If Martin Luther King were alive and had come to the concert at Lutheran Church of Honolulu last night, he would loved the scene, suggested soprano Georgine Stark. [First of all, did you know that King’s given birth name was not Martin but Michael? His name was changed at age five after his father, a pastor, traveled to… Read More If Martin Luther King were alive …
How sweet the sound . . . Of course, you know that phrase as a quote from the hymn, “Amazing Grace,” written by the Anglican priest, John Newton (1725-1807). But it is also the title of an upcoming concert featuring soprano Georgine Stark, with her husband, violinist Darel Stark, pianist Sachi Hirakouji and the Lutheran Church… Read More How sweet the sound
Here’s a live Facebook video of Stanford’s Magnificat. I wasn’t even looking over in the direction of the choir, but as soon as she opened her mouth, I knew that voice. It was Sophia Stark, super-talented daughter of Georgine and Darel Stark, themselves super-talented parents! The piece was Charles Villiers Stanford’s Magnificat, and it was performed at… Read More Already a star!
I just found a fascinating article called “Is Musical Talent Rooted in Genes?” in which author Jillian Rose Lim challenges the conventional wisdom by writing: Practice doesn’t always make perfect when it comes to becoming the next Mozart, a new study suggests. Researchers compared pairs of identical twins, and found that no matter how hard… Read More The music gene
In a recent post, I wrote about the constant deadlines of a musician — well, this musician, anyway, where there was always a service or concert to practice for. Even when I retired from my church job and no longer had the constant obligation to play organ voluntaries, hymns and to accompany choral music every… Read More Music is fun?
This coming Sunday, Georgine Stark will be giving a recital of spirituals in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Black History Month. She will be joined by her husband, violinist Darel Stark and pianist Sachi P. Hirakouji. The program will showcase African-American spirituals arranged by the internationally-renowned pianist, conductor and arranger, Moses Hogan. In… Read More How sweet the sound
This weekend are the Hawaii Opera Theatre’s performances of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Benjamin Britten. And to no one’s surprise, three of four Stark family members will be performing — Darel in the orchestra pit playing violin, and the two kids on stage in the chorus. Georgine will be theatre mom in the audience this time,… Read More Music in their DNA
I just finished playing my last gig for the Christmas season, Iolani School’s Winter Concert at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. Even though I have officially “retired” from playing daily chapels at the school, John Alexander invited me to play the Cathedral organ for the opening and closing numbers for the concert — I guess because the instrument… Read More Concerts, oboes and organs
On Sunday we entertained our first guests, er, they entertained us since my husband, Carl Crosier, was released to hospice care in our home. It was The Stark Family, who put on a most enjoyable mini-concert with all four members of the family either singing or playing. I must tell you, it was really great to hear… Read More At home mini-concert
On Saturday afternoon I attended the Honolulu Handbell Ensemble concert at LCH which featured all four members of the Stark Family in combination with handbells. Director Young Pak put together a most enjoyable program on the theme “Peace;” nearly all of the pieces had the word “peace” in the title. We heard handbell music in a solo… Read More Handbells plus The Stark Family