Draft:Kentucky Chamber Orchestra
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| Kentucky Chamber Orchestra | |
|---|---|
| Chamber Orchestra | |
 | |
| Short name | KCO |
| Former name | Kentuckiana Philharmonic Orchestra |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Disbanded | 2022 |
| Location | Louisville, KY |
| Principal conductor | Tom Grisanti (2019-2022) |
| Music director | Ben Crouch (2017-2019) |
 | |
The Kentucky Chamber Orchestra (KCO) was a Louisville, KY-based chamber orchestra founded in 2017 by Ben Crouch, a local musician and then-high school student. The orchestra was a 501(c)(3) nonprofit incorporated on August 11, 2017 under the name Kentuckiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Inc.[1] Founder Ben Crouch initially started the organization as a way to gain experience as an orchestral conductor, a pursuit that he had found little prior success in actively exploring through on-the-job experience.
The KCO comprised local volunteer musicians mainly recruited through social media advertising on Facebook. Musicians varied widely in age and experience, and came together for their first rehearsal in January 2018. At its debut performance on April 13, 2018, the orchestra comprised thirty-eight musicians and performed works by Beethoven, Grieg, Jean Sibelius, and Aaron Copeland[2] at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky.
The organization spanned three seasons and presented nine performances with full instrumentation, as well as two small-ensemble performances during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its last full season ended after its March 6, 2020 performance due to the mid-March 2020 onset of social distancing and shelter-in-place mandates restricting the orchestra's rehearsal and performance. Following the expiration of the most restrictive lockdown measures in the state of Kentucky, the organization began to hold limited rehearsals and socially-distanced performances, some of which featured works by under-represented composers as a response to widespread rioting following the deaths of Louisville woman Breonna Taylor in March, and George Floyd in May 2020. Following the departure of founder and executive director Ben Crouch, the organization altered its mission statement and public activities to focus heavily on social justice. The organization presented multiple performances of works by people of color with a drastically smaller ensemble - necessitated by continued social distancing mandates by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Despite continued operations (albeit in a limited capacity) and fundraising efforts, the organization was forced to shutter in 2022 with tentative plans to return in the future. As of December 2023, the corporation is listed as being "inactive" and in "bad standing" on the Kentucky Secretary of State's directory of business entities.[1] The corporation has not filed an annual report since July 5, 2022; the Kentucky Secretary of State's office filed a Certificate of Administrative Disolution on October 4, 2023, officially dissolving the nonprofit. The orchestra's former website is also inactive, the domain name appearing to have been purchased by another entity.[3]
Founding[edit]
Founder Ben Crouch initially started the organization as a way to gain experience as an orchestral conductor, a pursuit that he had found little prior success in actively exploring through on-the-job experience.
The KCO comprised local volunteer musicians mainly recruited through social media advertising on Facebook. Musicians varied widely in age and experience, and came together for their first rehearsal in January 2018. The orchestra presented their first performance on April 13, 2018. The ensemble rehearsed and performed exclusively as a resident ensemble of St. Matthews Baptist Church in St. Matthews, KY - a suburb of Louisville - for their first two seasons, later branching out to other venues and rehearsing in the orchestra classroom at Waggener High School, also in St. Matthews.
The organization was incorporated on August 11, 2017, and received its 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit status on August 25, 2017 when it received its determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service classifying it as a tax-exempt public charity under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.[4]
Restructure[edit]
In 2019, the KCO (formerly the Kentuckiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Inc. - Kentuckiana (kənˈtʌkiˈænə) being a colloquial portmanteau for the homogenous community comprising the areas of Metropolitan Louisville and Southern Indiana) restructured from a symphony orchestra model to a chamber orchestra model. The KCO drastically reduced its core instrumentation to exclude instruments not used for classical and baroque-era orchestral repertoire (i.e. trombone, tuba, and all percussion except for timpani).
The reduction of core instrumentation as a part of the restructure angered some musicians, as the wind sections, in particular, were necessarily reduced in size. (Woodwind and brass sections were reduced to two players per instrument - a principal and assistant principal.)
Music Directors and Conductors of the Kentucky Chamber Orchestra[edit]
- Ben Crouch
- Music director (2017-2019)
- Associate conductor (2019-2020)
- Tom Grisanti, principal conductor (2019-2022)
- David Borman III, guest conductor
- Adam Thomas, guest conductor
Orchestra Staff[edit]
Executive Directors[edit]
- Ben Crouch (2017-2020)
- Emily Ravenscraft (2020-2021)
- Rachel Radwanski (2021-2022)
Artistic Directors[edit]
- Emily Ravenscraft (2020-2022)
Media Coverage[edit]
WAVE Country[edit]
Shortly after its founding, Ben Crouch, the founder of the organization, appeared on WAVE Country with Dawne Gee, a daytime program on Louisville's NBC affiliate station, WAVE (TV). Crouch, along with two other members of the fledgling orchestra were interviewed about their fundraising and recruiting efforts by reporter Dawne Gee. The trio appeared on screen with their instruments and played a short piece, followed by a brief interview about the organization and its mission.
Louisville Magazine[5][edit]
In its May 2018 issue, Louisville Magazine ran a profile of Ben Crouch and his creation of the ensemble. The article ran in the magazine's print issue, as well as on their website. The article featured a two-page spread about the young conductor with a full-page color portrait of Crouch on the left taken by Louisville-based photographer Chris Witzke, and an accompanying article on the right, written by journalist Jenny Kiefer.
The article outlines Crouch's history with music and his professional aspirations as a musician. The author mentions the rapport that Crouch had with the orchestra, stating that some members of the ensemble - many of whom "could be his grandparents" referred to him as "maestro."
The reporter for the article visited a rehearsal for the ensemble's debut performance, which was given at St. Matthews Baptist Church on April 13, 2018. (The article mentions the rehearsal of Beethoven's fifth symphony, the first two movements of which were performed at the debut concert.)
The article also mentions Crouch's aspirations for the ensemble itself, noting that he hoped to be able to employ an 80-person ensemble of entirely professional musicians within a period of five years - an aspiration that was never realized, as Crouch left the ensemble (now defunct after financial challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic) in 2020 to attend college at Miami University in Oxford, OH.[6]
The article focuses on the "Wunderkind" appeal of the organization, noting that, at the time of the interview, music director Ben Crouch was sixteen years old - a major asset to the organization's marketing strategy. This dynamic was the focus of all media coverage on the orchestra, and likely played a substantial role in drawing the majority of concertgoers.
WHAS11 News[edit]
In May 2019, Louisville's American Broadcasting Company (ABC) affiliate, WHAS-TV, ran a full-length story about the orchestra on their primetime news program. The story featured footage from a rehearsal and an on-camera interview with Crouch describing his experience with the orchestra. Crouch describes how he began conducting, noting that when he was in middle school band, a substitute teacher filling in for his band director didn't know what to do and he stepped in. "I was hooked," Crouch notes in the interview with reporter Brooke Hasch.
Like all other media coverage of the organization, the primary focus of the story was Crouch's age. The headline for the story (which can still be found on WHAS-TV's website, reads: This Oldham Co. teen spends his free time conducting an orchestra. One of the reporters presenting the story noted: "I have to imagine that creating your own orchestra has to go pretty far on a college application."[7]
Repertoire Performed[2][edit]
1st Season (2018)[edit]
"The Debut Performance" (April 13, 2018)[edit]
Led by music director Ben Crouch at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky
Program[edit]
- Aaron Copeland: Fanfare for the Common Man
- Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
- I. Allegro con brio
- II. Andante con moto
- Edvard Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite, Op. 23
- I. Morning Mood
- II. The Death of Åse
- III. Anitra’s Dance
- IV. In the Hall of the Mountain King
2nd Season (2018-2019)[edit]
"Mozart Horn Concerto No. 4" (December 13, 2018)[edit]
Led by music director Ben Crouch at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky
Program[edit]
- Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 8 (Unfinished), D. 759
- I. Allegro moderato
- II. Andante con moto
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Horn Concerto No. 4 in E-flat major, K. 495 (performed with soloist John Paul Little)
- I. Allegro maestoso
- II. Romance. Andante cantabile
- III. Rondo. Allegro vivace
"A Night in France" (March 1, 2019)[edit]
Led by guest conductor David Borman III at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky
Program[edit]
- Claude Debussy (arr. Henri Büsser): Petite Suite, L. 65
- I. En Bateau
- IV. Ballet
- Camille Saint-Saëns: Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 33 (performed with soloist Ben Crouch)
- I. I. Allegro non troppo
- Georges Bizet: Suite No. 1 from Carmen
- I. Prélude
- II. Aragonaise
- III. Intermezzo
- VI. Les Toréadors
- Georges Bizet: Suite No. 2 from Carmen
- I. Marche des Contrebandiers
- II. Habanera
- VI. Danse Bohème
"Mozart's Great Works for Winds" (May 9, 2019)[edit]
Led by music director Ben Crouch at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky
Program[edit]
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (arr. Ben Crouch): Serenade No. 10, K. 361
- I. Largo
- IV. Adagio
- V. Menuetto. Allegretto.
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A major, K. 622 (performed with soloist Brad Rogers)
- I. Allegro
- II. Adagio
- III. Rondo: Allegro
"An Evening with Dvořák and the Waltz King" (October 26, 2018)[edit]
Led by music director Ben Crouch at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky
Program[edit]
- Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 99, Hob.I:99
- II. Adagio
- Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 in E minor, "From the New World", Op. 95, B. 178
- I. Adagio - Allegro molto
- II. Largo
- Gabriel Fauré: Pavane, Op. 50
- Johann Strauss II: An der schönen blauen Donau (On the Beautiful Blue Danube), Op. 314
3rd Season (2019-2020)[edit]
"New Beginnings" (October 25, 2019)[edit]
Led by principal conductor Tom Grisanti at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky
Program[edit]
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: The Magic Flute, K. 620: Overture
- Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21
- I. Adagio molto - Allegro con brio
- II. Andante cantabile con moto
- III. Menuetto. Allegro molto e vivace
- IV. Adagio - Allegro molto e vivace
"A Celebration of Winter" (December 20, 2019)[edit]
Led by principal conductor Tom Grisanti and associate conductor Ben Crouch at St. Boniface's Catholic Church (Louisville, Kentucky)
Program[edit]
- Traditional Holiday Tunes (performed by the Kentucky Chamber Orchestra Quartet)
- Gabriel Fauré: Music from Masques et Bergamasques, Op. 112 (performed by the Kentucky Chamber Orchestra Winds)
- Traditional (arr. Ric Flauding): The First Noel
- Felix Mendelssohn: Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage, Op. 27
- Antonio Vivaldi: Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, "Winter" (L'inverno) from The Four Seasons (Vivaldi)
- It is unknown which movements of this piece the orchestra performed.
- Johann Sebastian Bach: Concerto for Oboe and Violin in C minor, BWV 1060R
- It is unknown which movements of this piece the orchestra performed.
"Mozart vs. Mozart" (March 6, 2020)[edit]
Led by guest conductor Adam Thomas at the Wyatt Center for the Arts at Bellarmine University
Program[edit]
- Antonio Salieri: Falstaff, ossia Le tre burle: Overture
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 40 in G minor, K. 550
- I. Molto allegro
- II. Andante
- III. Menuetto
- IV. Allegro assai
- Leopold Mozart (disputed authorship): Kindersymphonie ("Toy Symphony") in G major
Later Seasons[edit]
Additional repertoire performed during the COVID-19 pandemic (during the abbreviated 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 seasons) cannot be listed, as concert programs for these performances were not created.
- ^ a b "Kentucky Chamber Orchestra, Inc. Business Filing Records". Kentucky Secretary of State. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
- ^ a b The list of repertoire performed by the orchestra, as well as the number of personnel present at the debut performance was obtained directly by former members of the organization's administration, who provided the full archive of past concert programs.
- ^ "kentuckychamber.org". GoDaddy. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "Kentucky Chamber Orchestra, Inc". Internal Revenue Service. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
- ^ Kiefer, Jenny. "Ben Crouch: Conductor". Louisville Magazine (May 2018): 24–25.
- ^ "Ben Crouch's Personal Website". J. Ben Crouch. 24 March 2023. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "This Oldham Co. teen spends his free time conducting an orchestra". WHAS11 News. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2023.