STATE PARK TO HOST 59th STEPHEN FOSTER/JEANIE AUDITIONS
--Competition awards scholarships to male & female vocalists--
WHITE SPRINGS – The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center will showcase popular songs of Stephen Foster and the classical and operatic compositions of American music will be showcased in a public concert at the 59th Stephen Foster/Jeanie Auditions on October 3rd in White Springs.
Wearing period ball gowns and tuxedos, each participant will sing one song composed by Stephen Foster, and two songs of their choice written by American composers. The historically formal attire is in keeping with the theme of the event, which is named for a song Stephen Foster wrote about his wife, “Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair.” The event is a tribute to Foster, a 19th century composer who wrote some of America’s best-known songs, including, “Oh! Susanna” and “Beautiful Dreamer.” Foster also wrote “Old Folks at Home,” which was adopted as the Florida state song in 1935.
Established in 1950, The Stephen Foster/Jeanie Auditions is co-sponsored by the Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park and the Florida Federation of Music Clubs. The vocal competition for both young men and women enables scholarship money be given to the winners and to the runner-up contestants each year.
Admission to the event is free with park admission of $4 for a vehicle with up to eight passengers. For more information, call (386) 397-7005. To learn more about the park, visit online at www.FloridaStateParks.org/stephenfoster.
The event will take place:
10:00 a.m., Saturday
October 3rd, 2009
October 2, 2010
Stephen FosterFolkCultureCenterState Park
White Springs, Florida
(located on US 41, three miles from I-75 and nine miles from I-10)
