FAMED SEXTET "eighth blackbird" KICKS OFF GREEN LAKE FESTIVAL'S 26th SEASON THIS FRIDAY, JUNE 24

This is the last week to save 20% with a full season subscription!  Order by Friday and save 20%.

The Green Lake Festival of Music, winner of the 2004 Wisconsin Governor's Award in Support of the Arts, kicks off its 26th season this Friday, June 24 with the cutting -edge ensemble known as "eighth blackbird".  Getting its name from the 8th stanza of the Wallace Stevens poem, "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird," this creative sextet has earned a national reputation for top quality music making in an innovative format.  The six members, comprising flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion, memorize their music, and add creative staging to their performances, adding up to a very entertaining and intriguing concert experience.  In keeping with the Festival's theme "Inspired by Nature", the concert will include George Crumb’s Vox Balanae, featuring the recorded sounds of whales.  The group's impressive credentials include being featured on CBS "Sunday Morning", and the New York Times, and concerts in Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, as well as in Amsterdam and Toronto.

The concert is part of Ripon College's alumni reunion weekend and starts at 8:15 PM in the college's Rodman Center for the Arts.  It is sponsored by Ripon Community Printers.  Tickets are $18 in advance, $20 at the door.  Call 920-748-9398, 800-662-7097 or order online at www.greenlakefestival.org.

JULY 2 CONCERT FEATURES RENOWNED SCOTTISH FIDDLER ALASDAIR FRASER AND GUITARIST TONY MCMANUS

The second concert of the season will be Saturday, July 2 at Thrasher Opera House in Green Lake.  Internationally known Scottish Fiddler Alasdair Fraser, who has been featured on CBS "Sunday Morning", NPR's "Morning Edition", and "A Prairie Home Companion", and has appeared with such diverse groups as the Chieftains and the Los Angeles Master Chorale and on the same bill as violinist Itzhak Perlman at New York's Lincoln Center, will appear with guitarist Tony McManus.  McManus has come to represent Celtic music in the guitar world.  His 2002 recording "Ceol More" was named album of the year by "Live Ireland Awards".  He performs at guitar festivals all over the world and has appeared on over 60 albums.  The audience can look forward to a fabulous evening of jigs, reels, and a full range of Scottish music.

A pre-concert conversation with the artists takes place at 6:45, followed by the concert at 7:30.  Call 920-748-9398 for tickets or order online at www.greenlakefestival.org.

ATTENTION EARLY RISERS!  CHANNEL 5 IN GREEN BAY TO FEATURE STORY ON THURSDAY, JUNE 23

For those of you who rise "with the birds," tune in to WFRV - TV tomorrow, June 23 between 5 and 7 AM for a feature on the Festival.  In the Green Lake/Ripon area, this is cable channel 5, a CBS station.

BARN CONCERT SELLING OUT!

With indoor seating limited to 75, the July 15 concert in the historic barn at the Boston Farm is quickly selling out.  The concert features Milwaukee Symphony Associate Concertmaster Samantha George in the "Summer" concerto from Vivaldi's Four Seasons and a range of other music for string orchestra,  all performed in a surround sound format with the audience in the center.  Box dinners are available starting at 6 PM for $8.  Lawn seating  -- bring your own chair -- is available for $8 adults and $5 students (tickets sold “at the door”).

Attention season ticket holders:  if you will not be using your barn concert tickets, please consider donating them back to the Festival so that we can re-sell them and if we do, it will be a tax-deductible donation for you.

AMELIA PIANO TRIO CONCERT VENUE CHANGED

Please note that the July 9 concert by the Amelia Piano Trio and Friends, featuring the Dvorak Piano Quintet and the famed "Trout" Quintet by Schubert, will take place at the Rodman Center for the Arts at Ripon College, NOT Thrasher Opera House as stated in the brochure.  This is due to an unforeseen scheduling conflict discovered after the brochure was printed.

We look forward to seeing you soon!