Category — Music

Please read about the sensational TNCC-Iron Street production of “Little Shop of Horrors.” The musical 10/14 at 8:00 in the Mary T. Christian Auditorium with a Sunday matinee tomorrow at 3:00; it will also run next weekend, Friday-Sunday. It’s an historic first musical for the College and one I guarantee you won’t want to miss.

From the AltDaily review:

If there is one genre of music to listen to for eternity, it’s 60s soul: Archie Bell and the Drells, O.V. Wright, Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Band, Dyke & the Blazers, the roll call could go on all day.

Stepping into the Mary T. Christian auditorium at Thomas Nelson the other night, the seemingly most innocent and unlikely of places, I beheld heaven as musical director Michael Sunblad led the Doo-Wop Girls through the first song from Little Shop of Horrors, which premieres Saturday the 14th.

Read full review @ AltDaily

Thomas Nelson Community College’s (TNCC) Department of Performing Arts, TNCC Players, and Iron Street Productions (ISP) will present “Little Shop of Horrors” at the Dr. Mary T. Christian Auditorium (MTCA), Templin Hall, on the Hampton campus. Performances will take place November 13-15 and November 20-22 at 8:00 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3:00 p.m. on Sundays.

Open to the public, the play is about a hapless florist shop assistant who discovers and raises a mysterious plant that craves fresh blood. As the story unfolds, the blood-thirsty plant named Audrey II grows into an ill-tempered, foul-mouthed, R&B-singing carnivore who offers the main character, Seymour, fame and fortune in exchange for feeding its growing appetite. Featured songs composed by Ashman and Alan Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop and early Motown, include “Skid Row (Downtown), ” “Somewhere That’s Green,” and “Suddenly, Seymour” as well as the title song. The classic musical is one of the longest running Off-Broadway plays and is based on the 1960 dark comedy film of the same title.

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Singer/songwriter/guitarist Jeffrey Gaines comes to Thomas Nelson Community College (TNCC) on Wednesday, September 9 performing a free concert at the Dr. Mary T. Christian Auditorium, Hampton campus.

The event, sponsored by TNCC Cultural Affairs, is open to the public and no tickets are necessary.

After Gaines’ last successful performance at the College in 2006, TNCC Cultural Affairs Chair Shar Wolff is pleased to be able to bring him back. “We are excited to be bringing in a national recording artist of Gaines’ caliber to perform at the College.”

A rising musical star, Gaines has opened for Tori Amos and toured with Sting, Tracey Chapman and Melissa Etheridge. “The audience is in for an exceptional musical experience … he puts on an absolutely incredible show,” said Wolff.

Gaines is a Pennsylvania native who grew up listening to soul music by the likes of Gladys Knight and Pips and Otis Redding. He found his own musical niche as a teen when he became exposed to an eclectic mix of pop/rock and began mastering the guitar. His debut album “Always Be” was released in 1992 and he has since released his fifth album “Toward the Sun” in February on Artemis Records.

In 2001 his star rose when his impressive remake of Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes” was in heavy rotation on the radio nationwide. Gaines delivers his crisp soulful vocals and powerful guitar riffs in emotionally charged songs that masterfully communicate love, desire, fear, joy and regret. Among songs on his concert play list are “Headmasters of Mine,” “To Be Free, “Come Out Tonight” and an inspiring remake of Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come.”

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Thomas Nelson Community College’s concert choir will present a spring concert Wednesday, April 29, at 7:30 p.m. in the Dr. Mary T. Christian Auditorium, Templin Hall, Hampton campus. Titled Eclectic Voices, the concert is free and open to the public.

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The Family Eversole brings its signature brand of bluegrass music to Thomas Nelson Community College’s (TNCC) Mary T. Christian Auditorium Friday, Oct. 17 in Templin Hall, Hampton. Open to the public, the free concert begins at 8:00 p.m. and is sponsored by TNCC’s Cultural Affairs Committee.

Formed on the heels of Andrew Eversole’s 2008 debut record release entitled, “Creature,” The Family Eversole is a tight-knit group of folks, friends and musicians that infuses sheer emotion, mastery, and conviction in to every song they perform taking listeners along for the enjoyable ride. Andrew’s twofold mission in music is to “create exceptional recordings of original and traditional music, and to “bring this music to the hearts and minds of people through powerful live performances.”

Andrew provides the banjo work, along with some guitar, and vocals. For a decade he has been known in and around North Carolina for his masterful banjo skills and his debut recording propelled him even higher on to musical landscape. “Fiddlin’ Faye” Petree brings energy and creativity to the band along with a voice akin to that of blues legend Bessie Smith. She delivers that old-time Galax style fiddling with a creating a beautifully twisted sound.

On the mandolin and guitar, Winston-Salem native James Bernabe brings years of experience expertly playing nearly every instrument and singing almost every harmony part. Ben Jensen, jazz virtuoso and Renaissance Man, is a new addition on the bass with a background in many styles of music. Ben weaves this variety into a totally original bluegrass bass style.

For more information about the concert, contact the College’s Cultural Affairs Committee Chair and Photography Department Head Sharon Wolff at 757-825-2775 or wolffs@tncc.edu.

The Seventh Annual Hampton Acoustic Blues Revival, hosted by the Natchel’ Blues Network, will be presented at Thomas Nelson Community College’s (TNCC) Mary T. Christian Auditorium, Hampton, on April 12 from 4:00-9:30 p.m. The free event − made possible with support from the Hampton Arts Commission and the TNCC Cultural Affairs Committee − is open to the public.

The festival line up this year includes winners of the Tidewater area’s International Blues Competition, Bobby “Blackhat” Walters and Larry B.; a workshop by well-known Hampton Roads guitarist, Amy Ferebee; and regional and national artists, Bill Sheffield and K.J. James. Headlining the festival is multitalented Daryl Davis, a keyboardist, vocalist and guitarist. The Maryland resident is also an author, professional actor, and lecturer

Davis is the first African American author to write a book that presents a perspective on the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). Titled Klan Destine Relationships, the book is the result of some interesting friendships Davis developed when he was the only black member of a country band at one time. The author recalls one day being approached by a man who told him that he enjoyed his music, and that this was the first time he had seen a black man play piano like Jerry Lee Lewis.

Davis explained to the man that both he and Lewis learned from the same sources. The man continued to follow Davis’s band and became a “regular.” It turns out that the fan was also a KKK member. Davis wrote the book after meeting several members and leaders of the organization who consequently quit the KKK giving the musician their robes and hoods after getting to know Davis.

Having appeared on stage and the big screen, Davis’s most recent acting appearance was on the television show, The Wire. In 1985, Pinetop Perkins, considered to be one of the greatest Blues and Boogie pianists, selected 27-year-old Daryl Davis to succeed him in the piano and vocal slot in the Legendary Blues Band. The late and legendary pianist Johnnie Johnson praised Davis’s ability to master with authenticity, a piano style that was popular 50 years before he was born. Both pianists claimed Davis as their godson.

Davis’ CD, American Roots, received rave reviews from Living Blues and Blues Revue magazines, and received the 2005 WAMA (Washington Area Music Association) Award for Best Roots Music Artist and the 2006 WAMMIE for Best Blues Instrumentalist. Davis has toured nationwide and in Europe.

For more information please contact, TNCC Cultural Affairs Committee Chair Ms. Shar Wolff at 757-825-2775.

Release #08-0319

In honor of Black History Month, internationally known drummers and dance company, WACONGO, will be performing in the Mary T. Christian Auditorium at Thomas Nelson Community College, on Feb. 8 at 8:00 p.m. Free and open to the public, this event is being sponsored by the TNCC Cultural Affairs Committee.

Led by artistic director Elie Kihonia, WACONGO Dance Company is a traditional ensemble of master drummers, dancers and musicians from the Democratic Republic of Congo, who perform the ancestral songs and dances of Central Africa. WACONGO artists have extensively toured Europe, Asia, and North and South America.

Shar Wolff, TNCC Cultural Affairs Committee Chair said, “Their costumes have to be some of the most beautiful I have seen. They have an amazing energy.” She added, “We’re very fortunate to have performers of this caliber coming here.”

WACONGO promotes African culture by presenting the arts of 400 African ethnic groups to the public. Africa’s influence is strong within our culture. Everything from jazz to rock to hip-hop bears the indelible stamp of that continent. For more information please call, Victoria Mathis at 825-2779.

Release #08-0104

Thomas Nelson Community College invites the community-at-large to the performance of the College’s Brass Ensemble on Thursday, April 26 and the Choral Ensemble on Friday, April 27. The two free concerts will each be held at the Mary T. Christian Auditorium on the College’s Hampton campus at 7:30 p.m.

The Brass Ensemble’s concert features festive music of the Renaissance, the inspired and heroic music of the Baroque and the lyrical, elegant music of the Classical era. Also included in the program are solo vocal performances of patriotic and hymnal favorites. The Choral Ensemble’s concert features African-American spirituals, the choral music of Bach, Handel, Haydn, and Mozart, along with selections from Andrew L. Webber’s, Phantom of the Opera. A brass Quartet will accompany the Choral Ensemble.

The spring concerts are the culmination of two performance-based courses that Thomas Nelson Community College began offering within the last two years. Brass Ensemble (MUS 195) was added in fall 2006 and Choral Ensemble (MUS 137) in fall 2005. This will mark the Brass Ensemble’s second performance and the Choral Ensemble’s fourth. In preparation for the concerts, students have been rehearsing bi-weekly for three months, including numerous hours of individual practice.

“The students in the ensembles are not music majors. Rather, they represent a diverse range of age and musical backgrounds. Some students have had only two years of training in middle school or high school bands. Others have played throughout their secondary school years, and some others are now performing with community bands. However, regardless of their musical experiences and abilities, the players in both ensembles have two things in common; their love of music and a desire to perform in an ensemble,” said John Park, TNCC Music adjunct faculty.

Beginning fall 2007, the College will offer a third performance-based course, Woodwind Ensemble (MUS 175). The Woodwind Ensemble (MUS 175), along with Brass Ensemble (MUS 195) will be available to dual enrolled high school students who are interested in earning college credit as a member of an instrumental ensemble while attending high school.

The Brass and Choral Ensembles are under the direction of John Park. Park, a former conductor of Marine Bands and instructor at the Armed Forces School of Music, holds a bachelor’s degree from Elon University, North Carolina, and a master’s degree from the Teachers’ College, Columbia University in New York City. He has performed as a member of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, which is the chorus of the Boston Symphony and sung under the direction of such renowned conductors as Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa. He has also been a member of the Virginia Chorale and the Virginia Symphony Chorus.

Photo Caption: The Choral Ensemble presented a holiday concert in December under the direction of adjunct faculty, John Park. (Photo by Marlene Waters)

News Releases @ TNCC – For Immediate Release
For more information please contact the Office of Public Relations (757) 825-2725