February 15, 2007 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Black history concert staged by Hill area composer
by MICHAEL CARUSO

Leslie Burrs is the executive and artistic director of Opera North and the composer of the opera, Vanqui.

Opera North will present “Songs of Color: A Black History Celebration” on Saturday, Feb. 17, 4 p.m., in the Trinity Center for Urban Life, 22nd & Spruce Streets in center city. Guest artists include soprano Carmen Balthrop and pianist Lester Green.

Opera North’s executive director is Leslie Burrs, a resident of nearby Glenside for the past 11 years and an acclaimed flutist, composer and educator. Burrs was born in South Philadelphia and grew up at 11th & Kimball Streets, not far from the Italian Market.

He began his “official” musical education at the Mary Louise Curtis Branch of Settlement Music School at 4th and Queen Streets. He also sang as a member of the All-Philadelphia Boys Choir as well as the choir of men and boys at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in center city.

He continued singing in the church choir as a paid soloist even after his treble voice changed. The parish went so far as to provide Burrs with a full scholarship to the University of the Arts.

Along the way, Burrs studied piano with Frances Fanelli at Settlement Music School and became familiar with the broad and deep diversity of American music from Alex Wilson at South Philadelphia High School.

“There was a great variety of offerings at the high school at that time,” he said. “We had a wonderful orchestra and jazz band, chamber music ensembles, we presented Broadway show productions, and we had a marching band. I heard it all and took it all in, and I never looked back on my decision in those early years to devote my life to music.”

A production of Vanqui by Opera North, Inc., at the Prince Music Theater in May, 2005. (Photo by Joe Garvin)

After graduating from the University of the Arts, Burrs “hit the streets as a musician and a composer,” as he puts it. “My own compositions reveal the strong emphasis of jazz in my background.” He has composed large choral works in settings for large and small orchestras.

Burrs first became involved with Opera North when the company performed his own opera, Vanqui, in a concert version in 2003.

“Opera North had expressed an interest in performing my opera,” he explained, “and they asked me to act as artistic director for that presentation. In 2005, they wanted to mount a fully staged production of Vanqui at the Prince Music Theater in center city. Eventually, they asked me to become their executive director.”

Burrs collaborates with other non-profit organizations in the region, such as New Courtland Elder Services, located on Germantown Avenue where Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy come together. He also helps write grant proposals. Burrs pointed out that Opera North has received grants from such noted institutions as the Philadelphia Music Project, the William Penn Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

He also negotiates the arrangements for events such as the one slated for Feb. 17, explaining that “Songs of Colors” is intended to coincide with February’s Black History Month.

“We also bring artists involved in our productions into inner city schools, both public and parochial,” he added. “For many of these kids, it’s their initial introduction to this kind of singing, and it’s wonderful seeing how these children react to hearing classically trained voices.”

A gentleman named Arnold Hall from Opera North visits schools once or twice every week and brings along a trio of artists who sing arias, answer questions and provide information for students.

Burrs is also looking ahead toward future Opera North productions. “We’re hoping to stage an African American Triptych. It will feature three operas: William Grant Still’s A Bayou Legend, H. Leslie Adams’ Blake; and my own Egypt’s Nights. They’ll represent three different eras and styles in African American music. We’re hoping to present them in concert version next season and then in fully staged productions the following season.”

Tickets for “Songs of Color: A Black History Celebration” are $30. For more information and reservations, call 215-884-5840 or visit www.operanorth.com.