Kohola - Spirit of the Ocean - World Premiere - Saturday November 13 2021
Kohola-Spirit of the Ocean, music by Stella Sung premieres Saturday, November 13, 2021 in Eugene, Oregon at 7:30 PM at the First Baptist Church, 3550 Fox Meadow Road, Eugene OR. This is a very special day as Conductor Kelly Kuo celebrates his 10th anniversary season as Artistic Director of the Oregon Mozart Players and Old School kicks off the 40th Anniversary Season of OMP and will be a first in-person concert in 645 days since the pandemic halted in person performances.
Kohola-Spirit of the Ocean came about from a discussion that Maestro Kelly Kuo and Composer Stella Sung had about his wanting to base a new program upon something that would capture the spirit of the “old and ancient” yet still be new. When Sung came upon the ancient Hawaiian chant, the Kumulipo that tells the story of the Creation and includes mention of the kohola (pronounced in Hawaiian as Ko-ho-la--humpback whales), it seemed that this was the perfect story to tell.
Sung collaborated with Annie Crawley on previous orchestral work, Oceana, which focuses upon marine conservancy and the problem of ocean noise pollution. Annie produced a powerful film to accompany the music which shows not only the wonders of the ocean, but also careless human disregard of the ocean and its creatures. For the Kohola collaboration, Stella asked Annie if she would consider focusing her work upon hope and the humpback whales which she has extensively filmed, photographed and also recorded. The humpback “songs” are amazing communication and navigational tools that male whales use in order to travel thousands of miles for migration, mating, and forging for food. In creating the film, Annie took the music and developed the story concept to focus upon the mother and baby whale in her film--and what is more ancient and compelling than the story of mother and child? Her film shows us the bond, the playfulness, the curiosity, and the majesty of these magnificent animals. The “voices” of the whales are featured in the soundtrack of the film and are an important aspect to the music which is deliberately understated so that the whale song can be heard and felt by the audience. The glissandi in the middle of the piece are musical interpretations of whale song sounds as the musicians play against the actual whale song.
From the chant in the Kumulipo: "Hanau ka palaoa noho I kai"--born is the whale living in the ocean. Let us celebrate the wonders of the ocean and preserve its resources for generations to come.
郭 More About Kelly Kuo Praised by the Cincinnati Enquirer as “a leader of exceptional musical gifts, who has a clear technique on the podium and an impressive rapport with audiences,” Maestro Kelly Kuo brings a dynamic versatility and nuance to a diverse repertoire, which includes over 90 operas and an expansive symphonic repertoire as well. Currently Artistic Director of Oregon Mozart Players and Associate Artistic Director of American Lyric Theater, his recent operatic engagements include Lyric Opera of Chicago, Seattle Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Indianapolis Opera, Kentucky Opera, Anchorage Opera, and the Janiec Opera Company of the Brevard Music Center. In 2008, Maestro Kuo became the first conductor of Asian descent to lead a performance at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, making his company debut with Porgy and Bess. He has since returned to lead the Chicago premiere of Charlie Parker’s Yardbird and performances featuring artists of the Ryan Opera Center. Maestro Kelly Kuo created a digital pre-program you can view below.
More about Dr. Stella Sung
Dr Stella Sung served as the first Composer-in-Residence for the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra (2008-2011), and was one of the five composers nationally selected for a Music Alive award, a three-year award that allowed Dr. Sung to serve as Composer-In-Residence for the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance (2013-16), sponsored by New Music USA, the League of American Orchestras, ASCAP, the Aaron Copland Fund, and the Andrew Mellon Foundation. Premieres, performances, and commissions of Dr. Sung’s work have included compositions for world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma, the German Ministry of Culture (Rhineland-Pfalz), the National Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Pops, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, the Wichita Symphony Orchestra, the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra, the Akron Symphony Orchestra, the Sarasota Symphony Orchestra, the Jacksonville (Fla.) Symphony Orchestra, and other university and regional orchestras, chamber music ensembles, and soloists.
Dr. Sung is director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology, and Entertainment (CREATE) at the University of Central Florida, College of Arts and Humanities.