Bach organizers pleased with festival receipts.Byline: Mark Johnson Mark Johnson may refer to: Academics and scientists
The joy emanating from the Oregon Bach Festival The Oregon Bach Festival is an annual celebration of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, held in Eugene, Oregon in late June and early July. It was co-founded by German conductor Helmuth Rilling and the former president of the American Choral Directors Association, Royce Saltzman, was not limited to the uplifting season-ending performance of Messiah at the Hult Center on Sunday - officials described the 2 1/2 -week festival's expected drop in ticket revenue as "manageable" and that new programs this year even allowed it to increase its audience. In fact, festival performances played before nearly 43,000 people this summer, which is the largest attendance in the history of the University of Oregon The University of Oregon is a public university located in Eugene, Oregon. The university was founded in 1876, graduating its first class two years later. The University of Oregon is one of 60 members of the Association of American Universities. festival, marketing director George Evano said. Attendance was bolstered this year by the addition of a second concert in Portland and one in Bend, and by the 15,000 Art and the Vineyard visitors who watched the July 4 "Red, White and Rhapsody (1) A subscription-based online music service from RealNetworks that gives users unlimited access to a vast library of major and independent label music. Within a single interface, Rhapsody provides access to streaming music, Internet radio and extensive music information and in Blue" performance in Alton Baker Park Alton Baker Park is located in Eugene, Oregon, United States, near Autzen Stadium. It features duck ponds, bicycle trails, and a dog park, and directly touches the Ferry Street Bridge. . The actual number of tickets sold was 15,800, a decline from the 17,402 tickets sold last year. Revenue is expected to exceed $438,000 this year, Evano said, which is 12.7 percent less than the record-setting season in 2008 - when visitors from the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials helped push revenue to slightly more than $500,000 - yet is a 4.7 percent increase in revenue from 2007. "We knew, considering the economy, that we were going to take a few bumps at the gate," John Evans John Evans may refer to:
OBF Oregon Bach Festival OBF Oregon Brewers Festival (Portland, Oregon) OBF Open Bioinformatics Foundation OBF Out of Box Failure OBF Office of Budget and Finance OBF Ohio Bible Fellowship executive director, said in a news release. "But through partnerships and new outreach programs we were able to connect with more listeners than ever before. We aimed high artistically, and by every measure, achieved our goals." The signature event was the world premiere Noun 1. world premiere - (music) the first public performance (as of a dramatic or musical work) anywhere in the world performance, public presentation - a dramatic or musical entertainment; "they listened to ten different performances"; "the play ran for 100 of a new version of Handel's "Messiah" from Swedish composer Sven David Sandstrom, a joint commission between the festival and Artistic Director Helmuth Rilling's Bach academy in Stuttgart, Germany. The biggest-selling event, Evano said, was "A Midsummer Nights' Dream," a collaboration with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) is a regional repertory theatre in Ashland, Oregon, United States. The festival annually produces eleven plays on three stages during a season that lasts from February to October. and the Eugene Ballet The Eugene Ballet Company (EBC) is a ballet company based in Eugene, Oregon. It is a resident company of the Hult Center for the Performing Arts. Under the Artistic Direction of Toni Pimble and Technical Director Jim Bradford, this 20-member ensemble performs a blend . On Saturday, festival officials announced that the 40th anniversary season - June 25 to July 11, 2010 - will feature the return of popular singers Thomas Quasthoff and Bobby Mc Ferrin, and more festival events staged beyond Lane County. The festival's opening and closing concerts will be led by Rilling and held in both Eugene and Portland, with Verdi's Requiem on the first weekend and Mendelssohn's Elijah as the finale. Monica Huggett and the Portland Baroque Orchestra also will return to perform festival events in Eugene, Ashland and Bend. The festival is on steady ground, Evans said, thanks to sponsorships, individual donors and foundation support. "We're in good shape for a solid future," Evans said, adding that three gifts announced Saturday totaled $465,000 and pushed the OBF's Saltzman Endowment to within $750,000 of its $10 million goal. An all-star concert to benefit the endowment is planned for the 2010 festival. Sunday's final concert was dedicated to Juretta Nidever, the festival's photographer for 20 years and a longtime volunteer in the arts community, who died last week. BACH FESTIVAL TICKETS Revenue and number of tickets sold for past seven years: 2009: $438,000; 15,800 2008: $502,696; 17,402 2007: $418,083; 16,814 2006: $360,519; 15,256 2005: $350,000; 15,297 2004: $448,408; 16,622 2003: $400,000; 16,201 Source: Oregon Bach Festival |
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