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Tucson Desert Song Festival
2022 Tucson Desert Women of Song
By April Bourie
The Tucson Desert Song Festival is more than your typical festival. It’s a rare business model that brings great singers to Tucson, according to George Hanson, the festival coordinator and Tucson Symphony Orchestra’s former conductor.
A little over 10 years ago, festival cofounders Jack Forsythe and Cecile Follansbee recognized that there was an opportunity to help local performing organizations bring world-class vocalists to Tucson if they could provide the additional funds needed to attract this caliber of performer.
“They began to talk to their circle of friends and asked them to support the concept,” Hanson explained. “Jack knew that Tucson was the winter home of people who lived the rest of the year in major metropolitan centers with artistically rich marketplaces – people with very cultivated experiences and tastes – living in our relatively small regional arts space.” This meant there would be a market both for donors and patrons.
Forsythe and Follansbee created a board consisting of many friends and then proposed the idea to several local performing arts organizations, including the Tucson Symphony Orchestra
and Arizona Opera. They explained that they would provide additional funds to the organizations to book world-class singers to accompany their musicians during the first two or three months of each year when the weather is at its best in Tucson. The local organizations would plan and pay for the other aspects of the performance, such as the venue, their performers and sound and lighting technicians.
The organizations bought into the idea, and the benefits of hosting worldclass singers quickly became apparent. “The singers don’t just entertain and inspire the audience; they also transform the group they are singing with …. It’s the kind of thing that sticks with the performing group,” Hanson said. “For example, the way one plays Strauss on a violin is the way a great singer would sing it. Singers can show players how to play the music through their voices.”
The 10th annual Tucson Desert Song Festival will run from early January to mid-March. The theme is “Women of Song,” and it is dedicated to the memory of founder Forsythe, who died of cancer in May 2020. Participating arts organizations were encouraged to con-
– George Hanson Coordinator Tucson Desert Song Festival
sider the theme when choosing the artists they would like to book.
“Those that are familiar with the world-class performers who participate in the festival follow these performers religiously,” Hanson said. “One of the benefits of having these enthusiasts on the festival’s board is that they often recognize breakthrough artists who are relatively young but have the level of talent and the ability to sustain a major career.” This has resulted in identifying and booking many singers before they become famous. Featured performers in this year’s festival include Nicole Cabell, Ailyn Pérez, Susan Graham and Dianne Reeves, Sasha Cooke and Susanna Phillips.
An important element of the Tucson Desert Song Festival is the Wesley Green Composer Project Commissioning Series. This project brings together major composers who create a piece for a specific artist. “Jack knew if we wanted national and international recognition, we must commission new works that would be performed elsewhere, not just in Tucson,” Hanson said.
Forsythe and a few festival board members approached music enthusiast and donor Wesley Greene, who was known for supporting the creation of new works. He agreed almost immediately to finance the project. The first two composers to participate were Richard Danielpour and Jake Heggie. “Starting off with those two national and internationally known composers was huge. A grand slam is an understatement.” Hanson said. “This project is a calling card for the festival.”
This year’s composer is Jennifer Higdon, composing for mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke. “When I heard Sasha sing, my heart responded with a feeling much like that incredible contentment one feels on a summer’s eve,” Higdon said. “It is a composer’s joy to be inspired by the beautiful tone and exquisite artistry of such an artist.”
Cooke will present the world premiere of Higdon’s song cycle “Summer
SongFestival BizMUSIC Music” on Jan. 20. The performance will be preceded on Jan. 19 by a discussion with Higdon and Cooke about the creative process. All of the performances included in the festival this year will be equally impressive, according to Hanson. “Until you hear these kinds of voices, it’s hard to imagine how rare they are. This year’s stars may be our biggest yet, focusing the attention of the vocal world on our pueblo.” Biz TUCSON DESERT SONG FESTIVAL Jan. 9 – Mar. 16 various times tucsondesertsongfestival.org (888) 546-3305 PHOTOS: COURTESY TUCSON DESERT SONG FESTIVAL
