American Mosaic

American Mosaic weaves together a vibrant portrait of the nation’s musical identity, from the patriotic ode towards great anthems and medleys to the wide-open energy of Rodeo to the fresh voice of Viet Cuong. Soprano Sylvia McNair and pianist Kevin Cole bring timeless songs by George Gershwin to life, culminating in the iconic Rhapsody in Blue. Under the baton of David Alan Miller with the Caroga Arts Ensemble, this program celebrates the rich diversity and spirit of American music.

---

Cole’s versatility is seemingly endless. He has collaborated with Marvin Hamlisch, opened for Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Band, shared a concert evening with Broadway musical legend Barbara Cook, toured with Grammy-winning soprano Sylvia McNair, performed at the invitation of the prestigious Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, and served as Artistic Director for Ravinia Festival’s Steans Institute Musical Theatre Initiative. His collaborations with other creatives led to the 1996 Gramophone Album of the Year with soprano Dawn Upshaw (Oh, Kay! on Elektra/Nonesuch) and the smash hit revival of Babes in Arms with Broadway choreographer Randy Skinner (42nd Street) for Goodspeed Opera House.

Cole enjoys a history of personal praise from legends Irving Berlin, Harold Arlen, E. Y. Harburg, Hugh Martin, Burton Lane, and Stephen Sondheim as well as members of both the Jerome Kern and George/Ira Gershwin families. Edward Jablonski, author of the Encyclopedia of American Music and renowned Gershwin scholar said, “Kevin is the best Gershwin pianist since Gershwin himself – no one can touch him.”

Cole’s most recent recording is Gershwin’s Concerto in F with the National Orchestra Institute Philharmonic under the baton of David Alan Miller for Naxos (2020) and available on all streaming platforms. A first recording of newly restored editions of Rhapsody in Blue, Second Rhapsody, and Cuban Overture with the National Orchestra Institute Philharmonic was recorded in June 2023 and will release in early 2024 (Naxos).

Cole is a Steinway Artist and a graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy. His many engagements include the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Boston Philharmonic, Nashville Symphony, Albany Symphony, Cincinnati Pops, Indianapolis Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Edmonton Symphony (Canada), Philharmonia Orchestra (UK), BBC Concert Orchestra (UK), Grant Park Symphony, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Utah Symphony and more. Among the conductors he has performed with are Stuart Chafetz, Robert Franz, Giancarlo Guerrero, Keitaro Harada, Lawrence Loh, David Alan Miller, Robert Moody, Edwin Outwater, John Morris Russell and Benjamin Zander.

A brilliant music director and arranger, Cole has crafted dazzling orchestral and concert programs that showcase the genius of American composers Marvin Hamlisch, Cole Porter, and George Gershwin. Kevin Cole’s extensive repertoire and personal experience with legendary American songbook composers and performers make it possible for him to deliver signature programs for orchestras and concert series with personal anecdotes and original arrangements like no other American pianist performing today. 

---

Sylvia has recorded for every major classical record label, garnering two GRAMMY awards and six GRAMMY nominations. Her recording, ROMANCE, a disc of Latin American jazz standards was released to a rave review from Fanfare Magazine: “… here the record is, and it’s fabulous. In fact, it’s the biggest surprise of its kind I’ve encountered since Diana Ross’s live album of Billie Holiday standards.” A review of her performance with Marvin Hamlisch and the Milwaukee Symphony exclaimed: “…she is that rare opera type who really gets the popular song. She reined in the vibrato and played to the microphone perfectly. Her matchless enunciation not only delivered the words and their sentiments, but also helped to etch the rhythms. Her wonderfully pure Summertime, purged of all diva carrying-on, is among the best I’ve ever heard.” (Third Coast Digest) After her opening at the famed Oak Room of the Algonquin, critic Rex Reed swooned, “I could get used to this kind of ecstasy.”

Outside of music, Sylvia says she is doing the most important work of her life teaching ENL (formerly known as ESL) and adult literacy through a program called VITAL, Volunteers In Tutoring Adult Learners. She volunteers with the Mobile Food Pantry, part of the Area 10 Agency on Aging’s outreach in her community. And she works for the Refugee Support Network in Bloomington, Indiana, where she encounters some of the bravest people she’s ever met and considers it an honor to work alongside them. 

A proud Buckeye from Mansfield, Ohio, Sylvia earned a master’s degree with distinction from the Indiana University School of Music, she received honorary doctorates from Westminster College (1997) and Indiana University (1998), the Ohio Governor’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Arts and Entertainment (1999), the Indiana Governor’s Arts Award (2011).

---

He and the orchestra have twice appeared at “Spring For Music,” an annual festival of America’s most creative orchestras at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, and at the SHIFT Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Other accolades include Columbia University’s 2003 Ditson Conductor’s Award, the oldest award honoring conductors for their commitment to American music, the 2001 ASCAP Morton Gould Award for Innovative Programming, and, in 1999, ASCAP’s first-ever Leonard Bernstein Award for Outstanding Educational Programming. 

Frequently in demand as a guest conductor, Mr. Miller has worked with most of America’s major orchestras, including the orchestras of Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco, as well as the New World Symphony, the Boston Pops, and the New York City Ballet. In addition, he has appeared frequently throughout Europe, the UK, Australia, and the Far East as guest conductor.  Since 2019, Mr. Miller has served as Artistic Advisor to the Little Orchestra Society in New York City, and, from 2006 to 2012, served as Artistic Director of “New Paths in Music,” a festival of new music from around the world, also in New York City. 

Mr. Miller received his most recent Grammy Award in 2021 for his recording of Christopher Theofanidis’ Viola Concerto, with Richard O’Neill and the Albany Symphony, and his first Grammy in 2014 for his Naxos recording of John Corigliano’s “Conjurer,” with the Albany Symphony and Dame Evelyn Glennie. His extensive discography also includes recordings of the works of Todd Levin with the London Symphony Orchestra for Deutsche Grammophon, as well as music by Michael Daugherty, Kamran Ince, Michael Torke (London/Decca), Luis Tinoco, and Christopher Rouse (Naxos). His recordings with the Albany Symphony include discs devoted to the music of John Harbison, Roy Harris, Morton Gould, Don Gillis, Aaron J. Kernis, Peter Mennin, and Vincent Persichetti on the Albany Records label.  He has also conducted  the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic in three acclaimed recordings on Naxos. 

A native of Los Angeles, David Alan Miller holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley and a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from The Juilliard School. Prior to his appointment in Albany, Mr. Miller was associate conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. From 1982 to 1988, he was music director of the New York Youth Symphony, earning considerable acclaim for his work with that ensemble. Mr. Miller lives in Slingerlands, New York, a rural suburb of Albany.