Press Room

In Saturday’s (5/2) Veer Magazine (Hampton Roads, VA), Montague Gammon III writes, “Hampton Roads’ two most accomplished, most famous and finest (classical) musicians meld their talents April 30 at Norfolk State’s Wilder Performing Arts Center for the Virginia Symphony Orchestra’s ‘Happy Birthday, Hailstork’ concert. JoAnn Falletta conducts seven works by Adolphus Cunningham Hailstork III, PhD, thirteen days after he turns a still creative 85.” The concert was presented by the Virginia Arts Festival and Virginia Symphony Orchestra. “Falletta and Hailstork both arrived here in ’91, she as the  Symphony’s new Music Director and he as its Composer in Residence. She said, ‘He was writing the piano concerto for us my first year. I was amazed by all of the great pieces he gave us. He wrote it and we played it and what other orchestra has that kind of privilege? To have a great, great composer…just writing things for us out of love for the orchestra…so generous, so cheerful about making music together… He keeps quietly turning out wonderful music. He’s just an amazingly prolific, modest, unassuming genius.’… Nationally, the celebration will continue; the radio show Performance Today will be recording the concert for later broadcast, further celebrating the man … who keeps creating.”