OLLI Talks | Nebraska Chamber Players

Musically Speaking: OLLI Talks

a partnership of the Nebraska Chamber Players, NET Radio and Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI)

Five talks will be presented by members of the Nebraska Chamber Players during the 2011-12 season. Each talk is about a unique aspect of the musical world and will be webcast live from the NET building. All talks take place at NET Studios, 1800 N. 33rd, Lincoln, Nebraska. The talks are free to the public, but there is limited seating. Pre-registration is required. To register, please call OLLI at 402.472.6265 or e-mail olli@unl.edu. If you can't be there in person, watch the live stream online. Visit the OLLI website for more information.

Why do they call it a French Horn? (and a quick view of music history)

Tuesday, September 20 • 1:45–3:30 pm • Refreshments and discussion afterward
One of Nebraska’s well-known radio hosts and member of the Nebraska Chamber players, Graham House will inform and entertain with the origin and development of the horn. He will then take you through a condensed, anecdotal journey through the history of western music as we know it.

How many instruments can Ed Love carry?

Tuesday, November 1 • 1:45–3:30 pm • Refreshments and discussion afterward
Ed Love has been an instrument “doubler” for decades. He has played clarinet with the Lincoln and Omaha Symphonies, Opera-Omaha, the Joffrey Ballet Orchestra, Lincoln Municipal Band, Nebraska Chamber Players and the Nebraska Symphony Chamber Orchestra. As a saxophonist, Ed has been a member of the Nebraska Jazz Orchestra since 1978 and its Music Director since 1982. He has also performed with dozens of touring Broadway musicals, including Damn Yankees with Jerry Lewis, Hello Dolly with Carol Channing, West Side Story, Mary Poppins, 42nd Street, Crazy for You, South Pacific and Grease. In these pit orchestras he has played soprano, alto, tenor and baritone saxophones, E-flat, B-flat and bass clarinets, piccolo, flute, alto flute and recorder. Ed recently joined Son del Llano, a Lincoln-based band that plays Cuban music, where he plays piccolo, flute, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone and a few percussion instruments.

Things you hit and bang (back by popular demand!)

Tuesday, January 17 • 1:45–3:30 pm • Refreshments and discussion afterward
Nebraska Chamber Players percussionist and composer Joe Holmquist will return with a host of ethnic instruments for participants to learn to play, and will put together an Indonesian-style percussion ensemble with all participating. He will regale you with tales of where the instruments originated and take you through a set of percussion rudiments. Everyone can participate; no musical training needed.

What happened in the Avant Garde?

Tuesday, February 14 • 1:45–3:30 pm • Refreshments and discussion afterward
Let’s celebrate the very traditional Valentine’s Day by going back to the 1950s and delving into the radical musical movement that changed the boundaries of music forever. This was an amazing time when every aspect of music was expanding. Charlie Parker, Arnold Schoenberg, Dadaism, Surrealists, Gertrude Stein, James Joyce—all were influences. Several players will present this talk because the topic covers such a large map of change. All participants will then create a rendition of John Cage’s "Imaginary Landscape No. 4" for 12 radios. No musical training required; you just need to follow lines and curves.

Inside the mind of a composer (or How does a piece of music come about?)

Tuesday, April 10 • 1:45–3:30 pm • Refreshments and discussion afterward
Rusty Banks, is a performer, composer, and friend of NCP. He will be in Lincoln to conduct the premiere of his new composition, Ashfall, written specifically for the Nebraska Chamber Players. Rusty will talk about being a composer in the internet age, with all of its challenges and opportunities. This vibrant young creator recently made NPR's list of top 100 composers under 40 “shaping our contemporary musical scene and defining what it actually means to be a composer in the 21st century.” Rusty's music has been performed in China, Italy, Canada, and throughout the United States. Emphasizing beauty is a primary artistic inspiration, but his music is nonetheless thoroughly modern. Rusty “designs” pieces that cross traditional notions, combining boom-boxes and video within dynamic audio/video installations. His music is available for download on iTunes and Amazon.com and can be streamed on Rhapsody.

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