets are $35, $27, $19 (children ages 6-18 are 50% off) and are available online at kyso.org, by phone—(859) 431-6216, or at the door.

About the KSO:
For 26 years the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra has taken the “phony” out of symphony by eliminating traditional barriers and presenting engaging, live, thematic concerts that enrich, educate and entertain the residents of Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati. The KSO performs three series of concerts annually throughout Northern Kentucky.

STOP THE WORLD —
I WANT TO GET OFF!
(Success vs. Happiness)

7:30 p.m. Saturday, January 26, 2019
3:00 p.m. Sunday, January 27, 2019
Greaves Concert Hall, NKU

The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra’s 2018-19 Passport to musical adventure continues to whisk audiences across the globe. On January 26 & 27, the KSO dusts off the 1961 musical STOP THE WORLD — I WANT TO GET OFFby the British team of Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse, for the first Cincinnati performances since 1978.

The KSO has produced a number of semi-staged, concert performances of Broadway musicals in Greaves Concert Hall — Kismet (1993), Jesus Christ Superstar (1997), Sweeney Todd (2002), Evita (2005) and West Side Story (2008). “While programming the orchestra’s 27th season, I was looking for a musical that was small and lesser known, and recalled this quirky little show from the ‘60s that offered three big songs, a small cast and orchestra, with a title that seems more relevant today than it did in 1961,” commented KSO music director James Cassidy.

STOP THE WORLD — I WANT TO GET OFF is a thought-provoking musical pointing out the ephemeral nature of worldly success, often achieved to the detriment of one’s personal happiness. Littlechap (played by Joshua Steele) finds himself a father before his time and agrees to marry Evie, the boss’s daughter (played by Brooke Steele). Though this helps him climb the business ladder, Littlechap (the everyman) finds himself trapped in the responsibility of a premature family. He turns to women of the world, yet finds only empty fulfillment. In the twilight of his years, he finally discovers that he has wasted his life looking for something that he actually had all the time — his wife’s true love. Hit songs include: “Gonna Build a Mountain”, “Once in a Lifetime” and “What Kind of Fool Am I.”

As with West Side Story a decade ago, the KSO again partners with NKU’s School of the Arts as faculty member and stage director Brian Robertson, along with the show’s seven-member chorus, all hail from the University’s Theatre Department. The original 14-piece orchestration will be performed by members of the KSO under the musical direction of James Cassidy.

Stop your world, and join the The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra for a rare opportunity to experience this charming, tuneful musical at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, January 26, and 3:00 p.m., Sunday, January 27, at Greaves Concert Hall on the campus of NKU. Reserved seating tickets are $19, $27, $35 (children ages 6-18 are 50% off) and are available online at kyso.org, by phone—(859) 431-6216, or at the door.

STOP THE WORLD —
I WANT TO GET OFF!
(Success vs. Happiness)

7:30 p.m. Saturday, January 26, 2019
3:00 p.m. Sunday, January 27, 2019
Greaves Concert Hall, NKU

Music and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley

Cast:

• Joshua Steele as Littlechap
• Brooke Steele as Evie, (Anya, Ilse, Ginnie)
• Victoria Avery as Susan
• Mary Mills as Jane

Chorus:

• Victoria Avery
• Halee Hood
• Mary Mills
• Courtney Mulford
• Chloe Price
• Danielle Ullman
• Adria Whitfill

Stage Director: Brian Robertson
Music Director: James Cassidy
Music Preparation: Stephen Variames

Queen’s Theatre London – July 20, 1961 (485 performances)
Shubert Theatre, New York – October, 1962 (555 performances)

The KSO’s 2018-19 Subscription Series is supported in part by a generous grant from the
Louise Taft Semple Foundation

2019 KSO Subscription concerts are supported by the
Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund of the Greenacres Foundation

KSO Podium Sponsor: Macy’s
Concert Sponsor: The Party Source
Season support provided by Artswave & The Kentucky Arts Council