$10,000 grant will support Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts’ presentation of Chanticleer
Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts announced today that Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts has been approved for a grant of $10,000 to support a performance and residency by male a capella chorus Chanticleer Feb. 8, 2011. Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts is one of 1,057 not-for-profit organizations recommended for a grant as part of the federal agency’s first round of fiscal year 2011 grants. In total, the Arts Endowment will distribute $26.68 million to support projects nationwide.
An independent agency of the federal government, the National Endowment for the Arts advances artistic excellence for the benefit of individuals and communities. Landesman said, “I continue to be impressed with the creative, innovative and excellent projects brought forward by arts organizations across the country. Our grantees are not only furthering their art forms but also enhancing their neighborhoods by making them more vibrant, livable and fun.”
“We are grateful to receive NEA support once again this year,” said HBPA Director Matthew Schloneger. “This type of funding allows our organization to bring world class artists to central Kansas that we would not otherwise be able to achieve. It’s a wonderful opportunity for our community and the students of Hesston College and Bethel College.”
Called “the world’s reigning male chorus,” by The New Yorker magazine, and named 2008 Ensemble of the Year by Musical America, Chanticleer’s “symphony of voices” returns to Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts for the first time since 2006. Chanticleer will perform more than 100 concerts in 2010-11, the Grammy Award-winning ensemble’s 33rd season. Praised by the San Francisco Chronicle for their “tonal luxuriance and crisply etched clarity,” Chanticleer will tour to Canada and 22 states, including appearances at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and the National American Choral Directors Association Conference in Chicago.
The HBPA performance will be at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 8 in Bethel College’s (North Newton) Memorial Hall. Tickets range from $19 to $23 with discounts for students and seniors, and are available at www.hesston.edu/hbpa or by calling 620-327-8158 or 316-284-5205. Chanticleer music director Matthew Oltman will lead a choral workshop with choirs and student vocal ensembles from Hesston (Kan.) College and Bethel College at 4 p.m. Feb. 8 on the Bethel College campus. The workshop will be free and open to the public.
The Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts series, now in its 29th year, started in 1982 as Hesston Performing Arts (HPA) with funding and planning provided by Hesston College and the Hesston community. In 1998, HPA planners launched a partnership with Bethel College and the series name changed to Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts. Hesston College and Bethel College host five performances by world-renowned or regionally acclaimed artists each year.
The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government that has awarded more than $4 billion on projects of artistic excellence, creativity and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies and the philanthropic sector. To join the discussion on how art works, visit the National Endowment for the Arts at arts.gov.