» Pyramid Hill co-director Q&A
The performance will be part of the pARTy in the Park Fundraiser on Sunday, July 16.
Pyramid Hill’s director of arts administration, Jeni Barton, said a highlight of the evening will be the debut of the musical piece “Vision on a Hill” by Paul John Stanbery. He wrote the composition in honor of Harry T. Wilks, the park’s founder and a longtime Cincinnati Opera supporter.
“It will be a world premiere of that piece of music performed by the Butler Philharmonic,” Barton said.
Wilks opened the park as a nonprofit in 1997. Wilks died on March 11, 2014, his 89th birthday.
Stanbery said, “We all knew Harry and loved him. … He came to my first concert as the conductor of the orchestra. He said at that time, ‘The orchestra is going to play at Pyramid Hill,’ ” Stanbery said.
Stanbery said he didn’t really know much about Pyramid Hill then. Pyramid Hill was comprised of a lot of raw land, and there were no sculptures installed yet. Stanbery said Wilks invited him to the property and took him on a personal tour.
“He took me to his house, and showed me around, and then we got into this Range Rover, like a big Jeep, and he drove. So it was he and I driving up and down the hills, and there were very few roads cut in at the time. I can remember stopping. He stops us on a hill, and he said, ‘Just a minute.’ He hops out and he shouts to one of his road crews, giving them instructions, and it reminded me of a kid in a sandbox, who would do the same thing moving the sand around, but he was moving the earth. So Pyramid Hill was Harry Wilks’ sandbox. I was privileged to watch that and be a part of it,” Stanbery said.
Stanbery described “Vision on a Hill” by saying, “It’s about six minutes long, beginning with Harry (represented by a solo French horn) standing atop his barren acreage that would eventually become Pyramid Hill. Then, one by one, ideas begin to emerge, as if new sculptures are appearing. It is very festive by the end, and it features nature and bird calls along the way. In this way, my hope is to honor both Harry himself, as well as the vision to which he gave his life so endlessly and generously,” he said.
The composition is being donated to the community by Stanbery in support of the park. The night of the concert, Stanbery will present an autographed copy of the full conductor’s score to each of Wilks’ daughters, Barbara and Nanci.
Featured vocalists from the Cincinnati Opera will include Erin Keesy (soprano), Samson McCrady (baritone), Reilly Nelson (mezzo-soprano) and Brandon Scott Russell (tenor).
Other standouts will feature vocal performances by members of the Cincinnati Opera, who will be singing various selections throughout the concert
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Contact this contributing writer at gmwriteon@aol.com.
How to go
What: Pyramid Hill 20th Anniversary Concert/pARTy in the Park Fundraiser
Where: Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park & Museum, Hamilton
When: 6:30 p.m. Sunday, July 16. Concert will start at 7.
Cost: Tickets for the concert are $30. (There is a pre-concert picnic with a separate ticket, which required a pre-registration by July 6.)
More info: Call 513-868-8336 or go online to pyramidhill.org/20th-anniversary-concert. Butler Philharmonic is online at www.butlerphil.org.
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