Lois Smith Jones, President

The Friday Morning Music Club, Inc.

Washington, D.C.

For classical musicians and music lovers in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

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MEMBER NEWS PUBLISHED ON THIS WEB SITE IN JUNE 2003:

• On Monday, June 23, 2003, the Washington Symphonic Brass will perform a concert for the American Guild of Organists (AGO). The event will be at 8:00 p.m. at Saint Luke Catholic Church in McLean, VA, located 1/4 mile inside the Beltway on Rt. 193 (Georgetown Pike). If you have never heard the WSB, here is your chance to experience the "Splendor of Brass" with the addition of Organ (William Neil, soloist) and percussion--absolutely for FREE. The Washington Symphonic Brass will announce their 2003-2004 Concert Series on this date. Repertoire for the Concert on June 23:
  • Sir .Arthur Bliss, Salute!, for Brass, Organ, and Cymbals
  • Naji Hakim, Old Hundredth, for Brass and Organ
  • Sir Edward Elgar, "Nimrod" from Enigma Variations, for Brass, Organ, and Timpani
  • Carl Nielsen, Short Preludes, for Organ, Brass, and Timpani
  • Ottorino Respighi, Ancient Airs and Dances, for Brass, Organ, and Percussion
  
   
• "Dreaming - Songs of Lori Laitman" was released May 1 by Albany Records. Sound clips are up on Lori Laitman's website, www.artsongs.com, and the CD can be ordered through the site as well.

  Below is the press release from Albany Records:

  Albany Records is proud to announce the release of a second recording devoted to the songs of award-winning composer Lori Laitman. Ms. Laitman has composed some of the most moving and beautiful art songs composed by any American composer. In this recording, the all-star cast of singers and instrumentalists perform settings of poetry ranging from Emily Dickinson to contemporary American poets Thomas Lux and Mary Oliver.

  Ms. Laitman's reviews have been glowing in the U.S. and abroad. The New York Times called her songs "especially effective," and The Washington Post has raved ěnothing less than a masterstroke,î while praising her musical "depth and intrigue." Phonogram Magazine singled out Ms. Laitman's debut song, The Metropolitan Tower, declaring that "The CD is worth owning for this song alone: magnificent!" The online edition of Opera News wrote, "It's a treat to hear contemporary art songs that showcase the voice as flatteringly as these, and which retain individuality and surprise without sacrificing accessibility."

  In June 2004 The Cleveland Opera will present the world premiere of Ms. Laitman's opera, "Come to Me in Dreams," staged by the Opera's General Director David Bamberger. Recent performances of Ms. Laitmanís music have taken place across the country, at such venues as The Skylight Opera Theatre (Wisconsin), Weill Recital Hall, Merkin Hall and Alice Tully Hall (New York), Shriver Hall (Maryland), Benaroya Hall (Washington), The Cleveland Institute of Art, The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, The Corcoran Gallery and The Kennedy Center (D.C.). Named by the Nebraska Music Teachers Association as the 2002 Composer of the Year, Ms. Laitman has traveled to various universities and festivals to serve as composer-in-residence. The Emily Dickinson International Society featured performances of and panels on Ms. Laitman' settings of Dickinson's poetry.

  Lori Laitman graduated magna cum laude with honors in music from Yale College. She received her M.M. in flute performance from the Yale School of Music. Her principal composition teachers were Jonathan Kramer and Frank Lewin. Ms. Laitman's initial focus was composing music for film and theatre, and in 1980 she wrote the score for The Taming of the Shrew for the Folger Theatre in Washington. Since 1991 she has concentrated on composing for the voice. Her debut CD, "Mystery - The Songs of Lori Laitman," was released August 1, 2000, on the Albany Records label, to critical acclaim.