For those who are new to Notes For Nourishment (NFN) concerts, a quick bit of background:
NFN Concerts were initiated years ago by international violist Erin Nolan, as a service project under the umbrella of the Listen4Life Foundation (ListenForLife.org).
The concept is simple: musicians worldwide donate their time and talents to perform informal, one-hour, free, programs that nourish their community audience, while donations are collected to support causes and nonprofits (chosen by the performers) that nourish the hungry, homeless or hurting of their community and beyond.
The benefits are many! Here are just a few:
1) financial assistance to numerous organizations and NGOs around the globe, benefiting countless individuals: the sample list of organizations here on the blog are only that - a small sample of those with whom we have partnered in communities large and small, around the globe.
2) so many professional musicians, of all cultures and styles, have a desire to serve others with their gifts, and sincerely want to do benefit concerts for causes they care about, but many times they do not have the experience, contacts, or confidence to take all the steps necessary to produce a successful benefit concert on their own - find a venue, organize the details, market and publicize the event, solicit sponsorships and donations through a verified 501c3 charity organization, and collect them on a secure fundraising platform. So Listen For Life founder and artistic director Donna Stoering leads a small army of LFL volunteers in each concert location and they work nonstop to make all of that happen. Performers embrace these opportunities and end up requesting to do more NFN concerts for other causes they care about, so we have built a whole community of NFN artists around the globe as well!
3) wherever possible we also try to build connections within a neighborhood/geographic community as well, between the beneficiary nonprofit, the individuals it serves, and the businesses that agree to be sponsors of the particular NFN concert(s) for that cause.
For more info - and some wonderful examples of long-lasting connections that have been built through company sponsorships of particular nonprofits and services in our NFN programs - visit ListenForLife.org/NFN
So, that's the back story - what about these NFN concerts coming up on June 3 & 4?
Donna Stoering and her husband, LFL USA co-founder Andy Anderson, moved to Utah in 2021 and set up new LFL offices there, while Donna has gradually been meeting some of the leading classical musicians in the State. She was planning on launching a televised series of NFN concerts in Utah to raise funds for a variety of nonprofit organizations and causes throughout the state, when the war in Ukraine broke out. The Utah series was immediately put on a back burner, and LFL has now launched a special series of NFN concerts worldwide to benefit Ukraine.
Thanks to the organizing and performing efforts of repeat NFN artists Jerome Lenk and Emil Miland, the first concert in our global "NFN: Uplifting Ukraine" series happened May 8 in San Francisco. The next two concerts of the series are in Utah, and then we know some LFL musicians are planning some NFN concerts for Ukraine in Europe, and Donna is planning some more in Utah for the Fall - sadly, we know the funding needs in Ukraine are not going to go away quickly.
So, our NFN concerts for Ukraine that are happening June 3 & 4 will be the first Listen For Life events in Utah! As with most all of our NFN concerts since the pandemic began, the concerts will also be broadcast (either livestreamed or pre-recorded) on our LFL NotesForNourishment youtube channel, so you can tune in from anywhere, at anytime during or after the performances.
Listen For Life is extremely grateful to have secured a generous sponsorship for these two events, from the major Salt Lake City law firm of Lance Andrew Bingham - and both of the beautiful concert halls for these two events are donating the use of their venues/facilities so that 100% of proceeds raised can go directly to nonprofits working with Ukrainian mothers and children.
Jeff Hymas, one of our new LFL volunteers in Utah is a professional communications director, so he kindly created the press release we're sharing below. Thanks to connections through other contacts/friends that Donna and Andy have already made in Utah, Donna had an opportunity to promote awareness of the two Ukraine benefits in a live interview on local radio KRCL on May 23 and is being featured in an evening news broadcast on TV channel Fox 13 on June 2nd. They are also thrilled to have the enthusiastic support of the Utah Ukrainian Association and the Utah Ukrainian Community.
Coming blog posts THIS WEEK will provide information on the ARTISTS and PROGRAM for the June 3&4 concerts so stay tuned!
And here is that Press Release we mentioned:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Part of Listen For Life’s worldwide Notes for Nourishment “Uplifting Ukraine” concert series
SALT LAKE CITY (May 18, 2022) — Listen For Life, a global nonprofit empowering musicians from all cultures to use their gifts in the service of others, has launched a new worldwide series of its award-winning Notes for Nourishment concerts, called “Uplifting Ukraine” and benefitting Ukrainian refugees and displaced families. As a part of that series, two free, one-hour, family-friendly concerts will take place in Utah to raise funds for Ukraine, in partnership with the Utah Ukrainian Association.
Saturday, June 4 at 7:30 p.m. MDT – Waterford School Concert Hall, 1480 E. 9400 S. in Sandy
Online Global Broadcasts also available on the LFL Notes for Nourishment YouTube channel.
Donations accepted at the door and any time online at ListenForLife.org (DONATE page)
“All proceeds raised at these benefit concerts will go directly to specific, vetted NGOs and organized efforts to provide humanitarian aid in Ukraine, and in neighboring countries such as Poland and Romania, to benefit refugees and displaced families,” said Donna Stoering, founder of Listen For Life.
For more information about Listen For Life’s programs, volunteer opportunities and student internships here in Utah, and about its Notes for Nourishment “Uplifting Ukraine” benefit concerts, visit ListenForLife.org. For info on Listen For Life founder Donna Stoering visit DonnaStoering.com.
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About Listen For Life
Founded in 1998, Listen For Life’s mission is to inspire and empower musicians of all cultures to use their gifts in the service of others. An all-volunteer organization, Listen For Life is a global community of musicians and music listeners impacting the lives of over 11 million individuals worldwide.
Media Contact
Jeff Hymas; 801-597-8201; jeffhymas@gmail.com
This is incredible! I think we should all support artists!
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