A pops benefit concert to raise money for the University of Northern Colorado's 25th annual Western States Honors Orchestra Festival, featuring DOUG KERSHAW, the Ragin' Cajun, and the UNC Symphony, will take place Saturday, April 5, 2008 at 8:00 p.m. in the Union Colony Civic Center, 701 10th Ave., Greeley.The Western States Honors Orchestra Festival (or Weekend for Strings) brings top high school string players from across the Rocky Mountain West to UNC for three days of intense training, workshops and music-making. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the festival's founding. This year's festival will be held in early November. Cajun fiddler Doug Kershaw got wind of all this and offered to help UNC raise money by performing with the orchestra. He's been enormously successful in his career, but most people don't know Kershaw can't read or write music. He's totally self taught! And he plays more than 25 instruments! His interest in learning how to read and write music is what brought him to UNC.
Various professors are teaching him the basics; in return, he's making his ORCHESTRAL DEBUT, so more money can be raised for the fall's WSHOF. His top hits will be performed -- titles that include songs everybody knows (but maybe didn't realize he wrote) like "Jambalaya," "Battle of New Orleans," and "Orange Blossom Special," (the only tune they are doing that he didn't write).
Tickets, available through UNC's box office as well as Union Colony, are $32, $30 & $25. Student tickets are $16, $15 and $12.50. Group rates are available. Visit http://www.ucstars.com/ or www.arts.unco.edu/news/gumbo.html for concert details and for tickets. It promises to be a great concert.
