Johnson County Community College
Press Release

College Information and Publications
913-469-8500
Julie Haas, Director, ext. 3120
Peggy Graham, Writer, ext. 3425
Tyler Cundith, Sports Information Director, ext. 3122

10/04/05
Story by Peggy Graham

Hampson Heightens History with Song

The great American baritone Thomas Hampson, in collaboration with the Library of Congress, celebrates the world of American song drawn from the unparalleled music collections of the Library of Congress in a new concert, Song of America, at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 12, in Yardley Hall of the Carlsen Center, Johnson County Community College. Artist Insights begin at 7 p.m.

The recital takes its names from songs, 1700s to the present, that reveal the spirit and soul of the people whose courage and inspiration shaped this country. These familiar songs chronicle great events in America’s history: this nation’s wars, the building of its railroads, gold rush, cattle drives of the West and the invention of radio and its influence in bringing great music to American homes.

Whether they relate history, nature or love, these songs are part of our collective
heritage. The concert will be accompanied by a special exhibit of rare historical documents and artifacts curated by the Library of Congress.

Hampson has been a longtime champion of the American song. Song of America is a sequel to his projects Voices from the Heart, the music of Stephen Foster, and I Hear America Singing, an anthology of American song. Hampson’s 12-city tour of the United States will show off the resources of the Library of Congress and put materials into the hands of educators. Hampson is the perfect ambassador for American songs. Not only does Hampson have a beautiful singing voice, but he has the ability to tell stories and move us with emotion. He can interpret the melodies and fuse them with words, history and the experience of the song’s creator.

Song of America is a national project that makes the Library of Congress collections accessible to Americans in ways that showcase America's creative legacy as well as the profound changes in our nation's history brought about by the work of creative individuals,” said Charles Rogers, Carlsen Center director. “I am very proud that the Carlsen Center is part of the project and the first site on its year-long tour.”

Hampson brings to life the tales that are captured in the unfamiliar concert songs of well-established American composers, such as Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland and Charles Ives, as well as in the songs penned by lesser-known, but equally influential composers, including Harry T. Burleigh, Arthur Farwell and Elinor Remick Warren.

Brought up in Spokane, Washington, Hampson is renowned for his versatility, performing in opera, operetta, musical, oratorio and recital, as well as his achievements in the fields of recording, research and pedagogy. Hampson has sung the title roles in Rossini’s William Tell, Verdi’s Macbeth, and Mozart’s Don Giovonni, among others. In recital, Hampson is known especially for his interpretation of the Gustav Mahler and Hugo Wolf song repertoire. In fall 2003, Hampson started the Hamsong-Foundation, which aims to promote research projects, master classes, debuts and lecture concerts around the world. It is this foundation that partners with the Library of Congress for Song of America.

Hampson has honorary doctorates from Whitworth College, Spokane, and the San Francisco Conservatory, as well as an honorary membership in London’s Royal Academy of Music. His was recently named a member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts.

Almost all of his recordings have received awards, including six Grammy nominations, three Gramophone Awards and the Cannes Classical Award. His recording of Tannhäuser received the 2002 Grammy Award for “best opera recording.”

Hampson lends a light, lyrical baritone voice to the annals of familiar American music – black spirituals, European-influenced art songs, crossbred music that became blues and jazz and Broadway show tunes. Rogers has made a special program request: Home on the Range, the Kansas state song.    

Tickets for Song of America are $35 and $25, available by calling the Carlsen Center box office, 913-469-4445, or online at www.jccc.edu/CarlsenCenter.

“Song of America” Tour Begins November 12, 2005