UW-River Falls Symphony Band to perform Thursday

Cohler Coffee Concert Series to host Colleen Raye Friday

May 3, 2022 -- The final University of Wisconsin-River Falls Symphony Band Concert of the academic year is Thursday, May 5, at 7:30 p.m. in Abbott Concert Hall, Kleinpell Fine Arts.  

Featured guest performer is James Devoll, flute player with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra.

Other music selected by conductor and artistic director Kristin Tjornehoj includes: “Danzón No. 2” by Arturo Márquez; “Victor Barrio” (Pasodoble #9) by Javier Pérez Garrio; “Emblem of Unity March” by J.J. Richards; “Suite of Old American Dances” by Robert Russell Bennett; Gary Kuo’s “The Grand Sierras,” and UWRF 56th Commissioned Composer Alex Shapiro’s “Tight Squeeze.”

Shapiro is known for her genre-blind acoustic and electroacoustic works. Published by her company Activist Music LLC, Shapiro’s music is heard daily in concerts and broadcasts across the U.S. and internationally and can be found on over 30 commercially released recordings.

Tickets are available at the door. Cost is $8 for adults, $5 for seniors and $2 for students. 

Cohler Coffee Concert

The Frances Cohler Coffee Concert Series wraps up the academic year from noon to 1 p.m. on Friday, May 6, featuring Colleen Raye with the St. Croix Valley Symphony Orchestra. Raye will share popular works from films including “Evergreen,” “A Million Dreams,” “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” “Skyfall” and “When You Wish Upon a Star.” Adi Yeshaya, piano; Gary Raynor, bass; and David Schmalenberger, drums, join the orchestra for the performance. 

Raye, a Wisconsin native, began her singing career at age 15. She is not only a vocalist but also a vocal and performance coach and producer and composer. She has traveled the country performing on a variety of stages. 

The noon performance is free and open to all in Abbott Concert Hall.