R.I. Wind Ensemble to perform at St. Ann April 13
WOONSOCKET – The Rhode Island Wind Ensemble (RIWE), one of Rhode Island’s premier performance ensembles, returns to the St. Ann Arts and Cultural Center with an all new program entitled “Women in Music.”
This special performance of the Rhode Island Wind Ensemble will take place Saturday evening, April 13, at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 and are available online at the St. Ann Arts and Cultural Center website or by visiting Bileau’s Flowers, The Honey Shops, Salon Royale or Vose True Value Hardware.
The program will feature music by female composers. Musical works will include “Bookmarks from Japan” byJulie Giroux, “Albanian Dance” by Shelley Hanson, “Marche pour Harmonie” by Gemaine Tailleferre, “Cathedrals” by Karthryn Salfelder and “Spring Festival” by Chen Yi.
The RIWE, under the direction of Dr. Robert Franzblau, will also feature to female guest conductors, Dr. Heidi Johanna Miller from Minnesota and Kaitlyn Braman, a master’s degree student in music education at Rhode Island College.
The concert this year is sponsored by and in memory of Joleen Vatcher. About 15 years ago, Joleen, of Fall River, visited the St. Ann Arts and Cultural Center as part of a bus tour. After seeing themagnificent frescos and hearing the stories behind them, she was so impressed, that on her next visit to her home state of Kansas to visit her mother, she shared the stories and pictures of the building with her.
Joleen was a flautist with the RIWE, and soon after that tour had the idea of bringing the group to the center. At the time, the center did not have the funds to pay the ensemble’s performance fee. Having been inspired by the stories and photographs of the center, Joleen’s mother, Lorena Meyers, wanted tohelp out by sponsoring the concert. Ms. Meyers never visited the center but continued to spon- sor the RIWE’s appearances until her passing in 2016, at age 102. From there, Joleen continued to sponsor the RIWE appearances in her mother’s memory. Joleen passed away July 24, 2018, at age 74.
The St. Ann Arts and Cultural Center is forever grate- ful to Lorena Meyers and Joleen Vatcher for their constant support, love and devotion.