First Concert a Resounding Success

The Manon Caine Russell Kathryn Caine Wanlass Performance Hall was opened in style with a gala performance Saturday, Jan. 14. The concert and gala reception was hosted by Utah State University President Stan Albrecht and First Lady Joyce Albrecht, with the assistance of honorary co-chairs Kaye Jorgensen and John W. Williams.

A ribbon cutting ceremony and open house tours were held earlier in the week, but the Saturday event officially christened the hall. President Albrecht welcomed the opening crowd that was mostly made up of donors who supported the project, following the lead of Kathryn Caine Wanlass and Manon Caine Russell, who made the single largest private donation in the university’s history.

Local artist and former USU faculty member Jerry Fuhriman read the poem “Curl,” written especially for the occasion by Utah Poet Laureate and former USU professor Ken Brewer.

Guest performer for the evening was pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, whose concert recital included works by Beethoven, Liszt and Ravel. Bavouzet performed on The Performance Hall’s Fazioli piano. Paolo Fazioli, head of the Fazioli firm traveled from Italy to Logan for the opening performance and he later signed the piano. The pianist’s interpretation of the Ravel work especially pleased the audience, and he followed with an encore, also by Ravel.

Critics and audiences have characterized Bavouzet as mercurial, elegant, dynamic and poetic. He has performed with leading international orchestras. He has previously performed with the Utah Symphony Orchestra and he was to leave Logan to perform in recital at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theatre.

The concert was followed by a reception in the Tippetts Exhibition Hall in the Chase Fine Arts Center.