Performer Bios for Uplifting Ukraine Concerts

We look forward to sharing this special program with you in support of Ukraine!

June 3 - Libby Gardner Concert Hall, SLC, UT - 7:30pm

June 4 - Waterford School Concert Hall, Sandy, UT - 7:30pm

Read on to learn about the fabulous performers who have generously shared their time and their music. You are in for a real treat!

DONNA STOERING, PIANO

Donna Stoering is an award-winning recording artist, concert pianist, educator, composer, vocal soloist, TEDx presenter, keynote speaker, radio and television host/producer, and social entrepreneur. Founder of the award-winning nonprofit ListenForLife.org and a protégé of the late Sir Georg Solti, she has been the subject of special one-hour programs on the BBC, Hong Kong Radio & TV, NPR and PBS stations, and the national networks of many other countries. While a Marshall Scholar in the UK, Donna was appointed head of the piano department at the University of York, and later served as Artist in Residence at Oxford University. Alongside this work, she continued to perform solo and chamber music recitals and piano concerti with orchestras, throughout all of Europe, North and South America, Philippines, India, China, Taiwan, Bosnia, Croatia, Ukraine, Russia, Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Georgia. She continues to enjoy performing as a soloist and collaborative pianist with instrumentalists and major opera stars of La Scala, Munich Opera, the Royal Opera, the Bolshoi, and the Met. Donna has given numerous premieres of both piano and vocal works, she has adjudicated for national and international competitions, and she enjoys private teaching, performance coaching, and giving masterclasses or pedagogy workshops at universities, music conservatories, and local Piano Teachers’ Associations. She has created acclaimed radio, television, and media content about music and musicians from all cultures of the globe, and has won multiple awards for her Travels With Music series, shown on the BBC and now online (TravelsWithMusic.com). In response to the pandemic, Donna recently launched the Music for Medicine program within Listen For Life (ListenForLife.org/MFM). Donna Stoering and her husband Andy Anderson moved to Utah in 2021 and she is extremely grateful for the warm community of musicians, music listeners, and friends that they have already encountered here in their new "forever" home! http://www.DonnaStoering.com

LUCA DE LA FLORIN - OBOE

Luca de la Florin is an active freelance oboist in Salt Lake City, Utah and is on faculty with Utah Valley University and Snow College. Florin has performed with orchestras across the United States including the Utah, Detroit, and Toledo Symphonies, Ogden Chamber Orchestra, Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, the Battle Creek, Jackson, and Timpanogos Symphonies, and he holds principal positions with Salt Lake Sinfonia and The Missouri Symphony. Florin has performed under the baton of many leading conductors including JoAnn Falletta, Courtney Lewis, Leonard Slatkin, Thierry Fischer, Rossen Millanov, Hans Graf, Donato Cabrera, and many more. In addition to orchestral playing, Florin is an active chamber musician appearing with Aspen Winds, NOVA Chamber Music Series, and Utah Chamber Artists. He has appeared as soloist with the Utah Philharmonia, Sewanee Festival Orchestra, Albion Symphony Orchestra, Utah Wind Symphony, and the Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra. Florin has recorded multiple times with the Naxos and Bridge labels. http://www.aspenwinds.org/luca

JESSICA WILEY, BASSOON

Jessica Wiley is passionate about community outreach through music, and has performed in small assorted instrumental groups in venues varying from school gyms to the Chateau Brandýs nad Labem in the Czech Republic. With a love for creating intimate connections with a wide range of audiences, she has created concerts ranging in repertoire from Ravel's Mother Goose Suite to Mozart’s B-flat Concerto for Bassoon. Known for instilling passion for bassoon and a love of learning in her students, Wiley runs a bassoon studio in Salt Lake City, is Adjunct Professor of Bassoon at Snow College, and serves in the Chamber Music Society of Salt Lake City. As a soloist, Wiley has won several competitions including the Utah Valley University, Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Utah concerto competitions. She currently serves as Principal Bassoon of the Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra and as the primary substitute bassoonist for the Ballet West Orchestra. She received her undergraduate degree studying with Brian Hicks at Utah Valley University, where she graduated Cum Laude, her Master of Music degree from the University of Utah under Lori Wike, a Performance Studies Certificate from Manhattan School of Music with tutelage from Dr. Frank Morelli, and her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Utah under Dr. Jennifer Rhodes. https://www.wileybassoon.com/

PHILIP BREZINA, VIOLIN

Philip Brezina is an amazingly versatile violinist performing internationally in venues from classical concert halls to alt music clubs. From Kennedy Center to the 9:30 Club, Philip expresses his love for classical, bluegrass, and world music in such varied ensembles as Musical Arts Quintet, Santa Cruz Chamber Players, one found sound, and The Brothers Comatose. His television credits include the VH1 Storytellers series. Having performed for a time with the Sinfonia Galicia (Spain), Philip currently serves as principle second in the San José Chamber Orchestra. He earned his Master of Music degree at the San Francisco Conservatory with Ian Swensen and completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Maryland with David Salness. A chamber musician at heart, Philip looks for inspiration in all musical settings and around campfires as he believes these experiences are essential to understanding music beyond the practice room. Philip and his young family now live in a coastal town of Mexico, but he happened to be in Utah this weekend, while on tour performing with his cross-cultural band, The Brothers Comatose! https://www.thebrotherscomatose.com/ You can catch their fun gypsy flair at the Ogden Music Festival on June 4th and 5th. www.philipbrezina.com

DR. LAUREN POSEY, CELLO

Dr. Lauren Posey is the Faculty and Artistic Director for the Intermountain Suzuki String Institute, a member of the Rosco String Quartet and Ballet West Orchestra in Salt Lake City, UT, and she also directs a thriving private cello studio and teaches at Westminster College. Posey completed her Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Stony Brook University under the tutelage of Colin Carr in 2017. She received her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Southern California, as a student of Alexander Suleiman, and a Master of Music degree from the University of Utah, where she studied with John Eckstein and Elliott Cheney. In 2012, she won the T. Gordon Parks Memorial Collegiate Concerto Competition and was a quarterfinalist in the 2016 and 2017 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition with Trio Mondial. In her free time, Lauren enjoys spending time with her five dogs Riggins, Taylor, Lyla, Garrity, and Kora. Posey’s cello was made in 2006 by local SLC maker Carrie Scoggins. http://www.laurenposey.com/

CAMILLE COLE, VIOLA

Camille Cole is 18 years old and recently graduated with high honors from Alta High School in Sandy, Utah. She has achieved fluency in Mandarin Chinese through her participation in the Dual Language Immersion program since the first grade. Camille is the principal violist and a full scholarship student in the Conservatory at the Gifted Music School in Salt Lake City. She studies viola virtually with Professor Ivo van der Werff of Rice University, where she will begin her university studies in the fall. Camille was recently selected to join the 2022 National Youth Orchestra of the United States and will perform with them in Carnegie Hall before embarking on a European tour next month. Prior to studying viola, Camille was an accomplished violinist and was a student of Kathryn Eberle, the Associate Concertmaster of the Utah Symphony and Concertmaster of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Camille is a former student of Melissa Draper and has participated in summer music festivals and masterclasses across the country with Midori, Danielle Belen, Simon James, Ian Swensen, Dimitri Murrath, Carolyn Huebl, Alan de Veritch, and Vesna Gruppman. Camille loves music of all kinds and, in addition to the viola, enjoys playing the piano and studying voice.

We especially want to thank our two wonderful Ukrainian friends for performing a traditional Ukrainian song to open each concert:

Friday, June 3 - Anya Beus 

Saturday, June 4 - Yulia Hiekel

Join us for this special event!

Lots happening this week, so here are some important reminders of concert opportunities (online & in person):

ListenForLife founder Donna Stoering and friends will be performing two NFN concerts June 3 and 4 from Utah as a continuation of our  "Uplifting Ukraine" series around the globe. 

Pianist Donna Stoering, co-founder of the NFN concerts series (see DonnaStoering.com), will share some Granados and Chopin; and one of her all time fave violinists, Philip Brezina, happens to be on tour in Utah this week so he will join her for some Dvorak and Bartok! Utah-based performers will join her for fun woodwind ensemble pieces, and Donna has created a short medley of traditional Ukrainian folk song melodies to end the one-hour, family-friendly programs that will raise funds for Ukrainian relief organizations. Donna has very big fundraising goals for these two concerts, so please don't let her down - 

You don't have to live in Utah to attend (or donate!). 

The Friday, June 3 concert (7:30 MDT, 6:30 Pacific, 9:30pm Eastern) will be livestreamed on our LFL NotesForNourishment channel on YouTube so go to https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwGL8qIvuZCgCquLTUc_7pQ/videos just before start time! 

You can also watch the concert anytime afterwards, on that same YouTube Channel - and we hope you will not only enjoy it but share the link with others, and encourage them also to donate generously to Ukraine, through our secure Flipcause donation platform: https://www.flipcause.com/secure/all_campaign/ODQyNjE=/NjI5Mw==

The Saturday, June 4 concert (slightly different performers/pieces) will hopefully be filmed/recorded for later sharing on YouTube as well. 

We are thrilled that these two NFN concerts are being sponsored by the major Salt Lake City law firm of Lance Andrew Bingham, and carried out under the auspices of the Utah Ukrainian Association!

For artist bios, program details, and viewing information about all NFN concerts, always check our most recent posts on the NFN blog:

NotesForNourishment.blogspot.com 

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Meanwhile, if you are one of our friends in the Charleston SC area, from our 2019 Notes For Nourishment series there within the Piccolo Spoleto festival, this invite & reminder is for you:

The generous host venue for our 2019 Piccolo Spoleto NFN series was the Event Center/Art Gallery at the back of Pauline Books and Media, a store run by the Daughters of St Paul. They will sadly be vacating their location in Charleston, so as a goodbye gift to the city this year they have organized their own new series of free concerts and asked us to let you know about them!  Their concerts, happening June 1-10 (during Piccolo Spoleto) will feature one of the LFL musicians we brought to Charleston in 2019: harpist Anna Maria Mendieta - along with a variety of Charleston-based artists: Irish Step Dancers, Charleston Opera Theater, the Kremers, and more. Concerts happen daily, June 1-10 at the same venue, 243 King Street & Beaufain. 

Contact the bookstore for more info:  843 577 0175 

AND if you are one of our friends in the SF Bay Area, we wanted to let you know that this coming weekend as well, our longtime Listen For Life and NFN performance colleagues at Slavyanka Chorus will present A Prayer for Peace – a concert of Russian and Ukrainian choral music. 

Performances will be

• ·        5PM (Pacific) on Saturday, June 4^th at St. Archangel Michael Serbian Orthodox Church, 18870 Allendale Avenue in Saratoga, and 
• ·        4PM (Pacific) on Sunday, June 5^th at Star of the Sea Church, 4420 Geary Boulevard (at 8^th   Avenue) in San Francisco.

The one hour program will include both sacred and folk pieces from Russia and Ukraine.

Instead of a charge for admission, audience members will be invited to contribute to one of the many relief organizations that are providing for the needs of civilians displaced and wounded by the war in Ukraine.

And one other reminder for everyone, everywhere: have you gotten a chance yet to hear the first concert of our NFN Uplifting Ukraine series that was performed by cellist Emil Miland and organist/pianist Jerome Lenk in San Francisco on May 8??  

If not, you can still watch the video of that first benefit concert (and donate for Ukraine!!) at any time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBleGDUsBAw)

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One final thought: 

To quote Ukrainian music critic Olexandr Proletarsky: "Music is Life. When music is silenced, anything can happen.." 

24 years ago in London, LFL founder Donna Stoering named her fledgling organization of music listeners, performers, producers and educators "LISTEN FOR LIFE" meaning exactly that - we can't stop creating, performing and listening to music throughout all our (daily) lives, no matter what is happening around us. We need to listen for the life-giving essence within the music. And we need to use our musical gifts for the service of others - that, too, is life-giving, for both the musicians and their recipients. 

So we thank you for listening - whether online or in person - your presence matters to us all! 

Press release for the NFN concerts June 3 & 4 - and the story behind them

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

Classical Music Benefit Concerts Performed in Utah to Support Ukrainian Families

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.

Friday, June 3 at 7:30 p.m. MDT – Libby Gardner Concert Hall, 1375 Presidents’ Circle in SLC

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)

Both Utah performances feature award-winning, internationally-renowned pianist and Listen For Life founder Donna Stoering, together with other top Utah-based classical musicians including oboist Luca de la Florin, bassoonist Jessica Wiley, and emerging teen superstar, violist Camille Cole, along with special guests, violinist Philip Brezina (June 3) and cellist Lauren Posey (June 4). Stoering is a former Marshall Scholar, who served as an Artistic Ambassador for both the UK and USA to countries worldwide. In 2021, Stoering moved to Utah from the San Francisco Bay Area.

“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

NFN "Uplifting Ukraine", Sunday May 8 : How to Watch, Donate, & more!

Program Info for NFN (Notes For Nourishment) Ukraine benefit concert May 8 in SF & Online

Concert sponsors: 

Listen4Life Foundation &  Mission Dolores Basilica 

Come in Person: 4:00pm PDT  @ Mission Dolores Basilica     3321 16th St, San Francisco, CA                                                                  

Donations accepted at the door in cash, checks (made out to Listen4Life Foundation) or online      

Suggested donation: minimum $10 per person, but ideally more                                                                    

100% of proceeds collected (at the door and online) will go directly to NGOs on the ground in Ukraine and adjacent countries, helping the hungry, hurting and homeless (displaced and refugees) mothers and children of Ukraine

To Watch online:                                                                                                                                          LIVE:  https://www.facebook.com/missiondoloressf/videos/                                                                    

AFTER: (permanently available on the new NFN YouTube channel): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwGL8qIvuZCgCquLTUc_7pQ

To Donate online (in any currency from anywhere on the planet):

You can donate at ANY time to help Ukrainian families displaced within their country or living as refugees, at the Ukraine Benefit page on ListenForLife's donation platform:        https://www.flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/MTUwOTQ1#!

Interested in knowing more about the pieces on the Program for Sunday May 8? 

David Conte - Lied from Sonata for Cello

Candace Forest - Missing You

Florence Price -  Adoration

Glière - Andantino from 12 Album Leaves (Ukrainian composer)

Prayer for Ukraine

Songs My Mother Taught Me - Dvorak

Bach/Gounod - Ave Maria

Heinrich - Improvisation on Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child

and other selections

For info on the artists performing, see the previous post on this NFN blog! 

            

ssdsd3321 16TH ST., SAN FRANCISCO CA 94114 | (415) 621-8203

NFN "Uplifting Ukraine" concert May 8 in San Francisco (and online): Artist Bios & Photos

LFL Notes For Nourishment concert on Sunday May 8th    4:00pm PDT in Mission Dolores Basilica, 16th Street, San Francisco CA and online worldwide

May 8th is Mothers Day in the USA so these two wonderful artists will be donating their time and talents to perform a special family-friendly, one-hour, free program to nourish all those who fulfill "mother (or grandmother)-roles" in our lives, and all collected donations will go to NGOs helping the mothers and children still in Ukraine or living as refugees in neighboring countries. 

Cellist Emil Miland made his solo debut with the San Francisco Symphony at 16, the same year he was selected to perform in the Rostropovich Master Classes at UC Berkeley. He has been a member of the San Francisco Opera Orchestra Since 1988 and was honored when Frederica von Stade asked him to accompany her in Carnegie Hall at her farewell recital. In 2018 he collaborated with Maestro Michael Morgan at the Bear Valley Music Festival to perform the premiere of David Conte’s cello Concerto, a memory made even more cherished by Morgan’s untimely passing. Recent projects include recording “Intonations” by Jake Heggie for the Violins of Hope, playing solo cello on the soundtrack for Gordon Getty’s opera “Goodbye Mr. Chips” and a new duo by David Conte with violinist Kay Stern. In August 2022 he returns to Bear Valley to perform John Williams’ “Elegy” for Cello and Orchestra.

Organist and pianist Jerome Lenk currently serves as Director of Music and Liturgy, as well as Principal Organist for Mission Dolores Basilica in San Francisco. His duties include administration of a music program of two choirs, providing musical support for regular weekend liturgies and all major feasts, coordinating and developing cantors, and conducting the Basilica Choir in major concerts each year, as well as coordinating the Basilica organ recitals and guest concert series. Mr. Lenk conducts the Basilica Choir is their ever-popular annual Candlelight Christmas Concerts Mr. Lenk has also served on the San Francisco Archdiocesan Music Commission. He is active as a recitalist and accompanist and maintains a private coaching studio. He has performed recitals and conducted the outstanding Basilica Choir in California, Mexico, and Italy. His extensive experience as an accompanist includes appearances with the San Francisco Opera Merola Program, Western Opera Theatre, San Francisco Symphony Chorus, CappellaSF, San Mateo Masterworks Chorale, San Jose Symphony, Golden Gate Men’s Chorus, San Francisco Concert Chorale, San Francisco Lyric Chorus, The Choral Project of San Jose, and the Valley Concert Chorale. He has also collaborated with Robert Shaw, Eugene Butler and Jörg Demus.

Mr. Lenk is also experienced as a vocal coach and conductor. His credits include Opera on Tap, the San Francisco Opera Merola Program, Opera San Jose, the Bay Area Summer Opera Theatre Institute, San Jose State University Opera Workshop, and The University of Iowa.

Mr. Lenk has performed solo recitals at the Oakland Cathedral as well as San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral, and has been a recitalist at the California Palace of the Legion of Honor. In 2017 he was the featured organist for the Lou Harrison centennial concerts with the Other Minds Festival of New Music, performing two of Harrison’s solo organ works.

Mr. Lenk began his musical studies on piano at the age of seven and on the organ at age nine. He holds the Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance with an organ minor from Central Methodist University, Fayette, Missouri, and the Master of Fine Arts degree in performance from the University of Iowa. His principal teachers have included Groff Bittner, Thomas Yancey, John Ditto, John Simms and Delores Bruch.

Emil Miland: 

Jerome Lenk 

Press Release for new global series of NFN concerts to benefit Ukraine

Listen For Life launches "Notes For Nourishment: Uplifting Ukraine” Benefit Concerts 

Kicks off Sunday, May 8 with a Mother’s Day performance 

at San Francisco’s Mission Dolores Basilica

SAN FRANCISCO, California (May 5, 2022) — Listen For Life, the global music-service organization, is launching a new series of its award-winning Notes For Nourishment concerts nationwide to raise funds that directly benefit Ukrainian refugees and displaced families, with a focus on mothers and children. 

The first of three scheduled Notes For Nourishment: “Uplifting Ukraine” benefit concerts — with more to follow soon — will take place this Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 8 at 4 p.m. PDT at San Francisco’s Mission Dolores Basilica (3321 16th Street).


The free Mother’s Day performance features popular cellist Emil Miland, together with organist and pianist Jerome Lenk (music director of Mission Dolores Basilica and Listen4Life Foundation Board member), for a one-hour program that mixes classical favorites with some exciting new works by Bay Area composers David Conte and Candace Forest. As with all Notes For Nourishment concerts worldwide, these renowned musicians will donate their time and talents to perform family friendly programs that nourish their audiences (both in live venues and simultaneous online broadcasts) while encouraging donations to causes chosen by the performers that nourish the hungry, hurting and homeless of the global community.


“All proceeds raised at all our Notes for Nourishment: “Uplifting Ukraine” 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 — particularly mothers and children,” said Donna Stoering, founder of Listen For Life. “Both the organ and grand piano at the Mission Dolores Basilica are very special instruments that really should be experienced live, so we invite you to bring those people in your life who fill the roles of mom or grandmother, as an extra treat on this special day.”

For the May 8 concert in San Francisco, donations can be made at the door (cash, checks or online) at Mission Dolores Basilica, or online at ListenForLife.org on the DONATE page. The performance will also be livestreamed for a worldwide audience on Mission Dolores Basilica’s Facebook page. After the concert, the video will be available permanently on Listen For Life’s Notes For Nourishment YouTube channel. 

Donations to this important cause can be made any time before, during or after the concert.

The next two concerts in the series will take place in Utah on June 3rd and 4th, and will be broadcast live worldwide (and available to view afterward) on Listen For Life’s Notes For Nourishment YouTube channel. They will feature Bay Area native Donna Stoering, an award-winning, internationally renowned concert pianist/recording artist and former Marshall Scholar, who founded Listen For Life while serving as Artistic Ambassador for both the UK and USA to countries worldwide.

For more information on any of these concerts (artists, programs, broadcast links) visit NotesForNourishment.blogspot.com. Listen4Life Foundation is a 501c3 organization; all donations will receive official tax receipts and acknowledgements.

# # #

About Listen For Life
Founded in 1998 by internationally renowned concert pianist Donna Stoering (DonnaStoering.com), Listen For Life’s mission is to inspire, empower and create opportunities for 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 music listeners, performers, creators, educators and producers. Its projects, productions, programs and partners have impacted the lives of people worldwide.

The Listen4Life Foundation has recently won two international Anthem Awards for social impact worldwide, for its mission and for three of its projects:

TravelsWithMusic.com providing unique award-winning social studies resources to teachers worldwide for free online

Notes For Nourishment concerts raising significant funds for a variety of causes and nonprofits worldwide

Music For Medicine project, initiated during Covid to bring neurologically based healing music resources to ICUs, hospice centers, hospital staff/patients, and exhausted caregivers

Visit ListenForLife.org to learn more.


PRESS CONTACTS:

Bay Area LFL contact: Jerome Lenk 415 948 7634 music@missiondolores.org

Nationwide LFL contact: Donna Stoering 408 406 6240 dstoering@listenforlife.org

NFN concerts communications: Jeff Hymas 801 597 8201 jeffhymas@gmail.com

Flicka, Kitka, Donna and ...... new reindeer names? Open and see....

­ ­ ­ Why invest an hour of your day to experience a unique Winter Holidays music event online, with Flicka (Frederica von Stade), Kitka, Donna and more?        Answers below! 

 Top 5 reasons why you don’t want to miss LFL's unique winter-holiday online concert on our award-winning Notes For Nourishment series: 

 1) The 25+ renowned international performers who have personally contributed or collaborated on 14 special video performances for this around-the-world music party!! 

 2) The chance to learn about, and musically experience, some of the diverse faith traditions that celebrate during December 

 3) Meet (and hear) award-winning instrumentalists and vocalists from USA, Eastern Europe, Central America, Israel, Palestine, and more! 

 4) Take only one hour from the busy holiday rush and experience joy, peace, calm, and inspiration for your life! 

 5) It's a perfect opportunity to invite long-distance friends and family of all ages and generations to join you online or in person for a watch party! The musicians are a mix of classical and world music artists so will appeal to listeners and fans of both genres. 

 And here's why you can't miss it: 

 Even if you already have other plans scheduled during the LIVE GLOBAL BROADCAST premiere of this video concert on our NFN YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwGL8qIvuZCgCquLTUc_7pQ 

Sunday, December 19th, @ 1pm Pacific/4pm Eastern and 21:00 UK or 22:00 Western Europe 

you can STILL watch it after that date, at any time that suits you, at the same place: 

on our LFL NotesForNourishment channel on YouTube:

 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwGL8qIvuZCgCquLTUc_7pQ 

 (just look for the December 19 2021 program among the videos listed). 

In a previous blog post we mentioned that we might use a different broadcast platform this time, requiring registration in advance, and some of you very kindly did register as requested (including some who donated towards our production costs as well- extra big thanks!) 

But we ultimately decided to stick with our YouTube channel for now, so no more registrations required - just COME! Everyone! (For those of you who prefer FB to YouTube, we hope to also stream the premiere of the video concert at the same time from our NotesForNourishment page on FB - https://www.facebook.com/notesfornourishment - but quickly come join us on YouTube if that doesn't work for any reason) 

 Donna (Stoering) will be performing and hosting the one-hour program, and just a couple of hints: Special guest-star performance appearances will include Frederica von Stade (Flicka) and KITKA, the Bay Area-based women's choral group that has been a very popular feature on NPR programs nationwide! 

 As with all our Notes For Nourishment concerts, optional donations can be made during the broadcast - this concert's donations will help NFN's parent organization, www.ListenForLife.org to sustain itself and thrive while being the catalyst and incubator for NFN concerts and many other important projects/programs in your communities and beyond ­ ­  ­

 ­ We have lots of 2022 plans, news, MFM progress, TV opportunities, and donor benefits to share with you at another time, another post - but meanwhile, Thanks SO much to those who have remembered us in your end of year donations thus far! and thanks to all of you for being a part of our growing LFL global community, making music that matters by empowering musicians and music listeners who have a heart of service! 

Meanwhile -   Happy Holidays from Donna and all of the LFL team enacting these current projects: 

• Notes For Nourishment concerts, 
• TravelsWithMusic.com educational platforms, 
• Music For Medicine (MFM) distribution programs, 
• LFL Productions partnerships, 
• PeaceBridge service projects in various locations of the globe, and 
• Flicka's wonderfully impactful People's Choir of Oakland (PCO) program providing a weekly choral singing experience and camaraderie for the unsheltered in the East Bay and beyond.                       --------------------------------------------------------
• (Your donations during the concert broadcast or at ANY time of the year can be designated for any particular project/program of your choice, above, or they can help our general fund that covers extremely necessary overhead costs, without which LFL could cease to exist before our 24th Anniversary worldwide in March 2022!)
• To access our completely secure donor platform on Flipcause, which can accept all currencies: https://www.listenforlife.org/donate.html ­                                                                                                                                                               
  
  
  

A "gift of gratitude" to our world of musicians, music-listeners & donors! SAVE THE DATE: December 19!

Happy Thanksgiving, not only to our American readers but to everyone! At Listen For Life we are sincerely grateful, every single day, for the global gift of our musicians, listeners, volunteers, and donors - and music itself, as a channel of communication, healing, and beauty that we must never take for granted in our world.  So, we're preparing a special holiday music event to thank you all:                                                                                                                            

Mark your calendars for Sunday 19th December, @ 1pm Pacific, 4pm Eastern, 9pm GMT.  

IMPORTANT:  This particular NFN Live Online event might be broadcast on a special platform which requires audience members to register in advance of the day.  It's quick and easy to register, right on our LFL website!    

https://www.listenforlife.org/lfl-winter-holiday-party.html 

Share a bit of your Sunday with us for a special LFL NotesForNourishment event featuring master musicians from around the globe, performing music honoring the winter celebrations of diverse faith traditions. We wanted to take this opportunity to celebrate with each of you and thank you, all of our followers, friends, volunteers, funders, and musicians worldwide. Please join us for this celebration!                                              

The first 30 registrants are free, and after that it's a minimal fee of $5 - $10 (additional donations always welcome!) 
Hint: Only one registration needed per household/computer, not per individual, so why not host a watch-party with your friends?

https://www.listenforlife.org/lfl-winter-holiday-party.html 

 

As you know, all of our NFN concerts collect donations for a nonprofit that nourishes the hungry, homeless or hurting of the world. This is a mission that we wish to continue for years to come. 

In order to make that possible, ListenforLife currently needs support in order to keep our life-changing projects alive and well. 

Any amount you can give (large or small) to LFL, during the concert, or ANYtime will be put directly towards our projects. All donations can be made easily and securely on our website:

https://www.listenforlife.org/donate.html

Here are 3 simple ways YOU can be of huge help to our musicians who serve others through their gifts year-round:

   1. Include Listen4Life Foundation in your #GivingTuesday donations, worldwide, this November 30th! Our target amount of $50,000 will enable us to help change the lives of many more individuals through MusicForMedicine and our other key projects (see below),   Our own page for #GivingTuesday is:

https://www.flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/MTI3Nzc5

 

      2.  If you use Amazon for holiday gift shopping (or ANYtime), please use their alternative nonprofit URL, https://www.Smile.Amazon.com   - make all of your orders as normal, but designate Listen4Life Foundation as your chosen nonprofit and we will receive a small percentage of what you spend on all purchases, year round!!!!  If you use Amazon anyway, this one little change could make a huge difference for us!

 

    3. Don't forget to register NOW for the upcoming Winter Holiday Party on December 19! Your presence will enhance our celebration and make it more meaningful - and any end-of-year (tax deductible!) donations you can make during the concert will be hugely appreciated as well!

DID YOU KNOW?  With YOUR help, Listen For Life's productions, projects and programs have thus far made a difference for:

• 11 million individuals in
   
• 70+ countries through our
   
• 16 different service projects, done by
   
• 350+ musicians volunteering their gifts
   

But we need YOUR gifts, to continue! Just as each note of inspiring music matters, each contribution (in ANY currency) matters, small or large! 

Should you prefer sending a check or money order by snail mail, here's the new address:  

Listen4Life Foundation, c/o Mr Jerome Lenk, Treasurer, 366 Peoria St, Daly City, CA 94014 USA 

or email LFL founder/artistic director Donna Stoering personally:   dstoering@listenforlife.org

Thank you!!   ------------------------------------------------ P.S.  We've been extremely busy this year, impacting lives nationwide and worldwide through our current key service projects, so please visit our newly updated website for more info: ListenForLife.org   And our LFL founder/artistic director, Donna Stoering, has launched a new website at DonnaStoering.com - please visit!  Happy holidays to all!  ­

­

Artist Bios & Broadcast Link for "Gwenyth & Emilia" concert Sunday 27th June!

We are very excited to present these two amazing young "prodigies" of the classical guitar! They both share a heart for service, and a love of wildlife (birds in particular). Therefore, their chosen beneficiary from your donations (we hope!) made during their concert on Sunday will be the Wild Bird Rescue & Rehab (WildBirdRehab.com), which is in the process of moving to a much larger facility so they can provide more services. Their executive director told us that the timing of this potential funding assistance could not possibly be better, so we hope that our listeners around the globe can donate ANY amount, small or large, in any currency, either during or after the concert! (A donation link will be visible below the June 27 concert video on our YouTube channel, LFLNotesForNourishment). 

The direct link for Sunday's LIVE BROADCAST on YouTube is: https://youtu.be/ngNJ38SbdLs

Here are bios submitted to us by our two stellar performers for June 27th:

Gwenyth Aggeler is an 18-year-old guitarist from Denver, CO. She began studying the guitar at age 6 with Aaron Medina and continued her studies in middle and high-school with Alex Komodore. Gwenyth was featured on NPR’s radio program From the Top in February of 2019 and recently performed on From the Top’s live-stream concert series.  She has been awarded prizes in several competitions including a prize in the New York Guitar Competition, first prize in the Eastern Music Festival High School Guitar Competition, and second prize in the junior and senior divisions of the Guitar Foundation of America International Youth Competition. Gwenyth has performed in master classes with Los Romeros, Jason Vieaux, Martha Masters, Judicaël Perroy, and Thomas Viloteau. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree at Peabody Conservatory in the studio of Maestro Manuel Barrueco.

Emilia Diaz Delgado is a 12-year-old classical guitarist , birder, and aspiring film director. She also enjoys composing, arranging, sound design, video editing, and writing. Emilia is currently learning how to organize events, and "play her way through" as a musician during the pandemic. Based in the California Bay Area, she has had the honor of studying at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College under Scott Cmiel from 2018-present, where she has performed in many recitals and received several SFCM awards.

 
Emilia has been invited to perform in concerts by Austin Classical Guitar (ACG - Hope), Odeon Guitar (Women Of Guitar), Omni Guitar (Bokyung Byun and Emilia Diaz Delgado - Live At St. Mark’s), and the South Bay Guitar Society. She also played with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Sonora in Mexico, and was invited to the International Guitar Festival of Sonora.

Though very young, Emilia is already a long-standing ListenForLife artist, and has raised funds for the Homeless Children's Network, Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, and other nonprofit organizations through performances on different Notes For Nourishment concerts. She has also been learning from friends, fellow musicians, and mentors to organize and coordinate events, concerts, and charity fundraisers. For example, she organized and performed in a fundraiser to raise awareness of oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, collaborating with the National Audubon Society and performing in an Audubon bird sanctuary in Tiburon, CA; she is also part of the SF Metro division of Bach To Bach, a youth-run classical music education program.

As a guitarist, Emilia has had masterclasses with Manuel Barrueco, Marcin Dylla, Julian Gray, Smaro Gregoriadou, Jiji, David Leisner, Joao Luiz, Michael Newman, Laura Oltman, Judicael Perroy, Richard Savino, Christopher Stell, Meng Su, David Tanenbaum, Marc Teicholz, Ben Verdery, and Jason Vieaux. She’s participated in various guitar festival masterclasses, including Benjamin Verdery’s Hawaii Guitar Class, the New York Guitar Seminar, and the SFCM 2020 Summer Guitar Intensive. She has received accolades from various institutions and artists - most recently, a full scholarship to the 2021 GuitarLab from concert artist Bokyung Byun. 

Emilia won first place in the Novice division of the California American String Teachers Association competition 2020, first place in the ENKOR Int’l Strings competition 6th edition, first prize for ages 8-10 in the "Great Composers Competition: Music of the Twentieth Century competition 2019", and third prize in the prestigious Int’l Benjamin Verdery Maui “Mr. Moustache” Competition 2019, among other prizes.

She was featured in the NPR "From The Top" radio show episode number 388, has appeared on the show’s “Daily Joy” video series four times, and also performed in the FTT 2021 Virtual Gala.  Emilia enjoys interacting with all nature; she also loves filmmaking, cooking, playing games with her grandparents, having fun, and playing music with her friends.

NFN LIVE Broadcast on June 27th to benefit Wild Bird Rescue & Rehab - view/donate anytime after, as well!

Happy Summer! The second of our 2 summer NFN concerts is SUNDAY JUNE 27th @ 4pm Pacific (7pm EDT) and you do NOT want to miss this! 

Our originally scheduled artists had to cancel at last minute, but two incredible femme-fatale prodigies on the guitar have graciously agreed to jump in and join forces for this LIVE GLOBAL BROADCAST:

Emilia Diaz Delgado (performing in California Bay Area) and 

Gwenyth Aggeler (coming into your home from Denver, Colorado)

Both of these young classical guitarists have won numerous major competitions and awards, and they met as performing alums of the prestigious NPR radio show, FromTheTop. 

• The concert will be broadcast on our dedicated YouTube channel:  LFLNotesForNourishment 

• And if you can't make the concert time, just visit that same NFN YouTube channel any day and time after the broadcast, (choose the June 27 concert video) to watch and enjoy! 

And please donate! As with all NotesForNourishment concerts anywhere on the globe, the performers donate their time/talent to nourish their audience, and (we hope!) you will donate what you can, in any currency, to help a cause or nonprofit (chosen by the performers) that nourishes others through its services. 

For the June 27th concert, Gwenyth and Emilia have chosen to help the Wild Bird Rescue&Rehab (WildBirdRehab.com) and also ListenForLife.org itself!  

For stories/bios of these two very unique young artists, visit this blog in the coming days prior to the concert. 

The precise LINK to the BROADCAST will also be made available before June 27th, in an upcoming post on this blog. 

Meanwhile, we've attached some sample flyers for Sunday's concert. 

Please help us to grow a global and national audience for both Gwenyth and Emilia - while helping them to succeed in raising funds for the Wild Bird Rescue & Rehab! 

Simply choose one of these flyers and SHARE IT on your own social media or in emails to friends and colleagues who are passionate about either classical guitar or birds (or both, perhaps?) - that would help them (and us) a great deal, so THANK YOU! 

Get to Know our Performers for NFN's Live Global Broadcast on Sunday, 13th June!

Don't forget! This Sunday, June 13, NotesForNourishment presents a Live Global Broadcast featuring three exciting performers: Sonja Bruzauskas & Clara Haymon, vocalists, and Paul English, pianist. 

Broadcast time is 4pm Pacific (7pm Eastern), & they will offer a short "Summer Song" program of classical, jazz, and other styles! We feel so honored to have these very renowned (and busy!) artists donating their time and talents to perform for our NFN audience worldwide and raise funds for the two nonprofits they have chosen to help, PartnerSchools.org (Texas) and ListenForLife.org (worldwide). 

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Paul English is an internationally recognized composer, pianist, producer and educator. He has performed and recorded with jazz greats Arnett Cobb, Dizzy Gillespie and Dave Liebman as well as with country legends Willie Nelson, Ray Price and Johnny Bush. He has composed music for film, theatre, choral groups, symphony and chamber orchestras and his own performing ensembles.    Check out Paul's extremely impressive career and activities here:  https://paulenglishmusic.com/home

Clara Haymon is a uniquely gifted, young singer and actress from Houston, TX studying at Boston University. She has performed with the Houston Grand Opera, Alley Theater, Greenbriar Consortium, and more. Along with studying music in college, she sings with their a-cappella group, the BU Allegrettos, and performs with Boston University’s Stage Troupe. Do take a moment and listen to this amazing song that Clara created (lyrics and music) and performed two years ago now, as part of her college application process:   

Sonja Bruzauskas is an internationally active, multi-genre mezzo soprano and award-winning recording artist. She was born and raised in Germany, and trained on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Besides her expansive stage career in musical theater, opera and operetta, Sonja is a well-established recital performer and concert soloist, from classical oratorios to cabaret, as well as being a public speaker and non-profit leader. There are numerous resources about her activities online, but you might enjoy viewing an audience-member's video of her first performance on one of our NFN concerts back in 2016, together with opera star and Broadway tenor, Stephen Guggenheim:                                            https://www.carolan-imagery.com/Featured-Collections/Notes-for-Nourishment/Notes-for-Nourishment-Concerts/170730-Music-by-Gershwin-A-Summertime-Celebration

                                     

Remember, if you can't catch the NFN concert LIVE this Sunday then you will always be able to donate AND to watch the professionally filmed/recorded video of the concert (huge thanks to composer and cinematographer J.E. Hernandez  and his company, SilbacaTV.com, as well as to our NFN tech volunteer for the day, Pierce Wang) on our dedicated NFN YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwGL8qIvuZCgCquLTUc_7pQ

CATCHING UP: exciting news re upcoming NFN concerts!!

    NFN ONLINE celebrates the start of SUMMER 2021 with 

             TWO special LIVE BROADCAST EVENTS!

SUN, June 13th @ 4pm Pacific    "Summer Song" 

  Vocalists Clara Haymon & Sonja Bruzauskas 

        with Paul English, pianist

Donations benefit  PartnerSchools.org (Houston) & ListenForLife.org  (worldwide)

SUN, June 27 @ 4pm Pacific    "The Davisson Duo"

Classical guitarists Jack Davisson & Elle Davisson

Donations benefit  Electronics for Education, 

a new nonprofit founded by teens during the pandemic! 

Concerts will be broadcast live on our

    "LFLNotesForNourishment" YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwGL8qIvuZCgCquLTUc_7pQ

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In the coming days, revisit this blog to find artist photos & bios for the JUNE 13th performers! They will be sharing a wonderful 45-minute program featuring a range of vocal and musical styles.