Performance of John Jacob Niles Music at UK
Media Contacts:
- , (859) 257-1754, x229
- , (859) 257-1754, x229
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 14, 2008) – University of Kentucky alumna Hope Koehler and pianist James
Douglass will present a rare performance of the late John Jacob Niles' music in concert at
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 18, at the Niles Gallery located in the Lucille Caudill Little Fine Arts
Library and Learning Center. This special event not only celebrates the music of this legend in
a UK facility named for him, but also the recording of "The
Lass from the Low Countree," a collection of Niles' music that Koehler and Douglass
recently released on the Albany Records label. This concert featuring the music of John Jacob
Niles is free and open to the public.
The Koehler and Douglass concert will include several performances of music by Niles, including such works as "Ribbon Bow"; "The Gambler's Wife"; "Black Dress"; "Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair"; "Go 'Way from My Window"; "The Wild Rider"; and "The Lass from the Low Countree." All of these songs are featured on the CD from Albany Records. Also on the program are performances of composer Lee Hoiby's "Songs of Leontyne" and composer Robert L. Morris' "Lyric Suite."
A native of Louisville, Ky., Niles was born into a musical family in 1892 and began playing the dulcimer at an early age. The root of Niles' folk fascination was said to begin in his teenage years when he worked with a surveying team in eastern Kentucky.
Niles served as a U.S. Army pilot in World War I and made numerous reconnaissance flights until he suffered serious injuries in a plane crash. After the war, he studied music at the University of Lyon and the Schola Cantorium in Paris, and completed his musical education at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music.
A trip accompanying noted photographer Doris Ulmann on her travels through Appalachia would renew Niles' interest in folk songs of this mountain region. He would go on to work as a composer, performer and author, and is said to have written more than a thousand songs during his lifetime. The UK John Jacob Niles Center for American Music, sponsor of this concert featuring music by Niles, is a center for the study and research of American music and is named in honor of the renowned performer.
Koehler earned her doctoral degree in musical arts from the UK School of Music. As an accomplished soprano vocalist, she has appeared with several opera companies and orchestras, including the Nashville Opera, Lyric Opera of the North, Tuscaloosa Symphony Orchestra, and the Duluth-Superior Symphony Orchestra. In addition to her opera performances, Koehler is a regular performer and featured soloist with the American Spiritual Ensemble, and has a host of other musical theater credits. Koehler is currently a voice professor at West Virginia University.
Douglass' work as a collaborative pianist has included performances across the United States and Europe. His credits are numerous and diverse and include performances in chamber music, vocal arts, opera, musical theater, cabaret, jazz, choral arts and symphonic music. Douglass has taught at a number of universities and currently is an assistant professor of collaborative piano at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
For more information on the Hope Koehler and James Douglass concert featuring music by John Jacob Niles, contact Ron Pen, director of the Niles Center, by phone at (859) 257-8183 or e-mail.
The Koehler and Douglass concert will include several performances of music by Niles, including such works as "Ribbon Bow"; "The Gambler's Wife"; "Black Dress"; "Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair"; "Go 'Way from My Window"; "The Wild Rider"; and "The Lass from the Low Countree." All of these songs are featured on the CD from Albany Records. Also on the program are performances of composer Lee Hoiby's "Songs of Leontyne" and composer Robert L. Morris' "Lyric Suite."
A native of Louisville, Ky., Niles was born into a musical family in 1892 and began playing the dulcimer at an early age. The root of Niles' folk fascination was said to begin in his teenage years when he worked with a surveying team in eastern Kentucky.
Niles served as a U.S. Army pilot in World War I and made numerous reconnaissance flights until he suffered serious injuries in a plane crash. After the war, he studied music at the University of Lyon and the Schola Cantorium in Paris, and completed his musical education at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music.
A trip accompanying noted photographer Doris Ulmann on her travels through Appalachia would renew Niles' interest in folk songs of this mountain region. He would go on to work as a composer, performer and author, and is said to have written more than a thousand songs during his lifetime. The UK John Jacob Niles Center for American Music, sponsor of this concert featuring music by Niles, is a center for the study and research of American music and is named in honor of the renowned performer.
Koehler earned her doctoral degree in musical arts from the UK School of Music. As an accomplished soprano vocalist, she has appeared with several opera companies and orchestras, including the Nashville Opera, Lyric Opera of the North, Tuscaloosa Symphony Orchestra, and the Duluth-Superior Symphony Orchestra. In addition to her opera performances, Koehler is a regular performer and featured soloist with the American Spiritual Ensemble, and has a host of other musical theater credits. Koehler is currently a voice professor at West Virginia University.
Douglass' work as a collaborative pianist has included performances across the United States and Europe. His credits are numerous and diverse and include performances in chamber music, vocal arts, opera, musical theater, cabaret, jazz, choral arts and symphonic music. Douglass has taught at a number of universities and currently is an assistant professor of collaborative piano at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
For more information on the Hope Koehler and James Douglass concert featuring music by John Jacob Niles, contact Ron Pen, director of the Niles Center, by phone at (859) 257-8183 or e-mail.