Events Calendar

Tenor Justin M. Boazman is a candidate for the Master of Music under the direction of Dr. Keith Jones. A 2012 graduate of Erskine College, Justin matriculated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Church Music. Most recently, he’s been seen as “Roger Doremus” in Converse Opera Theatre’s 2018 production of Lee Hoiby’s Summer and Smoke and as “Le Prince Charmant” in COT’s 2017 production of Pauline Viardot’s Cendrillon. Other performances include the COT’s premiere of David Berry’s Troiades and Erskine College’s production of Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas. When Mr. Boazman is not on the opera stage, he can be found singing with the Spartanburg Festival Chorus and the First Presbyterian Chamber Singers. Justin currently serves as the Director of Music for Inman United Methodist Church.

Natalie Longobardo is a current candidate for a Master of Music, under the direction of Dr. Valerie Macphail. She is a 2016 graduate of Converse College with Bachelor degrees in vocal performance, studying under Rebecca Turner and piano performance, studying under Dr. Douglas Weeks. She has performed the roles of “Belinda” in Dido and Aeneas, “Valencienne” in The Merry Widow, “Alma” in Lee Hoiby’s Summer and Smoke and premiered the role of “Andromache” David Berry’s opera Troiades all with the Converse Opera Theater, along with “Damigella” in Harrower Summer Opera Workshop’s production of l’incoronazione di Poppea and “Gretel” in Spartanburg Repertory Company’s production of Hansel and Gretel. She is a member of the music fraternity Delta Omicron and the honors music society Pi Kappa Lambda. Natalie currently servers as a staff accompanist at Converse College and teaches through the Lawson Academy.

**Edisher Savitski will be accompanied by soloist, Valerie MacPhail and clarinetist, Karen Hill.
Pianist Edisher Savitski has enjoyed critical acclaim throughout his career: “As each of Savitski’s convulsive trills and ominous chords would hang in the air, it became clearer that indeed something special was happening. We will be lucky to hear Scriabin played anywhere near this powerfully any time soon” (Jack Walton, South Bend Tribune). “The piano of Edisher Savitski prays, laments and also makes joyful sounds; This amazing Georgian simply takes off to the sky!” (Hanuh Ron, Yediot Akhronot, Israel).
He has been appearing as a soloist with: Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Utah Symphony, Pacific Symphony among many others, and has been performing at prestigious venues worldwide. To name a few: at Carnegie Zankel Hall and Carnegie Weill Hall, New York; Wigmore Hall, London; Great Hall of Mozarteum, Salzburg, Austria; Mariinsky Theater, St. Petersburg,Russia; Teatro alla Scala, Milan, Italy as well as in other venues in USA, Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, France, Russia, United Kingdom, Israel, Austria, Morocco, Japan and New Zealand.
Dr. Savitski has appeared at major music festivals such as Salzburg Festival, Austria; Gilmore Keyboard Festival, Ravinia Festival, USA; Ruhr Festival, Germany; Ravenna Festival, Stresa Festival, Maggio Musicale Festival in Florence, MITO Festival, Italy. His performances were also heard in Grande Auditorio at Temporada Gulbenkian de Musica in Lisbon, Portugal; at Teatro la Fenice, Venice; Stadt-Casino Musiksaal in Basel, Switzerland; Salle Cortot in Paris, France; at Dame Myra Hess series in Chicago; Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky festivals through Pittsburgh Symphony; Edisher Savitski is the first prizewinner of the Third International Piano-E-Competition in 2006 and the Hilton Head International Piano Competition in 2001, and took top prizes at the First International Piano-E-Competition in Minneapolis and the William S. Byrd International Piano Competition in Michigan.
In November 2007, Dr. Savitski became first pianist who performed from his home in South Bend, Indiana on Yamaha Disklavier piano that was connected to another Disklavier piano in the Recital Hall of Yamaha Artist Services International in New York City, in an unprecedented live performance/press conference. Dr. Edisher Savitski’s performances have been frequently broadcasted on live TV and radio throughout Europe and USA. In 2007 Savitski’s CD was released on Schubert Club’s Ten Thousand Lakes label. He is a Yamaha Artist.
Born in Tbilisi, Georgia, Dr. Edisher Savitski studied in central music school with Maya Beridze and later in the Tbilisi Conservatory with professor Nana Khubutia. During this
time he became a prizewinner of the international charity program “New Names”, Russia, and won collaborative piano competition arranged at the Tbilisi State Conservatory.
In 1998 he joined the renowned Alexander Toradze Piano Studio at Indiana University South Bend, where he earned Masters degree, Artist diploma, and has been awarded with
the Performers Certificate. In Spring 2013 he earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in performance from Michigan State University. Currently Dr. Savitski is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama School of Music.
About the Friends of the Petrie School of Music
In 1983, a group of devoted faculty, administrators and community supporters formed the Friends of the School of Music. Among them was Carlos Moseley, whose world-wide musical connections helped establish Converse College as a venue for such eminent performers as Charles Wadsworth and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Yo-Yo Ma, Chanticleer, the Tokyo String Quartet, the Beaux Arts Trio and many others. In 2004, the Friends of the Petrie School of Music renamed our concert series the Carlos Moseley Chamber Music Series.
For decades the name Carlos Moseley has been synonymous with musical excellence. This great musician was revered for his contributions to music not only in his hometown of Spartanburg, but also around the world. Carlos enjoyed a distinguished career as a concert pianist, professor, and as president of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and Chairman of the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York. He served on the boards of Converse College and Brevard Music Center, and was awarded honorary doctoral degrees from the Juilliard School, Duke University, Wofford College and Converse College. He was also a recipient of the Order of the Palmetto, the highest honor available to a citizen of South Carolina. Most recently, Mr. Moseley was honored with a marker on the Spartanburg Music Trail.
Subscriptions to the Moseley series and additional donations to the Friends of the Petrie School of Music provide support for Converse music students and make possible an array of education activities by Moseley Series artists. These activities include master classes and open rehearsals at Converse, as well as programs at local high schools.
Season Subscription- $150
Orchid Subscription- $375
(3-year subscription for seasons 2017-18, 2018-19 & 2019-20)
Converse Faculty & Staff- $75
Non-Converse Student- $25
(Single Concert Entry)
General Single Concert Admission- $50

Join us for a FREE concert performed by the USAF Heritage of America Concert Band!
For decades, the USAF Heritage of America Concert Band has educated, inspired and entertained approximately 15 million people annually at a variety of events that support airmen and their families, recruit, honor veterans and build relationships of trust between the American people and their Air Force.
The Concert Band is comprised of over 40 professional airman-musicians who wow audiences on regular tours throughout the East Coast with a variety of renditions of great orchestral classics, marches, Broadway hits, jazz standards, movie music and patriotic favorites.
The band has appeared with several guest artists, recorded over 55 highly-acclaimed albums and performed at hundreds of high-profile events, conferences and festivals. The band’s music is often found on television, radio and the internet, which serve to communicate and convey Air Force core values of integrity, service and excellence to millions. These achievements have earned the ensemble worldwide acclaim as well as military awards, including eight Air Force Outstanding Unit awards, three Colonel George S. Howard Citations of Musical Excellence for Military Concert Bands and numerous Mayoral Proclamations.
Through the universal language of music, we COMMUNICATE U.S. Air Force and Department of Defense messages, making lasting connections with our audiences. Our community and civic outreach performances serve to instill patriotism, build partnerships, enhance the reputation of the Air Force and the United States, and demonstrate American values to the world.
We HONOR all who have nobly served m the United States Armed Forces by commemorating the contributions of our nation’s veterans – past and present – both at home and in deployed locations around the world.
We INSPIRE diverse audiences by displaying the highest level of professionalism, epitomizing military precision and excellence, telling the Air Force story and presenting the finest in musical culture and entertainment.
We serve as a dynamic element to RECRUIT our nation’s best and brightest to serve in the United States Air Force. In partnership with Air Force Recruiting Service, we perform for events that generate interest and enthusiasm for military service.

For SENIORS ONLY – We invite you to show your stuff!  Art, Music, Theatre, Musical Theatre and/or Dance…if this is your passion, you may be eligible to earn scholarship money.
Register for an audition or a portfolio review:
Petrie School of Music Audition
Theatre & Dance Audition
Musical Theatre Audition
Art Portfolio Review

Free evening of bluegrass gospel performed by two local bands, The Ole Tyme Pickers and The Drake Trio. Light refreshments available.

On April 20th, Grammy Award-winning vocal group, Little Big Town is bringing The Breakers Tour to The Well,
with special guests Kacey Musgraves and Midland.

Tickets start at just $20!

Each year, the Lawson Academy showcases its top scholarship recipients in each musical category, as well as other accomplished high school musicians, in a formal concert to honor these “shining stars.” Proceeds fund the annual Lawson Series events, and a fabulous reception is held following the concert.
Learn more about giving to the Lawson Academy
$10 adults, $5 for 18 and under

 7:30 PM at the Diana Wortham Theatre.  You’ll get to enjoy a cappella singing at its finest!

We are very pleased this year to offer an exciting lineup, that includes our favorites-new and old:

• Land of the Sky Chorus
• Pastyme
• ShBoom
• Bluebirds, chorus from UNCA
• Fourmata, Owen HS quartet
• A Cappella Brewing, a new vocal group iv Asheville

Besides, come just to hear our incredibley entertaining emcee, Bradshaw Call, returning due to popular demand,

John Rutter’s latest major work Visions is a four-movement showpiece for solo violin, string orchestra, harp and choir of treble voices, based on the theme of Jerusalem, the Holy City of prophetic imaginations. Join the Converse Chorale, joined by violinist Zoe Kushubar on April 23rd at 7:30 pm in Daniel Recital Hall as they present Rutter’s Visions along with a spring concert to celebrate diverse religions. Also featured on the program will be Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda by Gustav Holst. Admission is free to this event.

Hojotoho!: The Cry of the Valkyrie represents a collage of operatic music and personal stories illuminating the joys and challenges of being a woman in the South.
Showtimes:
April 27 & 28 @ 7:30pm
Suggested Donation $5
Please call the Box Office to reserve your ticket.
About Opera Forward
Converse Opera Theatre’s Opera Forward Series presents intimate, innovative and experimental works that challenge the definition of opera in the 21st Century.

Hojotoho!: The Cry of the Valkyrie represents a collage of operatic music and personal stories illuminating the joys and challenges of being a woman in the South.
Showtimes:
April 27 & 28 @ 7:30pm
Suggested Donation $5
Please call the Box Office to reserve your ticket.
About Opera Forward
Converse Opera Theatre’s Opera Forward Series presents intimate, innovative and experimental works that challenge the definition of opera in the 21st Century.

Revelry Unique Downtown Events and Carolina Music Planner are proud to present Upland Drive with The Moon and You. The Asheville Masonic Temple’s theatre is a truly awe-inspiring space. It’s intimate, seating 400, but carries historical significance and charm. We hope that you experience the true feeling of an era gone by, and join us for a night of entertainment in the heart of downtown Asheville.

Doors will open at 7pm. Tickets are available online for $10 via EventBrite (plus processing fee), and will be $15 at the door, cash or card.

The show will begin at 7:30pm.

This is an all ages show. Beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase.

Upland Drive is a provocative and edgy Asheville-based band with an inspired take on a variety of genres including rock, reggae, jazz, and hip hop. Fueled by the intoxicating sound of the cello and nuanced with soulful vocal harmonies, Upland Drive creates an inviting soundscape full of rich detail, poetic lyricism, adventurous harmonies, and inventive structure. Featuring singer/songwriter/cellist Franklin Keel, vocalist Debra Darling, composer/bassist Ryan Kijanka, and drummer/trumpeter C. Scott Shaw, Upland Drive presents virtuosic and venturesome live performances with a fresh musical approach.

The Moon and You is an Americana duo based in Asheville, NC. Cellist Melissa Hyman and guitarist/banjo player Ryan Furstenberg sing in “voices that sound like they were made for one another” (Bill DeYoung, Connect Savannah). Each is an accomplished songwriter with a distinctive and memorable style. Though they bring to the table the seamless vocal blend and heartfelt lyrics characteristic of folk music, this ain’t your basic folk duo; audible influences include jazz standards, classic country, indie rock and classical music. All of these sources combine to find sweet harmony in The Moon and You’s warm and unconventional arrangements. Perfect for fans of Shovels & Rope, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, and Norman & Nancy Blake