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A Holiday Treat
2020 was quiet a year! I made the following video for my church family. It is flawed as I had to play the accompaniment on my cell phone. But it also gave me the opportunity to work with iMovies. I would like to thank the wonderful photographer’s who contributed their photos as well. The song and accompaniment are by Sally Deford. Her music is really wonderful and she allows us to record and use it for free as long as it is not for profit. I would suggest you check her works out at Sally Deford Music. They are lovely. You can find my Christmas selection here “Will you come…
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BerksOperaWorkshop Performance
I had the wonderful opportunity to sing as a highlighted performer with Berks Opera Workshop. They have a living room concert series. I sang a lovely selection from the opera “Margaret Garner”. It is titled “Margaret’s Lullaby”. The opera was written by Richard Danielpour and the libretto was by the novelist Toni Morrison. The pianist is Laurie Rogers and the videographer is my husband Andrew. Here is the link Berks Opera Performance. Hope you enjoy!
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Juneteenth 2020
I was honored to participate along with many other wonderful performers in PavarOpera’s “Black Voices of America Virtual Concert” Juneteenth Celebration. It was a live virtual concert in June and currently available on YouTube. It is a lovely and uplifting concert. Hope you will check it out. PavarOpera Presents:Juneteenth Black Voices Virtual Concert Songs and Musicians Participating… IntroBy Rosie Bonds 1:10“Prelude to a Kiss” Najwa Parkins – 3:35“Lord, I Just Can’t Keep from Crying” – Laurice Kennel 6:28“Still I Rise + We Shall Overcome” – Jackie Burris and Jeffrey Smith Brief Interlude “Pass Me Not O Gentle Savior” – James Johnson 19:39“My Ship” Makes Hampton – 26:52“If I Can Help…
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Church Solos for February 2020
I am the soloist for the Christian Science Church in Berwyn, PA. They are a lovely congregation and I have known many of them for years. I have worked there since 2017. Part of my job as soloist, I have to pick the music for the service for the church year. This is of course approved by the Church’s music committee. Thankfully, I have many resources to help me select appropriate songs for their church services. One of my favorites is https://watchfiremusic.com/. It is an invaluable source, you can purchase music, listen to selections and they publish a quarterly that includes ideas for solo selections. Another site I use is…
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A Successful Concert
It was a full house at the Phoebe Berks Ministries Retirement home. It was a lovely program presented by David Richie on the opera Porgy and Bess. We also had first hand insight from Brian Gibson, who has sung the role of Porgy over a thousand times! I had the opportunity to sing three selections with Diana Cook at the piano. “Willow Song” by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, “Steal Away” arranged by Maria Thompson-Corley and “He is By” from the Opera Margaret Garner written by Richard Danielpour and libretto by Toni Morrison. Stay tuned. My next performance is on March 11, 2020 for the presentation of “Wagner Rides the Waves” at…
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Television interview on BCTV
Hey! Check out my television interview for the unleashing opera series with host David Richie. The interview is posted here:
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Sunday’s Solo
The solo I sang this past Sunday for the Berwyn Christian Science Church, was a setting of the poem “Satisfied” by Mary Baker Eddy. It was set to a melody by Brahms and arranged by M. D. Weyand. Different, but enjoyed by all.
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Updates!
Check back often to find information about my upcoming engagements. Favorite song of the week and general Laurice news! Welcome and enjoy!