eInside Events

Kent/Blossom Music Festival Now in Its 47th Season

Kent/Blossom Music Festival continues to present the finest chamber music in Northeast Ohio

Pictured is the Miami String Quartet, one of several musical
groups that will perform at the Kent/Blossom Music Festival's
Faculty Concert Series, taking place from June 25 to July 23.

Continuing the tradition of presenting world-class chamber music in Northeast Ohio, the Kent/Blossom Music Festival will again feature its highly anticipated Faculty Concert Series from June 25 to July 23, which features performances by some of the region’s most-coveted musicians from the Cleveland Orchestra, as well as a variety of world-class soloists.

Highlights of the upcoming season include: the return of Steinway Artist Spencer Myer, an all-Brahms program performed by cellist Mark Kosower, and an evening of delightful pieces for solo violin with Jung-Min Amy Lee. Additional highlights include guest performances by members of the Cleveland Orchestra, the Miami String Quartet and more.

The public also is invited to enjoy the talents of some of the world's finest young musicians performing in Kent/Blossom Music Festival's Chamber Players concerts, which are free and open to all. This year, Kent/Blossom Music Festival will be joined by 46 students from all over the world whose visit will culminate in a side-by-side performance with the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center.

In collaboration with the Kulas Foundation, Kent/Blossom Music Festival is excited to announce a special performance by violinist Ida Kavafian as the Kulas Visiting Guest Artist. This program that began in 2013 was established to bring an artist of stature to spend one week of the five-week festival to work intensively with talented students.

A six-concert subscription, which provides subscribers with an $18 savings, is $72 for adults and $60 for seniors. To purchase a subscription, call the Performing Arts Box Office at 330-672-ARTS (2787). Subscriptions may be purchased with check, Visa, MasterCard or Discover.

All faculty concerts take place at 7:30 p.m. in Ludwig Recital Hall, Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive in Kent.

Single tickets also are available at $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and $5 for college students. For more information, call 330-672-ARTS (2787) or visit www.kent.edu/blossom.

Tickets are available weekdays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Performing Arts Box Office, located in the lobby of the Roe Green Center in the Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive on the Kent Campus. The Performing Arts Box Office accepts Visa, MasterCard and Discover, in addition to cash and checks.

The Ludwig Recital Hall box office will open one hour prior to the performance for walk-up sales, and will accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover. Tickets and more information are available by calling 330-672-ARTS (2787) or by visiting www.kent.edu/blossom.

Faculty Concert Performances:

Wednesday, June 25, at 7:30 p.m.
Spencer Myer, piano; Frank Rosenwein, oboe; and, Barrick Stees, bassoon
Robert Schumann - Three Romances for Oboe and Piano, Op. 94
Robert Schumann - Fantasie in C Major, Op. 17
Ludwig van Beethoven - 12 Variations on Handel’s “See the Conquering Hero Comes” from Judas Maccabaeus, WoO 45
Paul Hindemith - Sonata for Oboe and Piano (1938)
William Bolcom - From The Garden of Eden


Tuesday, July 1, at 7:30 p.m.
Miami String Quartet
Antonín Dvořák - Miniatures for Two Violins and Viola, Op. 75a/B 149
Erwin Schulhoff - Five Pieces for String Quartet
Felix Mendelssohn - Quartet for Strings No. 4 in E minor, Op. 44, No. 2


Thursday, July 3, at 7:30 p.m.
Kulas Guest Artist, Ida Kavafian, violin, and Glauser String Quartet
Ludwig van Beethoven - Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 5 in F major, Op. 24 “Spring”
Richard Strauss - Sonata for Violin and Piano in E-flat major, Op. 18
Ernest Chausson - Concert for violin, piano and string quartet in D major, Op. 21


Wednesday, July 9, at 7:30 p.m.
Jung-Min Amy Lee, violin, and Joanna Patterson Zakany, viola
Johann Sebastian Bach - Partita No. 2 in D minor for Solo Violin, BWV 1004
Essa-Pekka Salonen - 'Lachen Verlernt' for Solo Violin
Eugene Ysaÿe - Sonata for Solo Violin, Op. 27, No. 4 in E minor
Astor Piazzolla - Selections from Tango Etudes for Solo Violin
Johan Halvorsen - 'Sarabande con variazioni' in G minor (on a theme of Handel)


Wednesday, July 16, at 7:30 p.m.
Mark Kosower, cello
An all-Brahms program
Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 in E minor, Op. 38
Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1 in G major, Op. 78
Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 2 in F major, Op. 99


Wednesday, July 23, at 7:30 p.m.
Katherine Bormann, violin; Jeffrey Zehngut, violin; Stanley Konopka, viola;
Richard Weiss, cello; Joela Jones, piano; Barrick Stees, bassoon; and, Danna Sundet, oboe
Gary Schocker - Sonata for Bassoon and Piano (1992)
Manuel de Falla - Canciones Populares Españolas for Cello and Piano
Theodore Lalliet - Terzetto for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano, Op. 22
Béla Kovács - Hommage à Manuel de Falla for Clarinet and Piano
Edward Elgar - Quintet for Piano and Strings in A minor, Op. 84

Jo Dee Messina, Street Corner Symphony are Featured Summer Performances at Kent State Tuscarawas Performing Arts Center

Country star Jo Dee Messina will perform at the Performing
Arts Center at Kent State University at Tuscarawas on
July 31 at 7:30 p.m.

The 2014 summer season at the Performing Arts Center at Kent State University at Tuscarawas features country singing star Jo Dee Messina on July 31 at 7:30 p.m., and Street Corner Symphony on Aug. 24 at 3 p.m. Messina’s concert is co-sponsored by WTUZ Radio, and Street Corner Symphony’s is co-sponsored by Allied Machine and Engineering Corporation.

Messina, who will be performing with her band, debuted in 1996 with the hit single Heads Carolina, Tales California. Other hits include You’re Not in Kansas Anymore; Bye, Bye, I’m Alright and Stand Beside Me, to name a few. Bring on the Rain, a duet she performed with Tim McGraw, was a Top 10 hit on the Adult Contemporary chart. She has had nine number one singles, 16 Top 40 singles and sold more than five million records worldwide. The singer/songwriter released her newest album, ME, in March on her new label Dreambound Records.

“I have been listening to Jo Dee’s music for years, especially because of her catchy lyrics,” says Mike Morelli, general manager of the Performing Arts Center. “And there have been many requests from the public for her to perform on our stage. Her concert here demonstrates the high value we place on our patron’s suggestions. Jo Dee is an award-winning, country superstar who is known for her high-energy shows, which is just what we are expecting. It will be an entertaining evening.”

Messina received awards from the Country Music Association, the Academy of Country Music and has been nominated for two Grammy Awards.

Street Corner Symphony will perform at the Performing
Arts Center at Kent State University at Tuscarawas on
Aug. 24 at 3 p.m.

Street Corner Symphony, an a cappella group based in Nashville, Tennessee, came to international notoriety in 2010 when they became runners-up on NBC's all-vocal competition The Sing-Off. These southern gents quickly won over The Sing-Off judges Ben Folds (Ben Folds Five), Shawn Stockman (Boyz II Men) and Nicole Scherzinger (The Pussycat Dolls), and – most importantly – millions of NBC primetime viewers after demonstrating their unique, laid-back-yet-dynamic style of a cappella. Since their success on The Sing-Off, Street Corner Symphony has performed around the world, providing clinics for schools, giving benefits for cancer, as well as recording two full albums and numerous singles. They have worked with major artists including Ben Folds, Alison Krauss and Take 6's Claude McKnight.

The six performing members of the group include three brothers: Jeremy, Jonathan and Richie Lister, along with Adam Chance, Mark McLemore and Kurt Zimmerman. Four of the six are the sons of ministers, which contributes to their natural ears for harmony, as well as their playful sense of mischief, and all six of them have expertise in a wide variety of styles. This allows Street Corner Symphony to seamlessly move between most styles of music, feeling at home in all of them. Their repertoire covers a wide range, from gospel and barbershop to rock and pop, appealing to the young and old alike.

“If you are a fan of the TV show The Sing Off, you will be familiar with this dynamic and vocally outstanding group,” Morelli says. “They weave lyrics and harmonies through intricate mash-ups. Fans of a cappella music should be jumping at the chance to see these vocal masters. It will be a fantastic show.”

Tickets for Jo Dee Messina range in price from $35 to $55. Tickets for Street Corner Symphony are $13 to $25. Tickets for both concerts are now on sale. Tickets can be purchased at the Performing Arts Center Box Office, online at www.tusc.kent.edu or by calling 330-308-6400. The box office is open Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free parking is available for all shows.

19th Annual Kent Heritage Festival Takes Place July 5

Visitors gather for the annual Kent Heritage Festival in
downtown Kent. This year's event will take place on
Saturday, July 5, from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.

The 19th annual Kent Heritage Festival will take place on Saturday, July 5, from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. in downtown Kent. More than 100 vendors and businesses will participate in the festival, with nearly 25,000 visitors expected.

“We saw a great increase in the number of people that attended last year’s festival,” says Lori Wemhoff, executive director of the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce and festival chairperson. “It may have had something to do with the less than 100-degree heat we experienced in 2012,” she jokes.

The festival will feature the annual Kent Heritage Festival NAPA Car Show, which will take place on West Erie Street and Franklin Street. The AMETEK Tree City 5K Race and Walk, which benefits the United Way of Portage County, begins at 7 p.m. in Dix Stadium, and fireworks in downtown Kent begin at 9:45 p.m.

Crafters and information booths will be located on East Main Street, East Erie Street and South Water Street. Food vendors will be located on North Water Street, and three stages will be set up throughout downtown to provide entertainment. A rock-climbing wall has been added this year and will be located on North Water Street in front of the Star of the West Mill next to the relocated children’s section.

“This is an amazing, one-day community event that so many people look forward to each summer,” Wemhoff says. “We appreciate the collaborative efforts of so many that help make it possible.”

The festival is organized by the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce and Kent United Services Organizations, which is composed of the City of Kent, Kent Jaycees, Kent Lions, Kent Junior Mothers, Kent Kiwanis, Kent Rotary, Knights of Columbus and Main Street Kent.

Kent State 2014 Football Season Tickets Now Available

Kent State University’s 2014 football
season tickets are now on sale. The
Golden Flashes will play their first two
games of the 2014 season at Dix Stadium,
hosting MAC East rival Ohio on Aug. 30
and South Alabama on Sept. 6.

Kent State University’s 2014 football season tickets are now on sale. Fans can purchase their six-game package, starting as low as $10 per game, by calling 330-672-2244. Chairback ($96) and general admission packages ($60) include a season-long parking pass ($30 value).

In addition to all the action at Dix Stadium, season ticket holders will get the exclusive opportunity to purchase tickets to Kent State’s game at Ohio State on Sept. 13. New season ticket holders will get a chance to win a trip with the team to the University of Virginia for its Sept. 27 game in Charlottesville. Other perks include merchandise discounts and a season ticket holder appreciation event held just prior to the season.

The Golden Flashes play their first two games of the 2014 season at Dix Stadium hosting MAC East rival Ohio on Aug. 30 and South Alabama on Sept. 6. The rest of the home slate includes UMass, Army, Toledo and Akron.

Keep an eye out for Kent State’s promotion schedule, which will include a fireworks night, a scout night and a number of attractions during the Army game, never seen before at Dix Stadium.

Season tickets also can be purchased at the M.A.C. Center Ticket Office, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m.- 4:30 p.m.

In 2013, Kent State closed out a season with back-to-back victories for the first time since 2004 with a 24-6 win over Miami and a 44-13 triumph at Ohio.

2014 Home Games

Fun Summer Youth Program offered at Kent State Tuscarawas

Weird Science, Cheer Dance Tumble and Kids in the Kitchen are just a few of the highlights of this summer’s youth programming at Kent State University at Tuscarawas. The 24th annual College for Kids program will be held June 23-27 and offers nine fun and interesting youth enrichment classes for students in first through sixth grades during the 2013-14 school year. The five-day session offers courses from 10 a.m. to noon and 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Other exciting classes offered this summer are: Snakes, Turtles, Frogs and Lizards; Scratch; Agriculture Adventures; Jumbie Jammin’; Kids in the Garden; and STEM- Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. Weird Science focuses on teaching students science concepts with hands-on, 3D projects that students can “make and take” home. In Jumbie Jammin,’ students learn to play an authentic steel drum. Students will learn programming language and share interactive media in the class called Scratch. All course descriptions and the complete College for Kids schedule is available at www.tusc.kent.edu/BCS/CFK.

Class fees range from $65 to $100, with registrations accepted through June 16. Limited financial assistance is available for the College for Kids sessions. For more information or to register, call the Office of Business and Community Services at 330-308-7434.

Kent State Tuscarawas is located at 330 University Dr. NE, New Philadelphia.