THE MIGHTLY WURLITZER IS OUT AT THE BALLGAME
Annette Januzzi Wick joined the Friends of Music Hall after board chair Peter Koenig discovered she often referred to Music Hall as her #iconcrush in social media posts. What he didn’t know was that she was a devoted Reds fan too.
After several months as a member of the board, she wondered if Music Hall’s 1927 Mighty Wurlitzer could be featured at Great American Ballpark, playing the fan favorite, Take Me Out the Ballgame.
She presented the idea to Mindy Rosen, FMH executive director, who knew just what to do. She connected Annette and Holly Brians Ragusa, who leads the Wurlitzer programming for the board, to the Cincinnati Reds marketing department. Excited about this proposal, the Reds went to work and created a video, based on a recording by Mark Herman, in time for the opening of the 2021 MLB season.
Now when fans visit the ballpark on days that the Reds’ professional organist is absent, baseball fanatics will experience the Mighty Wurlitzer rendition of Take Me Out to the Ballgame, music buffs will root for its prominent position in the seventh inning stretch, and Annette will cheer for both.
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FEATURED ARCHIVE: PATRICIA CORBETT'S DRESS
Imagine sitting in Music Hall's Springer Auditorium and glancing up at the private boxes. Along the south side, in number five, you might see Patricia A. Corbett seated wearing this custom-designed dress, the same one worn in a portrait which now hangs near Corbett Tower’s north entrance doors.
Influential figures in the restoration and preservation of Music Hall, Mrs. Corbett and her husband, J. Ralph Corbett, made significant contributions to the three major renovations of Music Hall over a period of 40 years. Additionally, upon Mrs Corbett’s death on January 28, 2008, she left a generous trust to many arts organizations, including Friends of Music Hall.
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Her gift made it possible for the organization to fund renovation of Corbett Tower in 2016-2017, which included the restoration of stenciling on the original ceiling.
We are honored to accept the donation of Mrs. Corbett’s dress by her longtime assistant, Karen McKim, a former FMH board member from 1995 to 2018 and former executive director of the Corbett Foundation, as we continue to add to our rich and diverse archives of this storied hall.
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BOARD MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: MATT ZORY
Over the last two issues we have profiled Friends of Music Hall new board members, elected at its 2020 Annual Meeting in September. This month we are pleased to introduce you to our fifth and final new board member, Matt Zory.
Matt’s life is intertwined with Music Hall professionally and personally. He is the Assistant Principal Bass (Trish and Rick Bryan Chair) for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the rhythm section bassist for the Cincinnati Pops. He joined the orchestra in 1993.
Matt also happens to be an award-winning photographer. His most recent photography book, Through the Lens: The Remaking of Cincinnati’s Music Hall, takes readers beyond the elegant public spaces to explore its hidden corners as hundreds of workers undertook the exacting work of recasting Samuel Hannaford's 19th-century building for 21st-century use. Matt’s photography has been featured in the AEQAI arts journal and the Manifest International Photography Annual. It has also appeared in numerous exhibits at the Taft Museum of Art, Carnegie Center for the Arts, Wash Park Art, and other local galleries.
Matt serves on the marketing and communications committee for Friends of Music Hall, employing his photography skills to document our finial project. He also regularly contributes gorgeous images of Music Hall for our social media and marketing campaigns.
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THE FINIAL RESTORATION PROJECT
Watch Arya Design's CNC-Computer Numeric Control Router cutting poplar wood model parts for one of Cincinnati Music Hall's finials.
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BECOME A FRIEND
Your friendship and support means so much. As a member, your gift will contribute resources needed to preserve, engage and celebrate Cincinnati Music Hall as a National Historic Landmark of international significance and keep our region’s premier cultural center in top condition for future generations.
Learn more about our giving levels and the benefits that go with them.
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OUTDOOR TOURS HAVE RETURNED
Walking tours of Music Hall’s exterior restarted in April, conducted by our knowledgeable volunteers. These Outdoor Building Tours are 60-minute events for groups of ten or less, scheduled weekly on Thursdays at 4 p.m. and Saturdays at 10 a.m., rain or shine, through November. Fully vaccinated guests and guides are no longer required to wear masks. Those not vaccinated are asked to mask. Tours do not enter Music Hall.
Visitors will learn who designed and built Music Hall in 1878, as well as about its many uses through the years — for concerts and performances, of course, but also for conventions and exhibitions, car shows and even sporting events. Architectural details and symbols are especially explained.
Tickets ($15; $5 for children under 12) can be purchased up to three hours ahead of each tour.
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Enjoy this 20 second video of the May Festival’s new branding. It’a fresh new look! |
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THE MAY FESTIVAL IS BACK!
Bringing voices together at socially distanced concerts in Music Hall, the May Festival’s opening weekend is May 21 and 22, followed by additional concerts through May 30. Led by Principal Conductor Juanjo Mena along with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the May Festival chorus and soloists will perform pieces by Bruckner, Copeland, Adams, Holst and others.
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THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS |
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