Music of the Scottish Enlightenment
Instructor: Duncan MacMillan

3817CE Continuing Education Center
Monday, April 2
10:00 a.m. - Noon

3818PH Palm Harbor
Tuesday, April 3
10:00 a.m. - Noon

Eighteenth century Scotland saw a blossoming of music which included charming trio sonatas for violin, cello and harpsichord, works for larger chamber ensembles/orchestra, and a large body of sophisticated fiddle music authored by eminent musicians who were also major contributors to the classical music culture of Scotland  This lecture will survey a wide variety of Scottish music circa 1700 - 1800, introducing you to such famous composers of the day as William McGibbon, Gen. John Reid, James Oswald, the Earl of Kelly, William Marshall and Robert Mackintosh (many of whom have been featured on the MacMillan Trio recitals of Scottish repertoire given at Eckerd in the last two seasons).  The lecture will include both historic and contemporary recordings of this interesting, emotive and technically complex repertoire.

Member: $10; Non-member: $15

3800 Memphis: A Rich Legacy of Music, Culture and History
Instructor: Joy Katzen-Guthrie
Friday, January 6
1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

In February 2012, Ruth Eckerd Hall features the national touring production of the hit Broadway musical, Memphis. The city's legendary Beale Street, Sun Studios, and Stax Records with their blues and rock'n'roll giants such as W.C. Handy and Elvis are well known. But there's so much more to the diverse, colorful history and culture of Memphis. We'll explore Memphis from its origins as home to the Chickasaw Indians and early discoveries of Spanish explorers to its rising influence as a river port. Great events have shaped this city, including the Civil War and civil rights. We'll explore the mighty Mississippi and the cotton trade, the dreadful yellow fever epidemic that wrought havoc and nearly destroyed it. We'll see that Memphis is home to miraculous treatments made possible through Danny Thomas at St. Jude Hospital, one of the most impressive and innovative medical facilities. As a native Memphian, Joy Katzen-Guthrie is passionate about Memphis. She will share with you the many aspects of this city that have inspired her life as well as so much of the music that has
shaped American culture.

Location: freeFall Theatre
Member: $10; Non-member: $15

Film Genres
Instructor: Rick Kistner

3765PH Palm Harbor
Mondays, January 9, 16 and 23
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

3766CE Continuing Education Center
Fridays, January 13, 20 and 27
10:00 a.m. - Noon

Like literature, the products of Hollywood Studios are classified by the content of the films. These designations are known as film genres. But the classification process is not always that simple and there are frequent debates among critics as to what the defining criteria are for different film types. Though there are many sub-classifications and subtleties, there is general agreement on the main genres, including Action, Adventure, Comedy, Crime/Gangster, Drama, Epics/Historicals, Westerns, War Films, Horror and Science Fiction. Our seminar will provide some accepted definitions of these genres, a discussion of sub-genres, the historical context of each genre and a collection of film clips to illustrate the designations.

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

3781PH Jazz With a French Accent
Instructor: Jerry Blizin Tuesday, January 10
1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Le Jazz Hot arrived in France in 1917 during World War I - the same year it moved upriver from New Orleans, the city of its birth, to Kansas City and Chicago. It was a curiosity at first to the French, but they took to "le musique sauvage" enthusiastically, even developing a distinct Gallic style in the 1930s, with the advent of the Quintet of the Hot Club of France. Since then the French have embraced many styles of jazz and the music is wildly popular to this day. This program will follow Le Jazz Hot from its early 20th Century days to the present. We will explore why jazz proved so popular to the French, how Black American musicians found a warmer reception in La Belle France than they got at home, and how the Century of Jazz found realization as an art form along the River Seine as well as the Mississippi. The program will feature records, tapes and CDs, plus video. So pull up a chair, imagine yourself with a glass of wine in some dimly-lit caveau (but no Gauloise, SVP) and listen to the sounds of jazz the way they are heard in Paris and many other venues throughout the country.

Sensational Music of the Big Band Years
Instructor: Joy Katzen-Guthrie

3775CE Continuing Education Center
Thursdays, January 12, 19, 26, February 2 and 9
2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

3776PH Palm Harbor
Fridays, January 20, 27, February 3, 10 and 17
2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

In celebration of extraordinary upcoming Ruth Eckerd Hall big band and American Songbook programs (from the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Diana Krall, Tony Bennett, Debbie Reynolds, Johnny Mathis and more) this winter/spring season, Joy's five-week live concert class at the piano features musical highlights from the orchestras, vocalists and themes of the Swing Era. Hear songs from the repertoires of Duke Ellington, Glenn Miller, Peggy Lee, the Dorsey Brothers, Artie Shaw, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Mel Tormé, Frank Sinatra, Doris Day, Rosemary Clooney, Guy Lombardo, Sarah Vaughan and more. Hear stories of how the songs were created and recorded, and of the orchestras, performers, and songwriters as you listen to unforgettable melodies and lyrics of this sensational era in American popular music.

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

3777PH Mahler's Four Song Cycle Symphonies
Instructor: Bob Teare   
Thursdays, February 9, 23, March 8 and 22   
10:00 a.m. - Noon

During Gustav Mahler's time, the last quarter of the nineteenth century, and at no time before, could something be done about childhood death. Mere humility in the face of what seemed to be God's inscrutable will was now not the only option. Man could act, with public hygiene and knowledge of microbiology, to prevent and cure harm to the totally innocent. What, then, was to be said of God's role in the modern world?

Mahler addressed this largest of all questions in his first four symphonies, each based on earlier cycles of his songs. The content of these symphonies is: Healing through Nature, Heavenly Redemption, What Love Tells Us, and A Child's Vision of Heaven. In this class we will address how Mahler put "extramusical" features in his music.

We will listen to Mahler's exquisite orchestrations. Your instructor will aim to enhance the pleasure of long-term fans of Mahler through historically significant recordings and brief discussions of them.

Location: Palm Harbor
Member: $29; Non-member: $59

Macbeth and the Nature of Evil
Instructor: Ron Sommer

3767PM Peace Memorial Presbyterian Church
Thursday, February 23
10:00 a.m. - Noon

3768FP First Presbyterian Church
Tuesday, February 28
1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Shakespeare's Macbeth (first presented in 1603-1606 and first published in the Folio of 1623) is distinct in several ways from the rest of the "Big Four" (Hamlet, Othello, King Lear). In spite of the fact that it contains material not written by Shakespeare, it is textually the shortest of the tragedies, leaving critics to wonder if content had been omitted between first production and publication of the play. But even more gripping is the play's emphasis on evil. Of all Shakespeare's tragic protagonists Macbeth is the only one deliberately to chose and persist in a path of evil that changes not only his life, but nearly destroys his country, and ultimately overturns the natural order.

In writing the play Shakespeare altered his source materials to deepen Macbeth's villainy. In presenting the witches (who do appear in some of the sources) he also raises the question of the ability of supernatural forces to influence our actions. Though not a man of deep intellect, Macbeth has great imaginative powers that might have stopped him; but as he continues his path of evil, each crime bloodier than the previous one, these powers are lost. Moving in the opposite direction his originally literal minded wife is destroyed by her acquisition of the imaginative quality that Macbeth has lost. Interestingly, the tragedy is not just destruction of a potentially good man's soul, but the destruction of a great love.

In a two hour lecture, it would not be possible to do an exhaustive analysis of the play. But we can explore some if its implications, namely the effects of deliberately willed evil on a man and the world around him.

For those attending the lecture, it would be helpful to come with at least a general working knowledge of the play.

Member: Free; Non-member: $15

We Love Lucy
Instructor: Jason Fortner

3769PH Palm Harbor
Wednesdays, January 11, 18, 25 and February 1 
1:00 - 3:00 p.m. 

3770CE Continuing Education Center
Mondays, February 20, 27, March 5 and 12
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

A celebration of Lucille Ball and her multifaceted career. Learn how this talented B-movie actress became the top comedienne in entertainment history.

Week One: The Early Years
B-Movies, Radio and more

Week Two: Fame & Fortune
The I Love Lucy years

Week Three: Lucy Without Desi
The Lucy Show, Broadway and Gary Morton

Week Four: The Final Bow
Here's Lucy, Stone Pillow and Life With Lucy

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

The Music of Disney
Instructor: Jason Fortner

3771CE Continuing Education Center
Mondays, January 9, 16, 23, 30, February 6 and 13 
1:00 - 3:00 p.m. 

3772PH Palm Harbor
Tuesdays, February 7, 14, 21, 28, March 6 and 13 
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Celebrate and explore the musical world of Walt Disney Studios. Starting with Steamboat Willie and continuing through the Golden Age, we will cover the decline of movie musicals and rebirth with modern classics like Beauty & The Beast. From Snow White to It's A Small World, we'll sing along to them all. Lecture, video clips, and discussion.

Week One: The Early Years
Mickey, Donald, and the Silly Symphonies

Week Two: Disney's Follies
Snow White and Fantasia

Week Three: The Golden Age
Bambi, Pinocchio, Lady & The Tramp, and more

Week Four: The Theme Parks and TV
Disneyland, Wonderful World of Color, Mickey Mouse Club

Week Five: After Walt
The Decline of the Studio

Week Six: Rebirth
The Little Mermaid to Tangled

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

3792 Art of Love
Instructor: Dedee Aleccia
Wednesday, January 25
11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Valentine's Day is around the corner, but forget the flowers and chocolates! Forget the wining and dining! Instead, join OLLI for a fun and frivolous afternoon of looking at love. This armchair journey around the world and through the ages will take a voyeur's peek at lovers in art. From amorous gods of the ancient world to modern abstractions of embracing lovers, we will laugh, sigh and smirk at the various images artists have created to celebrate love. Flirtations, suggestive glances, love tokens, courtships and betrothals and many more aspects of love relationships will be viewed. And after celebrating love, profound and profane, serene and sexy, pure and passionate, we will enjoy a delectable Valentine's Day treat and love-ly conversation.

The lecture meets on site at the Cassis Brasserie. (170 Beach Dr. N.E., St. Petersburg). Cost includes lunch and lecture.

Location: Cassis American Brasserie
Member: $39; Non-member: $69

Ayn Rand: A Sense of Life, the Film
Instructor: Suzi Fleck

3801PH Palm Harbor
Tuesdays, January 24 and 31
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

3802CE Continuing Education Center
Thursdays, January 26 and February 2
10:00 a.m. - Noon

Whether you are a fan of Ayn Rand, disagree with her philosophy, or you are unfamiliar with this author and philosopher, you cannot ignore the importance of her influence in today's political arena. Though she died in 1982 and her last novel was published in 1957, her book sales have soared dramatically in the past four years.

This film is a documentary about the life and work of the Russian-born author of such renowned novels as The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. The film was written, produced and directed by Michael Paxton and nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1997. It offers the opportunity to learn about the drama of Ayn Rand's life from her early childhood and escape from Soviet Russia to her struggle and triumph as an American writer whose book sales even today exceed 500,000 copies annually.

Ayn Rand: A Sense of Life, sweeping from pre-Revolutionary Russia to contemporary America, tells the story of a thinker who continues to arouse the curiosity of millions.

The film will be shown in two parts with discussion following each half.

Member: $10; Non-member: $15

Love and Politics: The Drama of Cleopatra
Instructor: Dedee Aleccia

3790PH Palm Harbor
Mondays, January 30, February 6 and 13   
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

3791CE Continuing Education Center
Wednesdays, February 1, 8 and 15   
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

The most powerful and influential woman of the ancient world, Cleopatra, has served as inspiration for some of the most powerful and influential writers of drama. Fascinated by her political and romantic relationships with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, three major British playwrights provide insights into the motives behind Cleopatra's machinations and manipulations. George Bernard Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra seeks to prove that it was not love but politics that attracted Julius Caesar to her. William Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra follows her relationship with Mark Antony from the Parthian Wars to their tragic suicides and makes us wonder whether Cleopatra commits suicide because of her love for and loss of Mark Antony or her loss of power and subsequent humiliation. John Dryden's All For Love focuses on Cleopatra and Mark Antony in their last hours, consumed and weakened by overwhelming love for each other as well as love for country, and examines their political and personal motives for suicide. These three playwrights provide vivid interpretations of the life and death of one of the world's most impressive women.

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

An Inside Look at Concert Preparation - II
Instructor: Judith Alstadter

How does a professional artist select and prepare works for a concert program? Dr. Alstadter gives you a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to put together an interesting, cohesive piano program including selection of music, analysis of scores, rehearsal techniques, and stylistic elements of the composer and period.

We will analyze and discuss the musical, technical, and psychological aspects of Beethoven's great "Pathetique" Sonata and his pivotal role between the Classical and Romantic Eras; discuss styles of dances used in keyboard Suites of Baroque Master Bach and the compositional technique of "counterpoint" in his Fugues; hear ‘genre' works popular in the Romantic Era (Nocturnes, Etudes, Waltzes, Intermezzi, Rhapsodies) by Chopin, Fauré, Schubert, and Brahms as well as "character pieces" by Schumann; study the Variation form in works of French Baroque composer Rameau and Romantic pianist/composer Clara Schumann; and examine nationalistic elements in the works of Spanish composer Albéniz and jazz style in Preludes of Gershwin.

This class is intended to enhance and deepen the listener's experience through in-class piano performances and CDs.

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

3784 From Tevya the Dairyman to Fiddler on the Roof
Instructor: Joy Katzen-Guthrie
Monday, February 13
1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Since Sholom Aleichem published stories of Tevye the Dairyman in 1894, the subject of the lovable milkman of Anatevka and his daughters has inspired countless fictional, stage and film adaptations. In appreciation of the touring production of the Broadway musical, Fiddler On the Roof, to be hosted in March 2012 by Ruth Eckerd Hall, join Joy on a journey through the writing of Sholom Aleichem that became Tevya's Daughters, Tevye and his Daughters, Tevye the Milkman, Fiddler on the Roof and more. Hear excerpts from the original stories and view highlights from the powerful Yiddish film Tevya starring Maurice Schwartz. See composer Jerry Bock and lyricist Sheldon Harnick discuss the classic score and its unforgettable "Sunrise, Sunset" and "If I Were a Rich Man." Experience the showstopping performance of Zero Mostel. Explore Jerome Robbins' insightful choreography in the beautiful Broadway production. Hear comments from Norman Jewison, the director/producer of the film starring Topol, along with members of the film cast and crew. Discover why these stories have touched our hearts and why the depictions of a family caught up in the whirlwind of changing traditions will remain classics.

Location: freeFall Theatre
Member: $10; Non-member: $15

Golden Age of Television
Instructor: Joy Katzen-Guthrie

3773PH Palm Harbor
Thursdays, March 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29
10:00 a.m. - Noon

3774CE Continuing Education Center
Tuesdays, March 6, 13, 20, 27 and April 3
2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

We call the earliest age of American commercial television from 1948 until 1960 the "Golden Age." During this period, virtually every television program was live and almost everything that happened in the creation of programming was an innovation. Variety vaudeville-style shows proliferated, along with the developing genres of situation comedy, drama, westerns, game shows, crime dramas and comedy sketch revues. As the economy grew and the era became known for its vast consumerism, advertisers took advantage of the new medium to present their products favorably before a national audience on a plethora of shows: Sundays with Ed Sullivan and the Colgate Comedy Hour. Tuesdays with Uncle Miltie in the Texaco Star Revue. Thursdays with Burns & Allen and Westinghouse Playhouse 90. Saturdays with Your Show of Shows. The pioneers of this new medium changed the way we viewed the world and ourselves.

We'll take a time trip through this important early era of television, experiencing notable highlights of the variety of genres available ... from Toast of the Town • the Colgate Comedy Hour with Abbott & Costello • Martin & Lewis • Spike Jones • the Texaco Star Theatre with Milton Berle • Person to Person with Edward R. Murrow • The Twilight Zone • Ernie Kovaks • The Red Skelton Show • Playhouse 90 • You Bet Your Life • The Untouchables • Studio One • Steve Allen • I Love Lucy • Make Room for Daddy • The Jack Benny Show • Phil Silvers as Sgt. Bilko, and more.

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

Classical and Romantic Chamber Music for Piano and Strings - Duos, Trios, Quartets and Quintets
Instructor: Duncan MacMillan

3796CE Continuing Education Center
Mondays, March 5, 12, 19 and 26
10:00 a.m. - Noon

3797PH Palm Harbor
Tuesdays, March 6, 13, 20 and 27
10:00 a.m. - Noon

Explore the intimate and charming world of chamber music from the erudite elegance of a Mozart violin sonata to the grandiloquence of a Franck Quintet. Composers throughout the
18th and 19th Centuries poured some of their most arresting and creative musical thought into forms for just a few players meeting in musical conversation. Come and get acquainted. Examine scores and listen to works from the first Viennese school (Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven) through to the great masters of the end of the Romantic Era (Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Dvorak, Franck), with lots of beautiful music by European and American masters in between (Schubert, Schumann, Fauré, Brahms, Saint-Saëns, Foote, Beach, and more).

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

Ayn Rand: The Fountainhead, the Movie
Instructor: Suzi Fleck

3803PH Palm Harbor
Mondays, March 5 and 12
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

3804CE Continuing Education Center
Thursdays, March 8 and 15
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

The Fountainhead is a 1949 American film directed by King Vidor, based on the best-selling book of the same name by Ayn Rand who also wrote the screenplay adaptation.

The story focuses on Howard Roark, a young architect who chooses to struggle in obscurity rather than compromise his artistic and personal vision. It follows his battle to practice modern architecture, despite an establishment centered on tradition-worship. The complex relationships between Roark and other types of individuals present both a romantic drama and a philosophical work. Roark is Rand's embodiment of the human spirit, and his struggle represents the triumph of individualism over collectivism.

The film stars Gary Cooper, who won the Academy Award for best actor for his portrayal of Roark. Patricia Neal stars as Dominique Rancon. This movie was initially panned by critics and lost money at the box office. However, the film created much public interest in the novel which has sold more than 6.5 million copies since publication. Many contemporary critics deem this movie to be one of King Vidor's best films.

The film will be show in two parts with discussion following each half. Recommended: read or re-read The Fountainhead before seeing this movie.

Member: $10; Non-member: $15

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Twentieth Century Romantic Soul of Russia
Presenter: Judith Alstadter

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) was one of the legendary pianists of all times. The poetry, power, virtuosity, and grandeur of his playing awed and inspired both audiences and his colleagues. As a composer, Rachmaninoff created music harkening back to the Romantic Era of the 19th century and to the soulfulness of his Russian roots and contemporaries, including influences of Tchaikovsky. He was also a conductor, frequently conducting and performing his own compositions.

Born into a well-to-do family, he studied at the celebrated St. Petersburg and Moscow Conservatories. He worked in Moscow until the Russian Revolution of 1917, then moved to Switzerland, and ultimately settled in Beverly Hills, California. The nostalgia and longing for his homeland never left him and is deeply reflected in his music.

Among his most popular and beloved works are the Second and Third Piano Concertos, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Second Symphony, Prelude in c sharp minor for piano,and Vocalise.

In this class, we will hear excerpts of some of these works, including CD and video performances by Rachmaninoff.

Member: Free; Non-member: $15

Hollywood 1914 - 1929: The Creation of an Empire
Instructor: Ron Sommer

3786PH Palm Harbor
Wednesdays, March 14, 21 and 28
10:00 a.m. - Noon

3787CE Continuing Education Center
Fridays, March 2, 9 and 16
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

In the earliest years of the 20th century a fledgling film industry already existed in the U.S., centered in New York and New Jersey, with other studios in Chicago, Florida and Cuba. In 1910 Biograph Studio sent D.W. Griffith to California to shoot a film. Other studios soon saw the advantages of California: sunshine most of the year, varied geography near Los Angeles, and distance from Thomas Edison's Motion Picture Trust, an attempt to create a monopoly for a small consortium of east coast studios. In 1914 Cecil B. DeMille filmed the first feature length film ("The Squaw Man") in Hollywood for the newly formed Paramount Studio. Through the efforts of pioneering directors such as Erich von Stroheim and D.W. Griffith, innovative producers such as Thomas Ince and Irving Thalberg, and creation of the studio system led by Sam Goldwyn, Carl Laemmle, Louis B. Mayer and others, Hollywood by 1929 had become the most creative (and most successful) film making capital in the world. The course will trace the formative years of this empire.

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

Broadway Today
Instructor: Jason Fortner

3788CE Continuing Education Center
Mondays, March 19, 26, (no class on April 2), April 9 and 16 
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

3789PH Palm Harbor
Tuesdays, March 20, 27, April 3 and 10
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

A look at Broadway in the new millennium, how it has changed and yet has retained age old traditions. Lectures, video and discussion.

Week One: Broadway Backstory
How Broadway Came To Be

Week Two: Musicals of the 2000's

Week Three: Plays of the New Millenium

Week Four: Everything Old is New Again 
Revivals and Revisals

Member: $29; Non-member: $59

3780PH Marcel Marceau: The Art of Silence
Instructor: Jerry Blizin 
Tuesday, March 20
1:30 - 3:00 p.m.

For more than 60 years Marcel Marceau was the world's most famous mime. As the white-faced clown Bip, he evoked every human emotion with his unique silent pantomime. He toured the globe and played thousands of performances. Like his childhood hero, Charlie Chaplin, Marceau was beloved around the world and in his native France. He kept up the demanding discipline of his craft until two years before his death in 2007. The legacy of his fabled career survives today on film and television, although he was primarily a stage entertainer.

Because his life was not one-dimensional, his life story contains moments of personal heroism that are well worth learning about. So come hear the story of Marcel Marceau, who made an art of silence.

Location: Palm Harbor
Member: $10; Non-member: $15

3785 Savoring South Pacific
Instructor: Joy Katzen-Guthrie
Wednesday, March 21
1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

In 1949, the Majestic Theatre was the scene of the Broadway premiere of one of the greatest musicals of the 20th Century. South Pacific opened to unanimous raves following a pre-Broadway run that was such a phenomenon that playwright George S. Kaufman joked that Boston theatregoers lining up at the Shubert Theatre "...don't actually want
anything. They just want to push money under the doors." The musical was based on James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning collection of stories published in 1947 and inspired by his
observations while serving as US Navy Lieutenant Commander in the New Hebrides Islands during WWII. The stories "Fo' Dollah" and "Our Heroine," featuring Bloody Mary, Liat, Lieutenant Cable, Nellie Forbush and Emile de Becque, proved to be magnificent material for a musical adaptation by Oscar Hammerstein and Joshua Logan with a score by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Since then, South Pacific has become legend, not only for its nearly five-year premiere Broadway stage run winning ten Tony Awards, but in film, at Carnegie Hall, and in limitless revivals. Enjoy this opportunity to appreciate the collaboration of literature and music that made South Pacific a feast for our senses.

Location: freeFall Theatre
Member: $10; Non-member: $15