Bach Fest honors famed coach

Published: Jun 29, 2008 at 1:19 PM PST Last Updated: Nov 20, 2008 at 9:24 PM PST

MONDAY, JUNE 30:
• Let’s Talk: Conductor Helmuth Rilling visits with the audience
Time & Place: Noon, Hult Center Studio FREE

• Garrison Keillor with Maria Jette, the Festival Orchestra and Chorus
Time & Place: 7:30 p.m., Silva Hall Sold Out

TUESDAY, JULY 1:
• Hinkle Distinguished Lecture: Dr. Tom Hall, scholar/author, discusses Bach’s St. John Passion:
“When Words Hurt: the Gospel of John, Bach’s Music, and Religious Intolerance.”
Time & Place: Noon, Soreng Theater FREE

• Discovery Series: Bach Concertos for Violin and Oboe, with Helmuth Rilling and Festival musicians in the popular lecture-demonstration format.
T i m e & Place: 4:30 p.m., Soreng Theater Almost Sold Out

• The Inside Line: Composer Rebecca Oswald talks about her symphonic portrait of Bill Bowerman.
Time & Place: 6:30 p.m., Hult Center Studio FREE

• Bowerman: Man of Oregon A family-friendly concert designed to celebrate the life of track legend
Bill Bowerman. Program features the Festival orchestra, chorus, Youth Choral Academy, plus a screening of the Oregon Public Broadcasting biography of Bowerman.
Time & Place: 7:30 p.m., Silva Hall Tickets still available

This is a press release courtesy of the Oregon Bach Festival

In tune with the Eugene 08 Olympic Trials, The Oregon Bach Festival has created a gala musical tribute to legendary track coach Bill Bowerman.

Bowerman’s legacy as a track and field coach and co-founder of Nike is well known. Less well known is that Bowerman loved music, and was a devoted fan and generous supporter of the Oregon Bach Festival.

Eugene composer (and UO graduate) Rebecca Oswald was commissioned by the Bowerman family (through the Oregon Humanities Center and with financial support from the Oregon Community Foundation) to write a piece commemorating Bill Bowerman’s life. The result is a wonderful “symphonic biography” of Bowerman, blending themes and melodies from his youth, his courtship and marriage to wife Barbara, the war years, and of course his track career at Oregon.

The evening will also include spoken tributes, a screening of Oregon Public Broadcasting’s biography of Bowerman, and other selections by Festival musicians, including Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man and Bach’s Easter Oratorio. Definitely a family-friendly concert event.

The concert will feature the Bach Festival orchestra and chorus, the Youth Choral Academy, conductors Anton Armstrong, Helmuth Rilling, and Philip Brunelle.

PERFORMANCE:
Tuesday, July 1 7:30 p.m., Silva Hall Tickets still available TICKETS