Hallie Ford Museum of Art Opens Redesigned Permanent Gallery

A redesigned Mark and Janeth Sponenburgh Gallery, which houses the Hallie Ford Museum of Art’s permanent collection of European, Asian and American art, will open March 5 after three months of renovations.

To celebrate the reopening, the museum will host a free family activity day, led by education curator Elizabeth Garrison, March 7 from noon to 4 p.m. in the lobby of the museum. Activities will include art projects based on pieces in the museum to help families explore the galleries.

The reconfigured Mark and Janeth Sponenburgh Gallery presents the collections in a historical sequence, beginning with ancient art and including sections on Christian art, Asian art and 19th and 20th century European and American art. The gallery features new walls and display cases, improved lighting, color schemes to differentiate regions and time periods, and a range of text panels and annotated labels to enhance the visitor’s experience. In addition, a number of new gifts and purchases acquired in the past 10 years will be on display.

The collections in the gallery span 4,500 years and encompass four continents: Europe, Asia, Africa and North America. They were assembled over the years to support the liberal arts curriculum of Willamette and to introduce museum visitors to major themes and styles in Western and Eastern art history. Rather than attempting a comprehensive view, the collections consist of small, unassuming art treasures meant to be studied, savored and enjoyed.

Many of the objects on view were given by Mark and Janeth Sponenburgh. Professor Sponenburgh is a sculptor and art historian who, with his late wife Janeth, traveled throughout Europe and Asia and amassed a collection of Western and Eastern art that they gave to Willamette in 1990. Other donors include Richard Brockway, A. Dean McKenzie, James and Aneta McIntyre, Muriel Stieber, Marge Riley, Bill and Beverly Galen, the late Bishop G. Bromley Oxnam, Dan Schneider and Michel and Victoria Hersen.

The reinstallation of the gallery was a collaborative project by museum director John Olbrantz, collection curator Jonathan Bucci, education curator Elizabeth Garrison, exhibition designer/chief preparator David Andersen, faculty curators Roger Hull and Ann Nicgorski, and visiting instructor in art history Kevin Greenwood. Financial support was provided in part by grants from the City of Salem’s Transient Occupancy Tax funds and the Oregon Arts Commission.

The redesign is part of an ongoing effort to keep the museum’s permanent galleries fresh and interesting. The Carl Hall Gallery, which houses a collection of historic and modern regional art, will be reinstalled this summer, and the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Gallery, which houses a collection of Native American baskets, will be reinstalled in the summer of 2010. The Print Study Center, which houses a works on paper collection, was remodeled in 2007 as part of the museum’s basement renovation.

The Hallie Ford Museum of Art is located at 700 State St. (corner of State and Cottage streets) in downtown Salem near the campus of Willamette University. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. The galleries are closed Monday. Admission is $3 for adults and $2 for seniors and students. Children younger than 12 are admitted free, and Tuesday is an admission-free day. For more information call (503) 370-6855.

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Professor’s Book Recommended for Sesquicentennial Reading

Looking to learn more about the Oregon experience as the state celebrates its sesquicentennial this year? The Oregon State Library recommends Willamette University education Professor Linda Tamura’s book, The Hood River Issei: An Oral History of Japanese Settlers in Oregon’s Hood River Valley.

The library placed Tamura’s book on its list of 150 books that are highly recommended for all Oregonians to read during the sesquicentennial. The list includes fiction, nonfiction, history and poetry books for children, teens and adults. Together, the books provide a comprehensive view of the Oregon experience, state library officials say.

The Hood River Issei, a finalist for the 1994 Oregon Book Awards, tells the story of the Japanese who immigrated to Oregon’s rural Hood River Valley between the late 1800s and the 1920s. Through interviews with first-generation Japanese, known as Issei, Tamura captures their memories of life in Japan, immigration and settlement in the U.S. and the hardships they faced during World War II — stories as integral to the Oregon experience as those of more “traditional” pioneers.

“There were other ‘Oregon trails,’” Tamura says. “It’s important that we share the stories of all Oregonians, including those who crossed the Pacific and those who have immigrated from the South.”

Tamura, a native of Hood River and a third-generation Japanese-American, teaches early childhood and elementary education in the master of arts in teaching program at Willamette’s School of Education. She is a co-editor-in-chief of the Oregon Encyclopedia, a comprehensive project compiling information about the state’s history and culture. Learn about the project at www.oregonencyclopedia.org.

Tamura will appear with Oregon Poet Laureate Lawson Inada Thursday, April 16, at 7 p.m. in Loucks Auditorium at Salem Public Library, 585 Liberty St. SE. The two will tell the story of a woman who created and operated a library inside a Japanese internment camp during World War II. The event is free and open to the public.

To see the whole Oregon Sesquicentennial Book List, visit www.oregon.gov/OSL/OR150.shtml. All books on the list are widely available in Oregon’s libraries and bookstores, or you can buy Tamura’s book at The Willamette Store.

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Writer Gilbert King Discusses Botched Execution

Gilbert King will read from The Execution of Willie Francis: Race, Murder and the Search for Justice in the American South at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 23, in the Hatfield Room in the Mark O. Hatfield Library at Willamette University. The event is free and open to the public.

King's book is a "well-wrought tale of murder, secrets, lies and state-sponsored and state-botched retribution," according to Kirkus Reviews.

The executioner's switch was thrown, but Willie Francis didn't die. Having survived his first encounter with capital punishment, Willie was soon informed that the state would try to kill him again in six days.

"Gilbert King transforms abstract arguments over Louisiana's right to re-execute a condemned youth into a profound story of flesh and blood," wrote Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking. "His impassioned portrait of the unlikely bond between Willie Francis and his undaunted lawyer is more than a heartwarming affirmation of love and humanity. It's a vitally important story, and if you want to better understand America's troubling legacy of capital punishment, read this book."

"From the first page to the last, King holds our attention with gripping and disturbing details," wrote the Library Journal, which selected the book as a Library Journal Editor's Pick.

King has written for numerous newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times and The Washington Post. He authored Woman, Child For Sale: The New Slave Trade in the 21st Century, selected by the Detroit Free Press as one of its ten notable books for 2004. He was interviewed for the award-winning documentary narrated by Danny Glover, Willie Must Die Again.

King is also a photographer whose work has appeared in many U.S. magazines, including Glamour, Jane and New York Magazine, as well as international editions of Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Cosmopolitan.

For information contact Olympia Vernon at (503) 370-6290 or OVernon@willamette.edu.

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New Music Concert Celebrates Oregon's 150th Anniversary

The 21st century ensemble Fear No Music presents "Home Grown: Fresh, Delectable Sounds by Oregon Composers." The free concert is Thursday, Feb. 19, at 7:30 p.m. in Hudson Hall at Willamette University. It is sponsored by the New Music at Willamette series.

"This concert adds a fresh musical twist to the festivities associated with Oregon's 150th anniversary of statehood," said Sarah Tiedemann, concert administrator.

Part of a regional tour that includes performances in Portland, Eugene and Salem, the concert will feature world premieres of three works written for the occasion. Works by Oregon composers, including John Peel, Willamette University composer-in-residence, and new choreographies by Agnieszka Laska and Paul Drestrooper, will be featured.

Fear No Music provides "a refuge from conventional rules and a chance to listen with a fresh and youthful ear," said Willamette Week. The ensemble explores and performs the great music of the 20th and 21st centuries, with an emphasis on Oregon and Pacific Northwest composers.

Fear No Music members include Inés Voglar, violin; Joel Belgique, percussion; Joel Bluestone, viola; and Mika Sunago, piano. Guest artists include the Agnieszka Laska Dancers and Gavin Larsen, a lead dancer with the Oregon Ballet Theater.

For more information call (503) 370-6255 or visit www.fearnomusic.org.

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Willamette Theatre Presents 'Beauty Queen of Leenane'

Willamette University Theatre announces its third show of the 2008–09 season, Martin McDonagh’s “Beauty Queen of Leenane.” This production runs Feb. 20–March 7, with a preview performance Thursday, Feb. 19, at 7:30 p.m. at the Theatre Playhouse on campus. Performances are Thursday–Saturday at 7:30 p.m., with Sunday matinees at 2 p.m. The play contains adult language and situations, and is not suitable for children.

The Tony Award-winning play contains the brash humor, rich language and inventive storytelling that mark Martin McDonagh as one Britain’s most promising young writers. His gift for dialogue and dark humor is complemented by the talents of Willamette faculty, students and staff.

The dark, offbeat comedy takes place in a small house on a big hill in County Galway, Ireland, where the Folan women live out an uneasy truce. Forty-year-old Maureen and her elderly but iron-willed mother, Mag, spend their days in endless rounds of petty insults and physical threats as each maneuvers for control of their isolated existence. But when an old family friend reappears and offers Maureen a chance at love and a new life, this terrain grows treacherous and the two women, bound by blood but driven by desperation, will do anything to survive. The play’s glimpse into the Folan family dynamic illustrates thought-provoking contemporary themes.

Direction will be provided by Willamette University Theatre co-chair and acting professor Susan Coromel, and the cast includes senior theatre/psychology major Tara McLauchlan as Mag, junior theatre major Britt Lauer as Maureen, senior theatre major Cory Goble as Pato, and freshman theatre major Joshua Rice as Ray.

Technical elements of the production will by created by faculty, staff and students. Professor Christopher Harris will conceptualize the visual surroundings, instructor Rachel Kinsman Steck will light the show, and senior theatre major Anya Ballinger will design the costumes.

The March 1 matinee will feature an American Sign Language interpreter. Please note that curtain times have changed to 7:30 p.m. Purchase tickets through the Willamette University Box Office at (503) 370-6221 or by email at thtr-tix@willamette.edu. Opening night is $12 for general admission and $8 for students and seniors. Most other evening performances are $10 for general admission and $6 for students and seniors. Please contact the box office for specific pricing and details. The Willamette campus is located at 900 State Street in Salem. For more information contact the Theatre Department at (503) 370-6222 or visit www.wutheatre.com.

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Duke Ellington Week Features Concerts and Lectures

Willamette University will honor Black History Month with concerts and lectures that celebrate jazz legend Duke Ellington.

Music Professor Greg Yasinitsky, coordinator of jazz studies at Washington State University, will speak about "Duke Ellington and the African-American Influence on Jazz" Thursday, Feb. 19, at 11:30 a.m. in Cone Chapel in Waller Hall on the Willamette campus. That evening at 6 p.m., Yasinitsky will speak about "Jazz, the Musical Embodiment of American Diversity" in the Hatfield Room of the Mark O. Hatfield Library. The lectures are free and open to the public.

The Willamette Master Chorus will present "Contemplating the Sacred," featuring the sacred music of Duke Ellington and jazz and gospel music from the African-American music tradition. The concerts are Saturday, Feb. 21, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 22, at 3 p.m. in Smith Auditorium.

General admission is $15 for adults and $12 for students and seniors. Willamette students are admitted for $5. Purchase tickets at www.WillametteMasterChorus.org or Weathers Music (cash or check only) at 2825 Commercial St. SE, (503) 362-8708. Tickets may be purchased at the door if available. Call (503) 370-6929 for information.

In 1965 Duke Ellington brought his jazz orchestra into San Francisco's Grace Cathedral, where he premiered his First Sacred Concert. During the next nine years, Ellington performed his sacred concerts in churches and synagogues around the world. At the time many churchgoers complained about the inappropriateness of jazz in the chapel, to say nothing of tap dancers, but what was once considered divisive music now feels, in our own religiously disjointed era, universal. "The Mass is people talking to God," Ellington said. "The sacred concert we perform is people talking to people about God. There is a difference."

There is no way to actually re-create an Ellington sacred concert; the music was written for Ellington's orchestra, a unique group of virtuosic improvisers who could play with a single spirit as well as individuality. The Willamette Master Chorus, under the direction of Conductor Paul Klemme, will blend with the Willamette Singers into one vibrant musical body that fears no rhythm. They will perform selections from Ellington's sacred music, accompanied by the Willamette University Big Band.

Marilyn Keller, Portland's premier gospel and jazz singer, will be guest vocalist. Keller's talent crosses many musical genres, including gospel, jazz, pop, R&B, blues and even classical music. She currently performs as featured vocalist for the Black Swan Classic Jazz Band and Don Latarski and Rue de Blues, and leads the Gospel Jazz Service in Portland for up to 1,000 worshippers at the Augustana Lutheran Church.

As a special treat, tap dancers Danny Wold and Jane Moorhead will share their talents.

Duke Ellington Week is sponsored by the Willamette Master Chorus, with support from the Willamette Music Department, the Willamette Events Board and the Grace Goudy Distinguished Artists Series. The concerts are supported in part by the City of Salem's Transient Occupancy Tax Funds.

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Community Invited to Celebrate Africa Week at Willamette University

Willamette University’s African Studies Club will host its fourth annual celebration of Africa with multiple free public events during the week of Feb. 16–21.

The events for this year’s Africa Week are centered around the theme, “Africa Around Us: Recognizing the Contributions of Africa and the African Diaspora throughout the Globe.”

The week’s events include:

Feb. 16, 7 p.m., Hatfield Room, Hatfield Library: Renowned art historian Sylvester Ogbechie will discuss African art’s impact on the arts and cultures of the West. A professor at University of California, Santa Barbara, Ogbechie has an extensive scholarly background in classical, modern and contemporary African and African Diaspora arts.

Feb. 17, 11:30 a.m., Cone Chapel: Art Professor Andries Fourie will host an interdisciplinary panel discussion of Joseph Conrad’s 1899 novella, The Heart of Darkness. This discussion will analyze the novella’s cultural context and effect on the perception of Africans today.

Feb. 18, 8 p.m., Cat Cavern: The film “La Raiz Olvidada,” or “The Forgotten Root,” will be shown. This film reveals the often forgotten African ancestry of Mexican culture — Africans brought as slaves to Mexico or slaves who escaped the U.S.

Feb. 19, 3 p.m., Hatfield Room, Hatfield Library: A panel of Willamette students, faculty and community members will discuss their organizations and actions in the spirit of activism and advocacy for African issues.

Feb. 19, 9 p.m., Bistro coffee shop: The Black Student Union will host an open mic night with the theme “Africa Speaks: An Evening of Spoken Word and Poetry from Africa and the African Diaspora.” The community is invited to read poetry, sing or tell stories.

Feb. 21, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Cat Cavern: An Africa Celebration and market invites visitors to shop for jewelry, crafts, drums, clothing and artwork while supporting humanitarian projects in Africa and local entrepreneurs in Oregon. Bush Elementary School’s La Marimbanda will play at noon, followed by a performance from Kudana Marimba. Ghanaian drummer and dancer Obo Addy will hold an African dance workshop at 2:30 p.m. African cuisine and a giant puzzle map of Africa are also part of the festivities.

All week: African cuisine will be served in Goudy Commons, Cat Cavern and the Bistro. The Elizabeth Bowers Zambia Education Fund (EBZEF) will display photos, books and artifacts on Hatfield Library’s second floor for the month of February to celebrate the completion of the organization’s memorial library in the village of Lumwana West in Zambia.

For more information about any of these events, contact Willamette’s anthropology department at (503) 370-6615 or email the African Studies Club at africaday@willamette.edu.

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Willamette Sponsors Environmental Lecture by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Prominent environmental activist and attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will address “Our Environmental Destiny” Friday, March 6, at 8 p.m. at the Salem Conference Center as part of the Willamette University Dempsey Lecture Series on Environmental Issues.

Kennedy advocates an aggressive approach against entities whose policies accelerate pollution and maintain the status quo, and he has used numerous media outlets, including his 2004 book Crimes Against Nature: How George W. Bush and His Corporate Pals are Plundering the Country and Hijacking our Democracy, to call into question the environmental policies of the U.S. His lecture, which will remind people of their responsibility to protect the planet, will be in the Willamette River Room at the Salem Conference Center, 200 Commercial St. SE.

Kennedy, who serves as senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, chief prosecuting attorney for the Hudson Riverkeeper and president of Waterkeeper Alliance, was named one of Time magazine’s “Heroes for the Planet” for his success in helping Riverkeeper lead the fight to restore the Hudson River. He is a clinical professor and supervising attorney at the Environmental Litigation Clinic at Pace University School of Law, and he is co-host of Ring of Fire on Air America Radio.

In addition to Crimes Against Nature, Kennedy’s books include The Riverkeepers (1997) and Judge Frank M. Johnson Jr.: A Biography (1977). His articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Rolling Stone and Atlantic Monthly.

The event is sponsored by the Dempsey Foundation and the Center for Sustainable Communities at Willamette University. For more information call (503) 370-6654.

UPDATE: Tickets are required for this event, and all tickets have been distributed.

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Faculty Book Recognized for Uncovering West Coast Jewish Response to Japanese Incarceration

The First to Cry Down Injustice? Western Jews and Japanese Removal During WWII, a book that has created controversy for its recognition of an overlooked piece of history, was recently named a finalist for the 2008 National Jewish Book Award. The book, by Willamette University Professor Ellen Eisenberg, looks at how West Coast Jews reacted to the wartime policy of Japanese incarceration. The award, the oldest Jewish literary award in the nation, honors the best and most exciting authors in the field of Jewish literature.

Very few individuals or organizations spoke out against the policy of removal, Eisenberg said, even Jews, whose long history of oppression had led them to champion civil rights and protest discrimination. Because of the brutal treatment of Jews in Germany, American Jews wanted to support the war effort against the Nazis.

On the West Coast, while a few spoke out, most Jews remained tensely silent as their Japanese-American neighbors were railroaded to incarceration camps. One Los Angeles Jewish organization even reported on Japanese-Americans, contributing to the propaganda that led to their incarceration. Eisenberg anticipates that her finding — that a Jewish organization contributed to the propaganda against Japanese Americans — will create surprise and discomfort.

Eisenberg will give a reading Monday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. at the Congregation Neveh Shalom, 2900 SW Peaceful Lane, in Portland. The public is invited.

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Willamette Honored Nationally for Community Service

Willamette University has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for exemplary service to America’s communities.

The Corporation for National and Community Service launched the honor roll in 2006 as the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for commitment to service-learning and civic engagement. Honorees for the award were chosen based on the scope and innovation of service projects, percentage of students participating in service activities, incentives for service and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.

“This award is a testament to the dedicated service work happening across campus,” said Laura Clerc, Willamette’s Community Outreach Program director. “There are so many Willamette students, faculty and staff making significant contributions to their community. This is a wonderful opportunity to recognize and thank them for their ongoing commitment to volunteerism.”

Willamette students, faculty and staff volunteer about 65,000 hours annually. Their numerous activities include traveling across the country for service learning projects through the Take a Break spring and winter break program; serving at Salem organizations during Into the Streets to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.; mentoring children at nearby Bush Elementary School through the Tiger Club; tutoring Native American teenagers at Chemawa Indian School; and getting to know Salem through service during the Opening Days and New Student Orientation to Community Outreach programs.

“In this time of economic distress, we need volunteers more than ever,” said Stephen Goldsmith, vice chair of the board of directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service. “College students represent an enormous pool of idealism and energy to help tackle some of our toughest challenges. We salute Willamette University for making community service a campus priority.”

Overall, the corporation honored six schools with Presidential Awards, 83 were named as Honor Roll With Distinction members, and 546 schools, including Willamette, were chosen as Honor Roll members. A full list is available at www.nationalservice.gov/honorroll.

The Honor Roll is a program of the corporation in collaboration with the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation. The Corporation for National and Community Service administers Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America. For more information, go to www.nationalservice.gov.

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Willamette Tenth in Nation for Peace Corps Volunteers

Willamette University ranks No. 10 in the nation this year on the Peace Corps’ list of small undergraduate schools producing Peace Corps volunteers.

With 18 alumni serving as volunteers, Willamette is the only Oregon school and one of three Pacific Northwest universities on the top ten list. The survey includes schools with fewer than 5,000 undergraduates.

“Willamette’s support has been instrumental to the success of the Peace Corps, and we look forward to continuing a successful collaboration in the decades to come,” said Ron Tschetter, Peace Corps director.

Throughout the last 47 years, 281 Willamette alumni have joined the Peace Corps ranks.

“Our motto, ‘Not unto ourselves alone are we born,’ captures the essence of Willamette University,” says Willamette President M. Lee Pelton. “It speaks to our commitment to humanitarian outreach and to the tradition of compassionate service that is typical of our alumni. Willamette’s exemplary citizenship values have defined the culture of this campus for more than 167 years.”

Peace Corps volunteer and Willamette graduate Audrey Squires said, “Sometimes when I’m walking down the muddy streets of Chahal, I step out of myself for a moment and envision me standing on a globe in this random little town in rural Guatemala, then spin the globe to Oregon and am baffled as to how I managed to come to this place of all places in the world.

“However it happened, it doesn’t really matter, I’m just glad it did,” said Squires, who is putting her Spanish and environmental science degree to work as an ecotourism facilitator. “I am learning so much about myself and the world through being here.”

Margaret Hoffman, a 2007 Willamette alumna, served as a Peace Corps volunteer in a coffee-farming village in the northern mountains of Nicaragua. "I loved really being connected with people and connected to the land," she said.

She lived in a mud adobe house that lacked electricity and running water, and worked with pregnant women and mothers discussing health issues, from basic nutrition and hygiene to more sensitive matters such as self-esteem and reproductive health. “I’ve been so blessed in my life,” said Hoffman, now a health care worker in Alaska. “These blessings have to be used to give back.”

In 1961 President John F. Kennedy called upon America’s youth to serve their country by volunteering to live and work in developing countries to promote world peace and friendship. Since that time Peace Corps volunteers have served in 139 host countries to work on issues ranging from AIDS education to information technology and environmental preservation. Peace Corps service is a 27-month commitment. Although it is not a requirement for service, the majority of volunteers have been college graduates. Learn more at www.peacecorps.gov.

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Grace Goudy Distinguished Artists Series and Salem Chamber Orchestra Bring Conductor/Pianist for Residency

Internationally renowned conductor and concert pianist Xu Zhong will be visiting artist-in-residence at Willamette University for 10 days in February. Maestro Xu Zhong’s residency will include a solo piano recital Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m., a piano master class Feb. 10 at 11:30 a.m., and two concerts with the Salem Chamber Orchestra (SCO) Feb. 14 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 15 at 3 p.m. All performances are in Hudson Hall in the Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center at Willamette.

The solo recital program, sponsored by the Grace Goudy Distinguished Artists Series, will feature two of Beethoven’s monumental piano sonatas, “Sonata in F minor, Op. 57” (Appassionata) and the “Sonata in A Major, Op. 101.” Also on the program are works by Liszt and Stravinsky.

Xu Zhong will be featured as both conductor and soloist with SCO. He will take the podium for Mozart’s beloved “Overture to Don Giovanni,” and then conduct from the piano as he performs Mozart’s piano concertos K. 467 in C major and K. 595 in B-flat major.

One of China’s most active and influential pianists and conductors, Xu Zhong is the executive artistic director of the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra and music director of the Shanghai Sinfonietta. He has enjoyed successful collaborations with many of the world’s most renowned musicians and has appeared as guest conductor with Orchestre National de France, Moscow State Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Houston Symphony, China Philharmonic, Japan Philharmonic, Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Israel Chamber Orchestra and Netherlands Chamber Orchestra in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw.

“Mr. Xu Zhong is outstanding among his generation,” wrote the Rome Times in Italy. “His talent, fantastic skills, incomparable control and elegance will make him a star worldwide.”

Xu Zhong claimed the first prize in prestigious piano competitions, including the 5th Tokyo International and the 10th Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition in Moscow. “Xu Zhong has definitely become the greatest winner in the history of the Tchaikovsky International Competition,” wrote Russia’s Moscow Daily newspaper.

His concert career as a pianist and conductor includes regular performances in Europe, North and South America, and Southeast Asia. “La Folle Journee de Nantes au Japon,” held in May 2005, cited him as one of the most exciting pianists to emerge on the world stage.

Tickets for SCO concerts are $10–$20 for adults, $10 for education employees and $5 for students, with reserved seating. Tickets for the Grace Goudy Distinguished Artists Series recital are $20 for adults and $12 for students and seniors, with general seating. A service charge will be added. The master class is free and open to the public.

Tickets for these events are available through the Pentacle Theatre Box Office, at www.pentacletheatre.org or (503) 485-4300. For more information contact the Salem Chamber Orchestra office at (503) 480-1128 or the Willamette University Music Department at (503) 370-6255.

Xu Zhong Residency Schedule

Sun., Feb. 8
Solo Piano Recital, 7:30 p.m. (adults $20, students/seniors $12)

Tues., Feb. 10
Master Class for Pianists, 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. (free)

Sat., Feb. 14
Salem Chamber Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. (adults $10–$20, education employees $10, students $5)

Sun., Feb. 15
Salem Chamber Orchestra, 3 p.m. (adults $10–$20, education employees $10, students $5)

All performances are in Hudson Hall in the Mary Stuart Rogers Music Center at Willamette University at 900 State Street in Salem, Ore.

SCO’s performances of “Drs. William and Selma Moon Pierce Masterworks Series: Program II” are sponsored by DesignPoint, Inc., and George and Stephanie Puentes. Beautiful watercolor paintings by artist Sam Rouslin are available for sale in the lobby, with 100 percent of the proceeds benefiting SCO.

Salem Chamber Orchestra is a public benefit corporation operating in association with Willamette University to present professional level chamber orchestra performances, provide a performance platform for Mid-Willamette Valley musicians, and promote the performance, understanding and appreciation of music through artist training and music education programs.

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